Asrock 970A-G/3.1 User Manual

Version 1.1

Published June 2017

Copyright©2017 ASRock INC. All rights reserved.

Copyright Notice:

No part of this documentation may be reproduced, transcribed, transmitted, or
translated in any language, in any form or by any means, except duplication of
documentation by the purchaser for backup purpose, without written consent of
ASRock Inc.

Products and corporate names appearing in this documentation may or may not
be registered trademarks or copyrights of their respective companies, and are used
only for identication or explanation and to the owners’ benet, without intent to

infringe.

Disclaimer:

Specications and information contained in this documentation are furnished for
informational use only and subject to change without notice, and should not be
constructed as a commitment by ASRock. ASRock assumes no responsibility for
any errors or omissions that may appear in this documentation.

With respect to the contents of this documentation, ASRock does not provide
warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to
the implied warranties or conditions of merchantability or tness for a particular
purpose.

In no event shall ASRock, its directors, ocers, employees, or agents be liable for
any indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages (including damages for
loss of prots, loss of business, loss of data, interruption of business and the like),
even if ASRock has been advised of the possibility of such damages arising from any
defect or error in the documentation or product.

is device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following
two conditions:
(1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and
(2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that

may cause undesired operation.

CALIFORNIA, USA ONLY

e Lithium battery adopted on this motherboard contains Perchlorate, a toxic substance
controlled in Perchlorate Best Management Practices (BMP) regulations passed by the
California Legislature. When you discard the Lithium battery in California, USA, please
follow the related regulations in advance.
“Perchlorate Material-special handling may apply, see ww w.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/
perchlorate”

ASRock Website: http://www.asrock.com

Manufactured under license under U.S. Patent Nos: 5,956,674; 5,974,380; 6,487,535;

7,003,467 & other U.S. and worldwide patents issued & pending. DTS, the Symbol, &

DTS and the Symbol together is a registered trademark & DTS Connect, DTS Interactive,

DTS Neo:PC are trademarks of DTS, Inc. Product includes soware.

© DTS, Inc., All Rights Reserved.

Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction 1

1.1 Package Contents 1

1.2 Specications 2

1.3 Motherboard Layout 6

1.4 I/O Panel 8

Chapter 2 Installation 10

2.1 Installing the CPU 11

2.2 Installing the CPU Fan and Heatsink 13

2.3 Installing Memory Modules (DIMM) 14

2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI and PCI Express Slots) 16

2.5 Jumpers Setup 17

2.6 Onboard Headers and Connectors 18

2.7 CrossFireXTM and Quad CrossFireXTM Operation Guide 22

2.7.1 Installing Two CrossFireXTM-Ready Graphics Cards 22

2.7.2 Driver Installation and Setup 24

2.8 M.2_SSD (NGFF) Module Installation Guide 25

Chapter 3 Software and Utilities Operation 27

3.1 Installing Drivers 27

3.2 ASRock EXTREME TUNING UTILITY 28

3.3 ASRock APP Shop 33

3.3.1 UI Overview 33

3.3.2 Apps 34

3.3.3 BIOS & Drivers 37

3.3.4 Setting 38

Chapter 4 UEFI SETUP UTILITY 39

4.1 Introduction 39

4.1.1 UEFI Menu Bar 39

4.1.2 Navigation Keys 40

4.2 Main Screen 41

4.3 OC Tweaker Screen 42

4.4 Advanced Screen 47

4.4.1 CPU Conguration 48

4.4.2 North Bridge Conguration 50

4.4.3 South Bridge Conguration 51

4.4.4 Storage Conguration 52

4.4.5 Super IO Conguration 54

4.4.6 ACPI Conguration 55

4.4.7 USB Conguration 57

4.5 Tools 58

4.6 Hardware Health Event Monitoring Screen 61

4.7 Boot Screen 62

4.8 Security Screen 65

4.9 Exit Screen 66

Chapter 1 Introduction

ank you for purchasing ASRock 970A-G/3.1 motherboard, a reliable motherboard

produced under ASRock’s consistently stringent quality control. It delivers excellent

performance with robust design conforming to ASRock ’s commitment to quality

and endurance.

In this manual, Chapter 1 and 2 contains the introduction of the motherboard

and step-by-step installation guides. Chapter 3 contains the operation guide of the

soware and utilities. Chapter 4 contains the conguration guide of the BIOS setup.

Becau se the motherboard specications and the BIOS soware might be updated, the
content of this manual will be subject to change without notice. In ca se any modica­tions of this manual occur, the updated version will be available on ASRock’s website
without further notice. If you require technical suppor t related to this motherboard,
please visit our website for spe cic information about the model you are using. You
may nd the l atest VGA cards and CPU support list on ASRock ’s website a s well.
ASRock website http://www.a srock .com.

1.1 Package Contents

ASRock 970A-G/3.1 Motherboard (ATX Form Factor)

•

ASRock 970A-G/3.1 Quick Insta llation Guide

•

ASRock 970A-G/3.1 Support CD

•

2 x Serial ATA (SATA) Data Cables (Optional)

•

1 x I/O Panel Shield

•

1 x Screw for M.2 Socket

•

970A-G/3.1

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1.2 Specications

Platform

CPU

Chipset

Memory

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ATX Form Factor

Solid Capacitor design

Supports Socket AM3+ processors

Supports Socket AM3 processors: AMD PhenomTM II X6

/ X4 / X3 / X2 (except 920 / 940) / Athlon II X4 / X3 / X2 /

Sempron processors

Supports 8-Core CPU

Supports UCC feature (Unlock CPU Core)

Digi Power design

8 + 2 Power Phase design

Supports CPU up to 220W

Supports AMD's Cool 'n' Quiet Technology

FSB 2400 MHz (4.8 GT/s)

Supports Untied Overclocking Technology

Supports Hyper-Transport 3.0 (HT 3.0) Technology

Northbridge: AMD 970/990FX

Southbridge: AMD SB950

Dual Channel DDR3 Memory Technology

4 x DDR3 DIMM Slots

Supports DDR3 2400+(OC)/2100(OC)/1866(OC)/1800

(OC)/1600(OC)/1333/1066 non-ECC, un-buered memory

(see CAUTION1)

Max. capacity of system memory: 64GB (see CAUTION2)

Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Prole (XMP) 1.3 / 1.2

Supports AMD Memory Prole Technology (AMP) up to

AMP 2400

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Expansion
Slot

1 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 Slot (PCIE2: x16 mode)

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1 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 Slot (PCIE4: x4 mode)

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2 x PCI Express 2.0 x1 Slots

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1 x PCI Slot

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Supports AMD Quad CrossFireXTM and CrossFireX

•

TM

Audio

LAN

Rear Panel
I/O

7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection (Realtek ALC1150

•

Audio Codec)

Premium Blu-ray Audio Support

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Supports Surge Protection (ASRock Full Spike Protection)

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ELNA Audio Caps

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Supports DTS Connect

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PCIE x1 Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s

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Realtek RTL8111GR

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Supports Wake-On-WAN

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Supports Wake-On-LAN

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Supports Lightning/ESD Protection (ASRock Full Spike

•

Protection)

Supports LAN Cable Detection

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Supports Energy Ecient Ethernet 802.3az

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Supports PXE

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1 x PS/2 Mouse Port

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1 x PS/2 Keyboard Port

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1 x Optica l SPDIF Out Port

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4 x USB 2.0 Ports (Supports ESD Protection (ASRock Full

•

Spike Protection))

1 x USB 3.1 Type-A Port (10 Gb/s) (ASMedia ASM1143) (Sup-

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ports ESD Protection (ASRock Full Spike Protection))

1 x USB 3.1 Type-C Port (10 Gb/s) (ASMedia ASM1143) (Sup-

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ports ESD Protection (ASRock Full Spike Protection))

2 x USB 3.0 Ports (Etron EJ188H) (Supports ESD Protection

•

(ASRock Full Spike Protection))

1 x RJ-45 LAN Port with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED

•

LED)

HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker / Central / Bass / Line in /

•

Front Speaker / Microphone

970A-G/3.1

Storage

6 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors, support RAID (RAID 0,

•

RAID 1, RAID 5 and RAID 10), NCQ, AHCI and Hot Plug

1 x M.2_SSD (NGFF) Socket 3, supports type

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2230/2242/2260/2280/22110 M.2 PCI Express module up to

Gen2 x4 (20 Gb/s)

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Connector

BIOS
Feature

Hardware
Monitor

* If PCIE4 is occupied, M2 _1 will be disabled.

