Abit BF6 User Manual

The information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on part of the vendor, who assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors that may appear in this manual.

No warranty or representation, either expressed or implied, is made with respect to the quality, accuracy or fitness for any particular part of this document. In no event shall the manufacturer be liable for direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages arising from any defect or error in this manual or product.

Product names appearing in this manual are for identification purpose only and trademarks and product names or brand names appearing in this document are property of their respective owners.

This document contains materials protected under International Copyright Laws. All rights reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced, transmitted or transcribed without the expressed written permission of the manufacturer and authors of this manual.

If you do not properly set the motherboard settings causing the motherboard to malfuncti on or f ail, we cannot guaran t e e an y responsibil it y.

BF6 Motherboard User’s Manual

Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION OF BF6 FEATURES 1-1

EATURES OF THIS MOTHERBOARD

1-1. F

PECIFICATIONS

1-2. S

AY OU T DIAGRAM

1-3. L

HE SYSTEM BLOCK DIAGRAM

1-4. T

CHAPTER 2. INSTALLING THE MOTHERBOARD 2-1

NSTALLING THE MOTHERBOARD TO THE CHASSIS

2-1. I

NSTALLATION OF THE PENTIUM

2-2. I

NSTALLING SYSTEM MEMORY

2-3. I

ONNECTORS

2-4. C 2-5. CPU F

REQUENCY SETTINGS

EADERS AND SWITCHES

, H



II/III, C

ELERONTM

CPU 2-3

CHAPTER 3. INTRODUCTION OF THE BIOS 3-1

OFTMENU

3-1. S

TAN DAR D

3-2. S

DVANCED

3-3. A

DVANCED CHIPSET FEATURES SETUP MENU

3-4. A

NTEGRATED PERIPHERALS

3-5. I

OWER MANAGEMENT SETUP MENU

3-6. P

3-7. P

P/PCI C 3-8. PC H 3-9. L 3-10. L 3-11. S 3-12. S 3-13. E

EALTH STATUS

OAD FAIL-SAFE DEFAULTS

OAD OPTIMIZED DEFAULTS

ET PASSWORD

AV E

& E

XIT WITHOUT SAV I N G

ETUP

III S

CMOS F

BIOS F

ONFIGURATIONS

XIT SETUP

EATURES SETUP MENU

1-1 1-2 1-5 1-6

2-2

2-3 2-6

2-17

3-4

3-9 3-14 3-20 3-24 3-29 3-37 3-42 3-43 3-43 3-44 3-45 3-46

MN-172-2A2-81 Rev. 1.02

APPENDIX A BIOS FLASHING USER INSTRUCTIONS

APPENDIX B INSTALLING THE HIGHPOINT XSTORE PRO

UTILITY

APPENDIX C HARDWARE MONITORING FUNCTION

(INSTALLING THE WINBOND HARDWARE DOCTOR UTILITY)

APPENDIX D THE THERMAL CABLE

APPENDIX E BX 133 OVERCLOCKING GUIDE

APPENDIX F HOW TO GET TECHNICAL SUPPORT

APPENDIX G TROUBLESHOOTING (NEED ASSISTANCE?)

Introduction of BF6 Features 1-1

Chapter 1. Introducti on of BF6 Features

1-1.Features of This Motherboard

The motherboard is designed for a new generation CPUs. It supports the Intel SLOT1 structure (Pen tium



II/III a nd Ce leron

processors), up to 768MB of memory, super I/O, and Green PC functions. The motherboard provides high performance for server systems and meets the requirements for desktop system for mult imedia in the future.

The BF6 has built-in hardware monitoring functions (you can refer to

Appendix C

for detailed information), they can monitor and protect your computer insuring a safe computing environmen t. Th e BF6 also supp orts the PS/2 keyboard , PS/2 mouse, password and hot key wake up features (you can refer to section 3-5 for detailed information), letting you easily wake up your system by these devices. The motherboard can provide high performance for workstations and meets the requirements for desktop systems for multimedia in the future.

The BF6 uses the ABIT newest BIOS technology – CPU Soft Menu Soft Menu

III te chnol o gy not o nly le ts yo u conf ig ure CP U s ett ings eas il y but al so l e ts yo u

III. Th e ABIT CP U

have a greater choice of CPU FSB clock settings. It provides 120 different CPU FSB clock settings. Fro m 84 to 200 MHz , t he i ncre me nt fo r CPU F SB cl ock s et ti ngs is 1 Mhz by 1MH z (you can refer to section 3-1 for detailed information).

Sets You Free From the Y2K Threat

The potential threat of Year 2000 (Y2K) problems are making everyone very nervous. The Y2K issue applies to almost any device, firmware, or software that operates on or with year based dates. This problem is caused by a design flaw in the Real Time Clock (RTC) unit. The RTC only changes the last two digits of the yea r code, but not the century information. As a result, when it comes to 12:00 AM January 1, 2000 the RTC will switch from December 31 11:59 PM 1999 t o 12:00 AM January 1 1900.

Y2K compliance deals with the date change over from 31 December 1999 to 1 January 2000, and with recording an d reportin g of all dates from the RTC including leap year dates. This motherboard is free from the Y2K problem because its BIOS are Y2K compliant.

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1-2 Chapter1

Please Note

If the operating system or application software cannot handle Year 2000 dates, you will

still be facing the Y2K threat because it is not a hardware problem that relates to the

motherboard itself. According to Award BIOS, it is BIOS source code released after 31

May 1995 complies with all known Y2K issues; however, it may still fail the 2000.exe

test. Award has modified its BIOS source code to accommodate the requirements of

2000.exe. Award BIOS source code issued later than 18 November 1996 passes the

NTSL 2000.exe test program.

1-2. Specifications

1. CPU

! Supports Intel Pentium III 450 ~800 MHz Processor cartridge.

! Supports Intel

! Supports 66 and 100MHz CPU external clock speeds

2. Chipset

! Intel® 440BX chipset (82443BX and 82371EB)

! Supports Ultra DMA/33 IDE protocol

! Supports Advanced Configuration and Power Management Interface (ACPI)

! Accelerated Graphics Port connector supports AGP 1x and 2x mode (Sideband) 3.3V

device



Pentium II 233 ~ 450 MHz Processor cartridge.

Celeron™ 266 ~ 533MHz processors (Based on 66MHz PPGA package)

3. Memory (System Memory)

! Three 168-pin DIMM sockets support SDRAM modules

! Supports up to 768MB MAX. (8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256 MB SDRAM)

! Supports ECC

4. System BIOS

! CPU SOFT MENU™ III, can easily set the processor parameters

! AWARD 6.0 Version BIOS

! Supports Plug-and-Play (PnP)

! Supports Advanced Configuration Power Interface (ACPI)

! Supports Desktop Management Interface (DMI)

! Year 2000 compliant

BF6

Introduction of BF6 Features 1-3

5. Multi I/O Functions

2x Channels of Bus Master IDE Ports supporting up to four Ultra DMA 33 devices

PS/2 Keyboard and PS/2 Mouse Connectors

1x Floppy Port ( up to 2.88MB)

1x Parallel Port (EPP/ECP)

2x Serial Ports

2x USB Connectors

6. Miscellaneous

ATX form factor

One AGP slot, six PCI slots and one ISA slot

Supports PS/2 keyboard, PS/2 mouse, password and hot key wake-up functions

Built-in Wake on LAN header

Built-in IrDA TX/RX header

Built-in SB-Link

Built-in Wake On Ring header

Built-in two SMBus headers

Hardware monitoring：Included fan speed, voltages, CPU and system environment

temperature One Thermal Sensor Cable i n cluded

Board size: 305 * 200mm

™

header

User’s Manual

1-4 Chapter1

""""

Supports Wake On LAN, Keyboard or Mouse, but your ATX power supply 5V standby power must be able to provide at least a 720mA current capacity. Otherwise, the functions may not work normally.

""""

PCI slot 2 shares IRQ signals with the PCI slot 5

""""

PCI slot 3 shares IRQ signals with the PCI slot 6

""""

PCI slot 4 shares IRQ signals with the USB controller

""""

PCI slot 6 is fully bus slave. Thus you can’t install a PCI card that needs to use bus master signals into PC I slot 6. But you can instal l vood oo 1 or 2 that d oesn’t need to use bus aster sign a ls in t o P C I s lot 6.

Above 66MHz/100MHz bus speeds are supported but not guaranteed due to the PCI and

chipset specif ic ations.

™

Sound Blaster

States and certain other countries. Sound Blaster - LINK

is a registered trademark of Creative Technology Ltd. in the United

™

and SB-LINK™ are trademarks of Creative Technology Ltd. Specifications and information contained in this manual are subject to change without

notice.

Note

All brand names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

BF6

Introduction of BF6 Features 1-5

1-3. Layout Diagram

Figure 1-2. Motherboard component location

User’s Manual

1-6 Chapter1

1-4. The System Block Diagram

BF6

Figure 1-3. System diagram of the 440BX chipset

Installing the Motherboard 2-1

Chapter 2. Installing the Motherboard

This BF6 motherboard not only provides all standard equipment for classic personal computers, but also pr ovides great flexibilit y for meeting future upgrade dema nds. This chapter will int roduce step by step all the stand ard equipment and will also presen t, as completely as possible, future upgrade capabilities. This motherboard is able to support all



Intel

Pentium II/III processors and Intel Celeron processor now on th e market. (For

details, see specifications in Chapter 1.)

This chapter is organized according the following features:

2-1 Installing the Motherboard to the Chassis 2-2 Installati on of the Pentium 2-3 Installing System Memory 2-4 Connectors, Headers and Switches 2-5 CPU Frequency Settings

$$$$

$$$$$$$$

Before you install or un plug any connect ors or add-on card s, please remember t o turn the ATX power supply switch off (fully turn the +5V standby power off), or take the power cord off. Otherwise, you may cause the motherbo ar d co m ponents or add-o n cards to malfunc tio n or be damaged.



II/III, Celeron CPU

Before Proceeding with the Installation

$$$$

$$$$$$$$

%%%%

User Friendly Instructions

Our objecti ve is to enab le th e novi ce comp uter u ser t o perfo rm th e ins ta llation by h ims elf. W e have atte mp ted to wr ite t his doc ume nt in a ve ry cle ar, concise and de scr ipt ive man ner to help overcome any ob st a c les you ma y fac e d u rin g inst a llati on . Pleas e read ou r ins t ruct ions carefully and follow them step-by-step.

User’s Manual

2-2 Chapter2

2-1. Installing the Motherboard to the Chassis

Most computer chassis will have a base on which there will be many mounting holes that allows the motherboard to be securely attached and at the same time, prevents short circuits. There are two ways to attach the motherboard to the base of chassis:

with studs

or with spacers

Please refer to the figure 2-1 that shows the studs and spacers, they may have several types, but all look like t he figures below:

In principle, the best way to attach the motherboard is with studs, and only if you are unable to d o this should you attach th e board with spacer s. Take a careful look at the motherboard and you will see many mounting holes on it. Line these holes up with the mounting holes on the base. If the

holes line up, an d the re are sc rew hol es this means you can attach the motherboard with studs. If the holes line up and there are only slots, this means you can only attach the motherboard with spacers. Take the tip of the spacers and insert them into the slots. After doing this to all the slots, you can slide the motherboard into po sitio n alig ned w ith the slo ts. A fter the mother boar d has be en posit ioned, check to make sure everything is OK before putting the casing back on.

Figure 2-2 shows you the way to affix the motherboard using studs or spacers:

BF6

Installing the Motherboard 2-3

Note

If the motherboard has mounting holes, but they don’t line up with the holes on the base and there are no slots to attach the spacers, don’t worry, you can still attach the spacers to the mounting holes. Just cut the bottom portion of spacers (the spacer may be a little hard to cut off, so be careful of your hands). In this way you can still attach the motherboard to the base without worrying about short circuits. Sometimes you may need to use th e pl as ti c sp rin g s to i s olat e th e s cr ew fr om t h e mo th er b oa rd P CB su rf a ce, because the cir c uit wire may be near by the hole. Be careful, do n’ t let the screw contact any printed ci rcuit wire or p arts on the PCB th at are n ear the fi xing h ole, otherwis e it may damage the board or cause board malfunctioning.



2-2. Installation of the Pentium

II/III, CeleronTM CPU

The installa ti on meth od for the C PU is p rint ed on th e pack age of th e reten ti on mec hani sm that comes with the motherboard. You can refer to it while you install the CPU. This motherboard also supports the Celeron

Celeron Celeron

PPGA processor, you have to use a n addi tion al adapt er tha t allows you to use a

PPGA processor in a slot 1 board. For this ABIT makes the SlotKET adapter.

PPGA processor. If you want to install the

Note:

Installing a heat sink and cooling fan is necessary for proper heat dissipation from

your CPU. Failin g to install th ese items may resu lt in overheat ing and damage of your CPU. Please refer to your b oxed

processor installa tion or other document ation attached

with your CPU for detailed installing instructions.

2-3. Installing System Memory

This motherboard provides three 168-pin DIMM sites for memory expansion. The DIMM sockets support 1Mx64 (8MB), 2Mx64 (16MB), 4Mx64 (32MB), 8Mx64 (64MB), 16Mx64 (128MB), and 32Mx64 (256 MB) or doub le si d ed DIMM m odules . Mi ni mum memory si ze is 8MB and maxi mum mem ory size is 768 MB SDRAM . There a re th ree Memor y modu le sockets on the system board. (Total six banks)

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2-4 Chapter2

In order to create a memory array, certain rules must be followed. The following set of rules allows for optimum configurations.

The memory array is 64 or 72 bits wide. (depending on with or without parity)

Those modules can be populated in any order.

Supports single and double density DIMMS.

