American Megatrends Apollo III User Manual

Apollo III PCI Pentium

ISA Motherboard

User's Guide

MAN-752

12/6/96

© Copyright 1996 American Megatrends, Inc.
All rights reserved.
American Megatrends, Inc.
6145F Northbelt Parkway
Norcross, GA 30071

This publication contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transcribed,
stored in a retrieval system, translated into any language or computer language, or transmitted in any form whatsoever without the prior written
consent of the publisher, American Megatrends, Inc.

Limited Warranty

Buyer agrees if this product proves to be defective, that American Megatrends, Inc. is only obligated to replace or refund the purchase price of
this product at American Megatrends’ discretion according to the terms and conditions on the motherboard warranty card. American Megatrends
shall not be liable in tort or contract for any loss or damage, direct, incidental or consequential. Please see the Warranty Registration Card
shipped with this product for full warranty details.

Limitations of Liability

In no event shall American Megatrends be held liable for any loss, expenses, or damages of any kind whatsoever, whether direct, indirect,
incidental, or consequential, arising from the design or use of this product or the support materials provided with the product.

Trademarks

Intel and Pentium are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation.
MS-DOS, Microsoft Word, and Microsoft are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
SMC is a registered trademark of Standard Microsystems Corporation.
IBM, AT, VGA, PS/2, OS/2, and EGA are registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation. XT and CGA are trademarks
of International Business Machines Corporation.
Fujitsu is a registered trademark of Fujitsu America, Inc.
Motorola is a registered trademark of Motorola Corporation.
Hitachi is a registered trademark of Hitachi America, Ltd.
PNY is a registered trademark of PNY Corporation.
Oki is a registered trademark of Oki America, Inc.
NEC is a registered trademark of NEC Corporation.
Samsung is a registered trademark of Samsung Electronics Corporation.
Siemens is a trademark of Siemens Corporation.
Mitsubishi is a registered trademark of Mitsubishi Electronics of America.
Micron is a registered trademark of Micron Corporation.
SCO, UnixWare, and Unix are registered trademarks of The Santa Cruz Operation, Inc.
Toshiba is a registered trademark of Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba.
VESA is a trademark of the Video Electronics Standards Association.
All other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

Revision History

7/28/96 Initial release.
12/6/96 Updated manual for new version of BIOS.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

ii

Preface

To the OEM Thank you for purchasing the high performance American Megatrends

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA motherboard. This product is a state of the art
motherboard that includes the famous AMIBIOS. It is assumed that you have
also licensed the rights to use the American Megatrends documentation for
the American Megatrends Apollo III motherboard

This manual was written for the OEM to assist in the proper installation and
operation of this motherboard. This manual describes the specifications and
features of the Apollo III motherboard. It explains how to assemble a system
based on the Apollo III motherboard and how to use the AMIBIOS that is
specifically designed for this motherboard.

This manual is not meant to be read by the computer owner who purchases a
computer with this motherboard. It is assumed that you, the computer
manufacturer, will use this manual as a sourcebook of information, and that
parts of this manual will be included in the computer owner's manual.

Preface iii

Packing List

You should have received the following:

• an Apollo III Pentium PCI ISA motherboard,

• an optional USB cable and mounting bracket,

• two serial cables,

• one parallel cable,

• a Warranty Card, and

• the American Megatrends Apollo III Pentium ISA Motherboard User's

Guide.

Static Electricity

The Apollo III motherboard can easily be damaged by static electricity. Make
sure you take appropriate precautions against static electric discharge:

• wear a properly-grounded wristband while handling the Apollo III

motherboard or any other electrical component,

• touch a grounded anti-static surface or a grounded metal fixture before

handling the Apollo III motherboard,

• handle system components by the mounting bracket, if possible.

Batteries Make sure you dispose of used batteries according to the battery

manufacturer’s instructions. Improper use of batteries may cause an
explosion. Make sure you follow the battery manufacturer’s instructions about
using the battery.

Replace used batteries with the same type of battery or an equivalent
recommended by the battery manufacturer.

Preface iv

1 Hardware Installation

Overview

The American Megatrends Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA motherboard includes
the following features.

CPU The motherboard supports an Intel® Pentium™ 75, 90, 100, 120, 133, 150,

166, 180, 200 MHz or higher speed CPU operating at Standard, VR, or VRE
voltages. The CPU speed and voltage are set via jumpers.

Upgrade CPU You can install an Intel P54C series, P54CT, or P55C CPU.

Chipset The Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA motherboard uses an Intel 82430HX,

including CPU interface controller, advanced cache controller, integrated
DRAM controller, synchronous ISA bus controller, PCI local bus interface,
and integrated power management unit.

Expansion slots The motherboard includes three 16-bit ISA expansion slots and four 32-bit

PCI expansion slots. The PCI local bus throughput can be up to 132
megabytes per second.

L1 Internal Cache The Intel Pentium on the motherboard has an 8 KB data cache and an 8

KB instruction cache.

L2 Secondary Cache The motherboard has either 256 KB or 512 KB of synchronous

PBSRAM, direct-mapped, write-back. L2 secondary cache memory.

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

1

Overview, Continued

DRAM Cached If 256 KB of L2 secondary cache memory is installed on the motherboard, up

to 128 MB of system memory can be cached.
If 512 KB of L2 secondary cache memory is installed on the motherboard, up

to 256 MB of system memory can be cached.

System Memory The motherboard supports up to 256 MB of system memory mounted on the

motherboard in two banks of 72-pin 4 MB, 8 MB, or 16 MB SIMMs.
Use Fast Page Mode or Extended Data Out (EDO) SIMMs operating at 60 ns.

Fast ATA The motherboard supports the Fast ATA specification using PIO mode 4 and

multiword DMA mode 2.

System BIOS This motherboard has a 128 KB AMIBIOS system BIOS on a Flash ROM

with built-in WINBIOS Setup.

BIOS Shadowing The system BIOS is always copied from ROM to RAM for faster execution.

The end user can shadow 16 KB ROM segments from C0000h – DCFFFh.

Motherboard Size The Apollo III Pentium PCI ISA motherboard is 10 inches by 8.625

inches.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

2

Overview, Continued

AMIBIOS Features AMIBIOS features include:

• IDE block mode support,

• IDE 32-bit data transfer support,

• IDE Programmed I/O mode 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 support,

• IDE LBA mode support,

• APM (Advanced Power Management) and Flash BIOS hooks,

• EPA Green PC-compliant,

• PCI and Plug and Play (PnP) support, and

• DIM (Device Initialization Manager) support,

• DMI (Desktop Management Interface) support,

• ATAPI support,

• can boot from a CD-ROM drive,

• automatically detects system memory, cache memory, and IDE drive

parameters,

• Intel NSP-compliant,

• Fast ATA IDE mode programming,

• Boot sector virus protection,

• instant-on support,

• automatically configures PnP and PCI devices.

IDE The Apollo III motherboard has two 40-pin IDE connectors onboard that

support up to four IDE drives. The IDE controller is on the PCI local bus.

Floppy The Apollo III motherboard has an onboard floppy controller that supports up

to two 360 KB, 720 KB, 1.2 MB, 1.44 MB, or 2.88 MB floppy drives.

Parallel Port The Apollo III motherboard has an onboard ECP and EPP-capable parallel

port connector.

Serial Ports The Apollo III motherboard has two onboard serial port connectors and two

16550 UART serial ports.

Keyboard The Apollo III motherboard Includes a standard miniDIN keyboard

connector.

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

3

Overview, Continued

Mouse The Apollo III motherboard includes a 5-pin berg mouse connector.

USB The Apollo III motherboard has two 4-pin USB connectors. USB allows

future generations of USB-compliant peripheral devices to be automatically
detected and configured through a single port. The AMIBIOS on the Apollo
III motherboard provides complete USB system BIOS support.

Infrared A 10-pin infrared connector is provided on the motherboard. The

motherboard and AMIBIOS comply with the IrDA SIR infrared device
standards and specifications.

Power Connectors The Apollo III motherboard has three power supply connectors.

RTC/CMOS RAM A real time clock and 128 bytes of CMOS RAM with a battery backup is

provided on the motherboard.

Power Management Power management services include:

• Green PC LED,

• power management signal to Green PC-aware power supplies,

• automatic IDE and video power down,

• monitor blanking,

• SMI (System Management Interrupt) support,

• APM, and

• system stop clock.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

4

Overview, Continued

PCI Slots The motherboard conforms to the PCI Version 2.1 specification. The PCI

slots are automatically configured by the AMIBIOS. The PCI slots operate
synchronously with the CPU clock, as follows:

CPU External Clock Frequency PCI Expansion Slot Frequency

66 MHz 33 MHz
60 MHz 30 MHz
50 MHz 25 MHz

Onboard I/O The Apollo III Pentium ISA motherboard includes:

• two 40-pin IDE connectors on the PCI bus that support up to four IDE drives,

• a 34-pin floppy drive connector,

• two 10-pin serial port connectors (with 16550 UARTs),

• a 26-pin parallel port connector with ECP and EPP support,

• an infrared connectors,

• two USB connectors,

• a keyboard connector, and

• a PS/2 mouse connector.

Apollo III Dimensions

Expansion

Slots

0.62"

Keyboard

Connector

0.85"

Power Connectors

2.0"

CPU Heat Sink

1.75"

10"

SIMM

Sockets

2.5"

8.625"

Heat Sink

1.5"

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

5

Installation Steps

Step Action

1 Unpack the motherboard.
2 Configure the CPU.

3 Install memory.

4 Install the motherboard.
5 Attach cables to connectors.

6 Connect onboard I/O.

7 Connect floppy drive(s).
8 Connect the IDE drive(s).
9 Test and configure.

Select the CPU voltage.
Select the CPU speed.
Install the CPU.