* Supports ASRock U.2 Kit

1 x COM Port Header

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1 x Power LED Header

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2 x CPU Fan Connectors (1 x 4-pin, 1 x 3-pin)

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4 x Chassis Fan Connectors (2 x 4-pin, 2 x 3-pin)

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1 x 24 pin ATX Power Connector

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1 x 8 pin 12V Power Connector

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1 x Front Panel Audio Connector

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2 x USB 2.0 Headers (Support 4 USB 2.0 ports) (Supports ESD

•

Protection (ASRock Full Spike Protection))

1 x USB 3.0 Header by Etron EJ188H (Supports 2 USB

•

3.0 ports) (Supports ESD Protection (ASRock Full Spike

Protection))

AMI UEFI Legal BIOS with GUI support

•

Supports “Plug and Play”

•

ACPI 1.1 Compliant wake up events

•

Supports jumperfree

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SMBIOS 2.3.1 support

•

CPU, VCCM, NB, SB Voltage multi-adjustment

•

CPU/Chassis temperature sensing

•

CPU/Chassis Fan Tachometer

•

CPU/Chassis Quiet Fan (Auto adjust fan speed by CPU tem-

•

perature)

CPU/Chassis Fan multi-speed control

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Voltage monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, CPU Vcore Voltage

•

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OS

Microso® Windows® 10 32-bit / 10 64-bit / 8.1 32-bit / 8.1 64-

•

bit / 8 32-bit / 8 64-bit / 7 32-bit / 7 64-bit / VistaTM 32-bit /

VistaTM 64-bit / XP 32-bit / XP 64-bit

* For the updated Windows® 10 driver, please visit ASRock’s web-

site for details: http://www.asrock.com

FCC, CE, WHQL

Certica­tions

* For detailed product information, please visit our website: http://ww w.asrock.com

Please realize that the re is a certain r isk involved with overclo cking, including adju st­ing the setting in the BIOS, applying Untied Ove rclocking Technology, or using third­party o verclocking tools. Overclocking may aect your system’s stability, or even c ause
damage to the components and dev ices of your system. It should be done at your own
risk and expense. We are not responsible for possible damage cau sed by overclocking.

1. Whether 2400/2100MHz memory speed is supported depends on the AM3/AM3+

2. Due to the operating system limitation, the actual memory size may be less than 4GB

•

ErP/EuP ready (ErP/EuP ready power supply is required)

•

CPU you adopt. If you want to adopt DDR3 2400/2100 memory module on this
motherboard, please refer to the memory support list on our website for the compatible
memory modules. ASRock website: http://www.asrock.com

for the reservation for system usage under Windows® 32-bit OS. For Windows® 64-bit
OS with 64-bit CPU, there is no such limitation. You can use ASRock XFast RAM to
utilize the memory that Windows® cannot use.

970A-G/3.1

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DDR3 _A1 (64 bit, 240- pin modu le)

DDR3 _A2 (64 bit, 240- pin modu le)

FS B80 0

DDR3 _B1 (64 bit, 240- pin modu le)

DDR3 _B2 (64 bit, 240- pin modu le)

AMD

SB950

Chipset

BIOS
ROM

CMOS

BATT ERY

CLRCMOS1

1

COM1

1

Supe r

I/O

HD_AUDIO 1

1

PCI E1

HDLED RESET

PLED PWRBTN

1

PANEL1

SPEAKER1

1

PCI E2

1

PLED1

CPU_FAN1

AMD

970/990FX

Chipset

PS2

Mous e

PS2

Keyb oard

Top:
RJ-45

USB 3. 0
T: USB0
B: USB 1

RoH S

CHA_FAN4

USB3_2 _3

SO CKET AM 3b

ATX12V 1

USB 2 .0
T: USB2
B: US B3

SATA3_2

SATA3_3

SATA3_4

SATA3_5

M2_1

Top:

Central/Bass

Center :

REAR SPK

Top:

LINE IN

Center :

FRONT

Bottom :

Optica l

SPDIF

Bottom :

MIC IN

PCI E3

PCI E4

PCI 1

CPU_FAN2

CHA_FAN1

SATA3_0

SATA3_1

CHA_FAN2

USB_6_7

1

USB_4_5

1

97 0A- G/ 3 .1

USB 2 .0
T: USB0
B: US B1

USB 3.1
T:U SB31_ TA_1
B: USB3 1_TC_1

CHA_FAN3

USB 3 .1

1.3 Motherboard Layout

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No. Description

1 ATX 12V Power Connector (ATX12V1)

2 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN4)

3 CPU Fan Connector (CPU_FAN2)

4 CPU Fan Connector (CPU_FAN1)

5 2 x 240-pin DDR3 DIMM Slots (DDR3_A1, DDR3_B1)

6 2 x 240-pin DDR3 DIMM Slots (DDR3_A2, DDR3_B2)

7 ATX Power Connector (ATXPWR1)

8 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN1)

9 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN3)

10 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_0)

11 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_2)

12 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_4)

13 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_5)

14 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_3)

15 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_1)

16 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN2)

17 Power LED Header (PLED1)

18 Clear CMOS Jumper (CLRCMOS1)

19 Chassis Speaker Header (SPEAKER1)

20 System Panel Header (PANEL1)

21 USB 2.0 Header (USB_6_7)

22 USB 2.0 Header (USB_4 _5)

23 COM Port Header (COM1)

24 Front Panel Audio Header (HD_ AUDIO1)

25 USB 3.0 Header (USB3_2_3)

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1.4 I/O Panel

1 3

6

2

547

14 891013

No. Description No. Description

1 PS/2 Mouse Port 8 Microphone (Pink)

2 USB 3.1 Type-A Port (USB31_TA_1) 9 Optical SPDIF Out Port

3 LAN RJ-45 Port* 10 USB 3.0 Ports (USB3_0_1)

4 Central / Bass (Orange) 11 USB 3.1 Type-C Port (USB31_TC_1)

5 Rear Speaker (Black) 12 USB 2.0 Ports (USB_0_1)

6 Line In (Light Blue) 13 USB 2.0 Ports (USB_2_3)

7 Front Speaker (Lime)** 14 PS/2 Keyboard Port

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* ere are two LEDs on each LAN port. Please refer to the table below for the LAN port LED indications .

ACT/LINK L ED

SPEED LE D

LAN Por t

Activity / Link LED Speed LED

Status Description Status Description

O No Link O 10Mbps connection
Blinking Data Activity Orange 100Mbps connection
On Link Green 1Gbps connection

** If you use a 2- channel speaker, plea se connect the speake r’s plug into “Front Speaker Jack”. See the table below
for connection d etails in accordance w ith the type of speaker you use.

Audio Output

Channels

Front Speaker

(No. 7)

Rear Speaker

(No. 5)

Central / Bass

(No. 4)

Line In

(No. 6)

2 V -- -- --
4 V V -- --
6 V V V --
8 V V V V

970A-G/3.1

To enable Multi-Streaming, you need to connect a front panel audio cable to the front
panel au dio header. Aer re starting your computer, you will nd the “Mixe r” tool
on your system. Pl ease select “Mixer ToolBox” , click “En able playback multi­streaming”, and click “ok”. Choose “2CH”, “4CH”, “6CH”, or “8CH” and the n you are
allowe d to sele ct “Realtek HDA Pr imary output ” to use the Rear Speaker, Central/
Bass, and Front Speake r, or select “Realtek HDA Audio 2nd output” to use the front
panel au dio.

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Chapter 2 Installation

is is an ATX form factor motherboard. Before you install the motherboard, study

the conguration of your chassis to ensure that the motherboard ts into it.

Pre-installation Precautions

Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components

or change any motherboard settings.

Make sure to unplug the power cord before installing or removing the motherboard.

•

Failure to do so may cause physical injuries to you and damages to motherboard

components.

In order to avoid damage from static electricity to the motherboard’s components,

•

NEVER place your motherboard directly on a carpet. Also remember to use a grounded

wrist strap or touch a safety grounded object before you handle the components.

Hold components by the edges and do not touch the ICs.

•

Whenever you uninstall any components, place them on a grounded anti-static pad or

•

in the bag that comes with the components.

When placing screws to secure the motherboard to the chassis, please do not over-

•

tighten the screws! Doing so may damage the motherboard.

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2.1 Installing the CPU

Unplug all power cables be fore installing the CPU.

1

970A-G/3.1

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3

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2.2 Installing the CPU Fan and Heatsink

Aer you install the CPU into this motherboard, it is necessary to install a larger

heatsink and cooling fan to dissipate heat. You also need to spray thermal grease

between the CPU and the heatsink to improve heat dissipation. Ma ke sure that the

CPU and the heatsink are securely fastened and in good contact with each other.

en connect the CPU fan to the CPU FAN connector. For proper installation,

please kindly refer to the instruction manuals of the CPU fan and the heatsink.

970A-G/3.1

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2.3 Installing Memory Modules (DIMM)

is motherboard provides four 240-pin DDR3 (Double Data Rate 3) DIMM slots,

and supports Dual Channel Memory Technology.

1. For dual channel conguration, you always need to install identical (the same

brand, speed , size and chip-type) DDR3 DIMM pairs.

2. It is unable to activate Dual Channel Memor y Technolog y with only one or three
memor y module installed.

3. It is not allowed to install a DDR or DDR2 memory module into a DDR3 slot;
otherwise , this motherboard and DIM M may be damaged.

4. Please install the memory module into DDR 3_A2 and DDR3_B2 sl ots for th e rst
prior ity.

5. If you adopt DDR3 2400/2100 memory module s on this motherboard, it i s recom­mended to install them on DDR3_ A2 and DDR3_B2 slots.

Dual Channel Memory Conguration

Priority DDR3_A1 DDR3_A2 DDR3_B1 DDR3_B2

1 Populated Populated
2 Populated Populated
3 Populated Populated Populated Populated

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e DIMM only ts in one correct orientation. It will cause permanent dam age to
the mothe rboard and the DIMM if you force the DIMM into the slot at incor rect
orientation .

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2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI and PCI Express Slots)

ere is 1 PCI slot and 4 PCI Express slots on the motherboard.

Before installing an ex pansion card, please make sure that the power supply is
switched o or the power cord is unplugged. Plea se read the documentation of the
expan sion card and mak e necessary hardware settings for the card before you start
the installation.

PCI slot:

e PCI1 slot is used to install expansion cards that have 32-bit PCI interface.

PCIe slots:

PCIE1 (PCIe 2.0 x1 slot) is used for PCI Express x1 lane width cards.

PCIE2 (PCIe 2.0 x16 slot) is used for PCI Express x16 lane width graphics cards.

PCIE3 (PCIe 2.0 x1 slot) is used for PCI Express x1 lane width cards.

PCIE4 (PCIe 2.0 x16 slot) is used for PCI Express x4 lane width graphics cards.

PCIe Slot Congurations

PCIE2 PCIE4

Single Graphics Card x16 N/A

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Two Graphics Cards in

CrossFireXTM Mode

For a better ther mal environment, ple ase connect a ch assi s fan to the motherboard’s
chassis fan connector (CHA_ FAN1, CHA_ FAN2, CHA_FAN3 or CH A_FAN4) when
using multiple graphics cards.

x16 x4

2.5 Jumpers Setup

e illustration shows how jumpers are setup. When the jumper cap is placed on

the pins, the jumper is “Short”. If no jumper cap is placed on the pins, the jumper

is “Open”. e illustration shows a 3-pin jumper whose pin1 and pin2 are “Short”

when a jumper cap is placed on these 2 pins.

Clear CMOS Jumper

(CLRCMOS1)

(see p.6, No. 18)

CLRCMOS1 allows you to clear the data in CMOS. To clear and reset the system

parameters to default setup, please turn o the computer and unplug the power

cord from the power supply. Aer waiting for 15 seconds, use a jumper cap to

short pin2 and pin3 on CLRCMOS1 for 5 seconds. However, please do not clear

the CMOS right aer you update the BIOS. If you need to clear the CMOS when

you just nish updating the BIOS, you must boot up the system rst, and then shut

it down before you do the clear-CMOS action. Please be noted that the password,

date, time, and user default prole will be cleared only if the CMOS battery is

removed.

Clear CMOSDefault

970A-G/3.1

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