Table 2-1. Valid Memory Configurations

Bank Memory Module Total Memory

Bank 0, 1 (DIMM1) Bank 2, 3 (DIMM2) Bank 4, 5 (DIMM3)

8MB, 16MB, 32MB,

64MB, 128MB, 256MB

8MB, 16MB, 32MB,

64MB, 128MB, 256MB

8MB, 16MB, 32MB,

64MB, 128MB, 256MB

8MB ~ 256MB

Total System Memory

8MB ~ 768MB

Generally, installing SDRAM modules to your motherboard is an easy thing to do. You can refer to figure 2-3 to see what a 168-pin PC100 SDRAM module looks like.

Unlike installi ng SIMMs, DIMMs may be "snapped" directly into the socket.

Figure 2-3 PC100 Module and Component Mark

Note: Certain DIMM sockets have minor

physical differences. If your module doesn't seem to fit, please do not force it into the socket as you may damaged your memory module or DIMM so cket.

The follow ing pr ocedur e w ill show y o u how to instal l a DI MM mod ule into a D I MM socke t.

Before you insta ll the memory

Step 1.

module, ple ase pl ace the com pute r pow er

switch in the

position and disconnect

off

the AC power cord from your computer.

Remove the computer’s chassis

Step 2.

cover.

Before touching any electronic

Step 3.

components, make sure you first touch

an unpainted, groun ded metal object to

discharge an y static elec trici ty stored on

your clothing or body.

Figure 2-4. Memory module installation

BF6

Installing the Motherboard 2-5

Locate your computer’s 168-pin memory expansion DIMM socket.

Step 4.

Insert the DIMM modu le into the expansion s ocket as shown in the i llustration.

Step 5.

Note how the module is keyed to the socket. You can refer to figure 2-4 for the details.

This insures the D I MM modu le will be plu gged in to the soc ket in one w ay

. Firmly press th e DIMM modu le into the DIMM sock et, makin g certain t he

only

module is completely seated in the DIMM socket.

Once the DIMM modu le has been insta lled, the installa tion is complete an d the

Step 6.

computer’s cover can be replaced. Or you can continue to install other devices and add-on cards that are mentioned in the following section.

Note

When you install a DIMM modu le fu lly i nt o the DIMM soc k et, th e ejec t tab shou ld b e locked into the DIMM module very firmly and fit into it s indention on the bo th sides.

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2-6 Chapter2

2-4. Connectors, Headers and Switches

Inside the case of any computer several cables and plugs have to be connected. These cables and plugs are usually connected one-by-one to connectors located on the motherboard. You need to carefully pay attention to any connection orientation the cables may have and, if any, notice the p os iti on of th e f ir st p in of t h e con nect or. In th e exp lana ti on s that follo w, we will describe the significance of the first pin.

We will show you all connectors, headers and switches here, and tell you how to connect them. Please pay attention and read the whole section for necessary information before attempting to finish all of the hardware installat ion inside the com puter chassis. Figure 2-5 s how s y o u all of the co nnec to rs and he ade rs that w e ’l l dis cuss in t he nex t se ctio n, you can use this diagram to visually locate each connector and header we describe.

All connectors, headers and switches mentioned here, will depend on your system configuration. Some features you may (or may not) have and need to connect or configure depending on the peripheral . I f y our system doe s n't hav e such add-on car ds o r s witches you can ignore some special feature connectors.

Figure 2-5. All Connectors and Headers for the BF6

First, Let’s see the headers that BF6 us es, and what their functions ar e.

BF6

Installing the Motherboard 2-7

ATX: ATX Power Input Connector

Caution

If the power supply connectors are not properly attached to the ATX power supply, the power supply or add-on cards may be damaged .

Attach the connector from the power supply to the ATX connector here. Remember you have to push the connector from the ATX power supply firmly to the end with the ATX connector, insuring that you have a good connection.

Note: Watch the pin position and the orientation

FAN1, FAN2 & FAN3: FAN h eader

Attach the connector from the individual CPU fan to the header named FAN1, and attach the con nector fr om the chas sis fan t o FAN2 or & FAN3 header.

You must attach the CPU fan to the processor, or your processor will work abnormally or may be damaged by

overheating. Also, if you want the computer case’s internal temperature to be kept steady and not too high, you had better connect the chassis fan to reach this goal.

Note: Watch the pin position and the orientation

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2-8 Chapter2

IR: IR Header (Infrared)

There is a specific orientation for pins 1 through 5, att ach the conn ector from t he IR KIT or IR device to the IR header. This motherboard supports standard IR transfer rates.

Note: Watch the pin position and the orientation

SB-Link: SB-Link

™

Header

If your PCI audio adapter supports this feature, th en you can connect t he specific cable from the audio adapter to this header. SB-LINK

™

combines Intel's PC-PCI and "Serialized IRQ" protocols. These technolog ie s can be found in Intel 's TX, LX, BX and newer core logic chipsets. This technology provides the DMA and IRQ signals present in ISA Bus today, but not

available on t he PCI Bus. The SB- LINK

™

serves as a bridge between the motherboard and PCI sound card to deliver Sound card for real-mode DOS games. Check to see if your card supports this.

Note: Watch the pin position and the orientation

WOR: Wake On Ring Header

If you have an internal modem adapter that supports this feature, then you c an connect the speci fic cable f rom the inter nal mod em adapter to th is header. This fea ture lets you wake up your computer via remote control through the modem.

Note: Watch the pin position and the orientation

BF6

Installing the Motherboard 2-9

WOL: Wake on LAN Header

If you have a Network adapter th at supp ort s this feature, then you can connect the specific ca ble from the network adapter to this header. This feature lets you wake up your computer via remote control th rough a local area network. You may need a specific utility to control the wake up event, like using the Intel

LDCM® utility or other

similar utilit ies.

Note: Watch the pin position and the orientation

SMB1 & SMB2 header: System Management Bus Connector

This connector is reserved for system management bus (SMBus). The SMBus is a specific implementation of an I

C bus. I2C is a multi-master bus, which means that multiple chips can be connected to the same bus and each one can act as a master by initiating a data transfer. If more than one master simultaneously tries to control the bus, an arbitration procedure decides which

master gets priority.

Note: Watch the pin position and the orientation

TSYS2 header:

The TSYS2 is for you to connect an additional thermistor to detect the temperature in the location of your choice. You can attach one end of the two-t hread ed thermal cable that comes with the motherboard to the TSYS2 header, then tape the other end of th erm al cab le on th e d evi ce you want to detect its temperature.

User’s Manual

2-10 Chapter2

JP1 Header: Disable or Enable Keyboard/Mouse Wake Up

This header is used to Disable or Enable keyboard/mouse wake up function. This function has to cooperate with the BIOS setting (see section 3-5).

Short pin 1-2 Disable keyboard/mouse

Short pin 2-3 Enable keyboard/mouse

Wake Up

Wake Up (default)

JP2 Header: Disable or Enable Power Recovery

This header is used to Disable or Enable power recovery function. This function has to cooperate with the BIOS setting (see section 3-5).

Short pin 1-2 Disable power recovery Short pin 2-3 Enable power recovery

(default)

NOTE

If you enable t he po w er re cove ry funct ion and co nne ct a Z I P dev ice to the L PT po rt, y o u have to turn off the power of your ZIP device after you shutdown your computer. Otherwise, the onboard battery will run down.

CCMOS: CMOS Discharge Jumper

Jumper CCM O S discharge CMOS memory. When you install the motherboard, make sure this jumper is set for normal operation (pin 1 and 2 shorted). See figure 2-6.

BF6

Installing the Motherboard 2-11

Normal Operation (Default) Discharge CMOS

Figure 2-6. CCMOS jumper setting

Note

Before you clear the CMOS, you have to turn th e power off first (including t he +5V standby power). Otherwise, your system may work abnormally or malfunction.

PN1 and PN2 Headers

PN1 and PN2 are for switches and indicators for the chassis’s front panel, there are several functi ons that come from thes e two headers. You have to watch the pin position and the orientation, or you may cause system malfunction s. Figure 2 -7 shows you the PN1 and PN2 functi ons of the pins.

Figure 2-7. The definition of PN1 and PN2 pins

PN1 (Pin 1-2-3-4-5): Power LED and Keylock Switch Headers

There is a specific orientation for pins 1 through 3. Insert the three-threaded power LED cable to pins 1~3, and t he tw o- threade d keylock cable i nto pin 4 and pin 5. Check to make sure the correct pins go to the correct connectors on the motherboard. If you install them with the wrong direction, the

power LED light will not illuminate correctly.

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2-12 Chapter2

Note: Watch the power LED pin position and ori entation.

PN1 (Pin 6-7): HDD LED Header

Attach the cable f rom th e cas e’s fron t pan el HDD LED to this header. If you install it in the wrong direction , the LED light will not illuminate correctly.

Note: W at c h t he HDD LED pi n position and the orientation.

PN1 (Pin 8-9): Power on Switch Header

Attach the cable f rom th e cas e’s fron t pan el power switch to this header.

PN1 (Pin 10-11): Hardware Suspend Switch (SMI Switch) Header

Attach the cable f rom th e cas e’s fron t pan el suspend switch (if there is one) to this header. Use this switch to enable/disable the power management function by hardware.

Note: If you enable the ACPI function in the BIOS setup, this function will not work.

PN2 (Pin 1-2): Hardware Reset Switch Header

Attach the cable f rom th e cas e’s fron t pan el Reset switch to this header. Press and hold the reset button for at least one second to reset the system.

BF6

Installing the Motherboard 2-13

PN2 (Pin 4-5-6-7): Speaker Header

Attach the c ab le fro m t h e syst em sp ea k er t o this header.

PN2 (Pin 9-10): Suspend LED Header

Insert the two-t hreaded suspend LED c able into pin 9 and pin 10. If you insta ll it in the wrong direction, the LED light will not illuminate c orrectly.

Watch the HDD LED pin position

Note:

and the orientat io n.

For the PN1 and PN2 pin’s count-name list, please refer to table 2-2.

Table 2-2. PN1 and PN2 pin count name list

PIN Name Significance of signal PIN Name Significance of si gn a l

PIN 1 +5VDC PIN 1 Ground PIN 2 No connection PIN 2 Res et input

PIN 3 Ground PIN 3 No connection PIN 4 Keyboard inhibit Signa l PIN 4 +5VDC PIN 5 Ground PIN 5 Ground

PN1

PIN6 LED power PIN6 Ground PIN 7 HDD active PIN 7 Speaker data PIN 8 Ground PIN 8 No connection PIN 9 Power On/Off signal PIN 9 +5VDC PIN 10 +3V Standby PIN 10 Suspend LED active PIN 11 Suspend signal

Let’s now see the I/O connectors that B F6 uses, and what their functions are.

PN2

PIN 11 No connection

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2-14 Chapter2

FDC1 Connector

This 34-pin connector is c alled the “

disk drive connector

360K, 5.25”, 1.2M, 5.25”, 720K, 3.5’’,

1.44M, 3.5” or 2.88M, 3.5” floppy disk drive, you can even connect a 3 Mode floppy disk drive (it’s a 3 1/2” drive used in Japanese computer systems).

A floppy disk drive ribbon cable has 34 wires and two conn ectors to provide for th e connection of two flopp y disk drives. After connecting th e single en d t o the FDC 1, c onnect th e two co nn ectors on the ot her end to th e floppy disk drives. In general, people only install one floppy disk drive on their computer system.

Note

A red mark on a wire typically designates the location of pin 1. You need to align the wire pin 1 to the FDC1 connec tor pin 1, then inser t the wire c onnect or int o the FDC1 connector.

IDE1 and IDE2 Connectors

An IDE hard disk drive ribbon cable has 40

wires and two connectors to provide a

connection for two IDE hard disk drives.

After connecting the single end to the IDE1

(or IDE2), connect the two connectors on

the other end to the IDE hard disk drives (or

CD-ROM drive, LS-120, etc.).

”. You can connect a

floppy

Before you install a hard disk, there are some things you need to be aware of:

“Primary” refers to the first connector on the motherboard, that is, the IDE1 connector on

♦

the motherbo ard. “Secondary” refers to the second connector on the motherboard, that is, the IDE2

♦

connector on t he motherboard. Two hard disks can be connected to each connector:

♦

BF6

Installing the Motherboard 2-15

The first HDD is referred to as the “Master”, The second H D D is referred to as the “Slave” . For performance issues, we strongly suggest you don’t install a CD-ROM drive on the

♦

same IDE channel as a har d disk. O therw ise, the sys tem perf orma nce on th is channe l may drop. (how much depends on your CD-ROM drive performance)

Note

The Master or S la ve st a t u s of th e h a rd di sk d ri ve i s s et on th e h a rd di sk it s elf. Plea s e

refer to the hard disk drive user’s manual.

A red mark on a wire typically designates the location of pin 1. You need to align the

wire pin 1 to the IDE1 (or IDE2) connector pin 1, then insert the wire connector into the IDE1(or IDE 2) connector.

Figure 2-8. BF6 back panel connectors

Figure 2-8 s hows the BF6 back panel connect ors, these conn ectors are f or connecti on to outside devices to the motherboard. We will describe wh ich devices will attach to these connectors below.

KBM Lower: PS/2 Keyboard Connector

Attach a PS/2 keyboard connector to this 6pin Din-connector. If you use an AT keyboard, you can go to a computer s tore t o purchase an AT to ATX converter adapter, then you can connect your AT keyboard to this connector. We suggest you use a PS/2

keyboard for best compatibility.

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2-16 Chapter2

KBM Upper: PS/2 Mouse Connector

Attach a PS/2 mouse to this 6-pin Din-

connector.

USB Port Connectors

This motherboard provides two USB ports.

Attach the USB connector from the

individual d evice to these connect ors. You

can attach U SB devices such as a, scanner,

monitor, mouse, keyboard, hub, CD-ROM,

joystick et c. to one of each USB connec tor. Y ou must make sure your operating system supports this feature and you may need to install an additional driver for individual devices. Please refer to your device user’s manual for detailed infor mation.

Serial Port COM1 and COM2 Connector

Parallel Port Connector

BF6

This motherboard provides two COM ports,

you can connect an external modem, mouse

or other devices that support this

communication protocol.

This parallel port is also called an “LPT”

port, because it usually connects to the

printer. You can connect other devic es that

support this c ommunic ation p rotoc ol, like a

scanner, M.O. drive, etc.

Installing the Motherboard 2-17

2-5. CPU Frequency Settings

The BF6 pro v ide s two ways to co nf igure CPU setti ngs. One uses the ABIT CPU So f t Menu III technology, the other uses DIP Switches. Y o u can use the DS10 to en able or disabl e Soft Menu III.

NOTE

When you enable Soft Menu III, all DIP switches must be set to OFF.

DIP SW (DS1~DS8): DIP Switch for Setting CPU Frequency

The follow ing tabl es w ill prese nt the a djust ment f or the CPU fr equency and m ult iplie r fac tor. (The default settings are all “OFF.”)

Multiplier

Factor

1.5 ON OFF ON ON 66 OFF OFF OFF OFF

2.0 OFF ON ON OFF 75 OFF ON OFF OFF

2.0 ON OFF OFF ON 83 ON OFF OFF OFF

2.5 OFF OFF ON OFF 100 OFF OFF ON OFF

3.0 OFF ON OFF OFF 103 ON ON ON OFF

3.5 OFF OFF OFF OFF 112 OFF ON ON OFF

4.0 OFF ON ON ON 124 ON ON OFF OFF

4.5 OFF OFF ON ON 133 ON OFF ON OFF

5.0 OFF ON OFF ON

5.5 OFF OFF OFF ON

6.0 ON ON ON OFF

6.5 ON OFF ON OFF

7.0 ON ON OFF OFF

7.5 ON OFF OFF OFF

8.0 ONONONON

AGP Frequency

The DS9 lets you set the frequency ratio between AGP clock and the Front Side Bus (CPU Bus). Generally, if you set the CPU FSB clock to 66MHz, you ought to set this switch to “OFF (1/1)”. If you set the CPU FSB clock to 100Mhz or higher, you ought to set this switch to “ON (2/3)”

DS1DS2DS3DS4

External

Clock

Frequency

DS5DS6DS7DS8

User’s Manual

2-18 Chapter2

DS9

ON AGP Clock / Front Side Bu s = 2/3 OFF AGP Clock / Front Sid e Bus = 1/1

Soft Menu III

The DS10 lets you enable or disable Soft Menu III. The Soft Menu III allows you to configure the CPU settings easily through BIOS setup (refer to section 3-1). When you enable Soft Menu III, all DIP switches must be set to OFF.

DS10

ON Disable Soft Menu III OFF Enable Soft Menu III

BF6

Introduction of th e BIO S 3-1

Chapter 3. Introduction of the BIOS

The BIOS is a program located on a Flash Memory chip on the motherboard. This program will not be lost when you turn the computer off. This program is also referred to as the “boot” program. It is the only channel for the hardware circuit to communicate with the operating system. Its main function is to manage the setup of the motherboard and interface cards parameter s, incl ud ing s impl e par ame ter s such as t ime, date , har d disk d rive , as w e ll as more complex paramet ers su ch a s hard ware synch ron i zati on, devi c e opera ti n g mode,

SOFT MENU™ III

or will ope r ate at its best, onl y if all these parameter s are correctly and optimally configured through the BIOS.

Do not change the parameters inside the BIOS unless you fully understand

&&&&

their meanings and consequences.

The parameters inside the BIOS are used to setup the hardware synchronization or a device’s operating mode. If the parameters are not correct, they will produce errors, the computer will crash, and so metime s yo u will even not be able to boot the compu ter af ter it has crashed. We recommend that you do not change the parameters inside the BIOS unless you are very familiar with them. If you are not able to boot your computer anymore, please refer to t he “CMOS Discharge Jumper” in Section 2-4, Cha pter 2.

features and setu p of CP U sp eed . Th e comp ut er wi ll op er at e n or ma ll y,

CPU

When you start the computer, it is controlled by the BIOS program. The BIOS first operates an auto-diagnostic test called POST (Power On Self Test) for all the necessary hardware, it then configures the parameters of the hardware synchronization, and detects all the hardware. Only when thes e tasks a re complet ed does i t give up cont rol of the c omputer t o the program of the next level, which is the operating system (OS). Since the BIOS is the only channel for hardware and software to communicate, it is the key factor for system stability, and in insuring that your system performs at its best. After the BIOS has achieved the auto-diagnostic and auto-detection operations, it will display the following message :

PRESS DEL TO ENTER SETUP

The message will be displayed for three to five seconds, if you press the access the BIOS Setup menu. At that moment, the BIOS will display the following screen:

key, you will

Del

User’s Manual

3-2 Chapter3

Note

To improve stabil i ty and functions, BIOS e s ar e constantly impr o v ing , therefore; the

BIOS screens i n this chapter m ay not fully match your current BIOS screen.

All default setting is use the

(

Fail-Safe Defaults

, some items defa ult values will be changed.

Load Optimized Defaults

settings. If you use the

Load

Figure 3-1. CMOS Setup Utility Main Screen Shot

This motherboard uses a totally different operating interface so the Award BIOS screens are different than in other versions. It provides more functions with increased user friendliness. In the BIOS Setup main men u in Figure 3- 1, you can see severa l option s. We will explain these option s st ep b y step in th e f ollowing p ages of t hi s chap ter, but let u s firs t see a short description of the function keys you may use here:

Press

(up, down, an d rig ht) to cho os e the option you want to conf ir m or to mo dif y

!!!!""""####$$$$

in the main m enu . Press the

key to select the item you wan t. Si mply move th e highli ght to the field

Enter

you want to select, and press Enter.

Press

when you have completed setting up the BIOS parameters to save them and exit

F10

the BIOS Setup menu. Press

Press F1 to display the Genera l Help screen.

In addition to the

Esc

Exit

the BIOS Setup.

Item Help

window, more information can be provided for the alternate

BF6

Introduction of th e BIO S 3-3

function by pressing the F1 key in any menu in the BIOS.

Press F5 to reset current screen settings to their Setup Default values.

Press F6 to return to the

causing a syste m bo ot f a ilur e, use this f unct ion ke y to qu ickl y r etur n to t he s y ste m de faul t settings. Press F7 to quickly set the system to the

Fail-Safe Default

setting i.e. if you use t he wrong settings

Optimized Defaults

In some setup menu screens, you can see the scroll bar on the ri ght side of the window. You can use the ) and * keys or the up and down arrow keys to scroll the screen to view more help information or functions to select.

You may see the right cursor symb ol app ea r on the left side of some items, indicating that additional information or options can be select in a Sub-Menu for this item.

setting.

Note

The item heading in the square outlet represents the default setting for that field

Computer Knowledge: CMOS Data

Maybe you have heard of someone losing CMOS DATA. What is the CMOS? Is it important? CMOS is the memory in which the BIOS parameters that you have configured are stored. This memory is passive, you can both read its data, and store data in it. But this memory has to be powered by a battery in order to avoid data loss when the computer is turned off. If the CMOS battery dies, you will loose all CMOS data. We therefore recommend that you write down all the parameters of your hardware, or you put a label with these parameters on your hard disk.

User’s Manual

3-4 Chapter3

3-1. SoftMenu III Setup

™

The CPU can be setup through a programmable switch (

CPU SOFT MENU

replaces the traditional manual hardware configuration. This feature allows the user to more

easily complete the installation procedures. You can install the CPU without configuring any

jumpers or switches. The CPU must be setup according its specifications.

III

), that

Figure 3-2. CPU Soft Menu

III Screen Shot

System Processor Type:

➤ Intel Pentium III ➤ Intel Pentium II ➤ Intel Celeron

MMX

CPU Operating Frequency:

This option sets the CPU speed.

In this field, the CPU speed is indicated like this: CPU speed = External clock * Multiplier

factor, select the CPU speed according the type and the speed of your CPU.

For Intel Pentium II and Celeron™ PPGA MMX processors, you can choose the following

settings:

BF6

Introduction of the BIOS 3-5

➤233 (66) ➤266 (66) ➤300 (66) ➤333 (66) ➤300 (100) ➤350 (100) ➤400(100) ➤450 (100) ➤366 (66) ➤400 (66) ➤433 (66) ➤466 (66) ➤500 (66) ➤533 (66) ➤533 (133) ➤500 (100) ➤550 (100) ➤600(100) ➤600 (133) ➤650 (100) ➤667 (133) ➤700 (100) ➤750 (100) ➤800 (100) ➤733 (133) ➤800 (133) ➤User Define

Note

CPU bus speed above 66MHz/100MHz supported but not guaranteed due to the PCI

and chipset specs.

User defined external clock and multiplier factor:

➤➤➤➤

User Defined:

When you choose the User Define, you will be able to set the following five items.

!!!!

!!!!!!!!

The wrong settings of the multiplier and external clock in certain circumstances may

cause CPU damage. Setting the working frequency higher than the PCI chipset or

processor specs, may cause abnormal memory module functioning, system hangs,

hard disk drive data lose, abnormal functioning of the VGA card, or abnormal

functioning with other add-on cards. Using non-specification settings for your CPU is

not the intention of this explanation. These should be used for engineering testing, not

for normal applications.

War ni ng

!!!!

!!!!!!!!

If you use non-specification settings for normal operation, your system may not be

stable, and may effect system reliability. Also, we do not guarantee the stability and

compatibility for settings that are not within specification, and any damage of any

elements on the motherboard or peripherals, is not our responsibility.

✏✏✏✏

CPU FSB Clock:

➤66MHz (1/2) ➤75MHz (1/2) * ➤83MHz (1/2)* ➤84Mhz ~ 200MHz

Note

CPU bus speed above 66MHz/100MHz supported but not guaranteed due to the PCI

and chipset specs.

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3-6 Chapter3

✏✏✏✏

Multiplier Factor:

You can choose the following multiplier factors:

➤ x 2 ➤ x 2.5 ➤ x 3 ➤ x 3.5 ➤ x 4 ➤ x 4.5 ➤ x 5 ➤ x 5.5 ➤ x 6 ➤ x 6.5 ➤ x 7 ➤ x 7.5 ➤ x 8

✏✏✏✏

SEL100/66# Signal

Two options are available: Default and Low. The default setting is “Default”.

✏✏✏✏

PCI Clock/CPU FSB Clock

Three options are available: 1/2, 1/3 and 1/4. This item lets you set the PCI clock. It

correlates with the CPU FSB clock you set. For example, if you set the CPU FSB

clock to 100MHz and choose 1/3 here, the PCI clock will be 33.3 MHz.

✏✏✏✏

AGP Clock/CPU FSB Clock

Two options are available: 1/1 and 2/3. This item lets you set the AGP clock. It

correlates with the CPU FSB clock you set. The default setting is “1/1”. In this case,

the AGP clock will equal to the CPU FSB clock. If you choose “2/3”, the AGP clock

will be the CPU FSB clock divided by 3 and times 2. Generally, if you set the CPU

FSB clock to 66MHz, you ought to select “1/1”. If you set the CPU FSB clock to

100Mhz or higher, you ought to select “2/3”.

✏✏✏✏

AGP Transfer Mode

This function allows the user to determine the capability of the AGP device.

Selecting “Default” gives optimized performance. The video driver will decide the

data transfer mode automatically. If the CPU FSB clock exceeds 125MHz, setting

AGP Transfer Mode to “Normal” will result in a more stable system.

✏✏✏✏

CPU Core Voltage

This item lets you select the CPU core voltage manually. You can change values in

the “

CPU Core Voltage

” option lists by using the arrow up and down keys.

!!! Warning !!!

You must check the CPU document to make sure your CPU core voltage before

you want to adjust this item. Incorrect CPU core voltage settings in certain

circumstances may cause CPU damage.

✏✏✏✏

I/O Voltage

This item lets you select the voltage supplied to the DRAM, chipset and AGP. You

can change values in the “

I/O Voltage

” option lists by using the arrow up and down

keys.

BF6

Introduction of the BIOS 3-7

!!! Warning !!!

Using a higher voltage may result in the shortening of your computer

components’ life. We strongly suggest you leave this item on default setting.

✏✏✏✏

In-Order Queue Depth

Two options are available: 1 and 8. This item lets you set cache buffer for CPU data

processing. If you are not well acquainted with this item setting, please leave it on

the default setting (8).

✏✏✏✏

Level 2 Cache Latency:

Sixteen setting are available, Default, and 1 to 15. This item can let you adjust the

processor L2 cache speed, the larger the value, the faster the L2 cache will run. You

have to be aware that if you set the L2 cache speed too fast, it will cause the L2 cache

to fail. If the L2 cache fails it will cease to run until you reset the value, but the

processor and L1 cache will still function, just not as well. To make sure your L2

cache functions properly please choose an appropriate setting. The default setting is

Default.

Normally, we do not recommend that you use the “User Define” option to setup CPU speed

and multiplier factors This option is for setup of future CPUs whose specifications are still

unknown. The specifications of all present CPUs are included in the default settings. Unless

you are very familiar with all CPU parameters, it is very easy to make mistakes when you

define the external clock and the multiplier factor by yourself.

Solution in case of booting problem due to invalid clock setup:

Normally, if the CPU clock setup is wrong, you will not be able to boot. In this case, turn the

system off then on again. The CPU will automatically use its standard parameters to boot.

You can then enter the BIOS Setup again and set up the CPU clock. If you can’t enter the

BIOS setup, you must try turning the system on a few times (3~4 times) or press

“INSERT“ key when turning on and the system will automatically use its standard

parameters to boot. You can then enter BIOS SETUP again and set up the new parameters.

When you change your CPU:

This motherboard has been designed in such a way that you can turn the system on after

having inserted a CPU in the socket without having to configure any jumpers or DIP

switches. But if you change your CPU, normally you just have to turn off the power supply,

change the CPU and then, set up the CPU parameters through

if the new CPU is slower than the old one (and is same brand and type), we offer you two

methods to successfully complete the CPU change operation.

SOFT MENU

™

. However,

III

User’s Manual

3-8 Chapter3

Method 1: Setup up the CPU for the lowest speed for its brand. Turn the power supply off

and change the CPU. Then turn the system on again, and set up the CPU

parameters through

SOFT MENU

™

III

Method 2: Since you have to open the computer case when you change the CPU, it could be

a good idea to use the CCMOS jumper to erase the parameters of the original

CPU and to enter BIOS Setup to set up CPU parameters again.

Attention

After setting up the parameters and leaving the BIOS SETUP, and having verified that

the system can be booted, do not press the Reset button or turn off the power supply.

Otherwise the BIOS will not read correctly, the parameters will fail and you must enter

SOFT MENU™ III

again to set up the parameters all over again.

Spread Spectrum Modulated

For EMC (Electro-Magnetic Compatibility Test) testing you maybe need to adjust this item

for optimal results, we do not recommend you change the default, except for special reasons.

BF6

Introduction of th e BIO S 3-9

3-2. Standard CMOS Features Setup Menu

This contains the basic configuration parameters of the BIOS. These parameters include date, hour, VGA card, FDD and HDD settings.

Figure 3-3. Standard CMOS Setup Screen Shot

Date (mm:dd:yy):

You can set the date in this item: month (mm), date (dd) and year (yy).

Time (hh:mm:ss):

You can set the time in this item: hour (hh), minute (mm) and second (ss).

IDE Primary Master / Slave and IDE Secondary Master / Slave:

These items have a sub-menu to let you choose further options. You can refer to the follow figure to check what options are available.

User’s Manual

3-10 Chapter3

Figure 3-4. IDE Primary Mas t er Setup Screen Shot

IDE HDD Auto-Detection:

Press the drivers (HDD). If auto detection is successful, the correc t values will be shown in the remaining items of this menu.

key for the BIOS to auto detect all detailed parameters of the hard disk

Enter

Note

A new IDE HDD must be first formatted, otherwise it c an not read/ write. The ba sic

step in using a H D D is to make a FORMAT the dri ve. M ost curren t HDDs have alr eady been sub ject ed to low-lev el format at the factory, so you can probably skip this operation. Remember though, the primary I D E H D D m us t hav e its partitio n s e t to active within the FDISK proce dur e .

If you are using an old HDD that is already formatted, auto detection can not detect

(

the correct par a m e ters. You may need to do a lo w-level format or set the par ameters manually, and then check if the HDD is working.

IDE Primary Master:

Three settings are available: automatically check what kind hard disk you are using. If you want to set the HDD parameters yourself, make sure you fully understand the meaning of the parameters, and be sure to refer to the manual provided by the HDD manufacture to get the settings right.

Access Mode:

Since old ope r ati ng s ystems were only able to support HDDs w ith capacities no bigger than 528MB, any hard disk with more than 528MB was unusable. AWARD BIOS features a

BF6

Auto, Manual and None .

HDD low-level format

, then run F DI SK , and the n

If you choose Auto, the BIOS will

Introduction of th e BIO S 3-11

solution to this problem: you can, according to your operating system, choose four operating modes: NORMAL , LBA , LARGE ,Auto.

The HDD auto detection option in the sub-menu will automatically detect the parameters of your hard disk an d the mode supported.

➤➤➤➤

Auto:

Just let the BIOS detect your HDD access mode and make the decisions.

➤➤➤➤

Normal mode:

Standard normal mode support s hard disk s of up to 528MB or less. This m ode directly uses positions indicated by Cylinders (CYLS), Heads, and Sectors to access data.

➤➤➤➤

LBA (Logical Block Addressing) mode:

The earlier LBA mode can support HDD capacities of up to 8.4GB, and this mode uses a different method to calculate the position of disk data to be accessed. It translates Cylinders (CYLS), Heads and Sectors into a logical address where data is located. The Cylinders, Heads, and Sectors displayed in this menu do not reflect the actual structure of the hard disk, they are just reference values used to calculate actual positions. Currently, all high capacity hard dis ks su pport this mo de, that’ s why we recomme nd yo u use this mode. Currently, the BIOS can support the INT 13h extension function, enabling the LBA mode to suppor t hard disk drive capacities exceeding 8.4GB.

➤➤➤➤

Large Mode:

When the number of cylinders (CYLs) of the hard disk exceeds 1024 and DOS is not able to support it, or i f your operat ing s ystem does not support LBA mode, you shou ld select this mode.

Capacity:

This item a uto dis pl ay s yo ur HD D s ize . No te tha t th is s ize is us uall y sl ightly g reate r tha n the size given by a disk checking program of a formatted disk.

Note

All the items below are available when you set the item

Cylinder:

When disks are placed directly above one another along the shaft, the circular vertical "slice" consisting of all the tracks located in a particular position is called a cylinder. You can set the number of cylinders for a HDD. The minimum number you can enter is 0, the maximum number you can enter is 65536.

Head:

This is the tiny electromagnetic coil and metal pole used to create and read back the magnetic patterns on the disk (also called the read/write head). You can configure the

Primary IDE M aster

Manual

User’s Manual

3-12 Chapter3

number of re ad/wr ite hea ds. T he m inimum num ber y ou can e nter is 0, the max imum num ber you can enter is 255.

Precomp:

The minimum number you can enter is 0, the maximum number you can enter is 65536.

Warning

Setting a value of 65 53 6 m e ans no har d disk exists.

Landing Zone:

This is a non-data area on t he disk's inner cylinder where the heads can rest when the power is turned off. The minimum number you can enter is 0, the maximum number you can enter is 65536.

Sector:

The minimum segmen t of trac k length that can be a ssigned t o stored dat a. Sectors usuall y are grouped into blocks or logical blocks that function as the smallest units of data permit. You can configure this item to sectors per track. The minimum number you can enter is 0, the maximum number you can ent er is 255.

Driver A & Driver B:

If you have installed the floppy disk drive here, then you can select the type of floppy drive it can support. Six options are available: None,360K, 5.25 in. , 1.2M, 5.25in. , 720K,

3.5 in. , 1.44M, 3.5 in. , 2.88M, 3.5 in.

Floppy 3 Mode Support:

Four options ar e avail abl e: D isable d , Driver A , Driver B , Both. The defa ult se tting is

. 3 Mode floppy disk drives (FDD) are 3 1/2” drives used in Japanese computer

Disabled

systems. If you need to access data stored in this kind of floppy, you must select this mod e, and of course you must have a 3 Mode floppy drive.

Video:

You can select the VGA modes for your video adapter, four options are available: EGA/VGA , CGA 40 , CGA 80 , MONO. The default setting is EGA/VGA.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-13

Halt On:

You can select which type of error will cause the system to halt. Five options are available: All Errors , No Errors , All, But Keyboard , All, But Diskette , All, But Disk/Key.

You can see your system memory list in the lower right box, it shows the

Extended Memory

system during bo o t-up procedure.

and

total Memory size

configurat ions in y our sy ste m. I t is dete cte d by the

Base Memo ry

User’s Manual

3-14 Chapter3

3-3. Advanced BIOS Features Setup Menu

In each item, you can press < Enter> at any time to display all the options f o r this item.

Attention

Advanced BIOS Features Setup Menu has already been set for maximum operation. If you do not really understand each of the options in this menu, we recommend you use the default val ue s .

Figure 3-5. Advanced BIOS Features Setup Screen Shot

Quick Power On Self Test:

After the c om puter h as b een power ed on , th e B IOS of t h e mot h erb oa rd will r u n a s eri es of tests in order to chec k the sy ste m and its peri pheral s. I f the Quic k Pow er on S elf- Test feature is enable, th e BIOS wil l s i mp li fy t h e t est p roc ed u res in ord er to s p eed u p th e boot p roc es s. The default setting is

BF6

Enabled

Introduction of th e BIO S 3-15

Virus Warning:

This item can be set to Enabled or Disabled, the default setting being

Disabled

. When this feature is enabled, if there is any attempt from a software or an application to access the boot sector or the partition table, the BIOS will warn you that a boot virus is attempting to access the hard disk.

CPU Level 1 Cache:

This item is used to enable or to disable t he CPU level 1 cach e. When th e cache i s set to

it is much slower, so the default setting for this item is

Disabled

Enabled

since it will speed up memory access. Some old and very poorly written programs wi ll make the computer malfunction or crash if the system speed is too high. In this case, you should disable this feature. The default setting is

Enabled

CPU Level 2 Cache:

This item is us ed to ena b le or to di sab le t h e CPU level 2 cac h e. When the extern a l c a che i s e

, it will speed up memory access, and the system works faster. The default setting is

nable

Enabled

CPU L2 Cache ECC Checking:

This item is used to enable or to disable the CPU level 2 cache ECC (Error Correction Code) checking function. The default setting is

Enabled

Processor Number Feature:

This feature ca n l et t he pro gram re ad the data i nside y o ur pro ce sso r. This feature only wo rks with Intel

Pentium® III processors. When you in stall a Pentium® III proce ssor i nto you r

motherboard, and when your system boots-up then this item will show up in BIOS.

Two items will be available: Enabled and Disabled. When you choose Enabled, the specific program can read your processor's serial number. When you choose Disabled it will not allow the program to read your processor's serial number. The default setting is Disabled.

First Boot Devic e:

When the comput er boots up, the BIOS attempt s to load the operating system fr om the devices in the sequ ence selec ted in th ese it ems: flopp y disk dri ve A, LS/ZIP d evices, hard

User’s Manual

3-16 Chapter3

drive C, SCSI hard disk drive or CD-ROM. There are ten options for the boot sequence that you can choose (The default setting is Floppy.):

Floppy ! LS/ZIP ! HDD-0 ! SC SI ! CDROM ! HDD-1 ! HDD-2 ! HDD-3 ! LAN ! UDMA66.

NOTE

The UDMA66 option is only for the motherboard that has built-in HPT 366 IDE controller.

Second Boot Device:

Description is the sa m e as the First Boot Device, the default setting is HDD-0.

Third Boot Device:

Description is same as the First Boot Device, the default setting is LS/ZIP

Boot Other Device:

Two options are available: Enabled or Disabled. The default setting is Enabled. This setting allows the BIOS to t r y three kinds of boot devices that set from the above three items.

Swap Floppy Drive:

This item can be set as Enabled or Disabled. The default setting is Disabled. When this feature is enabled, you don’t need to open the computer case to swap the position of floppy disk drive connectors. Drive A can be set as drive B and drive B can be set as drive A.

Boot Up Floppy Seek:

When the compu ter b oots up , th e BIOS det ect s if the syst em ha s a FDD or not . When thi s item is enable, if the BIOS detects no floppy drive, it will display a floppy disk drive error message. If this item is disabl ed, t he BI OS will skip this test . The def ault se tting is Disabled.

Boot Up NumLock Status:

➤ On: At boot up, the Numeric Keypad is in numeric mode. (Default Settings) ➤ Off: At boot up, the Numeric Keypad is in cursor control mode.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-17

Typematic Rate Setting:

This item allo ws you t o adju st th e keyst roke rep eat rat e. When set to Enabled, you can set the two keyboard typematic controls that follow (Typemati c Rat e and Typematic Rate Delay). If this item is set to Disabled, the BIOS will use the default setting. The default setting is Enabled.

Typematic Rate (Chars/Sec):

When you press a ke y continuously, the keyboard will r epeat the keys tr o ke acco r di ng to the rate you have set (U nit: char acte rs/se cond）. Eight o ptions are avail able : 6 ! 8 ! 10 ! 12 ! 15 ! 20 ! 24 ! 30 ! Back to 6. The default setting is 30.

Typematic D elay (Msec):

When you pres s a ke y contin uous ly, if you exceed the de l ay you have se t her e , the key bo ard will automati call y repe at t he ke y stro ke acco rdi ng to a ce rt ain r ate (U nit: mil lise conds) . F o ur options are available: 250 ! 500 ! 750 ! 1000 ! Back to 250. The default setting is 250.

Security Option:

This option can b e set to System or Setup. The d efault setting is Setup. After you have created a password through PASSWORD SETTING, this option will deny access to your system (System) or modification of computer setup (BIOS Setup) by unauthorized users.

➤SYSTEM: When you choose System, a pas sword is requi red each time t he computer

boots up. If the correct password is not given, the system will not start.

➤SETUP: When you choose Setup, a password is required only when accessing the

BIOS Setup.

If you have not set a pas sword in the PASSWORD SETTING option, thi s option is not available.

T o disable se curity, select Set Supervisor Pass word at main menu and t hen y ou w ill be as ked to enter password. Do not type anything and just press the Enter key and it will disable security. Once securit y is disab led, th e system wil l boot an d you can enter th e BIOS setup menu freely

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Notice

Don’t forget your password. If you forget the password, you will have t o open the computer case and clear all information in the CMOS before you can start up the system. But by doing this, you will have to reset all previously set options.

OS Select For DRAM > 64MB:

When the system mem ory is bigger than 64MB, the communicati on method between t he BIOS and the operating system wi ll differ from one operati ng system to an other. If you use OS/2, select OS2; if you a re using an other operatin g system, selec t Non-OS2. The default setting is Non-OS2.

Report No FDD For WIN 95:

When using Windows® 95 without a floppy drive, please set this item to Yes. Otherwise, set it to No. The default setting is No.

Video BIOS Shadow:

This option is used to define whether the BIOS on the video card uses the shadow feature or not. You should set this option to Enabled, otherwise the display performance of the system will greatly decrease.

Shadowing address ranges:

This option a llows you to d ecide if th e ROM BIOS area of an int erface ca rd at a speci fic address uses the shadow feature or not. If you have no interface card using this memory block, don’t enable this option.

You have six address ranges you can select:

C8000-CBFFF Shadow, CC000-CFFFF Shadow, D0000-D3FFF Shadow, D4000-D7FFF Shadow, D8000-DBFFF Shadow, DC000-DFFFF Shadow.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-19

Computer Knowledge: SHADOW

What is the SHADOW? The BIOS of standard video or interface cards is stored in ROM, and it is oft en very sl ow. With the Shadow feat ure, the C PU reads the B IOS on the VGA card and copies it into RAM. When the CPU runs this BIOS, the operation is speeded up.

Delay IDE Initial (sec):

This item is used t o support some old models or sp eci al types of hard di sks or C D-ROM s. They may need a longer am ount of tim e to initia lize and prepare for a ctivati on. Since th e BIOS may not de te ct thos e k inds o f de vice s during system booting . You can ad just the v alue to fit such d evices. Larger values will give more delay time t o the devic e. The minimum number you can enter is 0, the max im um number you can e nte r is 15. The default s etting is

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3-4. Advanced Chipset Features Setup Menu

The Advanced Chipset Features Setup Menu is used to modify the contents of the buffers in the chipset on the motherb oard. Sin ce the paramet ers of the bu ffers are closely re lated t o hardware, if the se tup is not corr ect o r is fal se , t he mothe r boar d w il l be com e uns tabl e or you will not be abl e to bo ot up. I f yo u do n’t k now the h ardw a re ve ry w ell , use def ault v al ues ( i.e . use the Load Optimized Defaults option ). The only t ime you migh t con side r maki ng an y changes is if you discover that data is being lost while using your syst em.

Figure 3-6. Advanced Chipset Features Setup Screen Shot

You can use the arrow keys to move between the items. Use ) , * and Enter key to change the values. When you have finished setting up the chipset, pr ess menu.

The first chipset settings deal with CPU access to DRAM. The default timings have been carefully chosen and should only be altered if data is being lost. Such a scenario might well occur if your system has mixed speed DRAM chips installed so that greater delays may be required to preserve the integrity of the data held in the slower memory chips.

SDRAM RAS-to-CAS Delay

Two options are available: 2 and 3. T he de faul t se tti ng is 3. This item lets you insert a timing delay betwee n the CAS and RA S str obe signals, us e d when DRAM is written to, r ead from, or refreshed. Fast gives faster performance; and Slow gives more stable performance. This item applies only when synchronous DRAM is installed in the system.

BF6

to go back to the main

Esc

Introduction of th e BIO S 3-21

SDRAM RAS Precharge Time:

Two options are available: 2 and 3. Th e prech arge time i s th e number of c ycles it tak es for the RAS to accumu late its charge before DR AM refreshs . If insufficient t ime is allowed, refresh maybe incomplete and the DRAM may fail to retain data. This field applies only if synchronous DRAM is installed in the system.

SDRAM CAS Latency Time:

Two options are available: 2 and 3. The default setting is 3. You ca n select SDR AM CAS (Column Address Strobe) latency time according your SDRAM specification.

SDRAM Precharge Control:

This option determines the action taken when a page missing occurs (SDRAM only). When select Disabl ed, means SDRAM issu e precharge on all com mand, and gives more s table performance.

DRAM Data Integrity Mode:

Two options are available: Non-ECC or ECC. This option is used to configure the type of DRAM in your system. ECC is Error Checking and Correction, when your memory is ECC memory, choose the ECC opti on.

System BIOS Cacheable:

You can select Enabled or Disabled. The default setting is Enabled. When you select Enabled allows caching of the system BIOS ROM at F0000h-FFFFFh, resulting in better

system performance. However, if any program writes to this memory area, a system error may result.

Video BIOS Cacheable:

You can select Enabled or Disabled. The default setting is Enabled. When you select Enabled allows caching of the video BIOS, resulting in better system performance.

However, if any program writes to this memory area, a system error may result.

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Video RAM Cacheable:

You can select Enable or Disable. When you select Enabled, you get faster video RAM executing speed via the L2 cache. You must check your VGA adapter manual to find out if any compatibility problems will occur.

8 Bit I/O Recovery Time:

Nine options are av ail abl e: NA , 8 , 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ,Back to NA . This option specifie s t he length of a del a y inserted betw een consecutive 8 bit I/O operations . For an earlier 8 b it Ad d-o n car d, s ome time s y ou ne e d to adj ust its re co ve ry time to make it w o rk normally.

16 Bit I/O Recovery Time:

Five options are available: NA , 4 , 1 , 2 , 3 , Back to NA. This option specifies the length of a delay inse rted betw een co nsec utiv e 16 bit I/O operations . F or an ear lier 16 bit Add-on card, sometimes you need to adjust its recovery time to make it work normally.

Memory Hole At 15M-16M:

Two options are availab le: Enabled an d Disabled. The defa ult setting is Disabled. This option is used to reserve the memor y b lock 15M-16M for ISA adapter ROM. Some special peripherals need to use a memory block located between 15M and 16M, and this memory block has a size of 1M. We recommend that you disable this option.

Passive Release:

Two options are availab le: Enabled and Disab led. Set the option to en abled or disabled passive release for the Intel PIIX4 chip (Intel PCI to ISA bridge). This function is used to meet the latency of the ISA bus m aster, if y ou have an ISA card compatibility pr o blem, you can try to enable or disable this option for optimal result.

Delayed Transaction:

Two options are availa ble: Enab led and Di sabled . The defa ult s etting is Disabled. Set the option to enabled or disabled PCI 2.1 features including passive release and delayed transaction fo r t he ch ipse t. T his func tio n is u sed to m ee t the late ncy of PCI cycles to or fro m the ISA bus. This optio n must be e nable d to pro vide PCI 2.1 compl iance . If y ou have an ISA card compatibility problem, you can try to enable or disable this option for optimal results.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-23

AGP Aperture Size (MB):

Seven options are available: 4 , 8 , 16 , 32 , 64 , 128 , 256 , Back to 4 . Th is option specifies the amount of system memory that can be used by the AGP device. The aperture is a portion of the PCI memory address range dedicated for graphics memory address space.

SDRAM Leadoff Command

Two options are availab le: 3 and 4. This item lets you set th e SDR AMs acces s sp eed. You can leave it on the default setting (3). If you want to adjust this item, you must check out your SDRAM SPD values first.

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3-5. Integrated Peripherals

In this menu, you can change the onboard I/O device and other hardware peripheral settings.

Figure 3-7. In tegrated Peripherals Setup Screen Shot

Onboard IDE-1 Controller:

The onboard IDE 1 controller can be set as Enabled or Disabled. The default setting is Enabled. The inte gr ated pe ri pher al con tro ll er contai ns an IDE interface with suppo rt for tw o IDE channels. If you choose Disabled, it will effect the s ettings of fou r items not available. For example, if you disabled the Onboard IDE-1 Controller, you will also disable the Master/Slave Drive PIO Mode and Master/Slave Drive Ultra DMA.

✏✏✏✏

Master/Slave Drive PIO Mode:

Six options are available: Auto , Mode 0 , Mode 1 , Mode 2 , Mode 3 , Mo de 4 , Back to Auto. The four IDE PIO (Programmed Input/Output) items let you set a PIO mode (0-4) for each of the four IDE d evices that the onboard IDE interface supports. M odes 0 through 4 provide successively increased performance. In Auto mode (default setting), the system automatically determines th e b est mode for each device.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-25

✏✏✏✏

Master/Slave Drive Ultra DMA:

Two options are available: Aut o and Disa bled . The defa ult sett ing i s Auto. Ultra DMA is a DMA data transfer protocol that utilizes ATA commands and the ATA bus to allow DMA commands to transfer data at a maximum burst rate of 33 MB/sec.

Ultra DMA/33 or Ultra DMA/66 implementation is possible only if your IDE hard drive supports it and the operating environment includes a DMA driver (Windows

95 OSR2 or a

third-party IDE bus master driver). ➤Auto: If your hard driv e and y our sy ste m so ftwa re both s u pport Ul tra D MA /33, se le ct

Auto to enable BIOS support. For Ultra DMA/66 devices, please refer the requirements mentioned in page 2-18. (Default setting)

➤Disabled: If you encounter a problem in using Ultra DMA devices, you can try to disable

this item.

Onboard IDE-2 Controller:

Description is same as the Onboard IDE-1 Controller.

USB Keyboard Support:

Two options are availab le: Enabled and Disab led. Th e defau lt sett ing is Disabled. If yo ur system contains a USB keyboard, set it to Enabled.

Init Display First

This item allows you to decide to active whether PCI slot or AGP slot VGA firs t.

Ultra DMA-66 IDE Controller

This item is only for the ABIT’s BE6-II motherboard. Please leave it on the default setting.

IDE HDD Block Mode:

Block mode is also called block tran sfer, multiple commands, or multiple sector read /write. If your IDE hard drive supports block mode (most new drives do), select Enabled for automatic detection of the optimal number of block read/writes per sector the drive can support. The default setting is Enabled.

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Power On Function:

This item allows you to select which way you want your system to power on. Five items are available: Bu tton Only , Keyboard 98 , Password , Hot Key , Mouse L ef t , Mo use Right. Default setting is Button Only.

Note

! The power on function has to cooperate with the JP1 setting (see section 2-4). ! The mouse wake up f unctio n can o nly be used w ith the PS/ 2 mous e, no t with a mous e

that uses the COM port and USB connection. Mouse Left (Mouse Right ) mean s , you need to double c lick the mouse left (right) button, for the co mputer to pow e r o n. You also need to not e the compatibility is sue with your PS/2 mouse. Some PS/2 mice cannot wake up the system, because of compatibility problems. Also, if the specs of your keyboard are too old, it may fail to power on.

✏✏✏✏

Keyboard 98:

If you are using Windows Windows

98 operating system. You can enable this item, and use your keyboard wake

98 and you have a keyboard that is designed for the

up key to wake up your computer.

✏✏✏✏

KB Power ON Password:

If your Power On Function is set to Password, then you need to enter th e p a ss word f or keyboard wake up. When your computer is shutdown and you want to wake it up you only need to type the correct password, then you can power on.

✏✏✏✏

Hot Key Power On:

There are twelv e options are available, Ctrl - F1 to Ctrl-F12. You can select this item and using the Ctrl plus the one of each function key (F1 to F12) to power on the computer. The default setting is Ctrl-F1.

KBC input clock

This item allows you t o change the keyboa rd clock , if you have a keyboard problem, li ke keyboard failure, slow typing response time, etc. You may try to change the keyboard clock settings for optim al result.

Onboard FDD Controller:

Two options are availab le: Enab led an d Disab led. Th e defau lt sett ing is Enabled. You can enable or disable the onboard FDC controller.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-27

Onboard Serial Port 1:

This is used to sp eci fy t he I/O ad dr ess and IRQ of Seri al P ort 1. Six opt ion s are avai lab le: Disabled , 3F8/IRQ4 , 2F8/IRQ3 , 3E8/IRQ4 , 2E8/IRQ3 , AUTO. The default setting is 3F8/IRQ4.

Onboard Serial Port 2:

This is used to sp eci fy t he I/O ad dr ess and IRQ of Seri al P ort 1. Six opt ion s are avai lab le: Disabled , 3F8/IRQ4 , 2F8/IRQ3 , 3E8/IRQ4 , 2E8/IRQ3 , AUTO. The default setting is 2F8/IRQ3.

Onboard Serial Port 1:

This is used to spec ify th e I/O add ress and IRQ of S eria l Port 1 . Ten options are a vaila ble: Disable, 3F8h/IRQ4, 2F8h/IRQ3, 3E8h/IRQ4 or 2E8h/IRQ3, 3F8h/IRQ10, 2F8h/IRQ11, 3E8h/IRQ 10, 2E8h/IRQ1 1, an d A U TO.

Onboard Serial Port 2:

✏✏✏✏

Onboard IR Function:

Three options are available:

➤ Normal ➤ IrDA (H PSIR) m ode. ➤ ASK IR (Amplitude Shift Keyed IR) mode.

✏✏✏✏

UR2 Duplex Mode:

Two options are available: Fu ll a n d Half. The d efau lt set tin g i s Full. This item lets you choose the opera tion mode for your IR KIT. Some IR device only can work at half duplex mode. Refer to your IR KIT user's guid e to find out which setting is correct.

✏✏✏✏

RxD , TxD Active:

Set IR transmission/reception polarity as High or Low.

✏✏✏✏

IR Transmission Delay:

Set IR transmission delays 4 character-time(40 bit-time) when SIR is changed from RX mode to TX mode.

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Onboard Parallel Port:

Sets the I/O address and IRQ of the onboard parallel port. Four options are available: Disable, 3BCh/IRQ7, 278h/IRQ5 and 378 h/IRQ7. Default is 378h/IRQ7.

✏✏✏✏

Parallel Port Mode:

Can be set as ECP, EPP, ECP+EPP, or Normal (SPP) mode. Default i s Normal (SPP) mode.

✏✏✏✏

ECP Mode Use DMA:

When the mode s el e cted fo r the o nboar d para ll el port is EC P, the DMA cha nnel se l ecte d can be Channel 1 or Channel 3.

✏✏✏✏

EPP Mode Select:

When the mode selected for the onboard parallel port is EPP, two EPP version options are available: EPP1.7 and EPP1.9.

PWR ON After PWR-Fail:

This setting lets you set the system action after a power failure. Three options are available: Off , On , Former-Sts. The default setting is Off.

NOTE

This function has to cooperate with the JP2 setting (see section 2-4).

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-29

3-6. Power Management Setup Menu

The differenc e between Green PCs and tr aditional computers is that Green PCs have a power manage ment f eat ure. With this feature, w hen the com pute r is pow ered o n but i nact ive, the power consu mption is reduced in order to sa ve energy. When the c omputer operates normally, it is in Normal mode. In this mode, the Power Management Program will control access to video, parallel ports, serial ports and drives, and the operating status of the keyboard, mou se and other device. Th ese are ref erred t o as Power Ma nagement Event s. If none of these ev ents occur, the system en ters the power savi ng mode. When one of th e controlled events occurs, the system immediately returns to normal mode and operates at its maximum speed. Power saving modes can be divided into three modes according to their power consumption: Doze Mode, Standby Mode, and Suspend Mode. The four modes proceed in the following sequence:

Normal Mode ===> Doze Mode ===> Standby Mode ===> Suspend Mode

The system consumption is reduced according the following sequence:

Normal > Doze > Standby > Suspend

1. In the Main Menu, select "Power Management Setup" and press "Enter". The following

screen is displayed:

Figure 3-8. Power Management Setup Screen Shot

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2. Use the arrow keys to go to the item you want to configure. To change the settings, use ),* and Enter key.

3. After you have configured the power management feature, press

to go back to the

Esc

Main Menu.

We are now going to briefly explain the options in this menu:

ACPI Function (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface):

ACPI gives the opera tin g system di rect cont rol over the power mana gement an d Plug an d Play functions of a computer.

There are two options that can be selected, “Enabled” and “Disabled”. You can select “Enabled” to enable ACPI functions. If you want ACPI functions to work normally, you should notice two things. One is your operating s ystem must support ACPI, as of now only Microsoft

Windows® 98 supports these fun ct i ons. Th e second thin g is that all d evi c es an d add-on cards in y our sy ste m m ust f ull y suppo rt A CPI , bo th h ardw ar e an d sof tw are (driv e rs) . If you want to know if y o ur de vices or add-on cards support ACPI or not, please cont act the device or add-on card manufact ure for more in formation . If you wan t to know mor e ab out ACPI specifications, please go to the address below for more detailed information:

http://www.teleport.com/~acpi/acpihtml/home.htm

If you enable the ACPI function in the BIOS setup, th e S MI function will no t work.

Note:

ACPI re quires an ACPI-aware operating system. ACPI features include:

! Plug and Play (including bus and device enumeration) and APM functionality normally

contained in the BIOS.

! Power management control of individual devices, add-in cards (some add-in cards may

require an ACPI-aware driver), video displays, and hard disk drives.

! A Soft-o ff feature that enables the oper ating system to power off the computer. ! Support for multiple wake-up events (see Table 3-6-1). ! Support for a front panel power and sleep mode switch. Table 3-6-2 describes the system

states based on how long the power switch is pressed, depending on how ACPI is configured with an ACPI-aware operating system.

Note

If you enable th e ACPI functi on in the BIOS setup, th e SMI switch funct ion will not work.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-31

System States and Power States

Under ACPI , the ope rati ng system directs all system and de vice po w er state tra ns itio ns. T he operating system puts devices in and out of low-power states based on user preferences and knowledge of how devices are being used by applications. Devices that are not being used can be turned off. The operating system uses information from applications and user settings to put the system as a whole into a low-power state.

Table 3-6-1: Wake Up Device and Events

The table b elow describes wh ich devices or specific event s can wake the c omputer from specific states.

These device/events can wake up the computer…… ……from this state

Power switch Sleeping mode or power off mode RTC alarm Sleeping mode or power off mode LAN Sleeping mode or power off mode Modem Sleeping mode or power off mode IR command Sleeping mode USB Sleeping mode PS/2 keyboa r d Sleeping mode PS/2 mouse Sleeping mode

T able 3-6-2: Effect of Pr essing the Power Switch

If the system is in this state……

Off Less than four seconds Power on On More than four seconds Soft off/Suspend On Less than four seconds Fail safe power off Sleep Less than four seconds Wake up

Power Management:

This item allows you to select the type (or de g r ee) of power sav ing an d is dir ectly related to the following modes:

1. Doze Mode

2. Standby Mode

3. Suspend Mode

4. HDD Power Down There are three op tions for power management, three of which have fixed mode sett ings:

……and the power switch is pressed for ……the system enters this

state

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➤ User Define

“User Define” defines the delay for accessing the power modes.

Doze Mode: Disabled , 1 Min , 2 Min , 4 Min , 8 Min , 12 Min , 20

Min , 30 Min , 40 Min , 1 Hour. The default setting is Disabled.

Standby Mode: Disabled , 1 Min , 2 Min , 4 Min , 8 Min , 12 Min , 20

Min , 30 Min , 40 Min , 1 Hour. The default setting is Disabled.

Suspend Mode: Disabled , 1 Min , 2 Min , 4 Min , 8 Min , 12 Min , 20

Min , 30 Min , 40 Min , 1 Hour. The default setting is Disabled.

HDD Power Down: Disabled , 1 Min , 2 Min , 3 Min , 4 Min , 5 Min , 6

Min , 7 Min , 8 Min , 9 Hour , 10 Min , 11 Mi n , 12 Min , 13 Min , 14 Min , 15 Min. The default setting is Disabled.

➤ Min Saving

When these two savi ng modes are enabled , the system is set up f or minimum power savings. Doze Mode = 1 Hour Standby Mode = 1 Hour Suspend Mode = 1 Ho ur HDD Power Down = 15 Min

➤ Max Saving

When the two savin g modes are enabled, th e system is s et up for maximum power savings. Doze Mode = 1 Min Standby Mode = 1 Min Suspend Mode = 1 Mi n HDD Power Down = 1 Min

PM Control by APM:

Power Management is completely controlled by the APM.

APM stands for Advanced Power Management, it is a power management standard set by Microsoft, Intel and other major manufactu r ers.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-33

Video Off Method:

Three video off methods are available: "Blank Screen", "V/H SYNC + Blank" and "DPMS". The default is " V/H SYNC + Bl ank ".

If this setting does not shut off the screen , select “Blank Screen”. If your monitor and video card support DMPS standard, select “DPMS”.

Blank Screen: V/H SYNC + Blank:

DPMS:

Video Off After:

Select the saving mode in which the video is switched off. ➤ NA

The video will never be switched off in no power saving mode.

➤ Suspend

The video will onl y be s wi tched off in Suspend mode.

➤ Standby

The video will only be s witched off in Standby or Suspend mode.

➤ Doze

The video will be switched off in all power saving modes.

Modem Use IRQ:

You can specify the IRQ f or mo dem use . Eig ht o p tions are av ail able : N/A , 3 , 4 , 5 , 7 , 9 , 10 , 11. The default setting is N/A.

Doze Mode:

This option only wri tes blanks to th e video buffer. This selection will cause the system to turn off the vertical and horizontal synchronization ports and write blanks to the video buffe r. Initial display power management signaling.

When the sett ing se le cted fo r "Pow er Man age ment" is "User Def ine", yo u can de fine for th is mode any delay from 1 minute to 1 hour. If no power management event occurs during this time period, mean in g th at th e compu t er i s in act i ve du rin g thi s p eri od , th e s ystem wil l en t er the Doze pow er s aving mo de. I f this mode is disabl ed, t he sy ste m wil l enter the ne xt mo de in the sequence (Standby or Suspend mode).

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Standby Mode:

When the sett ing se le cted fo r "Pow er Man age ment" is "User Def ine", yo u can de fine for th is mode any delay from 1 minute to 1 hour. If no power management event occurs during this time period, meanin g th e comput er is ina ctive du rin g thi s peri od, th e system wil l enter th e Standby power saving mode.

If this mod e is disabled, the system will enter the next mod e in the sequence (Su spend mode).

Suspend Mode:

When the sett ing se le cted fo r "Pow er Man age ment" is "User Def ine", yo u can de fine for th is mode any delay from 1 minute to 1 hour. If no power management event occurs during this time period, meanin g th e comput er is ina ctive du rin g thi s peri od, th e system wil l enter th e Suspend power saving mode. The CPU stops working completely.

If this mode is disabled, the system will not enter the Suspend mode.

HDD Power Down:

If the system has not accessed data on the hard disk drive during the specified time period, the engine of th e HDD will st op in ord er t o save elec tr ic i ty. You can set 1 to 15 minutes or select Disable according to your use of the HDD.

Throttle Duty Cycle:

This is used t o specify th e CPU speed in power sa ving mode. Si x options are avai lable:

12.5%, 25.0%, 37.5%, 50.0%, 62.5% or 75.0%.

Soft-Off by PWR-BTTN:

Two options are available: Instant-Off and Delay 4 Sec.. The default setting is Instant-Off. Pressing the power button for more than four seconds forces the system to enter the Soft-Off state when the system h as "hung".

Power On by Ring:

Two options are available: Enabled and Disabled. Default setting is Disabled. If you connect an external modem to the onboard serial port, the system will be turned on when a telephone ring-up occurs.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-35

Resume by Alarm:

Two options are availa ble: Enabled and Disabled. Default setting is Disabled. The RTC alarm can turn on the system. You can set Date (of month) and Time (hour, minute, and second) when you set this item to Enabled.

Resume by LAN:

Two options are available: E nabled and Disabled . When select Enabled, an input signal from a local area network (LAN) awakens the system from a soft off state.

PM Timer Events:

When one of the sp ecified event s occur, the count down mad e for entry in power sa ving mode goes back to zer o. Sinc e the compu ter will ent er a power sa ving mod e only aft er an inactivity delay specified (time specific for Doze, S tandby and Suspend modes ) and after it has no activity, during this time period, any event will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed . Resume even ts are opera tions or signa ls that ca use the comp uter to resu me time counting.

IRQ [3-7, 9-15], NMI:

➤➤➤➤

If any IRQ or NMI (Non-Mask Interrupt) activities occur, this will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed.

VGA Active Monitor:

➤➤➤➤

If there is any VGA data transfer or any I/O activities, this will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed.

IRQ8 Break Sus pend:

➤➤➤➤

Supports the RTC alarm wake up from suspend function (via IRQ8).

IDE Primary Master:

➤➤➤➤

If any IDE primar y master I/O activity occurs, it will cause the computer to re - co unt the time elapsed.

IDE Primary Slave:

➤➤➤➤

If any IDE primary slave I/O activity occurs, it will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed.

IDE Secondary Master:

➤➤➤➤

If any IDE secondary master I/O activity occurs, it will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed.

IDE Secondary Slave:

➤➤➤➤

If any IDE seco ndary sl ave I /O activity o ccur s, it w il l cause the com pute r to re -co unt the time elapsed.

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Floppy Disk:

➤➤➤➤

If any floppy disk I/O activity occurs, it will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed.

Serial Port:

➤➤➤➤

If any serial port I/O activity occurs, it will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed.

Parallel Port:

➤➤➤➤

If any Parallel port I/O activity occurs, it will cause the computer to re-count the time elapsed.

Mouse Break Suspend:

➤➤➤➤

Four options are available: Yes,No (COM1) ,No (COM2) ,No (PS/2) ,Back to Yes.

CPU FAN Off In Suspend

Two options are available: En abled an d Disab led. When selec t En abled th e CPU fan turn s off during Suspend mode

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-37

3-7. PnP/PCI Configurations

This section describes configuring the PCI bus system. PCI, or Personal Computer

nterconnect, is a system which allows I/O devices to operate at speeds nearing the speed the

CPU itself uses when communicating with its own special components. This section covers some very technical items and it is strongly recommended that only experienced users should make any changes to the default settings.

Figure 3-9. PnP/PCI Configurations Setup Screen Sho t

PNP OS Installed:

The device resource assigned by PnP OS (e.g., Windows 95) or BIOS.

Force Update ESCD

Two options are available: Enabled and Disabled. Default setting is Disabled. Normally , y ou leave this field Disabled. Select Enabled to reset Extended System Configuration Data (ESCD) when you exit Setup if you have installed a new add-on card and the system reconfiguration has caused a resource conflict that the operating system can not boot.

Resources Controlled By:

Two options are available: Auto(ESCD) a nd Manual. Default setting is Auto(ESCD). When the setting is Auto(ESCD), the IRQ Resources an d Memory Resources can not be changed

User’s Manual

3-38 Chapter3

manually. When resources are contro lle d manu ally, the IRQ Resources DMA Resources and Memory Resources can th en be changed.

Computer Knowledge: ESCD (Extended System Configuration Data)

The ESCD cont ai ns th e IRQ, D M A, I/O po rt , m emo ry in for ma t i on of th e s yst em. Th i s is a specification and a feature speci fic to the Plug & Pla y BIOS.

Legacy ISA devices compliant w ith t he or iginal P C AT bus specificat ion, r equiri ng a specif ic interrupt (such as IRQ4 for serial port 1).

PCI/ISA PnP devices compliant with the Plug and Play standard, whether designed for the PCI or ISA bus architecture.

The Awar d Plug and Play BIOS has the capa bil ity to automat ic ally configure al l of the boot and PnP compatible devices. If you select Auto (ESCD), The IRQ, DMA and Memory Resources items will be disabled, as the BIOS automatically assigns them. But if you have trouble in assigning the interrupt resources automatically, you can select Manual to set which IRQ an d DMA are assigned to PCI/ISA PnP or legacy ISA cards.

IRQ Resources

When resources are controlled manually, assign each system interrupt a type, depending on the type of device using the interrupt.

Figure 3-10. PnP/PCI Configurations - IRQ Resources Setup Screen Shot

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-39

DMA Resources

When resources are controlled manually, assign each system DMA channel a type, depending on the type of device using the DMA channel.

Figure 3-11. PnP/PCI Configurations - DMA Resources Setup Screen Shot

++++

Memory Resources

This sub menu can let you control the memory res ource.

Figure 3-12. PnP/PCI Configurations - Memory Resources Setup Screen Shot

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3-40 Chapter3

➤➤➤➤

Reserved Memory Base

Reserved a low memor y for the legacy device (non-PnP d evice). Seven options are available: N/A, C800, CC00, D000, D400, D800 and DC00.

➤➤➤➤

Reserved Memory Length

Reserved a lo w memory length for the l e g acy device (non-PnP device) . Four optio ns are available: 8K, 16K, 32K and 64K.

PCI /VGA Palette Snoop:

This option allows the BIOS to preview VGA Status, and to modify the information delivered from the Feature Connec tor of the VGA card to the MPEG Card. Thi s option can solve the display inversion to black after you have used the MPEG card.

Assign IRQ For VGA :

You can assign an IRQ for the PCI VGA or Disabled.

Assign IRQ For USB

You can select enabled if your system has a USB controller and you have one or more USB devices conne cte d. I f y ou ar e no t usi ng y o ur sy s tem USB co ntrol l er, you can select Disa bl ed to free the IRQ r esource.

PIRQ_0~3 Use IRQ No.

Eleven options are avai lable: Au to, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 , 11, 12, 14, 15. Default set ting i s Auto. This item allows the system to automatically specify the IRQ number for the device installed on PCI slots. Whi ch means, the system c an speci fy the fixed IRQ numb er for the device installed on the P CI slots (PCI slot 1 to PCI slot 6). This is a useful f u nction when y ou want to fix the IRQ for a specific device.

For example, if you want to move your hard disk to another computer and don’t want to re-install Windows

NT, then you can specify the IRQ for the d evice insta lled on the n ew

computer to fit the original computer settings.

Note

If you specify the IRQ in this item , then you cannot specify t he same IRQ to the ISA bus, otherwise, it will cause a hardware conflict.

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-41

This feature is for the operating system which will record and fix the PCI configuration status, if you want to change it.

For the relations betw een the hardw a r e layout of PIRQ (the sign als from the P I IX4 chipset) , INT# (means PCI slot IRQ signals) and devices, please refer to the table below:

Signals

PIRQ_0 INT A IN T B INT C INT D INT B INT C PIRQ_1 INT B INT D INT D INT A INT A INT D PIRQ_2 INT C INT C INT A INT B INT D INT A PIRQ_3 INT D INT A INT B INT C INT C INT B

! Each PCI slot has four INT#s (INT A~INT D), and the AGP slot has two I NT# (INTA and

INTB).

! USB used PIRQ_3.

! PCI slot 1 shares IRQ signals with the AGP slot. ! PCI slot 2 shares IRQ signals with the PCI slot 5 ! PCI slot 3 shares IRQ signals with the PCI slot 6. ! PCI slot 4 shares IRQ signals with the USB controller. ! If you want to install two PCI cards into those PCI slots that share IRQ each other at

! PCI slot 6 is fully bus slave. Thus you can’t install a PCI card that needs to use bus

PCI slot 1 AGP Slot

the same time, you have to make sure your OS and PCI devices’ driver support IRQ sharing.

master signals into PCI slot 6. But you c an install voodoo 1 or 2 that doesn’t need to use bus aster signals into PCI slot 6.

PCI slot 2

PCI slot 3 PCI slot 4 PCI slot 5 PCI Slot 6

Note

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3-42 Chapter3

3-8. PC Health Status

You can set the warning and shutdo wn temperatures f o r your computer system , and you can check the fan speeds and power supply voltages of your computer system. The features are useful for monitoring all the important parameters within your computer system. We call it the PC Health Status.

Figure 3-13. PC Health Status Screen Shot

Shutdown Temperature

This item lets you selec t t he li mit for t he system shut do wn temp erat ure. If the t emp erat ure extends beyond the limit, the system will shut down. The default setting is 75

CPU Wa rning Temperature:

This item lets you select the temperature at which you want the system to send out a warning message to th e PC speakers of when t he temperature goes beyond either lim it. You can select the temperatures you want. The ranges are from 30°C / 86°F to 120°C / 248°F, def ault setting is 70

All Voltages, Fans Speed and Thermal Monitoring:

These items li st th e cu rr en t stat es of t h e C PU an d en vi ron m ent temp era t u res as well a s f an speeds (CPU fan and chassis fan). It can not be changed by the user.

The following items list t he voltage states of the system power. It is also unchangeable.

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C / 158°F.

C / 167°F.

Introduction of th e BIO S 3-43

3-9. Load Fail-Safe Defaults

Figure 3-14. Load Fail-Safe Defaults Screen Shot

When you press <Enter> on this item you get a conf irmation dialog box wit h a message similar to:

Load Fail-Safe Defaults (Y/N) ? N

Pressing ‘Y’ loads the BIOS default values for the most stable, minimal-performance system operations.

3-10. Load Optimized Defaults

Figure 3-15. L o ad Optimized D efaults Scree n Shot

User’s Manual

3-44 Chapter3

When you press <Enter> on this item you get a conf irmation dialog box wit h a message similar to:

Load Optimized Defaults (Y/N)? N

Pressing ‘Y’ loads the default values that are factory settings for optimal performance system operations.

3-11. Set Password

This option allow s you to set a passwo rd requir ed to start the syste m (Sys tem) or to acce ss to the BIOS (Set up).

After you have set a password through the “

Advanced BIOS Features

can prevent unauthorized access.

Password setting procedure:

When you choose the

Type your password. When complete, press <Enter>. The following message is displayed:

Type your password again. When complete, press <Enter>. The password setting is completed.

Password clearing procedure:

When you select the

Press <Enter>, the message “ password clearing procedure is completed.

Do not forget your password. If you forget it, you will have to open the computer case, clear the contents of the CMOS, and boot the system up again. By doing this, you must reset all your parameters.

” (refer to 3-3 ) to set th e “

Set Password

option, the following message is disp layed:

“Enter Password:“

“Confirm Password:“

option, the followi ng message is d isplayed:

“Enter Password:“

Password Disabled !!!

Set Password

Notice

option, you can enter the

Security Option

” is displayed. Press a key. The

”. In this way, you

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Introduction of th e BIO S 3-45

3-12. Save & Exit Setup

Figure 3-16. Save & Exit Setup Screen Shot

Pressing <Enter> on this item asks for confirmation:

Save to CMOS and EXIT (Y/N)?

Pressing “Y” s tores the selections made in the menus in CMOS - a sp ecial section of memory that s tay s on afte r y ou turn y our sys tem of f . T he nex t time y ou bo o t y our comp ute r, the BIOS configures your system according to the Setup selections stored in CMOS. After saving the values the system is restarted a gain.

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3-46 Chapter3

3-13. Exit Without Saving

Figure 3-17. Exit Without Saving Screen Shot

Pressing <Enter> on this item asks for confirmation:

Quit without saving (Y/N)?

This allows you to exit Setup without storing in CMOS any change. The previous selections remain in effect. This exits the Setup utility and restarts your computer.

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BIOS Flashing User Instructions A-1

Appendix A BIOS Flashing User Instructions

When your motherboard needs to be upgraded with new features or some compatibility problems in the BIOS need to be fixed, you will need to use this BIOS flash utility. This utility is provided by Award Software makes it easy to flash by yourself. However, please read all the information in this section before flashing.

Before you can flash the BIOS you need to go into the pure DOS environment by re bo oting your system and going directly into DOS. Basically, there are two ways to flash your BIOS. One is to directly type the full line commands that are described in this section. The utility will then flash your BIOS. When you finish the flash operation, you will see the screen as in Figure F-2

The other method is to just type awdflash (under Award flash BIOS utility directory) then press enter. The Flash Memor y Writer V7. 22 sc reen will app ea r. Please refer to Figu re F -1

Note F-1

choose) into the “File Name to Pr ogr am”, then pr ess enter.

Note F-1

. You need to type “NEWBIOS” (the file name or you can use another name if you

Figure F-1. Award Flash Memory Writer V7.22 Start Screen

When you have finished updating you r BIOS, you will see the screen as in Fi gure F-2. You then need t o p r ess the F1 key to reset the system, or press the F10 key to exit the writer.

User’s Manual

A-2 Appendix A

Figure F-2. Award Flash Memory Writer V7.22 Co mplete Screen

Figure F-3 shows you what commands you can use for the flashing program. You need to go into the pure DOS environment and type awdflash. Figure F-3 will then appear.

Figure F-3. Award Flash Memory Writer V7.22 Flash Commands Screen

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BIOS Flashing User Instructions A-3

Note F-1

The BIOS file name in the figure shown is only an example. You should check which .bin file is to be us ed w it h y our mothe rbo ard . Do n’ t flash w ith the w rong .bin fil e otherwise you may cause system malfunctions. Even the same model BIOS, according to their release dates and which problems have been fixed, have different .bin names. Please read the BIOS file description before you download it.

Example 1: To update the BIOS and create a backup of the current system BIOS execute

this command:

AWDFLASH NE WBIOS /PY SAVEBIOS /SY

Example 2: To update the BIOS, create a backup of current system BIOS, and clear the

CMOS, execute this comman d:

AWDFLASH NE WBIOS SAVEBIOS /CC

Example 3: To update the BIOS and clear PnP settings execute this command:

AWDFL ASH NEWBIOS /SN /CP

Example 4: To make a backup of the current system BIOS execute the following command:

AWDFLASH NE WBIOS /PN SAVEBIOS

Note F-2

“NEWBIOS” indicates the file name for the new BIOS which can be downloaded from our web site at http://www.abit.com.tw (the user can choose a different file n ame in place of NEWBIOS). “SAVEBIOS” indicates the fil e name of the old system BIOS (the user can choose a different file name in place of SAVEBIOS).

Explanation of parameter names:

/CC: Clears CMOS data /CP: Clears PnP data /CD: Clears DMI data /CKS: Compare Binfile Checksum

User’s Manual

A-4 Appendix A

Remarks:

1. When executing AWDFLASH.EXE, do not run HIMEM.SYS and EMM386.EXE in the

CONFIG.SYS.

2. Please take the following actions to solve problems caused by power shortages or other

non-preventable malfunctions during BIOS updating that lead to update failures. First, it is strongly suggested that you format a disk that can boot your computer before you update your BIOS. If the above mentioned problem occurs during BIOS updating, you will be able to us e this disk to aut omatica lly execut e a BIOS upda te. Th e content of th e disk should be as follows:

(1) Startup system files (COMMAND.COM, MSDOS.SYS, IO.SYS...)

(2) AWDFLSH.EXE

(3) The NEWBIOS file which can be download from ABIT web site.

(4) AUTOEXEC.BAT, which has the following content:

A:\AWDFLASH NEWBIOS /PY /SN /CC /CD

For example, to update the BF6 BIOS version to MJ (BF6_MJ.BIN), you need to type:

A:\AWDFLASH BF6_MJ.BIN /PY /SN /CC /CD /CKS

3. If you try to flash an incorrect version of a BIOS (i.e. for another motherboard) the

following message will appear:

“The program file’s part number does not match with your system!”

Note

Please do not use t he Award flash f lash memory writer version that ear l ier than Version

7.22 to flash your WX6 motherboard BIOS. Otherwise, it may cause flash fail or anticipate problems.

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Install HighPoint XStore Pro Utility B-1

Appendix B Installing the HighPoint XStore Pro

Utility

We provide a useful and powerful utility in our product package, HighPoint XStore Pro. What does X Stor e do? The XStore Pro is a har d dis k en hancem ent u tility whic h can im prov e system performance. The basic concept is using a read-ahead caching algorithm to improve the hard disk performance. With a market trend where most system’s standard configuratio ns ar e mov ing to w ards 48 MBy tes me mo ry size or bey ond, Hig hPo in t’s X Sto re Pro provides higher system performance. XStore Pro is a new generation of XStore MMX Accelerator for Storage.

XStore Pro utilizes the bigger system memory size to enhance memory management by worki ng wi th Wind ows read ahead caching after seeking, with large block sizes of hard disks. And best of all, XStore Pro supports several PCI Bus Master Controllers such as Intel, SiS, Ali, Via and others.

When you install XStore Pro, you can choose to install CD Xpress at the same time. Why do you need CD Xpress? We’ll tell you more a bout it.

CD-ROM technology is growing fast, but its performance is still unacceptable compared to today's ha rd drives. The trans fer rates of today's h ard drives can exceed 18MB/sec with access times below 12ms. However, transfer rates for the fastest CD-ROM drives on the market are below 2MB/sec with access times over 100 ms.

CD Xpress was created to accelerate the accessing speed of the CD-ROM drive by utilizing the hard drive's high performance. CD Xpress reads and buffers data from the CD-ROM to an area in the hard drive . W ith CD Xpre ss, when y ou acce ss CD-RO M data, y ou are actual ly accessing data from a swap file in the hard drive. This results in a tremendous increase in CD-ROM performance without penalties.

Before you install this utility, there are several things you need to know.

Import ant Note

1. You can only install one Bus Ma ster Dri ver at a time in your system, or the dri vers will result in conflict and cause system hangs. Please make sure you don’t have any Bus Master Driver installed in your system before you install XStore Pro! You must remove all component s of the p reviou s Bu s Mast er Dri ver before you i nsta ll XSt ore Pro t o your system. For examp le, you c an n ot in sta ll b oth the Int el

95 and 98. XStore Pro opti mizes higher system performance b y

bus master driver and HighPoint

User’s Manual

B-2 Appendix B

XStore Pro in your system, otherwise it will cause system conflict when you install the second bus master driver!

2. This Windo ws

95/98 drive r doe s not s uppo rt CD- RO M Cha nge rs . If yo u ha ve an AT A P I

CD-ROM Changer installed in your system, please do not install this driver!

3. We have found that the Windows

95 OSR2/Windows® 98 version would fail to load the driver on some systems using the Bus Master chipset after you install and restart the system. The following step could solve this problem if it happens:

(1) Go to My Computer and double click Control Panel.

(2) Double click System then go to Device Manger and View Devices by Type.

(3) Go to hard disk cont rollers.

(4) Double click PCI Bus Master IDE Controller (Ultra DM A supported ). (Th ere should

be a yellow mark besides this item)

(5) Click Resources and you should see a box near the bottom of the screen that says “Set

Configuratio n Manually”.

(6) Click on “Set Configuration Manually” and you will see a check next to “Use

automatic s etting”.

(7) Uncheck the box and when the system asks you to reboot clic k “yes”.

(8) After the system restarts the yellow mark should be gone

4. De-Installation:

T o unins tall X Stor e Pro fro m yo ur syst em, run "Uni nstal l" fr om the HighP oint XS tor e Pr o program group. This uninstall utility will: deactivate CD Xpress, if CD Xpress is active, remove the buffer space, and uninstall XStore Pro and CD Xpress from the system. After uninstalling XStore Pro, the hard disk will return to its original status. We suggest users to reboot the system after finishing uninstalling.

5. The ATAPI LS-120 device will be recognized as a removable device in retail Windows 95(4.00.95) and OSR1 Windows 95(4.00.95 A) after the XStore Pro driver is installed.

6. This driver might lock o n cer tai n mo the r boards . Pl ea se che ck HighP oi nt Technology fir st if you encounter problems.

For more detailed information, please check the read me file stored in the XStore Pro Program Group. If you want to upgrade to a new version of dri ver or want to know more about XStore Pro produ cts, plea se go to the Hi ghPoint Technologies Inc’s com pany WEB site, the URL is http://www.highpoint-tech.com/.

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Install HighPoint XStore Pro Utility B-3

This CD-ROM ( Or fl oppy d iske tte ) has t he H ighP oi nt X Sto re Pr o dr ive rs . (Version 1.2) T he following procedure describes how to install the HighPoint XStore to your system. If you have a flopp y diskett e bu t not the CD-R OM, ju st ins ert th e dis kette and run t he

Setup.exe

file to start installation.

Step 1:

In Windows

95/98, place the CD-ROM into the computer. The main menu will show up. Click the

XStore Pro Install

HighPoint

button, then you will see the XStore Pro installer is preparing the InstallShield

Wizard. When it is done, the Welcome screen will show up.

Press the “Next” key,

Step 2:

you will see the screen below. You then need to choose whether you want to install XStore Pro only, or if you want to install both XStore Pro and CD Xpress. Press the “Next” key to continue.

User’s Manual

B-4 Appendix B

Press the “Next” key,

Step 3:

you will see the license screen.

Step 4:

continue screen below.

Step 5:

process is done, you will see the screen below. This screen will show up only when you install both XStore Pro an d CD Xpre ss. If you want t o see the Rea dMe file, you can click on the circle.

Press “Yes” to the

When installation

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Install HighPoint XStore Pro Utility B-5

Choose the “Yes, I want

Step 6:

to restart my computer now.” button, then system will restart. Or you can choose the “No, I will restart my computer later.”.

Note

You must restart your computer after you installed the XStore Pro utility. Otherwise, software may works not properly.

User’s Manual

B-6 Appendix B

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Hardware Monitoring Function C-1

Appendix C Hardware Monitoring Function

(Installing The Winbond Hard ware Doctor Utility)

Winbond Hardware Doctor is a self-d iagnostic system for PCs and mu st be used with th e Winbond chipset: W83781D/W83782D/W83783S IC series products.

It will protect PC hardware by monitoring several critical items including power supply voltages, CPU & s ystem fan speed s, and CPU and syst em temperatu res. These it ems are important for the operation of the system, errors may result in permanent damage of the PC. Once any item is o ut of its norm al ra nge, a w arning mess age w ill po p up and re mind the us er to take proper measures.

The following description will tell you how to install the Hardware Doctor and use it. This CD-ROM (Or floppy diskette) has the Winbond Hardware Doctor utility. If you have a floppy diskette an d not the CD- ROM, jus t insert dis kette 1 and execute the start installation.

In Windows

Step 1.

the CD-ROM into the computer. The main menu will show up. Click the

Hardware Doctor Install

button, then the HWDoctor Setup screen will show up, please refer the to figure below.

Setup.exe

file to

95/98, place

Click the “OK” button, then

Step 2.

see the screen below.

User’s Manual

C-2 Appendix C

You can specify the

Step 3.

program install path by clicking “Change Directory” button. Or if you want to use the default path, click the icon to continue the insta ll process. Now the screen will show you the percentage of installatio n progress.

When the progress finishes,

Step 4.

click the “OK” button.

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Go to the Windows toolbar

Step 5.

and click the “Start” button, then choose the “program” , “HWDoctor” (See the arrow mark on figure below).

Hardware Monitoring Function C-3

Once any item is out of its normal range, a warning message will pop up.

The figure below shows the warning message windows.

Ignore:

Disable:

Shutdown: Help:

If the warning mess age pops up due to the wrong warning limit, you can adjust it in th e “Configurati on” opt i on. For examp le i f you set th e temp era tu re hi gh limi t to 40 °C, you are easy to exceed proper temp erature.

Please pay attention to two things when you want to make any changes in the “Configuration” option. Firstly, you have to make sure your new setting is in the proper range. Secondly, after you finished the configuration, you have to save it. Otherwise, the program will start with the default value the next time.

If you meet any problems or have any questions about the software settings and adjustments, please use the Winbond hardware doctor on-line help, it should give you enough information to answer your questions.

Y ou can ignore the warning message of the item this time, but it will still pop up when the error of the same item happens again.

The chosen item will be no longer monitored thereafter, unless you activate it in the "Configuration" page.

Choosing this button will shutdown the computer..

You can read more information and self-diagn ose simple problems.

User’s Manual

C-4 Appendix C

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The thermal cable D-1

Appendix D The thermal cable

W e provide a thermal cable in the motherboard package (see the figure below). This thermal cable is for you to detect the temperature in the location of your choice. You can attach one end of the two-threa ded th ermal ca ble (A) th at comes with the mot herb oard to the TSYS 2 header, then tape the other end of the thermal cable (B) onto the location you want to detect the tempera ture.

After you have installed the thermal cable, you will see the detected temperature in the BIOS Setup and Winbond Hardware Doctor Utility.

User’s Manual

D-2 Appendix D

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BX 133 Overclocking Guide E-1

Appendix E BX 133 Overclocking Guide

Notice: All suggestions are only for reference, ABIT doesn’t guarantee any hardware configuration beyond its specification.

Again, ABIT makes it possible!

ABIT is a company at the forefront of innovation. In the past, ABIT has developed

SoftMenu, which brought jumperless technology to motherboards. ABIT was also the first

company which brought the Ultra DMA/66 technology to BX motherboards. ABIT is now

bringing forth the latest technological advancement for motherboards: “133 MHz for All.”

With special hardware designs and SoftMenu III technology, ABIT now provides users a

higher chance for 133 MHz. We also tested some hardware devices with the 133 MHz FSB

setting (Please see Support List.) And another reference test was processed by the NSTL,

the leading independent microcomputer testing laboratory. All of these reports are

obtainable for reference. We are glad to share these results to our users but won’t guarantee

133 MHz due to chipset or other devices’ limitations. We hope you will enjoy the feeling of

finding out the best performance of your system.

What is PC133?

PC133 is the latest memory standard, increasing bus speeds 33% when compared to the

PC100. In the past, 133MHz speed was only available when users overclocked their BX

system. But users have previously found that they could not overclock their system to

133MHz successfully due to set CPU, chipset and memory restrictions. The highest CPU

FSB clock was 100MHz. Chipsets and memory also only supported up to a 100MHz system

bus clock. The 133MHz CPU front side bus is now available and the memory standard has

been advanced to the higher 133MHz speed. The 133 MHz system is now ready for market.

What is SoftMenu III technology?

SoftMenu III is ABIT’s newest BIOS offering. The ABIT SoftMenu III technology not only

lets users configure CPU settings easily but also allows the user greater freedom in the

setting of the CPU FSB (Front Side Bus) clock settings.

How does SoftMenu III help to provide a possibility of 133MHz system?

ABIT SoftMenu III provides the user with more CPU setting items, including settings for

I/O voltage, PCI/CPU FSB Clock, AGP/CPU FSB Clock, AGP Transfer Mode and 120

settings for the FSB clock. All of these setting items are adjustable, thereby giving the user

User’s Manual

E-2 Appendix E

the power to adjust according to system demands. We will detail these setting items in the

following.

!!!!

Unlimited Front Side Bus (FSB)

In addition to the default settings for each processor speed, SoftMenu III provides 120

user-defined settings on the FSB clock. Settings are at 66, 75 and from 83 to 200 MHz.

The settings from 83MHz to 200MHz can be altered in increments of 1, giving the user

the power to find the best FSB setting, resulting in the best system performance. This

technology equips ABIT’s products with the most flexibility and greatest compatibility

to current and future specifications.

!!!!

CPU Multiplier Factor

From 2 to 8 (Increment 0.5). A total of 13 sets of multiplier factors support all current

CPUs and allows for support of future CPUs. The CPU operating frequency equals FSB

clock times the multiplier factor.

!!!!

PCI/CPU FSB Clock

1/2, 1/3, and now 1/4 is also a selection option. It correlates with the CPU FSB clock

you set. For example, if you set the CPU FSB clock to 100MHz and choose 1/3 here, the

PCI clock will be 33.3 MHz. We suggest you choose the ratio, which brings the PCI

clock as close to 33MHz as possible.

!!!!

AGP/CPU FSB Clock

1/1 and 2/3 options let the user adjust the AGP clock. We suggest you choose the ratio

which brings the AGP clock as close to 66MHz as possible.

!!!!

CPU Core Voltage

1.3 – 3.5 V manually adjustable but protected by SoftMenu III from damaging the CPU.

If the “CPU Operating Frequency” is not set to “User define”, BIOS will automatically

set the voltage required by the CPU.

!!!!

I/O Voltage Adjustable (8 sets, 3.2-3.9 V)

This function allows the user to adjust the voltage supplied to DRAM, AGP, and the

Chipset, thus greatly increasing the possibility of higher performance. If the “CPU

Operating Frequency” is not set to “User define”, BIOS will automatically set the

voltage required by CPU.

!!!!

AGP Transfer Mode:

This function allows the user to determine the capability of the AGP device. Selecting

“Default” gives optimized performance. The video driver will decide the data transfer

mode automatically. If the CPU FSB clock exceeds 125MHz, setting AGP Transfer

Mode to “Normal” will result in a more stable system.

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BX 133 Overclocking Guide E-3

!!!!

In-Order Queue Depth

This item determines the command queue depth between processor and chipset.

Selecting “8” gives optimized performance. Selecting “1” results in a more stable

system.

!!!!

Level 2 Cache Latency

This item allows the user to set CPU L2 cache speed. Selecting “Default” gives the most

stable performance. Smaller latency gives faster performance, but may cause system

instability.

Our Suggestion

We strongly suggest that you use our default settings for each processor speed when you

want to configure your CPU settings. We meticulously and repeatedly test these default

settings. Adopting these settings will give you the optimum system for stability. The

following table lists all of the CPU default settings.

CPU Speed FSB Clock PCI Clock / CPU FSB Clock AGP Clock / CPU FSB Clock

233 66 1/2( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 266 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 300 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 333 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 300 100 1/3 (33.3) 2/3 (66.67) 350 100 1/3 (33.3) 2/3 (66.67) 400 100 1/3 (33.3) 2/3 (66.67) 450 100 1/3 (33.3) 2/3 (66.67) 366 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 400 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 433 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 466 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 500 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 533 66 1/2 ( 33 ) 1/1 (66) 533 133 1/4 (33.25) 2/3 (88.67) 500 100 1/3 (33.33) 2/3 (66.67) 550 100 1/3 (33.33) 2/3 (66.67) 600 100 1/3 (33.33) 2/3 (66.67) 600 133 1/4 (33.25) 2/3 (88.67) 650 100 1/3 (33.33) 2/3 (66.67) 667 133 1/4 (33.25) 2/3 (88.67) 700 100 1/3 (33.33) 2/3 (66.67) 750 100 1/3 (33.33) 2/3 (66.67) 800 100 1/3 (33.33) 2/3 (66.67) 733 133 1/4 (33.25) 2/3 (88.67) 800 133 1/4 (33.25) 2/3 (88.67)

User’s Manual

E-4 Appendix E

If you want to choose “user define” and configure every setting manually, please pay

attention to the following:

First, when you are selecting the “PCI/CPU FSB Clock”, please refer to the CPU FSB clock

you set and choose the ratio which brings the PCI clock as close to 33MHz as possible.

Second, when you are selecting the “AGP/CPU FSB clock”, please refer to the CPU FSB

you set and choose the ratio which brings the AGP clock as close to 66MHz as possible.

Finally for the PC133 system, we recommend the setting of the “PCI/CPU FSB Clock” to

“1/4”; the “AGP/CPU FSB Clock” to 2/3; the “AGP Transfer Mode” to “Normal”; and the

“In-Order Queue Depth” to “1.”

BF6

BX 133 Overclocking Guide E-5

Supporting List

!!!!

AGP Cards

Testing Equipment:

CPU:

Intel Coppermine 733 MHz

Memory:

TWINMOS Winbond 128M*3 PC-133

CD-ROM:

Mitsumi 40X

Sound Card: BIOS:

FIC Hi-Five

beh_qj.b in

Ven d e r/ Mode l N a me Chipset Result

Leadtek / S310 3Dfx Voodoo Banshee Pass

3Dfx / Voodoo3 2000 3Dfx Voodoo3 2000 Pass

3Dlabs / Oxygen VX1 3Dlabs Pass

AT I / 3D Range Pro ATI 3D Rage Pro Pass

AT I / Xpert 98 AT I 3D Rage Pro Pass

ASUS / V264GT3 ATI 3D Rate Pro Pass

AT I / XPERT 128 ATI Rage 128GL Pass

ABIT / GF 256 GeForce 256 Pass ASUS / V6600 GeForce 256 Pass

Creative / CT6940 GeFor ce 256 Pass

ASUS/2740 Intel I740 Pass

Cardex / I740 Intel I740 Pass Leadtek / S900 Intel I740 Pass Matrox / G100 MGA G100 Pass

Matrox / Mystique MG A G200 Pass

Matrox / Millenniu m MGA G400 Pass

4Matrox / Millennium II Millennium Pass

Leadtek / L2300 Permedia II Pass

Leadtek / 3D S3500ZX RIVA 128ZX Pass

ASUS / V3400 RIVA TNT Pass Creative / TNT RIVA TNT Pass

DIAMOND / Viper V550 RIVA TNT Pass

ELSA / ErazorII RIVA TNT Pass

Leadtek/ S320 RIVA TNT Pass

STB/Velocity4400 RIVA TNT Pass

Abit BF6 User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual