AOpen I945GAPLF User Manual

Table of Contents

Table of Contents ................................................................................... 1

1.1 A Thank-you Note Before You Get Start ..........................................................4

1.2 Features of This Manual ...............................................................................5

1.3 Safety Information ......................................................................................5

Chapter 2 Introduction to This Motherboard ............................................... 6

2.1 How does your motherboard look like?...........................................................6

2.2 Specification ............................................................................................... 7

2.3 Block Diagram ............................................................................................8

Chapter 3 Hardware Installation ............................................................... 9

3.1 Quick Installation Procedure .........................................................................9

3.2 Installation You Have to Know..................................................................... 10

Installing CPU ...........................................................................................10

Installing CPU Cooler .................................................................................11

Installing CPU and System Fans ..................................................................12

Installing Memory Modules .........................................................................13

Maximum The Performance of the Dual Channel............................................14

Connecting IDE and Floppy Cables ..............................................................15

Connecting Front Panel Cable .....................................................................16

Connecting ATX Power Cables .....................................................................17

3.3 Other Installation for Your Reference ........................................................... 18

Setting CPU Voltage and Frequency .............................................................18

Connecting Serial ATA II ............................................................................19

Adjusting your Hard Disk Setting.................................................................20

Connecting PCI Express x 16 Graphics Slot ...................................................22

Connecting PCI Express x 1 Slot..................................................................23

Connecting IrDA........................................................................................ 24

Connecting Game Port ...............................................................................25

Gigabit LAN Supported...............................................................................26

Connecting USB2.0....................................................................................27

Connecting 1394 .......................................................................................28

Super 7.1 Channel Audio Effect ...................................................................29

Connecting Front Audio ..............................................................................30

Connecting CD_IN .....................................................................................31

Connecting COM2 ( for i945Ga-PLF only)......................................................32

Connecting Case Open ...............................................................................33

Connecting S/PDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interface) ........................................34

Colored Coded Back Panel (for i945Ga-PLF) ..................................................35

Colored Coded Back Panel (for i945Pa-PLF) ..................................................36

LED Indication ..........................................................................................37

3.4 Jumper Settings ........................................................................................ 38

Chapter 4 Special Features and Utilities ................................................... 39

4.1 Other Useful Features ................................................................................ 39

Chapter 5 Setting BIOS......................................................................... 40

5.1 Introduction ............................................................................................. 40

5.2 How To Use Phoenix-Award™ BIOS Setup Program ........................................ 41

5.3 How To Enter BIOS Setup ........................................................................... 41

5.4 Definition of Power Master .......................................................................... 42

Automatic Mode ........................................................................................43

Performance Mode.....................................................................................43

Silent Mode ..............................................................................................44

Normal Mode ............................................................................................44

5.5 BIOS Upgrade under Windows environment.................................................. 45

5.6 Vivid BIOS technology ............................................................................... 47

Chapter 6 Installing Drivers ................................................................... 48

6.1 Installing Drivers ....................................................................................... 49

6.2 Installing Utilities ...................................................................................... 50

Chapter 7 Troubleshooting..................................................................... 51

Chapter 8 Technical Support .................................................................. 52

Model Name and BIOS Version....................................................................53

Technical Support......................................................................................54

1.1 A Thank-you Note Before You Get Start

First of all, we would like to express our gratitude for purchasing AOpen products. Once again, this motherboard is designed uniquely to meet all your personal needs with our great industry-designing ability and our everlasting perseverance to the quality of all our products.

This manual will introduce you how this motherboard is installed. Please keep it well for your future reference. If you lost your printed manual, you may also go to our website at http://www.aopen.com

Now, we would like to invite you to personally experience this user-friendly manual and all of the powerful functions this AOpen product offers.

The logos of Adobe and Acrobat are the registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated.

The logos of AMD, Athlon, and Duron are the registered trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.

The logos of Intel, Intel Celeron, Pentium II, III, Pentium 4 and Pentium M are the registered trademarks of Intel Corporation.

The logos of nVidia are the registered trademarks of nVidia Corporation.

The logos of Microsoft, Windows are the registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in America and other countries.

to download the updated file.

All the titles of the products and the trademarks mentioned in this manual are for the purpose of illustrative conveniences and are possessed by their respective firms.