Install system memory.

Connect the power supply.
Attach the keyboard cable.
Connect the mouse cable.
Attach cables.

Connect the serial ports.
Connect the parallel port.

Warning

This motherboard contains sensitive electronic

components that can be easily damaged by static

electricity. Follow the instructions carefully to

ensure correct installation and to avoid static

damage.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

6

Apollo III Motherboard Layout

USB1

USB2

VR1

EP3
EP2

EP1

PS/2 Mouse

RPW_CON

IR

PCI SLOT 4

PCI SLOT 3

PCI SLOT 2

PCI SLOT 1

COM1

COM2

Keyboard

Power Supply

Floppy

LPT1

AMIBIOS

CPS

IDE2

IDE1

CLK1

CLK2

M2

Bank0

M1

Bank1

VR2

Fan

The connectors in this Block
Header are detailed below.

FREQ2

Spe aker IDE

PWR
LED

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

FREQ1

Kbd
Lock

M4

A Square Pad identifies Pin 1
in Jumpers and Connectors.

M3

Re mote
Powe r

LED

Turbo
LED

Sw itch

Susp.
Mo de

Reset

Susp.
LED

Switch

M6

M5

Tag RAM

7

Step 1 Unpack the Motherboard

Step Action

1 Inspect the cardboard carton for obvious damage. If damaged,

call 770-246-8645. Leave the motherboard in its original
packing.

2 Perform all unpacking and installation procedures on a ground-

connected anti-static mat. Wear an anti-static wristband
grounded at the same point as the anti-static mat. Or use a
sheet of conductive aluminum foil grounded through a 1
megohm resistor instead of the anti-static mat. Similarly, a
strip of conductive aluminum foil wrapped around the wrist
and grounded through a 1 megohm resistor serves the same
purpose as the wristband.

3 Inside the carton, the motherboard is packed in an anti-static

bag, and sandwiched between sheets of sponge. Remove the
sponge and the anti-static bag. Place the motherboard on a
grounded anti-static surface component side up. Save the
original packing material.

4 Inspect the motherboard for damage. Press down on all ICs

mounted in sockets to verify proper seating. Do not apply
power to the motherboard if it has been damaged.

5 If the motherboard is undamaged, it is ready to be installed.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

8

Set Jumpers

Set all jumpers and install the CPU before placing the motherboard in the
chassis. Set jumpers by placing a shunt (shorting bridge) on the designated
pins of the jumper. A shunt and jumpers are shown below:

3-dimensional view of motherboard jumpers and a shunt.

Shunt

In this manual, jumpers are shown in two -dimensions,
as if viewed from directly above, as shown below:

1

3

5

3-pin Berg

The placement of shunts is
indicated by a solid line

2

between pins, as shown
between Pins 1-2

4

to the right:

6

2-pin Berg

Avoid Static Electricity

Static electricity can damage the motherboard and other computer
components. Keep the motherboard in the anti-static bag until it is to be
installed. Wear an anti-static wrist grounding strap before handling the
motherboard. Make sure you stand on an anti-static mat when handling the
motherboard.

Avoid contact with any component or connector on any adapter card, printed
circuit board, or memory module. Handle these components by the mounting
bracket.

1

3

5

2

4

6

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

9

Step 2 Configure CPU

Important

Perform the following steps to configure the

motherboard before installing a CPU.

External and Internal CPU Clock CLK1, CLK2, FREQ1, and FREQ2 are 3-pin bergs that set

the CPU external and internal clock frequencies. FREQ1 and FREQ2 are next
to the CPU. CLK1 and CLK2 are towards the middle of the motherboard.

External Internal CLK1 CLK2 FREQ1 FREQ2

66 MHz 166 MHz Short Pins

1-2

60 MHz 150 MHz Short Pins

2-3

66 MHz 133 MHz Short Pins

1-2

60 MHz 120 MHz Short Pins

2-3

66 MHz 100 MHz Short Pins

1-2

60 MHz 90 MHz Short Pins

2-3

50 MHz 75 MHz Short Pins

2-3

60 MHz 180 MHz Short Pins

2-3

66 MHz 200 MHz Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

1-2

Short Pins

2-3

Short Pins

2-3

Important

Please contact American Megatrends technical

support at 770-246-8645 if you need to support a

CPU running at a higher speed.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

10

Step 2 Configure CPU, Continued

JVR Set CPU Voltage Install Intel Pentium CPUs that adhere to either the standard or VRE

voltage specifications. VR1 and VR2 are 6-pin bergs that set CPU voltage.
VR1 is near the top of the CPU socket. VR2 is next to the CPU, near the edge
of the motherboard.

Standard and VRE Voltage This is the factory setting.

3.49V Standard and VRE
for Intel P54C CPU s

Pins 7 5 3 1

Pins 7 5 3 1

Standard Voltage

Mixed Voltage

Pins 8 6 4 2

VR1

3.3V Standard
for Intel P54C CPUs

Pins 7 5 3 1

Pins 8 6 4 2

VR1 VR2

2.8V and 3.3V
for Intel P55C CPUs

Pins 7 5 3 1

Pins 8 6 4 2

VR1

Pins 8 6 4 2

VR2

Pins 7 5 3 1

Pins 8 6 4 2

Pins 7 5 3 1

Pins 8 6 4 2

VR2

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

11

Step 2 Configure CPU, Continued

Important

If you are not sure about the voltage specification

for the CPU that will be installed in this

motherboard, please call Intel and make sure that

you set the voltage jumpers correctly. Selecting the

wrong voltage may damage the CPU.

Install CPU Install the CPU in the ZIF (zero insertion force) socket by performing the

following steps. The CPU socket is near one edge of the motherboard.

Warning

Improper CPU installation can damage the CPU

and the motherboard. You must follow the
procedures in this section exactly as documented.
Make sure you wear an antistatic wristband while

installing the CPU.

Step Action

1 Lift the lever on the ZIF socket. The empty CPU socket

looks like this.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

12

Step Action

2 Check for bent pins on the CPU. Gently straighten any bent

pins with pliers. Place the CPU in the middle of the socket,
as shown below. Make sure that pin 1 of the CPU is aligned
with pin 1 of the socket. Make sure you are properly

grounded while handling the CPU.

3 Complete installation by lifting the ZIF lever to the other

side of the socket, as shown below.

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

13

Step 3 Install Memory

System Memory The motherboard has four 32-bit SIMM – Single Inline Memory Module)

sockets. You can use Fast Page Mode or EDO (Extended Data Out) SIMMs.
Memory must be populated one bank at a time. Each bank has two sockets.
Each bank must be populated with the same type of SIMM. If a 1 MB SIMM
is installed in the first socket in Bank0, then the same type of 1 MB SIMM
must be installed in the second Bank0 SIMM socket. Each socket can hold
one 72-pin SIMM. You can use:

• 1 MB x 36,

• 4 MB x 36,

• 8 MB x 36, or

• 16 MB x 36 SIMMs.

The motherboard supports banks of fast page mode and EDO (Extended Data
Out) memory together operating at 60 ns (RAS access time).

Memory Display System memory is reported by AMIBIOS as it boots and again when

the AMIBIOS System Configuration Screen is displayed just before the
operating system boots. The memory displayed by AMIBIOS on the System
Configuration Screen is 384 KB less than the total memory installed.

SIMM Part Numbers

Type Manufacturer Part Number

4 MB x 36 Micron MT12D436M-6

“ Mitsubishi MH4M36SAJ-6
“ Motorola MCM36400S-60
“ PNY P364000-60
“ Samsung KMM5364100-6

8 MB x 36 Motorola MCM36800S-60

“ PNY P368000-60
“ Samsung KMM5368100-6

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

14

Cont’d

Step 3 Install Memory, Continued

DRAM Configurations Valid memory configurations include:

Total RAM Bank0 Bank0 Bank1 Bank1

8 MB 4 MB 4 MB None None
16 MB 8 MB 8 MB None None
24 MB 8 MB 8 MB 4 MB 4 MB
32 MB 8 MB 8 MB 8 MB 8 MB
40 MB 16 MB 16 MB 4 MB 4 MB
48 MB 16 MB 16 MB 8 MB 8 MB
64 MB 16 MB 16 MB 16 MB 16 MB
64 MB 32 MB 32 MB None None
72 MB 32 MB 32 MB 4 MB 4 MB
80 MB 32 MB 32 MB 8 MB 8 MB
96 MB 32 MB 32 MB 16 MB 16 MB

128 MB 32 MB 32 MB 32 MB 32 MB
136 MB 64 MB 64 MB 4 MB 4 MB
144 MB 64 MB 64 MB 8 MB 8 MB
160 MB 64 MB 64 MB 16 MB 16 MB
192 MB 64 MB 64 MB 32 MB 32 MB
256 MB 64 MB 64 MB 64 MB 64 MB

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

15

Step 3 Install Memory, Continued

Installing SIMMs The motherboard has four x 36 SIMM sockets. These sockets can be filled

with either 1 MB x 36, 4 MB x 36, 8 MB x 36, or 16 MB x 36 SIMMs.
Place the motherboard on an anti-static mat. With the component side of the

SIMM facing you, firmly push the SIMM into the socket at an angle, then
push it up. When properly inserted, the SIMM clicks into place as the
latching pins engage. The SIMM installation process is shown below:

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

16

Step 3 Install Memory, Continued

Configure Cache Memory The motherboard supports 256 KB or 512 KB of L2 3V Pipeline

Burst SRAM secondary cache memory. Either 256 KB or 512 KB of Pipeline
Burst Mode Static RAM L2 secondary cache memory is mounted on the
motherboard. You cannot upgrade L2 secondary cache memory.

L2 Cache Size Cache DIP Type Tag RAM Type

256 KB 32 KB x 32 (M2 and M4) 8 KB x 8 (M5)
512 KB 32 KB x 32 (M1, M2, M3,

and M4)

Flash ROM Type You must specify the type of flash EPROM installed on the motherboard, as

follows. EP1, EP2, and EP3 are next to the BIOS ROM between the ISA and
PCI expansion slots.

Flash ROM Type EP1 EP2 EP3

Intel 28F010 Short Pins 1-2 Short Pins 2-3 OPEN

Intel 28F001BX-T Short Pins 1-2 Short Pins 1-2 OPEN

SST 29EE010

(factory setting)

AMD28F020 OPEN Short Pins 1-2 Short Pins 2-3
SST29EE020 OPEN Short Pins 2-3 Short Pins 2-3

Short Pins 2-3 Short Pins 2-3 OPEN

16 KB x 8 (M5, M6)

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

17

Step 4 Install the Motherboard

The motherboard mounting hole pattern is the same as the mounting hole
pattern on the standard baby AT motherboard. Standoffs and mounting
screws are not supplied with the motherboard. The chassis manufacturer
should supply these parts.

Step Action

1 Place the chassis on an anti-static mat. Connect the chassis to

ground to avoid static damage during installation. Connect an
alligator clip with a wire lead to any unpainted part of the chassis.
Ground the other end of the lead at the same point as the mat and
the wristband.

2 Rotate the chassis so the front is to the right, and the rear is to the

left. The side facing you is where the motherboard is mounted.
The power supply is mounted at the far end of the chassis.

3 Hold the motherboard, component-side up, with the edge with the

SIMM sockets toward you and the edge with the power supply
connector away from you. The keyboard, mouse, and video
connectors should be to the left.

4 Carefully slide the motherboard into the chassis. Make certain the

edge connectors fit the ports in the rear of the chassis. The
motherboard should rest level with the chassis.

5 Place the mounting screws in the holes provided and tighten them.

If necessary, shift the motherboard slightly to align the mounting
holes on the motherboard with the holes on the chassis. See the
drawing on the next screen.

Warning

If using metallic screws, make sure you use them

only in the plated mounting holes.

If using metallic screws, make sure the head of

the screw fits completely inside the plated

mounting holes.

See the graphic on the following screen.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

18

Step 4 Install Motherboard, Continued

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

19

Step 5 Attach Cables

Connectors The Apollo III motherboard includes many connectors. Connection

instructions, illustrations of connectors, and pinouts are listed below. A list of
all connectors described in this section follows:

Connector

CPS Clear password
Power supply connector
Keyboard connector
Mouse connector
CPU Fan
Infrared
Remote Power connector
USB connectors
Speaker
IDE LED
Remote Power Switch
Hardware Reset Switch
Power LED (lit when power is on)
Keyboard Lock
Turbo LED (lit when high speed is active)
Suspend Mode Switch
Suspend LED (lit when system in suspend
mode)
Serial Port
Parallel port
Floppy drive connector
IDE drive connectors

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

20

Step 5 Attach Cables, Continued

Cable Connector Ends When connecting chassis connectors to the motherboard, make sure

to connect the correct connector end. Most connector wires are color-coded.
Match the color of the wires leaving the switch or LED to the same pin on the
connector end. There may be more than one connector with the same color­coded wires. If so, follow the wire to the switch or LED. Pin 1 is indicated for
all motherboard components by a white line. Pin 1 is always nearest to the
white line.

3 2 1

CPS Clear Password If you forget the computer password, the only course of action is to erase

the system configuration information stored in the NVRAM (Non-Volatile
Random Access Memory). The computer password is stored in the system
configuration data. Short the CPS pins together for two seconds. CPS is
located near the bottom of PCI Slot4. All system memory will be erased. You
must now turn the computer power on and run WINBIOS Setup to reset all
system configuration information. Make sure that CPS remains OPEN unless

you have to erase a forgotten password.

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

21

Step 5 Attach Cables, Continued

Connect Power Supply The power supply should match the physical configuration of the

chassis. Make sure that the power switch is Off before assembly.
Before attaching all components, make sure that the proper voltage has been

selected. Power supplies often can run on a wide range of voltages and must
be set (usually via a switch) to the proper range. Use at least a 200 watt power
supply, which should have built-in filters to suppress radiated emissions.

Power Cables Attach the power supply cables to the power connector on the motherboard.

AT-compatible power supplies have one twelve pin connector, as shown
below.

E

G

N

A

R

O

D

E

Pin 1

R

Y

B

B

W

O

L

L

E

E

U

L

B

K

C

A

L

B

K

C

A

L

B

K

C

A

L

K

C

A

L

K

C

A

L

B

D

E

R

D

E

R

D

E

R

Pin 12

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

22

Step 5 Attach Cables, Continued

Connector Keys The keys on the connector must be cut to fit on some power supplies, as

shown below.

Power Connector Pinout

Pin Description

1 Power Good (Orange wire) (Not used)
2 VCC (Red wire)
3 +12 Volts (Yellow wire)
4 -12 Volts (Blue wire)
5 Ground (Black wire)
6 Ground (Black wire)
7 Ground (Black wire)
8 Ground (Black wire)

9 -5 Volts (White wire)
10 VCC (Red wire)
11 VCC (Red wire)
12 VCC (Red wire)

Keyboard CableThe keyboard attaches via a PS/2 keyboard connector, labeled KB_CONN.

Pin Assignments

1 Keyboard data
2 N/C
3 Ground
4 VCC

5 Keyboard clock
6 N/C

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

23

Step 5 Attach Cables, Continued

Mouse Cable Attach the mouse connector cable supplied by American Megatrends to the

five-pin mouse berg connector on the motherboard (labeled MS_COM), as
shown below. Attach the standard 9-pin mouse connector at the other end of
the mouse cable to the mouse connector port on the computer case. Incorrect
mouse installation can cause the system to hang.

Error! Not a valid filename.

Pin Description

1 Mouse Clock
2 N/C
3 N/C
4 Mouse Data
5 Ground

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

24

Step 5 Attach Cables, Continued

When connecting chassis connectors to the motherboard, make sure to
connect the correct connector end. Most connector wires are color-coded.
Match the color of the wires leaving the switch or LED to the same pin on the
connector end. There may be more than one connector with the same color­coded wires. If so, follow the wire to the switch or LED. Pin 1 is always
indicated on the motherboard, as shown below:

CPU Fan A three-pin berg labeled FAN attaches to the CPU fan. The FAN connector is

next to the CPU socket.

Pin Description

1 Ground
2 +12V
3 Ground

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

25

Step 5 Attach Cables, Continued

IR Infrared The 8-pin infrared connector (IR1) near PCI Slot 1 connects to an infrared

port mounted on the computer chassis. It allows data transmission to any
other device that supports the IrDA standards for infrared transmission.

Remote Control Power RPW_COM is a 2-pin berg next to the infrared connector that

connects to the power supply for enabling system power when the remote
power switch is turned on. Connect a 2-wire power cable to RPW_COM and
attach the other end to the peripheral device.

USB Connectors The Apollo III motherboard has two 4-pin headers (USB1 and USB2) that

attach to a USB connector on the computer chassis. The USB port allows you
to attach to a USB hub. The USB connector pinouts are the same for both
USB connectors:

Pin Signal Description

1 VCC (Fused 5V)
2 - Data
3 + Data
4 Ground

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

26

Step 5 Attach Cables, Continued

Block Connector The Apollo III motherboard has a 22-pin header that is used to connect the

following offboard connectors. The header is on the corner of the
motherboard near the CPU socket.

Pins

Pins

Speaker Pin 12 VCC

IDE LED Pin 16 LED Power

Remote Power Switch (Power when
low).
Hardware Reset Switch Pin 20 Hard Reset

Power LED (lit when power is on) Pin 1 +Power

Keyboard Lock Pin 4 Keyboard Lock

Turbo LED (lit when low speed is
active)
Suspend Mode Switch (Suspend when
Low)
Suspend LED (lit when system in
suspend mode)

13

12

1 2

Connector Signal Descriptions

14 15 16

3

5

4

17 18 19 20 2 1

7

6

Pin 15 Speaker Data

Pin 17 IDE Active
Pin 18 Remote Power
Pin 19 Ground

Pin 21 Ground

Pin 2 Ground

Pin 5 Ground
Pin 6 TURBO_LIT
Pin 7 TURBO_LEDPWR
Pin 8 Suspend In Switch
Pin 9 Ground
Pin 10 Suspend Out LED+
Pin 11 Suspend Out LED-

9

8

10

11

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

27

Step 6 Onboard I/O

Onboard I/O The Apollo III motherboard has:

• two serial ports (COM1 and COM2),

• a parallel port (LPT),

• an IDE controller on the PCI bus. The primary IDE connector is IDE1.

The secondary connector is IDE2.

• a floppy controller (FDD).
The serial and parallel port connectors are described below.

Conflicts AMIBIOS minimizes conflicts between onboard and offboard I/O devices.

AMIBIOS automatically checks the adapter cards installed in the expansion
slots on the Apollo III motherboard for a hard disk or floppy controller and
serial or parallel ports.

Serial Ports COM1 and COM2 are 10-pin connectors that provide an AT-compatible

serial port interface. Connect the cables supplied with the motherboard to the
10-pin serial connectors. The serial port base I/O port address and other serial
port settings can be selected in Peripheral Setup in WINBIOS Setup. The
serial connector pinout is shown below.

Pin Description Pin Signal Description

1 Carrier Detect 6 Data Set Ready
2 Receive Data 7 Request to Send
3 Transmit Data 8 Clear to Send
4 Data Terminal

Ready

5 Ground 10 CUT PIN

9 Ring Indicator

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

28

Step 6 Onboard I/O, Continued

Parallel Port LPT is a 26-pin connector for a parallel port. The LPT pinout is shown below.

Connect the 26-pin to DB25 cable provided with the motherboard to LPT. All
parallel port settings can be configured through Peripheral Setup in
WINBIOS Setup.

Pin Signal Description Pin Signal Description

1 STROBE# 2 PD0
3 PD1 4 PD2
5 PD3 6 PD4
7 PD5 8 PD6

9 PD7 10 ACK#
11 BUSY 12 PE
13 SLCT 14 AUTOFD#
15 ERROR# 16 INIT#
17 SLCTIN# 18 Ground
19 Ground 20 Ground
21 Ground 22 Ground
23 Ground 24 Ground
25 Ground 26 Ground

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

29

Step 7 Attach Floppy Drive

FDD is a 34-pin dual-inline berg. Connect the cable from the floppy drive to
FDD, as shown below. The onboard floppy controller cannot be used if a hard
disk card with a floppy controller is installed. Choose Standard Setup and
Peripheral Setup to configure the floppy controller.

The motherboard supports up to two 720 KB, 1.44 MB, or 2.88 MB 3½"
drives and 360 KB and 1.2 MB 5¼" drives. The connecting cable is a 34-pin
ribbon connector with two 34-pin edge connectors for attaching the floppy
disk drives. There is a small twist in the cable between the floppy connectors.
The last (end) connector should be connected to floppy drive A:.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

30

Step 7 Attach Floppy Drive, Continued

Floppy Connector Pinout

Pin Use Pin Use

1 GND 2 DENSE1
3 GND 4 N/C
5 GND 6 DRATE0
7 GND 8 -INDEX

9 GND 10 -MOTOR0
11 GND 12 -FDSEL1
13 GND 14 -FDSEL0
15 GND 16 -MOTOR1
17 GND 18 DIR
19 GND 20 ­21 GND 22 -WDATA
23 GND 24 -WGATE
25 GND 26 -TRK0
27 GND 28 -WRPROT
29 GND 30 -RDATA
31 GND 32 HDSEL
33 GND 34 DSKCHNG

Twist in Floppy Cable

Floppy B to A Floppy B to A Floppy B to A Floppy B to A

10 to 16 12 to 14 14 to 12 16 to 10
11 to 15 13 to 13 15 to 11

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

31

Step 8 Attach IDE Drive

IDE Drives Attach the IDE drives in the following manner. Choose Peripheral Setup in

WINBIOS Setup to enable the onboard IDE controller.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

32

Cont’d

Step 8 Attach IDE Drive, Continued

Attach IDE Cable IDE1 is the primary IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) hard disk drive

connector. Both the primary master and the primary slave IDE drives must be
connected by cable to IDE1, as shown below.

IDE1 is a 40-pin dual-inline berg that connects an IDE drive to the primary
onboard IDE connector. This motherboard supports IDE Modes 0, 1, 2, 3, and
4, IDE prefetch, LBA (Logical Block Address) mode, high capacity drives
(over 528 MB), 32-bit data transfer, and fast IDE transfer. These IDE features
are configured in Peripheral Setup in the WINBIOS Setup utility. Disable the
onboard IDE interface in Peripheral Setup to use an ISA ESDI, RLL, MFM,
or SCSI hard disk drive controller.

Cont’d

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

33

Step 8 Attach IDE Drive, Continued

IDE1 Pinout The IDE1 pinout is:

Pin Use Pin Use

1 -RESET 2 GND
3 DATA7 4 DATA8
5 DATA6 6 DATA9
7 DATA5 8 DATA10

9 DATA4 10 DATA11
11 DATA3 12 DATA12
13 DATA2 14 DATA13
15 DATA1 16 DATA14
17 DATA0 18 DATA15
19 GND 20 KEY (N/C)
21 N/C 22 GND
23 -IOW 24 GND
25 -IOR 26 GND
27 IDERDY 28 ALE
29 N/C 30 GND
31 INT14 32 -IOCS16
33 HA1 34 N/C
35 HA0 36 HA2
37 -CS0 38 -CS1
39 -IDEACT 40 GND

IDE2 Secondary IDE Controller IDE2, the secondary IDE connector, is a 40-pin dual-inline

berg that connects the secondary primary and slave IDE drives to the
secondary onboard IDE controller.

Attach the secondary master and slave IDE drives to IDE2 via a standard 40­pin IDE cable.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

34

Step 8 Attach IDE Drive, Continued

IDE2 Pinout The IDE2 pinout is:

Pin Use Pin Use

1 -RESET 2 GND
3 DATA7 4 DATA8
5 DATA6 6 DATA9
7 DATA5 8 DATA10

9 DATA4 10 DATA11
11 DATA3 12 DATA12
13 DATA2 14 DATA13
15 DATA1 16 DATA14
17 DATA0 18 DATA15
19 GND 20 KEY (N/C)
21 N/C 22 GND
23 -IOW 24 GND
25 -IOR 26 GND
27 IDERDY 28 ALE
29 N/C 30 GND
31 INT15 32 -IOCS16
33 HA1 34 N/C
35 HA0 36 HA2
37 -CS2 38 -CS3
39 N/C 40 GND

Chapter 1 Hardware Installation

35

Step 9 Test and Configure

Review the following points before powering up:

• make sure that all adapter cards are seated properly,

• make sure all connectors are properly installed,

• make sure the CPU is seated properly,

• make sure there are no screws or other foreign material on the

motherboard,

• plug the system into a surge-protected power strip, and

• make sure blank back panels are installed on the back of the chassis to

minimize RF emissions.

Start the Test Plug everything in and turn on the switch. If there are any signs of a problem,

turn off the unit immediately. Reinstall the connectors. Call Technical
Support if there are problems.

BIOS Errors If the system operates normally, a display should appear on the monitor. The

BIOS Power On Self Test (POST) should execute.
If POST does not run successfully, it will beep or display error messages.

Beeps indicate a serious problem with the system configuration or hardware.
The Beep Code indicates the problem. AMIBIOS Beep Codes are defined in
the AMIBIOS Technical Reference. Make sure the affected part is properly
seated and connected. An error message is displayed if the error is less
serious. Recheck the system configuration or the connections.

Configure the System Run WINBIOS Setup. You must enter the requested information and

save the configuration data in CMOS RAM. The system will then reset, run
POST, and boot the operating system. See the following chapter for
information about configuring the computer.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

36

2 WINBIOS Setup

In ISA and EISA computers, the system parameters (such as amount of
memory, type of disk drives and video displays, and many other elements) are
stored in CMOS RAM. Unlike the DRAM (dynamic random access memory)
that is used for standard system memory, CMOS RAM requires very little
power. When the computer is turned off, a back-up battery provides power to
CMOS RAM, which retains the system parameters. Every time the computer
is powered-on, the computer is configured with the values stored in CMOS
RAM by the system BIOS, which gains control when the computer is powered
on.

The system parameters are configured by a system BIOS Setup utility.
Historically, BIOS Setup utilities have been character-based, required
keyboard input, and have had user interfaces that were not very intuitive.

Graphical Interface American Megatrends has a new type of system BIOS Setup utility.

WINBIOS Setup has a graphical user interface the end user can access using
a mouse. The WINBIOS Setup code is so compact that it can reside on the
same ROM as the system BIOS. The system configuration parameters are set
by WINBIOS Setup.

Since WINBIOS Setup resides in the ROM BIOS, it is available each time the
computer is turned on.

Starting WINBIOS Setup As POST executes, the following appears:

Hit <DEL> if you want to run SETUP

Press <Del> to run WINBIOS Setup.

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 37

Using a Mouse with WINBIOS Setup

WINBIOS Setup has a built-in mouse driver and can be accessed by either a
serial mouse or PS/2-style mouse. WINBIOS Setup supports Microsoft­Compatible serial mice and all PS/2-type mice.

The mouse click functions are: single click to change or select both global
and current fields and double click to perform an operation in the selected
field.

Using the Keyboard with WINBIOS Setup

WINBIOS has a built-in keyboard driver that uses simple keystroke
combinations:

Keystroke Action

<Tab> Change or select a global field.

<→, ←, ↑, ↓

<Enter> Perform an operation in the current field.

+ Increment a value.
– Decrement a value.

<Esc> Abort any window function.
<PgUp> Return to the previous screen.
<PgDn> Advance to the next screen.
<Home> Returns to the beginning of the text.

<End> Advance to the end of the text.

<Ctrl><Alt><+> Change to high speed.
<Ctrl><Alt><-> Change to low speed.

Change or select the current field.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

38

WINBIOS Setup Menu

The WINBIOS Setup main menu is organized into four sections. Each of
these sections corresponds to a section in this chapter.

Each section contains several icons. Clicking on each icon activates a specific
AMIBIOS function. The WINBIOS Setup main windows and related
functions are described below.

Main Windows The WINBIOS Setup main windows are:

• Setup, described in Section 1, has icons that permit you to set system

configuration options such as date, time, hard disk type, floppy type, and
many others,

• Security, described in Section 2, has three icons that control AMIBIOS

security features, and

• Utilities, described in Section 3, sets the screen color and allows

language changes,

• Default, described in Section 4, this section has three icons that permit

you to select a group of settings for all WINBIOS Setup options.

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 39

Section 1 Setup

Standard Setup

Standard Setup options are displayed by choosing the Standard icon from the
WINBIOS Setup main menu. All Standard Setup options are described in this
section.

Date/Time Select the Standard option. Select the Date and Time icon. The current values

for each category are displayed. Enter new values through the keyboard.

Floppy Drive A: and B: Move the cursor to these fields via ↑ and ↓ and select the floppy

type. The settings are 360 KB 5¼ inch, 1.2 MB 5¼ inch, 720 KB 3½ inch,

1.44 MB 3½ inch, or 2.88 MB 3½ inch.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

40

Standard Setup, Continued

Primary Master, Primary Slave, Secondary Master, Secondary Slave Select one of these

hard disk drive icons to configure the hard disk drive named in the option.
Select Auto from the drive parameters screen to let AMIBIOS automatically
configure the drive. A screen with a list of drive parameters appears. Click on
OK to configure the drive.

Drive Type How to Configure

SCSI

IDE

Select Type. Select Not Installed in the drive parameter
screen. The SCSI drivers provided by the SCSI drive or
SCSI host adapter manufacturer should allow you to
configure the SCSI drive.
Select Type. Select Auto to let AMIBIOS determine the
parameters. Click on OK when AMIBIOS displays the drive
parameters.

Select LBA/Large Mode. Select On if the drive has a
capacity greater than 540 MB.

Select Block Mode. Select On to allow block mode data
transfers.

Select 32-Bit Transfer. Select On to allow 32-bit data
transfers.

CD-ROM

Standard

MFM Drive

Non-

Standard

MFM Drive

Select the PIO Mode. It is best to select Auto to allow
AMIBIOS to determine the PIO mode. If you select a PIO
mode that is not supported by the IDE drive, the drive will
not work properly. If you are absolutely certain that you
know the drive’s PIO mode, select PIO mode 0 - 5, as
appropriate.
Select Type. Select CDROM. Click on OK when AMIBIOS
displays the drive parameters.
Select Type. You must know the drive parameters. Select
the drive type that exactly matches your drive’s parameters.
Select Type. If the drive parameters do not match the drive
parameters listed for drive types 1 - 46, select User and
enter the correct hard disk drive parameters.

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 41

Standard Setup, Continued

Entering Drive Parameters You can also enter the hard disk drive parameters. The drive

parameters are:

Parameter Description

Type The number for a drive with certain identification

parameters.

Cylinders The number of cylinders in the disk drive.

Heads The number of heads.
Write

Precompensation

Landing Zone This number is the cylinder location where the heads

Sectors The number of sectors per track. MFM drives have 17

Capacity The formatted capacity of the drive is the number of

The actual physical size of a sector gets progressively
smaller as the track diameter diminishes. Yet each
sector must still hold 512 bytes. Write
precompensation circuitry on the hard disk
compensates for the physical difference in sector size
by boosting the write current for sectors on inner
tracks. This parameter is the track number on the disk
surface where write precompensation begins.

normally park when the system is shut down.

sectors per track. RLL drives have 26 sectors per
track. ESDI drives have 34 sectors per track. SCSI
and IDE drives have even more sectors per track.

heads times the number of cylinders times the number
of sectors per track times 512 (bytes per sector).

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

42

Standard Setup, Continued

Hard Disk Drive Types

Type Cylinders Heads Write

1 306 4 128 305 17 10 MB
2 615 4 300 615 17 20 MB
3 615 6 300 615 17 31 MB
4 940 8 512 940 17 62 MB
5 940 6 512 940 17 47 MB
6 615 4 65535 615 17 20 MB
7 462 8 256 511 17 31 MB
8 733 5 65535 733 17 30 MB

9 900 15 65535 901 17 112 MB
10 820 3 65535 820 17 20 MB
11 855 5 65535 855 17 35 MB
12 855 7 65535 855 17 50 MB
13 306 8 128 319 17 20 MB
14 733 7 65535 733 17 43 MB
16 612 4 0 663 17 20 MB
17 977 5 300 977 17 41 MB
18 977 7 65535 977 17 57 MB
19 1024 7 512 1023 17 60 MB
20 733 5 300 732 17 30 MB
21 733 7 300 732 17 43 MB
22 733 5 300 733 17 30 MB
23 306 4 0 336 17 10 MB
24 925 7 0 925 17 54 MB
25 925 9 65535 925 17 69 MB
26 754 7 754 754 17 44 MB
27 754 11 65535 754 17 69 MB
28 699 7 256 699 17 41 MB
29 823 10 65535 823 17 68 MB
30 918 7 918 918 17 53 MB
31 1024 11 65535 1024 17 94 MB
32 1024 15 65535 1024 17 128 MB
33 1024 5 1024 1024 17 43 MB
34 612 2 128 612 17 10 MB
35 1024 9 65535 1024 17 77 MB
36 1024 8 512 1024 17 68 MB
37 615 8 128 615 17 41 MB
38 987 3 987 987 17 25 MB
39 987 7 987 987 17 57 MB
40 820 6 820 820 17 41 MB
41 977 5 977 977 17 41 MB
42 981 5 981 981 17 41 MB
43 830 7 512 830 17 48 MB
44 830 10 65535 830 17 69 MB
45 917 15 65535 918 17 114 MB
46 1224 15 65535 1223 17 152 MB

AMIBIOS automatically sets IDE drive parameters. Select USER to enter MFM, ESDI, or RLL drive

parameters. Select Not Installed for SCSI drives. Select CDROM for CD-ROM drives.

Precompensation

Landing

Zone

Sectors Capacity

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 43

Advanced Setup

Advanced Setup options are displayed by choosing the Advanced icon from
the WINBIOS Setup main menu. All Advanced Setup options are described
in this section.

System Keyboard This option does not specify if a keyboard is attached to the computer.

Rather, it specifies if error messages are displayed if a keyboard is not
attached. This option permits you to configure workstations with no
keyboards. The settings are Absent or Present. The Optimal and Fail-Safe
default settings are Present.

Primary Display This option configures the type of monitor attached to the computer. The

settings are Mono, CGA40x25, CGA80x25, VGA/EGA, or Absent. The
Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are VGA/EGA.

PS/2Mouse Support Set this option to Enabled to enable AMIBIOS support for a PS/2-type

mouse.. The settings are Enabled or Disabled. The Optimal and Fail-Safe
default settings are Enabled.

Pause on Config. Screen This option specifies the length of time that the AMIBIOS

configuration screen appears. The settings are 2 (seconds), 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,
10, 11, 12, 13, 14, or Disabled. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings
are Disabled.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

44

Advanced Setup, Continued

Boot Up Num Lock Set this option to On to turn the Num Lock key On at system boot. The

settings are On or Off. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are On.

Password CheckThis option enables the password check option every time the system boots or

the end user runs Setup. If Always is chosen, a user password prompt appears
every time the computer is turned on. If Setup is chosen, the password prompt
appears if WINBIOS is executed. The Optimal and Power-On defaults are

Setup.

Boot To OS/2 Set this option to Yes if running OS/2 operating system and using more than

64 MB of system memory on the motherboard. The settings are Yes or No.
The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are No.

Floppy Drive Swap Set this option to Enabled to permit drives A: and B: to be swapped. The

settings are Enabled or Disabled. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings
are Disabled.

Boot Up Sequence This option sets the sequence of boot drives (either floppy drive A, hard

disk drive C:, or a CD-ROM drive.) AMIBIOS attempts to boot from after
AMIBIOS POST completes. The three settings are C:,A:,CDROM,

A:,C:CDROM, and CDROM,C:,A:. The Optimal default setting is
C:,A:CDROM. The Fail-Safe default setting is A:,C:CDROM.

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 45

Advanced Setup, Continued

External Cache Set this option to Enabled to enable L2 secondary (external) cache memory.

The settings are Enabled or Disabled. The Optimal default setting is
Enabled. The Fail-Safe default setting is Disabled.

Caching Controller Set this option to Yes if a cache controller is installed in the computer.

Setting Description

Absent

(the

default

setting)

Present

Video Shadow C000,32K This option controls the location of the contents of video ROM. The

settings are:

To comply with the PCI specifications, PCI adapter cards
must be reset every time the CPU is reset. When the end
user forces a soft reset by pressing <Ctrl> <Alt> <Del>, only
the CPU is reset. When this option is set to No, all soft
resets are converted to hard resets, and all PCI adapter cards
are reset when the CPU is reset.
Soft resets still behave like soft resets when Yes is selected.
Select this option if a caching controller is installed in the
computer. Soft resets must not generate a hard reset if a
caching controller is used. If a hard reset is generated, a PCI
caching controller card cannot flush data from cache memory
to a hard disk drive before the reset.

Setting Description

Shadow

Cached

Disabled

The contents of the video ROM area (C0000h - C7FFFh) are
written to the corresponding address in RAM.
The contents of the video ROM area (C0000h - C7FFFh) are
written to the corresponding RAM address and may be read
from or written to cache memory.
The video ROM is not copied to RAM. The contents of the
video ROM cannot be read from or written to cache memory.

The Optimal default setting is Cached. The Fail-Safe default setting is

Disabled.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

46

Advanced Setup, Continued

Shadow C800,16K
Shadow CC00,16K
Shadow D000,16K
Shadow D400,16K
Shadow D800,16K
Shadow DC00,16K These options enable shadowing of the contents of the ROM area in the

option title.

Setting Description

Shadow

Cached

Disabled

The contents of the ROM area are written to the corresponding
address in RAM for faster execution.
The contents of the ROM area are written to the corresponding
RAM address and can be read from or written to cache memory.
The ROM is not copied to RAM. The contents of the video
ROM cannot be read from or written to cache memory.

The Optimal and Fail-Safe settings are Disabled.

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 47

Chipset Setup

Memory Hole This option allows the end user to specify a memory hole. The settings are

Disabled, 512-640K, or 15-16M (from 15 MB to 16 MB). The Optimal and
Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

IRQ12/M Mouse Function This option should be set according to the mouse hardware

implementation. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Enabled. The
settings are:

Settings Description

Disabled Choose this setting if the hardware uses IRQ12 for the PS/2

mouse.

Enabled Choose this setting if a keyboard controller mouse interrupt

is used for the mouse.

DRAM Data Integrity Mode This option sets the system memory integrity mode. The

settings are Parity (system memory parity is checked) or ECC (an Error
Checking and Correction routine is used). The Optimal and Fail-Safe default
settings are Parity.

USB Function Set this option to Enabled to enable the system BIOS USB (Universal Serial

Bus) functions. The settings are Enabled or Disabled. The Optimal and Fail­Safe default settings are Enabled.

USB Keyboard/Mouse Legacy Support Set this option to Enabled to enable USB support for

legacy keyboards and mice. The settings are Enabled or Disabled. The
Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Enabled.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

48

Power Management Setup

The AMIBIOS Setup options described in this section are selected by
choosing the Power Management Setup icon from the Setup section on the
AMIBIOS Setup main menu.

Power Management/APM Set this option to Enabled to enable the Intel Triton 2 power

management features and APM (Advanced Power Management). The settings
are Enabled, Inst-On (instant-on), or Disabled. The Optimal and Fail-Safe
default settings are Disabled.

Instant-On Timeout (Minute) This option specifies the length of a period of system inactivity

while the computer is in Full power on state. When this length of time
expires, AMIBIOS takes the computer to a lower power consumption state,
but the computer can return to full power instantly when any system activity
occurs. This option is only available if supported by the computer hardware.
The settings are Disabled and 1 Min. through 15 Min in 1 minute intervals.
The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Green PC Monitor Power State This option specifies the power state that the green PC-

compliant video monitor enters when AMIBIOS places it in a power saving
state after the specified period of display inactivity has expired. The settings
are Off, Standby, Suspend, or Disabled. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default
settings are Standby.

Video Power Down Mode This option specifies the power conserving state that the VESA

VGA video subsystem enters after the specified period of display inactivity
has expired. The settings are Disabled, Standby, or Suspend. The Optimal
and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 49

Power Management Setup, Continued

Hard Disk Power Down Mode This option specifies the power conserving state that the hard

disk drive enters after the specified period of hard drive inactivity has
expired. The settings are Disabled, Standby, or Suspend. The Optimal and
Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Hard Disk Timeout (Minute) This option specifies the length of a period of hard disk drive

inactivity. When this length of time expires, the computer enters power­conserving state specified in the Hard Disk Power Down Mode option (see
the previous screen). The settings are Disabled and 1 Min. through 15 Min in
1 minute intervals. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Standby Timeout (Minute) This option specifies the length of a period of system inactivity

while in Full power on state. When this length of time expires, the computer
enters Standby power state. The settings are Disabled and 1 Min. through 15

Min in 1 minute intervals. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are
Disabled.

Suspend Timeout (Minute) This option specifies the length of a period of system inactivity

while in Standby state. When this length of time expires, the computer enters
Suspend power state. The settings are Disabled and 1 Min. through 15 Min in
1 minute intervals. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

50

Power Management Setup, Continued

Slow Clock Ratio This option specifies the speed at which the system clock runs in power

saving states. The settings are expressed as a ratio between the normal CPU
clock speed and the CPU clock speed when the computer is in the power­conserving state. The settings are 1:1, 1:2, 1:4, 1:8, 1:16, 1:32, 1:64, and
1:128. The Optimal and Fail-Safe defaults are 1:8.

Display Activity This option specifies if AMIBIOS is to monitor display activity for power

conservation purposes. When this option is set to Monitor and there is no
display activity for the length of time specified in the Standby Timeout
(Minutes) option, the computer enters a power savings state. The settings are
Monitor or Ignore. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Ignore.

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 51

Power Management Setup, Continued

IRQ3
IRQ4
IRQ5
IRQ7
IRQ9
IRQ10
IRQ11
IRQ12
IRQ13
IRQ14
IRQ15 When set to Monitor, these options enable event monitoring on the specified

IRQ line. If set to Monitor and the computer is in a power saving state,
AMIBIOS watches for activity on the specified IRQ line. The computer enters
the full on power state if any activity occurs. AMIBIOS reloads the Standby
and Suspend timeout timers if activity occurs on the specified IRQ line. The
settings for each of these options are Ignore, or Monitor. The defaults are:

Option Optimal Fail-Safe

IRQ3 Ignore Ignore
IRQ4 Ignore Ignore
IRQ5 Ignore Ignore
IRQ7 Ignore Ignore

IRQ9 Ignore Ignore
IRQ10 Ignore Ignore
IRQ11 Ignore Ignore
IRQ12 Monitor Ignore
IRQ13 Ignore Ignore
IRQ14 Monitor Ignore
IRQ15 Ignore Ignore

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

52

PCI/PnP Setup

Choose the PCI/PnP Setup icon from the WINBIOS Setup screen to display
the PCI and Plug and Play Setup options, described below.

Plug and Play-Aware OS Set this option to Yes if the operating system in this computer is

aware of and follows the Plug and Play specification. Windows 95 is PnP­aware. The settings are Yes or No. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings
are No.

Allocate IRQ to PCI VGA Set this option to Yes to allocate an IRQ to a VGA adapter card

that uses the PCI local bus. The settings are Yes or No. The Optimal and Fail­Safe default settings are Yes.

PCI Slot-1 Latency Timer
PCI Slot-2 Latency Timer
PCI Slot-3 Latency Timer
PCI Slot-4 Latency Timer These options specify the latency timings (in PCI clocks) for PCI

devices installed in the four PCI expansion slots. The settings are 32, 64, 96,
128, 160, 192, 224, or 248. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are 64.

USB Device Latency Timer This option specifies the latency timings (in PCI clocks) for USB

devices installed in the computer. The settings are 32, 64, 96, 128, 160, 192,
224, or 248. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are 64.

USB Device IRQ Preference These options specify the IRQ priority for USB devices installed

in the computer. The settings are Auto, IRQ5, IRQ9, IRQ10, IRQ11, IRQ14,
and IRQ15, in priority order. If Auto is selected, AMIBIOS automatically
determines the optimal IRQ priority order. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default
settings are Auto.

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 53

PCI/PnP Setup, Continued

PCI Slot-1 IRQ Preference
PCI Slot-2 IRQ Preference
PCI Slot-3 IRQ Preference
PCI Slot-4 IRQ Preference These options specify the IRQ priority for PCI devices installed in

the four PCI expansion slots. The settings are Auto, IRQ5, IRQ9, IRQ10,
IRQ11, IRQ 14, and IRQ15, in priority order. If Auto is selected, AMIBIOS

automatically determines the optimal IRQ priority order. The Optimal and
Fail-Safe default settings are Auto.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

54

PCI/PnP Setup, Continued

IRQ3
IRQ4
IRQ5
IRQ7
IRQ9
IRQ10
IRQ11
IRQ12
IRQ14
IRQ15 These options specify the bus that the specified IRQ line is used on. These

options allow you to reserve IRQs for legacy ISA adapter cards. These options
determine if AMIBIOS should remove an IRQ from the pool of available
IRQs passed to devices that are configurable by the system BIOS. The
available IRQ pool is determined by reading the ESCD NVRAM. If more
IRQs must be removed from the pool, the end user can use these options to
reserve the IRQ by assigning an ISA setting to it. Onboard I/O is configured
by AMIBIOS. All IRQs used by onboard I/O are configured as PCI, PnP, or
PCI/PnP. IRQ14 and 15 will not be available if the onboard Triton 2 PCI IDE
is enabled. If all IRQs are set to ISA and IRQ14 and 15 are allocated to the
onboard PCI IDE, IRQ9 will still be available for PCI and PnP devices,
because at least one IRQ must be available for PCI and PnP devices. The
settings are ISA, PnP, PCI/PnP, or PCI. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default
settings are:

Option Optimal Default Fail-Safe Default

IRQ3 PnP PCI/PnP
IRQ4 PnP PCI/PnP
IRQ5 PCI/PnP PCI/PnP
IRQ7 PnP PCI/PnP

IRQ9 PCI/PnP PCI/PnP
IRQ10 PCI/PnP PCI/PnP
IRQ11 PCI/PnP PCI/PnP
IRQ12 PnP PnP
IRQ14 PCI/PnP PCI/PnP

IRQ5 PCI/PnP PCI/PnP

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 55

PCI/PnP Setup, Continued

DMA Channel 0
DMA Channel 1
DMA Channel 3
DMA Channel 5
DMA Channel 6
DMA Channel 7These options allow you to specify the bus type used by each DMA channel.

The settings are PnP or ISA. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are
PnP.

Reserved ISA Card Memory Size This option specifies the size of the memory area reserved

for legacy ISA adapter cards. The settings are Disabled, 16K, 32K, or 64K.
The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Reserved ISA Card Memory Address This option specifies the beginning address (in hex) of

the reserved memory area. The specified ROM memory area is reserved for
use by legacy ISA adapter cards.

The settings are C0000, C4000, C8000, CC000, D0000, D4000, D8000, or
DC000. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are C4000.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

56

Peripheral Setup

Choose the Peripheral Setup icon from the WINBIOS Setup screen to display
the Peripheral Setup options, described below.

Onboard Floppy Controller Set this option to Enabled to enable the floppy drive controller

on the motherboard. The settings are Auto (AMIBIOS automatically
determines if the floppy controller should be enabled), Enabled, or Disabled.
The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Enabled.

Onboard Primary/Secondary IDE This option specifies the IDE channels on the onboard

IDE controller that will be used. The settings are Disabled, Primary,
Secondary, or Both. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Onboard IDE Bus Master Set this option to Enabled to specify that the IDE controller on the

PCI local bus includes a bus mastering capability. The settings are Enabled or
Disabled. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 57

Peripheral Setup, Continued

Offboard PCI/ISA IDE Card This option specifies if an offboard PCI IDE controller adapter

card is installed in the computer. You must choose ISA if an ISA IDE card is
installed or the PCI expansion slot on the motherboard where the offboard
PCI IDE controller is installed. If an offboard ISA or PCI IDE controller is
used, the onboard IDE controller is automatically disabled. The settings are

Auto (AMIBIOS automatically determines where the offboard PCI IDE
controller adapter card is installed), Absent, ISA, Slot1, SLot2, Slot3, or
Slot4. The Optimal And Fail-Safe default settings are Auto.

In the AMIBIOS for the Intel Triton II ISA chipset, this option forces IRQ14
and IRQ15 to a PCI slot on the PCI Local bus. This is necessary to support
non-compliant ISA IDE controller adapter cards.

If an offboard PCI IDE controller adapter card is installed in the computer,
you must also set the Offboard PCI IDE Primary IRQ and Offboard PCI

IDE Secondary IRQ options.

Offboard Primary/Secondary This option specifies the IDE controller channels used by the

offboard IDE adapter card. The settings are Disabled, Primary, Secondary, or
Both. There are no Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings.

Offboard PCI IDE Primary IRQ
Offboard PCI IDE Secondary IRQ These options specify the PCI interrupt used by the

primary or secondary IDE channel on the offboard PCI IDE controller. The
settings are Disabled, Hardwired, INTA, INTB, INTC, or INTD. The Optimal
and Fail-Safe default settings are Disabled.

Serial Port1 IRQ This option specifies the IRQ used for serial port1. The settings are IRQ4 or

Disabled. The Optimal default setting is IRQ4. The Fail-Safe default setting

is Disabled.

Cont’d

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

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Peripheral Setup, Continued

Serial Port1 Address This option specifies the base I/O port address of serial port 1. The

settings are Auto (AMIBIOS automatically determines the correct base I/O
port address), Disabled, 3F8h, or 3E8h. The Optimal default setting is 3F8h.
The Fail-Safe default setting is Disabled.

Serial Port2 IRQ This option specifies the IRQ used for serial port2. The settings are IRQ3 or

Disabled. The Optimal default setting is IRQ3. The Fail-Safe default setting
is Disabled.

Serial Port2 Address This option specifies the base I/O port address of serial port 2. The

settings are Auto (AMIBIOS automatically determines the correct base I/O
port address), Disabled, 2F8h, or 2E8h. The Optimal default setting is 3F8h.
The Fail-Safe default setting is Disabled.

Serial Port2 Mode This option specifies the serial port 2 mode. The settings are Normal or IR

(Infrared). The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Normal.

IR Duplex Mode This option selects the infrared transmission method. The settings are Full

or Half. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default settings are Full.

IR Protocol This option specifies the infrared standard used for the serial port2 infrared

capability. The settings are 1.6 us or 3/16. The Optimal and Fail-Safe default
settings are unspecified because IR is not the default setting for the Serial

Port2 Mode option.

Parallel Port IRQ This option specifies the IRQ used by the parallel port. The settings are

Disabled, IRQ 5, or IRQ 7. The Optimal default setting is IRQ 7. The Fail­Safe default setting is Disabled.

Cont’d

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 59

Peripheral Setup, Continued

Parallel Port Address This option specifies the base I/O port address of the parallel port on

the motherboard. The settings are Disabled, 378h, 278h, or 3BCh. The
Optimal default setting is 378h. The Fail-Safe default setting is Disabled.

Parallel Port Mode This option specifies the parallel port mode. The Optimal default setting is

Normal. The Fail-Safe default setting is Disabled. The settings are:

Setting Description

Normal
Bi-Dir

EPP

ECP

EPP Version This option specifies the Enhanced Parallel Port specification version number

that is used if the Parallel Port Mode option is set to EPP. This option can

only be selected if the Parallel Port Mode option is set to EPP

The normal parallel port mode is used.
Use this setting to support bidirectional transfers on the
parallel port.
The parallel port can be used with devices that adhere to the
Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP) specification. EPP uses the
existing parallel port signals to provide asymmetric
bidirectional data transfer driven by the host device.
The parallel port can be used with devices that adhere to the
Extended Capabilities Port (ECP) specification. ECP uses the
DMA protocol to achieve data transfer rates up to 2.5 Megabits
per second. ECP provides symmetric bidirectional
communication.

The settings are 1.7 or 1.9. There are no Optimal and Fail-Safe default
settings because the default setting for the Parallel Port Mode option is not

EPP.

Parallel Port DMA Channel This option is only available if the setting for the Parallel Port

Mode option is ECP. This option sets the DMA channel used by the parallel

port. The settings are (DMA Channel) 0, 1 or 3. The Optimal and Fail-Safe
default settings are 3.

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Section 2 Security

Three icons appear in this part of the WINBIOS Setup screen:

• Supervisor (Password),

• User (Password), and

• Anti-Virus.

Two Levels of Passwords Both the Supervisor and the User icons configure password support.

If you use both, the Supervisor password must be set first.
The system can be configured so that all users must enter a password every

time the system boots or when WINBIOS Setup is executed, using either or
both the Supervisor password or User password.

AMIBIOS Password Support

The Supervisor and User icons activate two different levels of password
security.

If WINBIOS Setup has an optional password feature. The system can be
configured so that all users must enter a password every time the system boots
or when WINBIOS Setup is executed.

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 61

Setting a Password

The password check option is enabled in Advanced Setup (see the Advanced
Setup section ) by choosing either Always (the password prompt appears every
time the system is powered on) or Setup (the password prompt appears only
when WINBIOS is run). The password is encrypted and stored in NVRAM.

As shown on the above screen, you are prompted for a 1 – 6 character
password. You can either type the password on the keyboard or select each
letter of the password, one at a time, using the mouse. The password does not
appear on the screen when typed. Make sure you write it down. If you forget
it, you must drain NVRAM and reconfigure.

If You Do Not Want to Use a Password Just press <Enter> when the password prompt

appears.

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Changing a Password

Select the Supervisor or User icon from the Security section of the WINBIOS
Setup main menu. Enter the password and press <Enter>. The screen does
not display the characters entered. After the new password is entered, retype
the new password as prompted and press <Enter>.

If the password confirmation is incorrect, an error message appears. If the
new password is entered without error, press <Esc>. The password is stored
in NVRAM after WINBIOS completes. The next time the system boots, a
password prompt appears if the password function is present and enabled.

Remember the PasswordKeep a record of the new password when the password is changed. If

you forget the password, you must erase the system configuration information
in NVRAM (Non-Volatile Random Access Memory).

Anti-Virus

When this icon is selected from the Security section of the WINBIOS Setup
main menu, AMIBIOS issues a warning when any program (or virus) issues a
Disk Format command or attempts to write to the boot sector of the hard disk
drive. The settings are Enabled or Disabled. If enabled, the following appears
when a write is attempted to the boot sector. You may have to type N several
times to prevent the boot sector write.

Boot Sector Write!!!
Possible VIRUS: Continue (Y/N)? _

The following appears after any attempt to format any cylinder, head, or
sector of any hard disk drive via the BIOS INT 13 Hard Disk Drive Service:

Format!!!
Possible VIRUS: Continue (Y/N)? _

Chapter 2 WINBIOS Setup 63

Section 3 Utility

The following icons appear in this section of the WINBIOS Setup main
screen:

Color Set Color Set sets the Setup screen colors.

Language If this feature is enabled, you can select WINBIOS Setup messages in

different languages.

Section 4 Default

The icons in this section permit you to select a group of settings for all
WINBIOS Setup options. Not only can you use these icons to quickly set
system configuration parameters, you can choose a group of settings that have
a better chance of working when the system is having configuration-related
problems.

Original Choose the Original icon to return to the system configuration values present

in WINBIOS Setup when you first began this WINBIOS Setup session.

Optimal You can load the optimal default settings for the WINBIOS by

selecting the Optimal icon. The Optimal default settings are best-case values
that should optimize system performance. If NVRAM is corrupted, the
Optimal settings are loaded automatically.

Fail-Safe You can load the Fail-Safe WINBIOS Setup option settings by selecting the

Fail-Safe icon from the Default section of the WINBIOS Setup main menu.
The Fail-Safe settings provide far from optimal system performance, but are

the most stable settings. Use this option as a diagnostic aid if the system is
behaving erratically.

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3 Programming the Flash ROM

All versions of the Apollo III motherboard use Flash EPROM to store the
system BIOS. The advantage of Flash EPROM is the EPROM chip does not
have to be replaced to update the BIOS. The end user can actually reprogram
the BIOS, using a ROM file supplied by American Megatrends.

Programming the Flash EPROM

Step Action

1 Turn power off. Make sure the computer has a working speaker.
2 Insert the floppy disk with the S752P.ROM file in drive A:.
3 Before DOS boots, press and hold down the <Ctrl> and

<Home> keys to reprogram the Flash EPROM-based AMIBIOS.
The bootblock code immediately reads the A: drive, looking for
the new BIOS information.

4 When the flash ROM has successfully been programmed, the

computer will reboot.

Bootblock BIOS Actions When you reprogram from system boot, the bootblock BIOS code:

Reads S752P.ROM from the root directory of the floppy disk in drive A:.
Erases the Flash EPROM.
Programs the Flash EPROM with the data read from the floppy disk in drive

A:.
Generates a CPU reset, rebooting the computer.
The bootblock part of the Flash EPROM is not programmed. Should you

inadvertently open the disk drive door or turn power off to the computer while
programming the Flash EPROM, the bootblock will be unaffected. Simply
turn power back on and begin the Flash ROM programming process again.

Cont’d

Chapter 3 Programming the Flash ROM 65

Programming the Flash ROM, Continued

S752P.ROM S752P.ROM resides on a floppy disk and contains the updated main BIOS

code. American Megatrends will provide this file when the AMIBIOS for the
Apollo III ISA motherboard must be updated.

S752P.ROM must be present in the root directory of the floppy disk before the
onboard Flash EPROM can be reprogrammed. The file that has the main
BIOS code must be named S752P.ROM.

Sequence of Operation The sequence of operation and expected behavior of the bootblock

BIOS code is:

Step Expected behavior

1 Look for floppy
disk.

2 Look for
S752P.ROM on the
floppy disk.

3 Read the floppy
disk.

4 Check for BIOS file
size.

5 Check for Flash
EPROM.

6 Erase the Flash
EPROM.

7 Program the Flash
EPROM.

8 Continue
programming the
Flash EPROM.

9 AMIFlash does a
reset.

The system beeps one time before the BIOS
attempts to read from floppy drive A:.

S752P.ROM must be in the root directory of
the floppy disk in drive A:. There is no beep
if successful.

The floppy disk is read. There is no beep if
this step is successful.

The BIOS file size is checked. There is no
beep if this step is successful.

The BIOS looks for an Intel i28F001BX-T
Flash EPROM. It does not beep if this step is
successful.

Two beeps sound when the BIOS begins
erasing the Flash EPROM.

Three beeps sound when the AMIFlash Code
begins reprogramming the Flash EPROM.

Four beeps sound when reprogramming has
been successfully completed.

A CPU reset is generated to reboot the
computer.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

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Programming the Flash ROM, Continued

Beep Codes The bootblock code produces a series of beeps during Flash ROM

programming to:

• signify completion of a step (as shown on the previous screen), or to

• signal an error.

Error beeps are arranged in a coded sequence and have different meanings
depending on when they occur. The error beep codes and when they can occur
are:

Number of

Beeps

1 Insert diskette in floppy drive A:.
2 The AMIBOOT.ROM file was not found in the root directory

of the diskette in floppy drive A:.
3 Base memory error.
4 Flash program successful.
5 Floppy read error.
6 Keyboard controller BAT command failed.
7 No Flash EPROM detected.
8 Floppy controller failure.
9 Boot Block BIOS checksum error.

10 Flash erase error.
11 Flash program error.
12 AMIBOOT.ROM file size error.

Continuous

beep

Flash Programming successful. Turn power off. The turn

power on again to restart.

Description

Chapter 3 Programming the Flash ROM 67

Bootblock Code Checkpoint Codes

Code Description

E0h Verify the bootblock BIOS checksum. Disable the internal

cache, DMA, and interrupt controllers. Initialize the
system timer. Start memory refresh.

E1h Initialize the chipset registers. Set the BIOS size to 128K.

Make the 512 KB base memory available.

E2h Test the base 64 KB of system memory. Send the BAT

command to the keyboard controller. Make sure that
<Ctrl> <Home> was pressed. Verify the main system
BIOS checksum.

E3h The main system BIOS is good. Transfer control to the

main system BIOS.
E4h Start the memory test.
E5h The memory test is over. Initialize the interrupt vector

table.
E6h Initialize the DMA and interrupt controllers.
E7h Determine the CPU internal clock frequency.
E8h Initialize the I/O chipset, if any.
E9h Program the CPU clock-dependent chip set parameters.

EAh Enable the timer and the floppy diskette interrupt. Enable

the internal cache. Copy the bootblock BIOS and pass

control to the bootblock BIOS in the 0000h segment.

EDh Initialize the floppy drive.
EEh Look for a diskette in drive A:. Read the first sector of the

diskette.
EFh Floppy read error.
F0h Search for AMIBOOT.ROM in the root directory of the

floppy diskette in drive A:.
F1h The AMIBOOT.ROM file is not in the root directory.
F2h Read the FAT. Analyze the FAT to find the clusters

occupied by the AMIBOOT.ROM.
F3h Start reading the AMIBOOT.ROM file, cluster by cluster.
F4h The AMIBOOT.ROM file is not the correct size.
F5h Disable the internal cache. Raise the Vpp. Enable Flash

write and reset the Flash ROM.

FBh Detect the flash type.
FCh Start erasing flash blocks.
FDh Program the Flash ROM in the E0000-EFFFFh region.

FEh Start programming Flash at F0000-FFFFF region.
FFh Flash programming is successful. The computer reboots.

A Specifications

Item Description

CPU Intel Pentium 75, 90, 100, 120, 133, 150, 166, 180,

200 MHz or higher speed CPU

Upgrade CPU Intel P54C series, P54CT, or P55C with an optional

split voltage regulator module.

Chipset Intel 82430HX, including CPU interface controller,

advanced cache controller, integrated DRAM
controller, synchronous ISA bus controller, PCI local
bus interface, and integrated power management unit.

Apollo III PCI Pentium ISA Motherboard User’s Guide

68

Item Description

Expansion slots Three ISA expansion slots

Four PCI expansion slots

L1 internal cache

memory

L2 secondary

cache memory

Cache memory

/system memory

Type of System

Memory

The Intel Pentium has 8 KB data cache and 8 KB
instruction cache.
256 KB or 512 KB of synchronous PBSRAM, direct­mapped, write-back.
256 KB caches up to 128 MB of system memory
512 KB caches up to 512 MB of system memory
Up to 512 MB mounted on the motherboard in two
banks of 72-pin 4 MB, 8 MB, 16 MB, or 32 MB
SIMMs.

System memory Fast page mode or Extended Data Out (EDO) SIMMs

operating at 70 ns.

Memory buffer One level posted write memory buffer

Max. system

128 MB

memory

Fast ATA Supports the Fast ATA specification using PIO mode 4

and multiword DMA mode 2.

System BIOS This motherboard has a 128 KB AMIBIOS system

BIOS on a Flash ROM with built-in WINBIOS Setup.

BIOS shadowing The system BIOS is always copied from ROM to RAM

for faster execution. The end user can shadow 16 KB
ROM segments from C000h – DCFFFh.

AMIBIOS

features

IDE block mode support,
IDE 32-bit data transfer support,
IDE Programmed I/O mode 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 support,
IDE LBA mode support,
APM (Advanced Power Management) and Flash BIOS
hooks,
EPA Green PC-compliant,
PCI and Plug and Play (PnP) support, and
DIM (Device Initialization Manager) support,
DMI (Desktop Management Interface) support,
ATAPI support,
can boot from a CD-ROM drive,
automatically detects system memory, cache memory,
and IDE drive parameters,
Intel NSP-compliant,
Fast ATA IDE mode programming,
Boot sector virus protection,
instant-on support,
automatically configures PnP and PCI devices.

IDE Provides two 40-pin IDE connectors onboard that

support up to four IDE drives. IDE controller is on the
PCI local bus.

Floppy Onboard support for up to two 360 KB, 720 KB, 1.2

MB, 1.44 MB, or 2.88 MB floppy drives.

Parallel port Onboard ECP and EPP-capable parallel port connector.

Serial ports Two onboard serial port connectors. Two 16550 UART

serial ports.

Keyboard Includes a standard miniDIN keyboard connectors.

USB Two USB connectors are provided on the motherboard.

Infrared An infrared connector is provided on the motherboard

Mouse Includes a 10-pin berg mouse connector.

Power supply Includes three power supply connectors.

Real time clock/

CMOS RAM

A real time clock and 128 bytes of CMOS RAM with a
battery backup is provided on the motherboard.

Index 69

Item Description

Power

Power management services include:

management

Green PC LED,
power management signal to Green PC-aware power
supplies,
automatic IDE and video power down,
monitor blanking,
SMI (System Management Interrupt) support,
APM, and
system stop clock.

Speaker Standard four-pin speaker connection.

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