Datasheet

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Chapter 1
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Personal Computer System Components
Balanced Technology Extended (BTX)
In 2003, Intel announced its design for a new motherboard, slated to hit the market
mid- to late-2004. When that time came, the new BTX motherboard was met with mixed
reactions. (Let’s postpone accusations of acronym reverse-engineering until “CTX” is
announced as the name of the next generation.) Intel and its consumers realized that the
price for faster components that produced more heat would be a retooling of the now-
classic (since mid-1990s) ATX design. The motherboard manufacturers saw research and
development expense and potential profit loss simply to accommodate the next generation
of hotter-running processors, processors manufactured by the same designers of the BTX
technology. It was this resistance that caused the BTX form factor to gain very little ground
over the next couple of years. Nevertheless, with the early support of Gateway, and later
buy-in of Dell, the BTX design dug in and charted a path for future success.
Marketing aside, the BTX technology is well thought out and serves the purpose for
which it was intended. By lining up all heat-producing components between air intake vents
and the power supply’s exhaust fan, Intel found that the CPU and other components could
be cooled properly by passive heat sinks. A heat sink is a block of aluminum or other metal,
with veins throughout, that sits on top of the CPU, drawing its heat away. Fewer fans and
a more efficient airflow path create a quieter configuration overall. While the BTX design
benefits any modern onboard implementation, Intel’s recommitment to lower-power CPUs
has at once lessened the need to rush to more expensive BTX systems and given the market
a bit more time to assimilate this newer technology.
There are other motherboard designs, but these are the most popular and
also the ones that are covered on the exam. Some manufacturers (such as
Compaq and IBM) design and manufacture their own motherboards, which
don’t conform to the standards. This style of motherboard is known as a
motherboard of proprietary design.
System Board Components
Now that you understand the basic types of motherboards and their form factors, it’s time to
look at the components found on the motherboard and their locations relative to each other.
Figure 1.3 illustrates many of the following components found on a typical motherboard:
Chipsets
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Expansion slots and buses
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Memory slots and external cache
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CPU and processor slots or sockets
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Power connectors
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Onboard disk drive connectors
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Keyboard connectors
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