We regret not informing about any changes in usage standards and other related information. AOpen reserves the right of altering or modifying the content of this manual. In case of any mistakes or incorrect descriptions, which include those on the products, AOpen makes no guarantee or commitments.

This document is based on the copyright laws in order to protect our company and reserve all rights.

Under no circumstances are any types of duplicating and loading this brochure in any databases and media permitted except the permission signed on formal document by AOpen Company.

1.2 Features of This Manual

To help you grab the useful information of this motherboard and aware of certain conditions that you might need to know, you will see the icons below frequently:

Note

Warning / Caution

Warning

Tip

Warning

This contains knowledge you should know in process of assembling, or some helpful tips.

Please be careful when you see this mark. It highlights mistakes that occur often during assembling, or something you need to pay attention to.

This tip tells you some useful information that will make your installation smoothly.

1.3 Safety Information

Please wear a wrist strap and attach it to a metal part of the system unit before handling a component. Alternatively, you can also touch an object that is of ground connection or with metal surface.

Always unplug the power before you make any jumper setting.

Before you install or remove any components on the motherboard, please make sure to disconnect the power first in case of damaging motherboard or other components.

10 1 4 5 6 2 7 14 15 17 22

23 24 26

28 13

32 33 12

Chapter 2 Introduction to This Motherboard

2.1 How does your motherboard look like?

1. COM2 Connector (i945Ga-PLF only) 18. Realtek AC’97 CODEC

2. JP28 PS2 KB/Mouse Wakeup Jumper 19. Front Audio Connector

3. 4-pin 12V ATX Power Connector 20. S/PDIF Connector

4. SYSFAN1 Connector 21. Realtek Gigabit LAN Chip

5. PCI Express x1 Slots X 2 22. Game port

6. PCI Express x16 Graphics slot 23. 32-bit PCI Expansion Slots x 3

7. LGA775 CPU Socket supporting Intel FC-LGA4 . CPU

8. STBY LED 25. IEEE 1394 Connector X 1

9. Intel 945G / ICH7 (i945Ga-PLF) Intel 945P / ICH7 (i945Pa-PLF)

10. 240-pin DDR II DIMMs x 4 27. Serial ATA II connector x 4

11. CPU FAN connector 28. USB 2.0 Connectors x 2

12. BOOT LED 29. Case Open Connector

13. ATX Power Connector 30. JP14 CMOS Data Clear Jumper

14. PWRFAN Connector 31. Front Panel Connector

15. Power Temperature Connector 32. ATA133 Connector

16. ATA100 Connector 33. SYSFAN2 Connector

17. CD_IN Connector

24. IrDA connector

26. FDD connector

2.2 Specification

Here is the main function of your motherboard.

Models i945Ga-PLF i945Pa-PLF

CPU

Chipset Intel 945G/ICH7 Intel 945P/ICH7

Main Memory

Graphics

IDE

LAN Realtek Gigabit PCI LAN Chip Realtek Gigabit PCI LAN Chip

Sound

USB Integrated in chipset, USB 2.0 x 8 Integrated in chipset, USB 2.0 x 8 IEEE 1394 Agere 1394 Control Chip Agere 1394 Control Chip

Slots

Back Panel I/O

On Board Connector

BIOS Award PnP 4Mb Flash ROM BIOS Award PnP 4Mb Flash ROM BIOS Board Size 305 mm x 230 mm 305 mm x 230 mm

Intel FC-LGA4 CPU Socket T 533/800/1066MHz

Dual Channel Mode DDRII DDRII 400/533/667 DDR DIMM x 4 DIMM Type : 128/256/512MB & 1GB Max Memory : 4GB Integrated VGA Engine in chipset PCI Express x 16 Graphics slot Support ADD2 card Integrated ATA100 and Serial ATA II Controller ITE External IDE ATA133 control chip Max Disk: 144,000,000GB [by 48 bits LBA Spec.]

Intel High Definition Audio on-Board Support 7.1 Channel and above

PCI Express x 1 slots x 2 PCI Express x 16 graphics slot x 1 PCI slots x 3 PS/2 Keyboard x 1, PS/2 Mouse x 1 USB Port x 4, LAN Port x 1 VGA Port x 1, COM Port x 1 Printer Port x 1, IEEE 1394 x 1 Speaker_Out x 1, Line_In x 1, MIC_In x 1 Side SUR x 1, Rear SUR x 1 Center/Subwoofer x 1 Floppy Drive Connector x 1 IDE Channel: ATA100 x 1 IDE Channel: ATA133 x 2 Serial ATA II Channel x 4 Front Panel x 1 Front Audio x 1 CPU FAN x 1 System FAN x 2, Power FAN x 1 Power Temperature Connector x 1 Case Open Connector x 1 CD_IN x 1, IrDA x 1, S/PDIF x 1 COM2 x 1 Game Connector x 1 IEEE 1394 x 2 USB2.0 Connectors x 2

Intel FC-LGA4 CPU Socket T 533/800/1066MHz

Dual Channel Mode DDRII DDRII 400/533/667 DDR DIMM x 4 DIMM Type : 128/256/512MB & 1GB Max Memory : 4GB PCI Express x 16 Graphics slot

Integrated ATA100 and Serial ATA II Controller ITE External IDE ATA133 control chip Max Disk: 144,000,000GB [by 48 bits LBA Spec.]

Intel High Definition Audio on-Board Support 7.1 Channel and above

PCI Express x 1 slots x 2 PCI Express x 16 graphics slot x 1 PCI slots x 3 PS/2 Keyboard x 1, PS/2 Mouse x 1 USB Port x 4, LAN Port x 1 COM Port x 2 Printer Port x 1, IEEE 1394 x 1 Speaker_Out x 1, Line_In x 1, MIC_In x 1 Side SUR x 1, Rear SUR x 1 Center/Subwoofer x 1 Floppy Drive Connector x 1 IDE Channel: ATA100 x 1 IDE Channel: ATA133 x 2 Serial ATA II Channel x 4 Front Panel x 1 Front Audio x 1 CPU FAN x 1 System FAN x 2, Power FAN x 1, Power Temperature Connector x 1 Case Open Connector x 1 CD_IN x 1, IrDA x 1, S/PDIF x 1 Game Connector x 1 IEEE 1394 x 2 USB2.0 connectors x 2

2.3 Block Diagram

VGA Onboard (i945Ga-PLF)

PCI Express x16 Graphics Slot

Support ADD2 Card

(for i945Ga-PLF)

DDRII DIMM x 4

Realtek Gigabit

LAN Chip

LAN connect Com

onent

Parallel Port

Floppy Disk Drive

Serial Ports x 2

533/800/1066 MHz

System Bus

Dual Channel DDRII

400/533/667 SDRAM

Up to 4GB

945G / 945P

Winbond

Super I/O

LGA775

Socket

Intel

FC-LGA4

CPU

Intel

Chipset

ATA 66/100/133

Agere

1394

Controlle

IEEE 1394 x 2

IEEE

300MB/s

PCI Bus

500MB/s

IDE Drives x 6

Serial ATA II Ports x

32-bit PCI Slots x

PCI Express x 1 Slots x 2

AC’97

CODEC

ICH7

4Mbits Flash EEPROM

USB 2.0 x 8

Chapter 3 Hardware Installation

Chapter 3 Hardware

Installation

3.1 Quick Installation Procedure

2. Installing CPU Fan & System Fan

3. Installing Memory Module

4. Installing HD, CD-ROM and SATA Disk, etc

5. Connecting Front Panel Cable

1. Installing CPU

6. Connecting ATX Power Cable

12. Installing Drivers & Utilities

11. Installing Operating System (such as, Windows XP)

8. Installing Other Devices (USB, Front Audio, etc)

7. Installing PCI Express x16 Graphics cards & PCI Express x 1 cards & PCI Cards

10. Loading Default BIOS, Setting CPU

uency

Fre

9. Connecting Back Panel Ports (Keyboard, Mouse, etc)

3.2 Installation You Have to Know

Installing CPU

This socket supports FC-LGA4 CPU, which is the latest CPU package developed by Intel. Other forms of CPU package are impossible to be fitted in.

1. Pull CPU socket lever and plate up.

2. Remove plastic cap from CPU socket plate.

3. Locate Pin 1 in the socket and look for a golden arrow on the CPU upper

interface. Match Pin 1 and golden arrow. Then insert the CPU into the socket.

4. Press down the CPU socket plate and lever to finish CPU installation.

Warning: If you do not match the CPU socket Pin 1 and CPU golden arrow well, you may damage the CPU. And please don’t touch CPU socket pins when installing CPU.

Note: It’s strongly recommended by

Intel to use thermal paste properly to avoid over-heat generated from Prescott CPU.

CPU socket plate

Socket Pin 1

CPU socket lever

Golden arrow

Plastic cap

Installing CPU Cooler

1. Gently put down the CPU fan on CPU socket with four sticks aiming correctly to the four mounting holes.

Mounting

hole

2. Press down four fixing sticks into the holes one by one. Make sure the sticks are firmly fixed into the holes.

Mounting

hole

Fixing stick

Note: The picture above may look different from the product you purchased.

Installing CPU and System Fans

Plug the CPU fan cable to the 4-pin CPUFAN connector. If you have chassis fan, you can also plug it in SYSFAN1 or SYSFAN2 connector.

SYSFAN2 Connector

GND +12V Sensor

SYSFAN1 Connector

PWM

SENSOR +12V GND

CPUFAN Connector

Note: Some CPU fans do not have sensor pin so that they cannot support fan monitoring.

GND +12V Sensor

Installing Memory Modules

DIMM slots are designed in black and navy blue which are very easy to recognize. Insert the module straight down to the DIMM slot with both hands and press down firmly until the DIMM module is securely in place.

Tab

Pin 1

Key

Note: The tabs of the DIMM slot will clip to hold the DIMM in place when the DIMM touches the slot’s bottom.

Maximum The Performance of the Dual Channel

To obtain the highest performance of Dual Channel, the configuration of DIMM must meet the following conditions.

Matched DIMM configuration in each channel

● Same density (128MB~1GB)

As long as you insert memory modules of same density into Channel 1 (DIMM1 & DIMM3) and Channel 2 (DIMM2 & DIMM4), dual channel mode will be enabled. DIMM1 + DIMM3 = DIMM2 + DIMM4 Ex: if you insert 1GB memory module into DIMM1 and DIMM3, dual channel mode will be enabled when DIMM2 + DIMM4 = 1GB

● Same DRAM bus width (x8 or x16)

● Either single-sided or double-sided

Note: Using memory modules of different chip will cause system unstable.

When dual channel mode is successfully enabled, the screen will show “Dual Channel Mode Enabled” while entering POST screens.

Connecting IDE and Floppy Cables

Connect the 34-pin floppy cable and 40-pin, 80-wire IDE cable to floppy connector and IDE connector. Be careful of the pin1 orientation. Wrong orientation may cause system damage.

Pin 1

FDD Connector

Secondary

Slave (4th)

Secondary

Master (3rd)

IDE 3 (Secondary)

Pin 1

Primary Slave (2nd)

ATA 33/66/100 IDE Connector

Primary Master (1st)

Pin 1

Primary

Slave (2nd)

ATA 66/100/133 IDE Connector

(iTE IT8211F)

IDE 2 (Primary)

Primary

Master (1st)

Connecting Front Panel Cable

Attach the power LED, speaker and reset switch connectors to the corresponding pins. If you enable “Suspend Mode” item in BIOS Setup, the ACPI & Power LED will keep flashing while the system is in suspend mode.

Locate the power switch cable from your housing, which is a 2-pin female connector from the housing front panel. Plug this connector to the soft-power switch connector marked SPWR.

HDD LED HDD LED

SPEAKER

Front Panel Connector

NC NC

+5V

+5V +5V

GND

Power Switch GND Power LEDGND

Power LED+ NC GND GND RESET GND

Connecting ATX Power Cables

This motherboard comes with a 24-pin and 4-pin ATX power connector as shown below. Make sure you plug them in the right direction. We strongly recommend you to insert the 4-pin connector before connecting the 24-pin connector.

Note: Please aim the power plug at the left side of the 24-pin ATX power connector when the foolproof design faces you as shown.

Aiming at the

left side

+12V

Ground

Foolproof

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AOpen I945GAPLF User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual