ECS P6LX-A P6LX-A User Manual

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P6LX-A Mainboard

User’s Manual

P6LX-A User’s Manual

Table Of Contents – 2

FCC & DOC ComplianceFCC & DOC Compliance

FCC & DOC Compliance

FCC & DOC ComplianceFCC & DOC Compliance

Federal Communications Commission StatementFederal Communications Commission Statement

Federal Communications Commission Statement

Federal Communications Commission StatementFederal Communications Commission Statement This device complies with FCC Rules Part 15. Operation is subject to the following two

conditions:

• This device may not cause harmful interference, and

• This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.

This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital

device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:

• Re-orient or relocate the receiving antenna.

• Increase the separation between the equipment and the receiver.

• Connect the equipment to an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.

• Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help. WW

arar

ning!ning!

ning! The use of shielded cables for the connection of the monitor to the graphics

arar card is required to assure compliance with FCC regulations. Changes or modifications to this unit not expressly approved by the party responsible for compliance could void the user’s authority to operate this equipment.

ning!ning!

Canadian DeparCanadian Depar

Canadian Depar

Canadian DeparCanadian Depar

This digital apparatus does not exceed the Class B limits for radio noise emissions from digital apparatus set out in the Radio Interference Regulations of the Canadian Department of Communications.

Version 1.1a

This publication may not be copied, reproduced, translated, transmitted or reduced to any printed or electronic medium or to any machine readable form, or stored in a retrieval system, either in whole or in part without the written consent of the copyright holders.

The contents of this publication are subject to change. The manufacturer reserves the right to alter the contents of this publication at any time and without notice. The contents of this publication may contain inaccuracies or typographical errors and is supplied for informational use only.

Products are noted in this publication for identification purposes only. Microsoft is a registered trademark and Windows is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation. Pentium is a trademark of Intel Corporation. All other product names or brands may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

tment of Communications Statementtment of Communications Statement

tment of Communications Statement

tment of Communications Statementtment of Communications Statement

P6LX-A User’s Manual

Table Of Contents – 3

1: P6LX-A Package & Product Information ............ 1.1

Manual Features.......................................................................... 1.1

Package Contents............................................................... 1.3

Mainboard Features ........................................................... 1.4

Component Information ..................................................... 1.6

Expansion Slots ............................................................................ 1.6

Memory Sockets & Modules ....................................................... 1.7

CPU Socket & CPU ....................................................................... 1.8

Port & Controller Connections ..................................................... 1.8

2: Using Your Mainboard ....................................... 2.1

System Controls.................................................................. 2.1

Hardware Controls & Indicators ................................................. 2.1

CMOS Setup Utility Controls......................................................... 2.3

Hardware Features............................................................. 2.6

Onboard Ports.............................................................................. 2.6

Connectors ...................................................................................2.6

Optional Hardware Connectors.................................................. 2.10

The CPU Retention Module................................................. 2.12

Firmware & Software.......................................................... 2.14

How To Use The CMOS Setup Utility ............................................ 2.14

Clearing CMOS............................................................................. 2.14

Flashing The BIOS......................................................................... 2.16

Bus Master Drivers.......................................................................2.16

SCSI Support Software ................................................................. 2.16

3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard.......................... 3.1

Installing Expansion Cards .................................................. 3.1

ISA Cards & Slots.......................................................................... 3.1

Configuring Expansion Card Resources In CMOS Setup............ 3.2

Adding System Memory ..................................................... 3.5

Memory Configurations............................................................... 3.5

P6LX-A User’s Manual

Table Of Contents – 4

Installing A CPU Upgrade ................................................... 3.8

The Basic Procedure ....................................................................3.8

Configuring Internal Clock Speed & Factor.................................3.8

CPU Jumper Table & Illustrations ................................................ 3.9

Adding An IDE Peripheral.................................................... 3.12

IDE Transfer Modes ...................................................................... 3.12

Installing IDE Devices.................................................................... 3.14

Adding SCSI Devices ........................................................... 3.15

SCSI Device IDs ............................................................................. 3.16

SCSI Termination........................................................................... 3.16

Installing an AGP Card........................................................ 3.16

4: P6LX-A Reference Information.......................... 4.1

Using This Section............................................................... 4.1

Jumper Configuration & Connector Summary .................... 4.3

The AGP Slot....................................................................... 4.8

The RAIDport™ Slot ............................................................ 4.8

Supported CPUs.................................................................. 4.8

System Memory Specifications........................................... 4.9

Memory Configurations............................................................... 4.9

CMOS Setup Utility Summary ............................................. 4.10

Using the CMOS Setup Utility.......................................................4.10

Accessing The CMOS Setup Utility............................................... 4.10

Standard CMOS Setup ................................................................. 4.14

BIOS Features Setup..................................................................... 4.18

Chipset Features Setup................................................................ 4.23

Power Management Setup .........................................................4.25

PNP/PCI Configuration................................................................. 4.31

Load BIOS Defaults....................................................................... 4.34

Load Optimum Settings ...............................................................4.34

Integrated Peripherals ................................................................. 4.35

PC Health Monitor........................................................................ 4.40

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.1

In This Section:

About This Manual Package Contents Mainboard Features Component Information

1: P6LX-A Package & Product Information

This manual contains all the information you’ll need to use the P6LX-A mainboard. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the design and organization of the manual.

Manual Features

This manual is divided into four sections:

• Section 1: Package & Product Information

A brief overview of what comes in the mainboard package, its

basic features, layout and component information.

• Section 2: Using Your Mainboard

Information on mainboard features that you may make use of

in operating your computer.

• Section 3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard

How to change or upgrade the mainboard configuration.

• Section 4: Reference Information

A summary of the mainboard’s settings and specifications.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.2

The manual uses some icons to call your attention to impor-

tant information. The icons appear in the sidebar and represent the following:

C D N

• Important information

• A recommendation or good idea

• A warning or bad idea

• Danger warning

Online Manual Format

If the support disk for your mainboard is a CD-ROM disc, a

copy of the printed manual may be stored on the disc in Adobe Acrobat format. If so, it requires Adobe Acrobat Reader version

3.0 or later to view it. Acrobat Reader for Microsoft Windows95 may also be supplied on the Support Disk. If not, you can obtain a free copy of the Reader software from the Abobe web site which is currently at www.adobe.com as well as other locations.

If you have the online manual, you may want to install Acro-

bat Reader on your system hard disk. You can copy the manual over as well so that the manual is readily available without having to hunt up the Support Disk when you want to view it.

If you are unfamiliar with Acrobat Reader, please take a mo-

ment to view the Reader Online Guide which is available under the Help menu when you run Reader.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.3

Package Contents

The P6LX-A mainboard package contains the following items. Please inspect the package contents and confirm that everything is there. If anything is missing or damaged, call your vendor for instructions before proceeding. The package includes:

• P6LX-A Mainboard

• Cable Pack:

– 1 Floppy cable

– 1 IDE cable

– 1 50-pin Wide SCSI cable (with SCSI option)

• Support Disk:

– IDE Bus Master Drivers

– Adaptec SCSI support software (with SCSI option)

– Creative Labs Audio Drivers (with audio option)

– Infrared Module support software

The mainboard comes with IDE Bus Master drivers for several Operating Systems. The drivers are organized in individual folders by OS. In each folder there is a “readme” file that explains how to install the driver. Please locate the folder for the driver you need and check this file.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.4

Mainboard Features

This mainboard is a highly integrated ATX design that incor-

porates many features on the board. The mainboard includes the following features:

• Slot 1 CPU slot supports Pentium II CPUs up to 333MHz

• Intel 82440LX (PAC) and 82371AB (PIIX4) chipsets

• Super I/O chip

• NS LM78 Microprocessor System Hardware Monitor – Supports LANDesk Client Manager PC Health Monitor

• Memory module sockets: – 4 DIMM sockets support up to 512MB

• Onboard Audio (optional) – Creative Labs Vibra16X audio chip – External mini-jack Mic, Line-In and Line-Out connectors – Creative audio driver and additional audio software

• Onboard SCSI (optional) – Adaptec AIC-7880 SCSI controller – Adaptec RAIDport™ slot for ARO-1130 RAID controller card – 50-pin Wide SCSI connector – 68-pin Ultra Wide SCSI connector – SCSI support software for several Operating Systems

• External Ports – COM1 & COM2 serial ports, Parallel port – PS/2 Mouse & Keyboard connectors, dual USB ports – Game/Joystick port, Mic, Line-In and Line-Out connectors

• Expansion Card Slots – Four PCI 2.1–compliant PCI slots – Three 16-bit ISA slots (ISA1 shares with PCI4) – One AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) slot – RAIDport™ slot extension (extends PCI4)

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.5

IR headers J11, J12

ISA 3, 2, 1

RAID

JP3

SCSI J22, J23

J40

J16

J15

J21

PCI 4,3,2,1

port

Game

Mic, Line-In, Line-Out

J25

CD-In J29, J26, J28

AGP Slot

JP5

JP1

Floppy

JP6

Parallel

COM1

CPU Slot

DIMM1 DIMM2 DIMM3 DIMM4

Mouse

COM2

Keybd

USB

ATX Power

J13 J14

Secondary IDE Primary IDE

P6LX-A Layout

The illustration above shows the connectors, sockets and ports and the mainboard. The COM1 and COM2 ports are underneath the Parallel port.

The USB ports and the PS/2 ports – Keyboard (lower) and Mouse (upper) – are stacked one above the other. The onboard audio connectors are under the game port. Please see pages 4.6 and 4.7 for a full list of the onboard connectors.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.6

Component Information

This section is a brief description of the components on the

mainboard that you might need to know about if you want to upgrade or change your system configuration. If your mainboard is already installed in a system, it isn’t necessary for you to review this section.

This mainboard uses the A TX ‘form factor’, a design that inte-

grates many features onto the board including some number of external ports.

Expansion Slots

The mainboard has seven expansion slots for system expan-

sion or ‘add-on’ cards. Three are ISA slots, the others are PCI slots. When you get an expansion card, it must use one of these to connect to the computer.

The ISA expansion slots are a legacy of the original IBM PC/

A T design. They are 16-bit slots that run at a moderate bus speed. There are many kinds of expansion cards that use this slot design to connect to the computer, some of the most common being sound and modem cards.

PCI slots are the current high-speed 32-bit standard for sys-

tem expansion cards. They operate at a faster speed and have a greater data throughput than ISA cards.

Expansion cards often make use of system resources, which

requires managing the system resource configuration. Most newer expansion cards support the ‘Plug and Play’ standard that allows an Operating System like Windows95 to automatically detect them and configure system resources as needed. Some older ISA designs may not support this standard and may therefore require manual configuration. You should consult the specifications or documentation for a card to determine if this is the case and what needs do be done to properly configure the card.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.7

The RAID

The slot extension to PCI4 is for the Adaptec RAIDport™ technology that allows you to add an Adaptec ARO-1130 or compatible RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) controller card. The card uses both the PCI slot and the extension.

With a RAID controller card installed, either or both SCSI types on the mainboard can be used to establish a RAID array. Please see Section 2 for information on using this feature.

port

™ Slot Extension

The AGP Slot

The AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) slot is for an AGP 3D video display card. Unlike PCI-based display cards, the AGP technology provides sufficient data throughput and speed to facilitate fully enabled 3-Dimensional and multimedia graphics display. AGP display cards using this dedicated slot are available from a variety of vendors.

The AGP slot also requires Operating System support. Windows 98 directly supports AGP and other support methods may be forthcoming. Please see Section 2 for more information.

Onboard SCSI Connections

This mainboard uses an Adaptec SCSI controller that supports two SCSI implementations. The 50-pin connector on the board and the supplied ribbon cable are for SCSI-2 Wide SCSI. The 68pin connector is for the SCSI-3 Ultra Wide SCSI feature.

Support software and additional documentation for the SCSI hardware is on the Support Disk that comes with the mainboard. Please see Section 3 for information on using these.

Memory Sockets & Modules

There are four memory module sockets on the mainboard which use 168-pin DIMM memory modules. The sockets function independently of each other enabling a very flexible memory design that allows the use of a variety of memory options up to a total of 512MB. For more information see Adding System Memory in Section 3.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

1: Package & Product Information – 1.8

CPU Socket & CPU

The Slot 1 CPU slot supports the full range of Pentium II CPUs

from Intel. The mainboard comes with a “retention module” which mounts on the mainboard to provide guide rails and latch receptacles for the latches on the Pentium II. Installing a CPU in the socket is easy. The CPU slides into the guide rails, inserts in the slot and secures to the retention module with the attached springloaded latches.

If you want to install a CPU upgrade or are installing a CPU

on the board for the first time, please refer to ‘Installing a CPU’ in Section 3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard.

Port & Controller Connections

There are several ports and connectors on the mainboard. Some

are external ports and others are internal connectors that connect to other parts of the computer or internal options.

External Ports

This mainboard has several external ports and connectors in-

cluding the COM1 and COM2 serial ports, a Parallel port, two USB ports, a Game port for connecting a Joystick, PS/2-type keyboard and mouse ports and several audio ports. The audio ports include Mic, Line-In and Line-Out connectors for the onboard sound card. These external ports are all accessible at the rear of the computer when the mainboard is installed.

Internal Connectors

There are also several connectors built onto the mainboard,

including connectors for four Enhanced IDE devices in two channels, two floppy disk drives and the Wide and Ultra Wide SCSI ports. There are also connectors for a cooling fans, CD audio and both modem ring-in and LAN wake-up cables.

Details about these connectors are in Section 4: Reference In-

formation.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.1

In This Section:

System Controls Hardware Features The Retention Module Firmware & Software

2: Using Your Mainboard

This section covers the system control features and status indicators that connect to the mainboard, some of the hardware features and provides an overview of the software that comes with or is built-into the mainboard.

System Controls

There are two topics in this section, a explanation of the hardware controls and status indicators that connect from the mainboard to your system case and some information about the parts of the CMOS Setup Utility that allow you customize some system features.

Hardware Controls & Indicators

There are some control features and status indicators that connect from the mainboard to your system case, which is sometimes called the ‘Enclosure’ or ‘Chassis.’ These are:

• Power Switch

• Power Status Indicator

• Suspend Switch

• Suspend Status Indicator

• Reset Switch

• Hard Disk Drive Activity Indicator

• Keyboard Lock

All of these case features connect to the mainboard via connector J9. Not all system cases have all of these features, so your system may not have all of them. The functions and options for these are shown in the table on the next page.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.2

Hardware Control & Indicator Connectors Feature Function

Power Status LED When lighted indicates that system is turned on

Suspend Switch Puts the system into Suspend state under Operating

Systems that support this power manage-

ment feature Suspend LED When lighted indicates the system is

suspended Reset Switch Pressing the Reset switch restarts the

system Keyboard Lock Disables keyboard via a lock mounted on

front panel

of the case

Speaker Connects to the PC speaker mounted on the system case

HDD Activity LED Flashes when hard disk drive is active

Power Switch Turns the system power on and off. Default sets this

to dual function as power and suspend

switch. Press

once for Suspend, hold for >4 seconds for

Off. To set as

Power only, change setting in the Power

Management

section of the CMOS Setup utility.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.3

CMOS Setup Utility Controls

T wo sections of the CMOS Setup Utility allow you to configure how some of your system’s features work. These are:

• BIOS Features Setup

• Power Management Setup

The CMOS Setup Utility is a program that is permanently stored in the BIOS chip on the mainboard. The utility creates a system hardware configuration record that it stores in a small amount of battery-supported memory on the board. The BIOS uses this record to function as an interface between the system hardware and the operating system. Most of the settings in the CMOS Setup Utility are made automatically, so you won’t normally need to use this program. You can, however, customize some of the operational features to suit how you prefer to use the system.

The screen illustrations on the next two pages show the Setup Default settings for these two sections of the utility.

The CMOS Setup Utility Summary in Section 4: Reference Information, lists the setting options for each section of the utility including the two noted above.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.4

CMOS Setup Utility –

BIOS Features Setup This section of the setup utility allows you to configure some system features including Virus Warning, Boot Sequence and Security Option.

Virus Warning – When enabled, monitors the primary hard disk boot sector and warns of any attempt to write to it. Boot Sequence – Controls the order in which the system checks disk drives for a boot disk. Security Option – Sets the level of password protection for the system for both the Supervisor and User passwords.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.5

CMOS Setup Utility –

Power Management Setup This section of the setup utility allows you to configure the power management features supported by the BIOS. These can also operate in tandem with Operating System power management features.

You can use the Min Saving or Max Saving default modes or you can configure the power management features individually in the User Define mode.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.6

Hardware Features

This section is a brief overview of information about the

mainboard’s hardware features.

Onboard Ports

There are several external ports on the mainboard. These are

ports standard to most personal computers:

• COM1 Serial Port A high-speed serial port which can also be configured as the

COM3 port in the CMOS Setup Utility.

• COM2 Serial Port (on supplied Port Bracket) A high-speed serial port which can also be configured as the

COM4 port in the CMOS Setup Utility.

• Parallel Port The parallel port can be configured as a Standard, ECP or EPP

parallel port in the CMOS Setup Utility

• PS/2 Keyboard Port (lower) & PS/2 Mouse Port (upper)

• USB ports – two ports (stacked)

• Game Port for joystick or other game device

• Audio connectors – Mic, Line-In & Line-Out

• Wide and Ultra Wide SCSI connectors

Connectors

There are several connectors on the mainboard for connecting

additional ports and internal peripheral devices

• IDE 1 – Primary IDE Channel Connector for the Primary Master and Slave IDE devices.

• IDE 2 – Secondary IDE Channel Connector for the Secondary Master and Slave IDE devices.

• Floppy Connector Connector for two floppy disk drives.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.7

CMOS Setup Utility –

Integrated Peripherals This section of the setup utility configures the IDE and Floppy controllers and the settings for the external ports

This section enables and configures the optional USB and Infrared features. The SCSI features operate independent of the CMOS Setup utility so there are no settings for the onboard SCSI features here

The screen illustration shows the settings when Optimum Settings are loaded.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.8

Case Security

The mainboard has a case security feature that will warn if the

system case or ‘chassis’ has been opened since the last time the system was used. There is a photoelectric cell mounted on the mainboard that is active when the system is turned off and will detect the case being opened. The next time you turn the system on a warning message will appear on screen during the POST (Power On Self Test) before the Operating System loads.

The J16 connector on the mainboard connects to a chassis

intrusion signal cable.

Cooling Fan Connectors

The is a cooling fan power connector on the mainboard that

supports a CPU cooling fan with power management features. If you connect this type of fan, and the ‘CPU F AN Off In Suspend’ line in the CMOS Setup utility’s Power Management Setup section is set to Enabled, the system will turn the fan off when the system is in Suspend mode.

Modem Wake-Up

The J21 connector on the mainboard is for connecting a signal

cable from a modem that supports a modem ring system wakeup feature. With such a modem installed and connected to the mainboard via this connector, the system will wake up from Suspend mode when an incoming call is received by the modem.

The ‘Ring-In Event’ line in the CMOS Setup utility’s Power

Management Setup section must be set to Enabled for this feature to function.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.9

LAN Wake-Up

The J40 connector on the mainboard is for connecting a signal cable from a LAN card that supports a LAN wake-up feature. When a LAN card that supports this is installed and connected to the mainboard via this connector, the system will wake up from Suspend mode when the system is accessed via the LAN.

ATX Power Supply

With an ATX power supply, the system will turn the power off automatically when exiting Windows95.

UltraDMA Hard Disk Drive Support

This mainboard supports hard disks that use UltraDMA data transfer . You attach an UltraDMA drive to one of the IDE cables. If you use the Optimum Settings feature in the CMOS Setup utility the system will automatically detect the drive and configure the system to use it.

CMOS Support Battery

The disk shaped battery on the mainboard is a Lithium Ion battery that supports the small amount of onboard memory where the CMOS Setup utility’s configuration record is stor ed. The battery will last for a number of years and can conceivably outlast the usage period of the computer it is in.

If the battery fails, the system will not retain the CMOS Setup configuration and the system will need to be reconfigured every time you turn it on. If this happens, replace the battery with the same type as is installed. You can get a replacement at many electronics supply stores, computer stores and other places that sell a variety of batteries for various uses.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.10

Optional Hardware Connectors

There are additional feature connectors on the mainboard for

optional ports. These require optional external port hardware.

The Onboard SCSI Connectors & Controller

The two SCSI connectors on the mainboard are controlled by

the onboard Adaptec SCSI controller. It controls both the Wide SCSI (SCSI-2) and the Ultra Wide SCSI (SCSI-3) features.

The Wide SCSI feature uses the 50-pin connector on the main-

board and can support up to seven SCSI devices in a chain. The ribbon cable that comes with the board has connectors for two devices. If you want to install more than two internal SCSI devices to the Wide SCSI controller you will need a cable with more connectors on it. If you get another cable, it can have more connectors on it than you have immediate use for. The controller will ignore any connectors that are not connected to devices.

The Ultra Wide feature uses the 68-pin connector on the main-

board. If you want to use this feature you will need to purchase an internal SCSI-3 cable to connect devices to the mainboard.

Software for the onboard SCSI features is on the Support Disk

that comes with the mainboard. There is also documentation that further explains the software and how to use it.

The RAID

The RAIDport™ and onboard SCSI controller and ports are

optional hardware which are not installed on some versions of this mainboard.

The Adaptec RAIDport™ technology is a slot extension that

extends the PCI4 slot into an expansion slot for the Adaptec ARO1130 RAID controller card. With this card installed you can set up RAID arrays using the supported RAID levels. You can use either or both of the onboard SCSI ports to connect hard disks for the array.

port

™ & Onboard SCSI

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.11

The Ultra Wide SCSI port will support up to fifteen devices, the Wide SCSI port will support up to seven. If you connect an array to one of the ports, you can still use the other port to connect other SCSI devices, for example, a SCSI CD–ROM drive. This also allows you to configure one SCSI port as an external port while still maintaining one port for RAID (or other) use.

The documentation that accompanies the SCSI software on the Support Disk has further explanation of how to use the RAIDport™ to set up a RAID array. There is also information on the ARO-1130 RAID controller card.

External Audio & Onboard CD–ROM Audio-In Connectors

The Vibra 16X onboard audio, the external audio jacks and the CD–ROM audio-in connectors are optional hardware which are not installed on some versions of this mainboard.

There are three CD audio connectors on the mainboard. They all perform the same function and you only need to use one of them for a drive. The reason there are three connectors is to accommodate the variety of cable connectors used by CD–ROM drive vendors.

An additional advantage is that if you have more that one CD– ROM drive installed in your system you can attach an audio cable to each connector, allowing you to have up to three drives connected to the onboard audio. Y ou might have to purchase a multiconnector CD–ROM audio cable to do this if the cables that come with the extra drives you want to connect do not match the available connectors on the mainboard.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.12

IR Ports

There is one standard and one optional connector on the main-

board which support an IR (infrared) port module that enables wireless communication between the computer and other computers and devices with an infrared port. The default IR connector, J12, is for IrDA or ASKIR infrared modules and the optional J11 connector is for Fast IR.

The infrared port module is an optional component. If it is

installed, you must set the UART 2 line in the Integrated Peripherals section of the CMOS Setup utility to the appropriate IR mode used by the module.

Support software and documentation for the IR port is on the

Support Disk that comes with the mainboard.

The CPU Retention Module

The Pentium II CPU requires a mounting frame that attaches

to the mainboard to guide the CPU during installation and secure it to the mainboard. This frame is called the “retention module” and is supplied with the mainboard. If you received this mainboard installed in a system, the retention module will already be installed. If you purchased the mainboard to install yourself, you will need to install the retention module on the mainboard before you install the board in a system case.

The module comes with two mounting brackets which insert

through holes in the mainboard from the underside. The module is simple to install and will require either a flat-head or Philipshead screw driver. To install the module do as follows:

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.13

1. Take precautions against static electric discharge before you

start. It is best to have an anti-static surface to place the main-

board on while you work on it and also an anti-static wrist

strap. If you don’t have an anti-static surface to work on, place

the board on the anti-static bag it comes in. If you don’t have

a wrist-strap (inexpensive and available at electronics stores),

try to touch something metal, perhaps the system case, before

you touch the mainboard.

2. The two mounting brackets insert through the mounting holes

in the mainboard. The holes are at the four corners of the Slot

1 CPU slot. Press the two mounting bolts on each bracket

through the holes in the mainboard so that they protrude

through the board. You may need to push a little to seat them.

3. The module slides over the Slot 1 CPU slot. You have to ori-

ent it correctly for it to sit flat on the mainboard. Look at the

left end of the slot (as in the mainboard illustration in Section

1). There is an orientation foot on the slot that slides into the

orientation notch on the retention module. Look at the mod-

ule and find the notch. Orient the module to the CPU slot.

4. Slide the retention module over the CPU slot. If you have it

oriented correctly it will slide on easily and sit flat on the board.

The retaining nuts mounted in the module should fit over the

mounting bolts that protrude through the mainboard.

5. Secure the retention module to the mainboard by screwing

the retaining nuts down with a screwdriver. The module should

be secure, but don’t overtighten the nuts.

There are receptacles at the top of the guide rails that the mounting latches on the Pentium II fit into. When you install the CPU the latches should snap into the receptacles. Follow the Intel instructions that come with the Pentium II to install the CPU properly.

P6LX-A User’s Manual

2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.14

Firmware & Software

The mainboard hardware is supported by both firmware and

software components. Firmware is software that is stored on a chip on the board rather than on disk media.

The firmware component you interface with on this main-

board is the CMOS Setup Utility. This utility establishes various settings used by the BIOS, the basic software that is an interface between the system hardware and software.

The software component is comprised of software drivers that

support the PCI IDE controller and some of the other hardware features.

How To Use The CMOS Setup Utility

The CMOS Setup Utility options are listed in detail in Section

4: Reference Information. This section is just a brief explanation of how to run the program to adjust settings as noted in this and the next section.

To run the CMOS Setup Utility, press the Del or Delete key

while the computer is starting up, before the operating starts to load. The utility’s main screen will appear as shown on the next page. To navigate the program, use the controls shown on the screen. The utility has several sections. Many of the features configured by the utility are set to operate automatically when the ‘Setup Defaults’, the recommended mode, are used. With Setup Defaults loaded you can still customize various settings.

Clearing CMOS

Under some unusual circumstances the configuration record

created by the CMOS Setup utility and stored on the mainboard can become corrupted and unusable, possibly leading to the board being unable to operate properly. If this happens, the CMOS record can be cleared by setting jumper JP3 to the clear setting for a moment and then setting it back to the Normal setting. Refer to Section 4 for more information.

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2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.15

CMOS Setup Utility –

This is the main screen for the setup utility from which you access its various sections. The function and use of each section is covered in Section 4: Reference Information.

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2: Using Your Mainboard – 2.16

Flashing The BIOS

This mainboard uses the Award BIOS. The BIOS is stored on

a programmable flash memory chip on the mainboard. Updates to the BIOS can be installed by installing a new BIOS file on the flash chip, which replaces the existing one. You do this using software that comes on the Support Disk. There is an explanation of how to install a BIOS update in a ‘readme’ text file included with the program.

Bus Master Drivers

This mainboard comes with software drivers, for various Op-

erating Systems, that enable the PCI controller to operate in ‘Bus Master’ mode. The drivers are on the Support Disk. The included ‘readme’ file has information on the drivers and installation information.

SCSI Support Software

There is a variety of support software for the onboard SCSI

and RAIDport™ features on the Support Disk that comes with the mainboard. Software for various Operating Systems is included. The software also has documentation in each directory to explain what it is and, where needed, how to use it.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.1

In This Section:

Installing Expansion Cards Adding System Memory Installing A CPU Upgrade Adding An IDE Peripheral

Adding SCSI Devices Installing An AGP Card

3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard

This section explains how to install new hardware on your mainboard. It covers installing expansion cards, adding system memory , changing the CPU and installing additional IDE peripheral devices such as a hard disk or a CD-ROM drive.

Installing Expansion Cards

There are seven expansion card slots on the mainboard, three ISA slots and four PCI slots. When you get an expansion card, it will come with instructions on how to install it, so this section covers relevant information from the mainboard side only.

ISA Cards & Slots

ISA expansion cards often use system resources in the form of IRQs and DMA channels. Newer cards that comply with the Plug and Play (PnP) standard are designed to allow the Operating System to automatically configure system resources. Cards that do not support PnP may require manual configuration of both the card hardware and settings in the CMOS Setup Utility.

If you have a PnP-compliant card to install there should be little to do other than follow the installation instructions. If, however, you have a non-PnP card and it requires configuring system resources, you may need to review the third part of this section, Configuring Expansion Card Resources In CMOS Setup.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.2

PCI Cards & Slots

With very few exceptions, any PCI expansion card you are likely to get will be Plug an Play compliant. If you are using an Operating System that supports PnP, such as Windows 95, you should be able to follow the installation instructions that come with the card and have the Operating System automatically recognize and configure the card.

The PCI slots on the mainboard all have ‘Bus Master’ capability. For installed PCI cards to use this feature an Operating System-specific Bus Master software driver that comes with this mainboard must be installed under your Operating System. These drivers are located on the Support Disk.

RAIDport™ and AGP Slots

This mainboard has two other expansion slots The Adaptec RAIDport™ slot extension and the AGP, Accelerated Graphics Port, slot.

The Adaptec RAIDport™ slot extension to the PCI4 slot in combination with the PCI slot forms a slot for an Adaptec ARO1130 or compatible RAID controller card for implementing any of several supported RAID disk array schemes.

The AGP, Accelerated Graphics Port, slot is for an AGP video display card.

Configuring Expansion Card Resources In CMOS Setup

The CMOS Setup Utility , which is covered in detail in Section 4: Reference Information, has a section called PNP/PCI Configuration. The default settings in this section allow the Operating System to automatically configure IRQ resources for PnP compliant ISA and PCI Cards.

If you need to install a non-PnP card, you will need to configure any IRQ and DMA settings manually, both on the card and in the CMOS Setup Utility . The following three pages show how to do this.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.3

CMOS Setup Utility –

PnP/PCI Configuration This is the default screen for this section when Setup Defaults are loaded. If you need to manually configure the IRQ settings, set the first item on the screen to the ‘Manual’ setting. See the next page.

If you install an Operating System that supports Plug and Play, such as Windows95, you should set the first line, ‘PNP OS Installed’ to ‘Yes’.

Running CMOS Setup

To run the CMOS Setup utility, press the Delete or the Del key while your computer is first starting up. Select the ‘PNP/PCI CONFIGURATION’ item on the main screen and press the Enter key to open it.

When you are finished, press the Esc key once to return to the main screen and then select ‘SAVE & EXIT SETUP’ and press the Enter key to save the new configuration. For more information on this see Section 4: Reference Information.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.4

CMOS Setup Utility –

PnP/PCI Configuration When ‘Resources Controlled By’ is set to ‘Manual’ you can individually configure the IRQ & DMA channel settings. The individual defaults are for PnP cards and will still use all the items listed to automatically assign resources as needed. If you are installing a ‘legacy’ ISA card that requires manual configuration, you can manually assign the required resources as needed.

Legacy cards, by definition, are not PnP compliant and must be manually configured if they require an IRQ or DMA channel. See the expansion card manual for specifics. When an item in the list is configured this way, it is no longer part of the pool of automatically configurable resources. For this reason, don’t configure ISA cards this way unless necessary.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.5

Adding System Memory

There are some requirements you must follow if you want to install system memory. The memory subsystem has four 168pin DIMM sockets which function independently. This mainboard supports both EDO DRAM and SDRAM (Synchronous DRAM) modules. You can use module sizes from 8MB to 128MB, either single or double-sided. The total supported memory capacity for this mainboard is 512MB.

If your mainboard is already installed in a system, it will have some amount of memory installed on the board. You can tell how much by checking the configuration screen that appears when the computer is starting up. With some memory installed, there may be some sockets available to add additional memory.

Memory Configurations

You can install any combination of module sizes as long as you follow these requirements:

• All modules must use unbuffered 3.3–Volt RAM

• All EDO modules should have the same operating speed, e.g. 60ns (nanoseconds)

• Maximum memory installation of 512MB

Other than these requirements, there is no limitation on the variety of combinations, so they are not listed here. We recommend using one type of DRAM, either EDO or Synchronous. SDRAM is considerably faster than EDO.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.6

Retaining Clamp

DIMM1 DIMM2 DIMM3 DIMM4

DIMM Sockets

The picture above shows the memory module sockets in detail. The sockets are numbered DIMM1 to DIMM3 starting from the left socket in the picture.

Modules press into place and are held in position by a retaining clamp at each end of the socket. When you want to remove a module, press down on the retaining clamps to push the module out of the socket.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.7

Installing Memory Modules

To install a DIMM module, look at the module and note the position of the shorter section of the connector edge that plugs into the DIMM socket. Note the position of the shorter section of the socket. Orient the module so that these match and press the module into the socket at a 90° angle. The retaining clamps at each end of the socket will rotate upwards automatically to secure the module in place.

Modules are designed so that they will only insert in one orientation. If you have trouble inserting the connector edge of the module into the socket, it may be oriented the wrong way. Turn the module around and try again. You shouldn’t need to force it.

If All Sockets Are Occupied

If you want to install more memory and there are no sockets available, you must remove some installed modules and replace them with the upgrade modules.

If you have to do this, make sure to identify what type of memory is already installed. In some cases, there may be a mix of module types. You can tell this by checking the configuration screen that appears while the computer is starting up. Press the Pause key to temporarily interrupt the start-up process while the screen is visible so that you have more time to read it. When you’re done press any key to resume.

Remove the lowest performance and smallest size modules and replace them with the upgrade.

SDRAM is considerably faster than EDO DRAM. If you are installing more memory with some EDO already installed, consider installing SDRAM. If the memory already installed is SDRAM, installing EDO modules will hamper system performance.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.8

Installing A CPU Upgrade

If you are installing this mainboard it will not have a CPU

installed unless your vendor installed one when you purchased the board. If the mainboard is installed in a system, there will already be a CPU installed. In either case the information and procedure for installing a CPU is the same. Since the more likely scenario is that you are installing an upgrade, this section assumes that is what you are doing. If you need to install the CPU Retention Module, please see Section 2.

The Basic Procedure

To install a Pentium II upgrade you need to set up the main-

board for the correct CPU speed by doing the following:

• Set the Internal Clock Factor You configure the Internal Clock Factor by adjusting jumper

settings on the board. In order to do this, you will need to know internal clock speed of the Pentium II you want to install.

The internal clock speed is the speed the CPU operates at to

process data and is the one used by CPU manufacturers to indicate the speed of the chip, for example, a 266MHz PentiumII The CPU also has an external bus clock speed which is the speed at which it interacts with external components. The external bus clock for this mainboard is 66MHz

Configuring Internal Clock Speed & Factor

To configure the board for a CPU’s internal clock speed, you

have to set the clock factor so that the result of multiplying by the 66MHz external bus clock is the internal clock speed of the CPU you are installing. For example, the default setting for this mainboard is:

66.6MHZ [external clock] x 4.0 [clock factor] =266.4MHz or, an effective setting of 266MHz. Since the internal clock speed the CPU is supposed to operate

at is fixed, the two factors, external clock and clock factor, are the variables.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.9

CPU Jumper Table & Illustrations

The next two pages show the CPU jumper settings. The settings are listed in the tables as follows:

• For a two-pin jumper, On, if the cap is in place, and Off, if the

cap is not in place.

In the jumper illustrations, the Pin 1 position is shaded and the jumpers, shown in a “bird’s eye” view, look like this:

A jumper with a cap in position looks like this:

If you need to leave a two pin jumper open, put the cap over one pin for safekeeping. This does not establish a setting, but does ensure you have the cap around if you ever need it again.

The default settings are noted in the table.

In practice, for an Off setting on a two-pin jumper, place the cap over one pin so that it doesn’t get lost.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.10

CPU Jumper Settings Function Jumper Settings

Internal JP1 2.0x 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8 Clock Factor 2.5x 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

3.0x 1-2,5-6, 7-8

3.5x 5-6, 7-8 (233MHz CPU)

[D] 4.0x 1-2, 3-4, 7-8 (266MHz CPU)

4.5x 3-4, 7-8 (300MHz CPU)

5.0x 1-2, 7-8 (333MHz CPU)

Note: External Bus Clock is 66MHz

JP1: Internal Clock Factor

3.5X 1

JP1

4.0X JP1

4.5X 1

JP1

5.0X JP1

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.11

JP1

JP3

JP5

JP6

Jumper Locations

The illustration above shows the location of the jumpers on the mainboard.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.12

Adding An IDE Peripheral

This section covers some aspects of installing internal IDE peripheral devices as they relate to the mainboard. The onboard Enhanced IDE controller supports up to four devices, two per IDE channel. The primary hard disk drive in most systems is an IDE device. You may want to install more hard disks, a CD-ROM drive or combination of these and other devices. This mainboard supports both PIO and UltraDMA modes, which it can detect automatically. You can install a mix of devices. With the Setup Defaults loaded in the CMOS Setup utility , the system will automatically detect and configure multiple devices of whatever mode.

IDE Transfer Modes

Hard disk read and write operations are executed via the mainboard chipset. The transfer of data between the hard disk and the system takes place using one of a number of transfer modes – either one of several PIO modes or UltraDMA mode.

Although there are several PIO Modes (0 through 4), and this mainboard supports all of them, most current hard disk and CDROM drives use either Mode 3 or 4. The greater the mode number, the faster the transfer rate, so you should use the fastest mode the device can operate at. With Optimum Settings loaded in the CMOS Setup Utility, the system will automatically detect the fastest mode a device can use and set it for that mode.

UltraDMA is another transfer method that provides even faster data transfer than PIO modes. To use it you must install a drive that uses this transfer method. Drives that use PIO Mode transfer can not use the UltraDMA setting.

The settings for drive modes are in the Integrated Peripherals section of the CMOS Setup utility . The screen illustration at right shows the Setup Defaults settings.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.13

CMOS Setup Utility –

Integrated Peripherals The illustration above shows the Setup Defaults settings for this screen. Y ou can install IDE devices under these settings and the system will automatically detect and set the best mode for each device.

You can also set the transfer mode for each device manually, although we recommend using the default settings unless you have a reason not to and you know what you are doing.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.14

Installing IDE Devices

The mainboard’s Enhanced IDE controller supports four devices in two channels, IDE1 and IDE2. These are called the Primary and Secondary IDE channels.

Each channel supports two devices, the first device is called the Master device and the second the Slave device. You must configure any IDE device you install to operate as one or the other. To find out how to configure the device you plan to install you should refer to the manual that comes with the device. You may need to set jumpers or switches to configure it.

IDE Cables

The mainboard comes with one IDE ribbon cable to connect two devices to the mainboard. If you need to install devices on the second channel you will need to get another IDE cable. These are a standard and inexpensive item that you can generally find at any computer supply store. One edge of the cable is colored to indicate the Pin 1 side. When you connect the cable to the mainboard and a device you must orient the cable so that this colored edge is at the Pin 1 side of the connector you are attaching it to.

The mainboard IDE connectors have an orientation cut-out to ensure correct orientation, and the supplied cable has an orientation tab on the side of the connector. Some IDE cables do not have this tab and therefore are not forced to use the correct orientation. You should check that any cable you buy has orientation tabs on the side of the connectors. If you get a cable that does not have them, make sure the cable is correctly oriented when you attach it to the board and the device.

IDE cables have three connectors on them, one at each end and one in-between, closer to one of the ends. When you install a device on the second channel, attach the lone end to the IDE2 connector on the mainboard. The two connectors that are closer to each other are for connecting to IDE devices. The connector on the end is for the Master device and the connector in the middle is for the Slave device.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.15

IDE Devices & CMOS Setup

When you install a new hard disk drive its parameters will be automatically detected by the BIOS and entered in the Standard CMOS Setup section of the CMOS Setup utility if you use the Optimum Settings, which automatically detect any new hard disk drive. All other devices do not use drive parameters and will not show up in the device list on this page.

Adding SCSI Devices

This section is a brief overview of adding SCSI devices to a computer system based on this mainboard. Additional information on SCSI and the support software is in text files supplied with the SCSI support software on the Support Disk.

There are two SCSI connectors mounted on the mainboard, a 50-pin connector for Wide SCSI and a 68-pin connector for Ultra Wide SCSI. The onboard SCSI controller supports both of them and uses software that is provided on the Support Disk.

SCSI devices connect to the mainboard in a “daisy-chain”, that is, in a series connected by cables between each device. If the devices are internal, you connect devices with a ribbon cable that has more than one device connector, such as the 50-pin Ultra SCSI cable supplied with the mainboard.

SCSI devices can also be connected as external devices, in which case individual external SCSI cables connect any devices in the serial chain. You can connect external devices to this mainboard by connecting and external adapter to one of the onboard SCSI ports. Such adapters provide an external SCSI port that mounts in an expansion card slot opening. You then connect external SCSI devices to the external port. External SCSI port adapters can be purchased from a computer accessory vendor. You must get an adapter specific to which SCSI connector you are connecting to, either Wide SCSI or Ultra Wide SCSI.

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3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard – 3.16

SCSI Device IDs

Each SCSI connector can support up to seven SCSI devices.

Each SCSI device in the chain must have a unique identification number to identify itself to the controller. You set the ID number on the device hardware. There are various ways to do this so you will need to consult the manual for any device you want to install for instructions on how to set the ID for the device.

The SCSI controller on the mainboard has an ID number, 0

(zero), so the available device ID numbers are 1 through 7 for the Wide SCSI. SCSI-2 chain and 1 through 15 for the Ultra Wide SCSI-3 chain.

SCSI Termination

The SCSI chain must be “terminated” at each end. The con-

nector on the mainboard is permanently terminated and there constitutes one end of the chain. The last device in the chain, whether it is internal or external, must also be terminated. SCSI devices use various termination methods, so you will need to consult the manual for the last device in the chain to see how to terminate it.

If you connect internal SCSI devices, the device connected to

the end of the ribbon cable is the last device and must be terminated. In an external chain, the device at the end must be terminated. All devices in-between the mainboard and the last device must not be terminated.

Installing an AGP Card

An AGP display card installs in the AGP slot on the main-

board and secures to the system case at the matching expansion slot opening. Any AGP card will require Operating System support, which will be implemented in Windows 98 and later versions of Microsoft Windows.

Review the card documentation for any additional installa-

tion instructions.

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4: Reference Information – 4.1

In This Section:

Jumper Summary Connector Summary CPU Information Memory Configurations CMOS Setup Utility

4: P6LX-A Reference Information

This section is a summary of the P6LX-A’s specifications and settings.

Using This Section

The information in this section is presented in a summary format to make it easy to find specific information. If you need related explanations, please refer to the topics earlier in the manual.

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4: Reference Information – 4.2

IR headers J11, J12

ISA 3, 2, 1

RAID

JP3

SCSI J22, J23

J40

J16

J15

J21

PCI 4,3,2,1

port

Game

Mic, Line-In, Line-Out

J25

CD-In J29, J26, J28

AGP Slot

JP5

JP1

Floppy

JP6

Parallel

COM1

CPU Slot

DIMM1 DIMM2 DIMM3 DIMM4

Mouse

COM2

Keybd

USB

ATX Power

J13 J14

Secondary IDE Primary IDE

Jumper & Connectors

The illustration above shows the location of the jumpers, ports and other connectors on the mainboard.

The COM1 and COM2 ports are underneath the Parallel port. The USB ports and the PS/2 ports – Keyboard (lower) and Mouse (upper) – are stacked vertically.

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4: Reference Information – 4.3

Jumper Configuration & Connector Summary

This section lists the jumper setting options for this mainboard and the onboard connectors. The settings are listed as follows:

• The two pins shorted by a jumper cap on a three-or-more-pin

jumper, e.g. 1-2

• For a two-pin jumper, On, if the cap is in place, and Off, if a

cap is not in place.

In the jumper illustrations, the Pin 1 position is shaded and the jumpers, shown in a “bird’s eye” view, look like this:

A jumper with a cap in position looks like this:

The default settings are noted in the summary table.

In practice, for an Off setting on a two-pin jumper, place the cap over one pin so that it doesn’t get lost.

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4: Reference Information – 4.4

CPU Jumper Settings Function Jumper Settings

Internal JP1 2.0x 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8 Clock Factor 2.5x 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

3.0x 1-2,5-6, 7-8

3.5x 5-6, 7-8 (233MHz CPU)

4.0x 1-2, 3-4, 7-8 (266MHz CPU) [D]

4.5x 3-4, 7-8 (300MHz CPU)

5.0x 1-2, 7-8 (333MHz CPU)

Note: External Bus Clock is 66MHz

Other Jumper Settings

Clear CMOS JP3 Clear 1-2*

Normal 2-3 [D]

* Put cap on jumper for a moment and then remove to clear CMOS. SCSI Hi-Byte JP5 SCSI BIOS Controls 1-2

Always Enable 2-3 [D]

CPU Clock JP6 Normal 1-2 [D]

Turbo* 2-3 *Turbo mode sets external bus clock to 68.5MHz (not recommended for this mainboard.)

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4: Reference Information – 4.5

JP1: Internal Clock Factor

3.5X JP1

4.0X

4.5X

JP1

JP3: Clear CMOS

Clear

JP3

JP6: CPU Mode Normal

JP6

JP5: SCSI Hi-Byte

SCSI BIOS Control

Normal

JP3

Turbo

JP6

5.0X

JP1

JP5

Always Enable

JP5

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4: Reference Information – 4.6

Onboard Connectors Name: Function Description

J1: Keyboard Stacked PS/2 ports, keyboard lower, mouse upper & Mouse

J3: Serial Port Two Onboard serial port is COM2, can set to COM4 J4: Serial Port One Onboard serial port is COM1, can set to COM3 J5: Parallel Port Standard 25-pin parallel Printer port J6: Floppy Drive 34-pin connector connects to 2-device cable;

End device is Drive A:, middle is Drive B:

J7: Primary IDE 40-pin connector connects to supplied cable;

End device is Primary Master, middle is Slave

J8: Secondary IDE 40-pin connector connects to 2-device cable;

End device is Secondary Master, middle is Slave

J9: Case Features Connects to various case feature leads Pins 1-3: Power On LED; 4-5: Suspend Switch;6-8: Suspend LED; 9-10: Reset Switch; 11-12: Keybd Lock; 13-16: Speaker; 17-18 HD LED; 19-20 Power On switch

J11: FIR header Connects to optional Fast IR infrared module cable (optional)

J12: Intel IR header Connects to optional IrDA or ASKIR infrared module

J13: PS Fan power For ATX power supply cooling fan power cable J14: CPU Fan power For CPU cooling fan power cable J15: Case Fan power For case-mounted cooling fan power cable J16: Intrusion Detector Connects to chassis intrusion detector cable J17: Slot 1 Connector for Pentium II CPU card module J19: AGP Slot Accelerated Graphics Port slot

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4: Reference Information – 4.7

Name: Function Description

J20: USB Dual stacked external USB ports J21: Modem Connects to internal modem for system wake-upon

Wake-up modem ring J22: Wide SCSI Onboard 50-pin SCSI port connector, uses supplied

ribbon cable (optional)

J23: Ultra-Wide Onboard 68-pin SCSI port

SCSI J24: RAID Port RAID J25: MB-Pro Audio MB-Pro header J26: CD-In CD-ROM drive audio cable connector – JST J27: Audio Jacks Mic, External Line-In & Line-Out J28: CD-In CD-ROM drive audio cable connector – Molex J29: Aux. CD-In 4-pin CD-ROM drive audio cable connector PS1: ATX Power Connects to 20-pin ATX power supply lead BT1: Battery Socket for Li CMOS support battery J40: LAN Wake-up LAN activity wake-up header

J9: Case Features Connector

1 – 3 4 – 5 6 – 8 9 – 10 11 – 12 13 – 16 17 – 18

Pin 1-3: Power On LED; Pin 4-5: Suspend Switch; Pin 6-8: Suspend LED; Pin 9-10: Reset Switch; Pin 11-12: Keyboard Lock; Pin 13-16: Speaker; Pin 17-18: Hard Disk LED; Pin 19-20: Power Switch

port

™ connector

19 – 20

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4: Reference Information – 4.8

The AGP Slot

The AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) slot is for an AGP display card. With the Optimum Settings loaded in the BIOS Setup Utility the AGP has a default memory aperture of 4MB, expandable to 256MB.

The RAID

The RAIDport™ slot extension to the PCI4 slot forms an ex- tended slot that supports an Adaptec ARO-1130 or compatible RAID card With the software supplied on the Support Disk this mainboard will support the following RAID levels:

• RAID Level 0

• RAID Level 0/1

• RAID Level 5

For more information on this feature please see the documentation that accompanies the SCSI support software on the Support Disk.

portport

port

portport

™ Slot

Supported CPUs

This mainboard supports the Intel Pentium II CPU running at the following speeds with a 66MHz external bus clock:

• 233MHz

• 266MHz

• 300MHz

• 333MHz

The CPU Retention Module

This mainboard ships with a CPU retention module which attaches to the mainboard to provide guide rails and latch receptacles to hold the installed CPU in place. Please see Section 2, The CPU Retention Module, if you need more information on how to install and use the module.

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4: Reference Information – 4.9

System Memory Specifications

The memory subsystem on this mainboard has four 168-pin DIMM sockets. The sockets function independently and can use either EDO DRAM or SDRAM unbuffered 3.3–Volt modules. Single or double-sided modules from 8MB to 128MB are supported up to a total memory capacity of 512MB.

Memory Configurations

You can install any combination of module sizes as long as you follow these requirements:

• All modules must use unbuffered 3.3–Volt RAM

• All modules have same operating speed, e.g. 60ns

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4: Reference Information – 4.10

CMOS Setup Utility Summary

This section explains the entries in the CMOS Setup Utility

program. This utility is permanently stored on the BIOS chip on the mainboard. It creates a record of the mainboard’s and some system configuration information and stores it in battery-supported memory on the mainboard. This record must be intact and accurate in order for the mainboard to operate.

After a brief explanation of how to operate the utility there is

a summary of the entries and options for all sections of the utility. Under normal conditions, once your system is set up, you should have little or no need to use this utility.

Using the CMOS Setup Utility

This mainboard uses the Award system BIOS. It is stored in a

Flash ROM memory chip on the mainboard. The BIOS uses a software program, also stored on the same chip to create a system configuration record which is saved in a small amount of special “CMOS” memory on the mainboard.

Accessing The CMOS Setup Utility

When you turn on your computer, a message appears on the

screen indicating you can run the Setup program by pressing the Del key (it’s on the keypad.) The message appears after the POST (Power On Self Test).

If you want to run Setup but you don’t respond in time before

the message disappears, you can reset the system by pressing the Ctrl + Alt + Delete keys at the same time, or by pushing the system Reset button. The message will then reappear.

After you press the Del or Delete key the program menu screen

will appear, displaying the Setup utility section names and some command instructions.

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4: Reference Information – 4.12

Menu Commands

If you look at the lower portion of the screen illustration you’ll

see a section that lists the control commands for this level of the program. You execute a command by pressing the key for that command. The program commands are :

Quit

This command will close the Setup program when you press the ESC key.

Save & Exit Setup

This will save the current settings and close the Setup program when you press the F10 key.

Select Item

You can use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move around the screen and select a menu item. An item is highlighted when it is selected.

Change Color

Change the program color scheme by pressing Shift + F2. The section at the bottom of the screen displays a brief expla-

nation of a highlighted menu item’s function.

There are six main sections to the Setup program:

• Standard CMOS Setup Date, time, disk drive, video display and error handling

• BIOS Features Setup System customization features and video display settings

• Chipset Features Setup Chipset settings, memory configuration feature for special-

ized add-on cards and VGA memory configuration

• Power Management Setup Sets up the “green” power management features

• PNP/PCI Configuration PCI expansion slot and system resource settings

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• Load BIOS Defaults

Loads minimum settings from the BIOS ROM.

• Load Optimum Settings

Loads optimized settings from the BIOS ROM.

• Integrated Peripherals

Settings for the IDE channels and onboard ports

• PC Health Monitor

Monitoring sensor settings and readings, accessed by LANDesk Client Manager

The other main menu items are affected by these items :

• Supervisor Password & User Password

Sets a system password which is configured by the Security Option item in BIOS Features Setup.

• IDE HDD Auto Detection

Automatically detects the drive parameters of any installed IDE hard disk drives and enters them automatically in the Standard CMOS Setup .

• Save & Exit Setup

Saves the current settings and exits the program.

• Exit Without Saving

Discards any changes made during the current session and exits the program.

To enter a section of the Setup program, highlight the menu

item and press the Enter key.

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Standard CMOS Setup

To enter this section, highlight this menu item in the main

menu and press the Enter key. The screen above will appear.

Menu Commands

If you look at the lower portion of the screen illustration you’ll

see a section that lists the control commands for this level of the program. You execute a command by pressing the key for that command. The program commands are :

Quit This command will close the Setup program when you press

the ESC key. Help This displays information about the highlighted item when

you press the F10 key.

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Select Item You can use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move around

the screen and select a menu item. An item is highlighted when it is selected.

Change Color You can change the program color scheme by pressing Shift +

F2. Modify T o change the setting of a highlighted selection you can press

either the Page Up (PU) and Page Down (PD) keys or the Plus (+) and Minus (–) keys. Pressing a key once will switch to the next setting option for the selected item.

If your mainboard is already installed in a working system the proper entries are already entered on this screen and you shouldn’t change them except for adjusting the Date and Time entries if necessary.

Date & Time

The first two lines on the screen are the date and time settings for the system clock.

Hard Disk Type & Parameters

For an IDE hard disk drive, you should set the entries to “Auto” and the BIOS will automatically detect all drive information needed.

You can also use the IDE HDD Auto Detection feature, described later, to automatically enter the drive parameters of IDE hard disk drives in these fields. If you have only SCSI hard disk drives installed in your system leave the settings here at None. Only hard disk information needs to be entered here. Other IDE devices do not use this.

If you use the IDE HDD Auto Detection utility to supervise the auto-detection process, leave the drive items set to “None”. Y ou can also enter specifications manually by setting a line to the “User” option.

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Large Hard Disk Modes

The last of the drive parameter entries – Mode – has four op-

tions, Normal, LBA, Large and Auto. The Mode settings are for IDE hard disks only.

Normal For IDE hard disks of 528MB or less. LBA This stands for Logical Block Addressing, the current standard

access mode for large IDE hard disk drives. It allows the use of hard disks larger than 528MB by causing the IDE controller to translate between the logical address it creates and the hard disk’s actual physical address. The maximum drive size supported is 8.4GB.

Large For 1GB or smaller drives with more than 1024 cylinders and

no LBA support. This access mode causes the Operating System to treat the drive as if it has fewer than 1024 cylinders by dividing the cylinder total in half and doubling the number of heads. Drives needing this mode are less common.

Most large IDE hard disk drives currently available use the

LBA mode. Use the AUTO setting to automatically detect the correct mode for new drives.

Floppy Disk Drives

The two floppy disk drive items set the drive type for drives A

and B, and must be entered manually. The options are

360KB, 5.25 in.

1.2MB, 5.25 in. 720KB, 3.5 in.

1.44MB, 3.5 in.

2.88MB, 3.5 in. None

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Highlight the listing after each drive name and select the appropriate entry.

Floppy 3 Mode Support

3 Mode is a Japanese 3.5-inch floppy disk drive specification. If this type of drive is installed you should enable this feature. The default setting is Disabled.

Video Display Types

You set this according to the type of display card in your system. This should normally be left on EGA/VGA. The options are:

EGA/VGA Mono (for Hercules or MDA) CGA 40 CGA 80

Error Handling

The last line – Halt On – sets when the system stops if an error occurs. The options are:

All Errors (Default) No Errors All, But Keyboard All, But Diskette All, But Disk/Key

When you are finished in this section, exit to the main menu screen by pressing the Esc key.

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BIOS Features Setup

T o enter this section of the Setup program, highlight this menu

item in the main menu and press the Enter key. The following screen will appear.

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Menu Commands

If you look at the lower portion of the screen illustration you’ll see a section that lists the control commands for this level of the program. You execute a command by pressing the key for that command. The program commands are :

Quit

This command will close the Setup program when you press

the ESC key. Help

This displays information about the highlighted item when

you press the F1 key. Select Item

You can use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move around

the screen and select a menu item. An item is highlighted when

it is selected. Modify

T o change the setting of a highlighted selection you can press

either the Page Up (PU) and Page Down (PD) keys or the Plus

(+) and Minus (–) keys. Pressing a key once will switch to the

next setting option for the selected item. Change Color

Change the program color scheme by pressing Shift + F2. Old Values

If you make changes during the current session and you don’t

want to keep them you can recall the last set of saved values

for this page by pressing the F5 key. Load BIOS Defaults

Pressing F6 loads the BIOS Default settings for this page. Load Optimum Settings

Pressing F7 loads the Optimum settings for this page.

If your mainboard is already installed in a working system the proper entries are already entered on this screen and you shouldn’t change them.

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Virus Warning

This protects the primary hard disk’s boot sector and partition

table from infection. Any attempt to write to them will halt the system and produce a warning message. If this happens, you can either allow the system to continue or stop it and boot from a virus-free bootable floppy disk. Use an anti-virus utility located on the floppy disk to check the hard disk. The default setting is Disabled.

CPU Internal Cache

This enables CPU’s Level 1 built-in cache. Leave it enabled to

maintain system performance. The default setting is Enabled.

Quick Power On Self Test

This feature speeds up the Power On Self T est (POST) by skip-

ping some parts of the POST. If your system is functioning normally , you can enable this feature to speed the boot process. The default setting is Enabled.

Boot Sequence

This determines the order in which the computer checks drives

for an operating system. In addition to the drive A: floppy disk drive and the drive C: boot hard disk, you can configure the order to include another IDE hard disk drive or CD-ROM drive or a SCSI device. The options are:

A, C, SCSI C, A, SCSI SCSI, A, C SCSI, C, A D, A, SCSI E, A, SCSI F, A, SCSI C, CD-ROM, A CD-ROM, C, A C Only

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Swap Floppy Drive

This switches the floppy drive assignments so that drive A is treated as drive B: and drive B: as drive A: under DOS. The default setting is Disabled.

Boot Up NumLock Status

This item allows you to select which mode the numeric keypad on an IBM-compatible extended keyboard is set to when the computer boots up. The options are:

On – Numeric keypad mode (Default) Off – Cursor control mode

Gate A20 Option

This sets the gate A20 control. The two options are:

Fast – Recommended default Normal

Security Option

This sets when password protection is active. The two options are:

System – Password required at boot up Setup – Password controls access to Setup utility

You create a password using the Password Setting option in the main menu. With no password set, the system ignores this.

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PCI/VGA Palette Snoop

If your video display card has an MPEG card attached to the

feature connector, the display may invert to black on white while booting. If this happens, set this line to Enabled to correct the problem. The default setting is Disabled.

OS Select For DRAM >64MB

If your system has more than 64MB of system memory and

the OS/2 operating system is in use, set this to the OS2 setting. The default setting, Non-OS2, is for all other operating systems.

Video BIOS Shadow

This copies the video display card BIOS into system DRAM

to increase display speed and is required for system performance. The default setting is Enabled.

Shadowing Address Ranges

The next six lines, from C8000-CBFFF Shadow to DC000-

DFFFF Shadow are address ranges for shadowing other expansion card ROMs. If there are any expansion cards with ROMs installed in your system, you have to know the address range they use to shadow them specifically. The default setting for all of these is Disabled.

When you are done in this section press the Esc key to return

to the main menu.

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Chipset Features Setup

T o enter this section of the Setup program, highlight this menu item in the main menu and press the Enter key . The screen above will appear. Everything on this screen is either an optimum setting or set automatically when auto-configuration is active. Unless you know what you are doing, we recommend against making any manual settings in this section, with the exception of the Memory Hole, AGP Aperture Size and Special Features items.

Menu Commands

The menu commands for this screen are the same as for the BIOS Features Setup screen.

Auto Configuration

Auto-configuration will automatically set values in this section. If you disable auto-configuration you can set the DRAM timing values manually. The default setting is Enabled.

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Memory Hole At 15M–16M

Some special add-on cards require a 1MB address space be-

tween 15 and 16MB. The documentation for this type of card should tell you if it needs this. The default setting is Disabled.

AGP Aperture Size

This item sets the maximum amount of system memory an

AGP display card will use to store 3D texture mapping data. The larger the aperture, the better the performance of this 3D function. The settings range from 4MB to 256MB. The default setting is 64MB.

Special Features

If you set the two items in this section to Enabled, the external

bus clock will change to 68.5MHz, resulting in the speed of the CPU being slightly overclocked. This provides some system performance enhancement. This feature is not recommended for use with this mainboard. The default settings are Disabled.

To return to the main menu press the Esc key.

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Power Management Setup

T o enter this section of the Setup program, highlight this menu item in the main menu and press the Enter key . The screen above will appear.

Menu Commands

The menu commands for this screen are the same as for the BIOS Features Setup screen.

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What Power Management Does

Power management lets you set up your computer to save

electricity when it is not actively in use by putting the system into progressively greater power saving modes. In the power management scheme there are four system states which proceed in the following sequence:

Normal Doze Standby Suspend

Power Management

This controls the entire power management scheme. There

are four settings: User Defined

You set the power saving options manually

Disable

Turns off all power management

Max Saving

Maximizes power saving by activating maximum power saving settings after one minute of system inactivity

Min Saving

Produces less power saving by activating moderate power saving settings after one hour of system inactivity

PM Control By APM

When this is set to Yes the Advanced Power Management fea-

ture in Microsoft Windows controls power management operation. The default setting is No.

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Video Off After

This governs when the video display gets turned off. The options are:

Suspend Off after system enters Suspend mode Standby Off after system enters Standby mode Doze Of f after system enters Doze mode N/A No display shut off

Doze Mode

This sets the period of system inactivity after which the system goes into Doze mode, the most limited power saving state. The settings range from 1 minute to 1 hour and can be set manually when power management is in User Define mode. The default setting is Disabled. When the system goes into power saving mode, power management will skip to the next mode in the sequence if this is disabled.

Standby Mode

This sets the period of system inactivity after which the system goes into Standby mode, the intermediate power saving state. The settings range from 1 minute to 1 hour and can be set manually when power management is in User Define mode. The default setting is Disabled. When the system goes into power saving mode, power management will skip to the next mode in the sequence if this is disabled.

Suspend Mode

This sets the period of system inactivity after which the system goes into Suspend mode, the maximum power saving state. The settings range from 1 minute to 1 hour and can be set manually when power management is in User Define mode. The default setting is Disabled. When the system goes into power saving mode, power management will skip to the next mode in the sequence if this is disabled.

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HDD Power Down

This shuts down IDE hard disks that support a power saving

mode after a specified time period. The settings range from 1 to 15 minutes and can be set manually when power management is in User Define mode. HDD Power Down does not affect SCSI hard disks. The default setting is Disabled.

The system automatically resumes from any power saving

mode when there is system activity such as keyboard activity or an IRQ wake-up event like mouse movement or a modem ring.

Throttle Duty Cycle

This line sets the percentage by which the CPU speed is cut

back when power saving initiates. The settings are:

62.5% Default 75%

87.5%

12.5% 25%

37.5% 50%

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ZZ Active In Suspend

This item puts the cache controller into sleep mode when the system is in Suspend mode to achieve additional power saving. The default setting is Disabled, the option is Enabled.

VGA Active Monitor

When this line is set to the default, Enabled, the system will not initiate power saving while there is display activity . The other option is Disabled.

Soft-Off By PWR-BTTN

This line controls the function of a power switch attached to the J9 Power Push Button connector. When set to the default, you must press the power switch for four seconds or more to turn the system off. Pressing it for less than four seconds will put the system into Suspend mode. If your system has a separate Suspend switch you can set this to Instant Off and the power switch will only function to turn the system on and off.

Delay 4 Sec. Default Instant Off

Resume By Alarm

You can set the system to wake up at a certain date and time by setting this line to Enabled. When enabled, two more lines appear to allow you to set the wake-up date and time. The date is a day within the current calendar month. The screen on the next page illustrates this. The default setting is Disabled.

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Break Event From Suspend

The two lines in this section control whether the system will

wake-up if either of the events noted occur. The defaults are shown on the screen illustration on the next page.

Reload Global Timer Events

The system will restart the power saving count-down when

an event generates from any of the items in this section that are set to Enabled. The defaults are shown above.

When you are finished in this section, press the Esc key to

return to the main menu.

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PNP/PCI Configuration

T o enter this section of the Setup program, highlight this menu item in the main menu and press the Enter key. The following screen will appear.

Menu Commands

The menu commands for this screen are the same as for the BIOS Features Setup screen.

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Resources Controlled By

When this line is set to Auto the BIOS will automatically con-

figure IRQ and DMA resources. This is the recommended setting. If you set this line to Manual, the screen changes as shown above and allows manual configuration. In general you should only need to do this if you are installing an ISA card that requires manual configuration.

Reset Configuration Data

The default setting is ‘Disabled’. If you need to clear the ESCD

data, set this to ‘Enabled’. The data will clear automatically and the BIOS will reset this line to the ‘Disabled’ setting.

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PCI IDE IRQ Map To

Most of PCI IDE cards are non-PCI compliant. This line defines the IRQ Routing to make them work properly. The available settings are:

PCI-AUTO (default) ISA PCI-SLOT1 PCI-SLOT2 PCI-SLOT3 PCI-SLOT4

If you set this option to ‘ISA’, both the ‘Primary IDE INT#’ and ‘Secondary IDE INT#’ options below it will not appear on the screen.

Primary/Secondary IDE INT#

These define the primary/secondary IDE INT# of a PCI IDE card. The setting options are:

A (Primary IDE INT# default ) B (Secondary IDE INT# default ) C D

When you are finished you can press the Esc key to return to the main menu.

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Load BIOS Defaults

T o use this command highlight it in the main menu and press

Enter. A message will appear asking if you want to load the BIOS Defaults. Press the Y key and then the Enter key. The BIOS default settings will load. Press the N key if you want to cancel.

This loads a set of troubleshooting default values permanently

stored in the BIOS ROM. The settings are not optimal and turn off all the performance features. Standard CMOS Setup is not affected by this command.

Load Optimum Settings

T o use this command highlight it in the main menu and press

Enter. A message will appear asking if you want to load the Optimum Settings. Press the Y key and then the Enter key . The optimum default settings will load. Press the N key if you want to cancel.

This loads a set of optimized default values permanently stored

in the BIOS ROM. Use this command to load default settings for normal system operation. Standard CMOS Setup is not affected by this command.

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Integrated Peripherals

This section sets the IDE transfer mode for all IDE channels. It also configures the other onboard ports.

Menu Commands

The menu commands for this screen are the same as for the BIOS Features Setup screen.

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IDE HDD Block Mode

Enables hard disk drive block transfer mode . The setting op-

tions are:

Enabled (default) Disabled

On-Chip Primary/Secondary PCI IDE

Enables or Disables the Primary or Secondary PCI controllers.

Selecting “Disabled” Secondary).

Enabled (default) Disabled

IDE Primary/Secondary Master/ Slave PIO

These four lines set the hard disk PIO transfer mode, which

affects the hard disk data transfer rate. The system will autodetect the PIO mode of a device in any of these positions when they are set to ‘Auto’, the recommended setting. Alternatively, you can set the mode manually. Modes 0 to 4 are supported.

releases IRQ14 ( for Primary) or IRQ15 (for

Primary/Master Master/Slave UltraDMA

These four lines enable hard disk UltraDMA transfer mode,

which requires a drive that supports this data transfer method. The system will auto-detect an UltraDMA device in any of these four positions when they are set to ‘Auto’, the recommended setting. The other setting is ‘Disabled’. You can leave these set to Auto without effect if there are no UltraDMA devices installed.

USB Keyboard Support

Enables or Disables support for a USB keyboard. Enable this if

you connect a USB keyboard. The default is Disabled.

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Onboard FDD Controller

Enables or Disables the onboard Floppy Drive controller.

Onboard Serial Port 1/2

Sets the I/O address for serial ports 1 & 2.

3F8/IRQ4 Onboard serial port COM1 default 2F8/IRQ3 Onboard serial port COM2 default 3E8/IRQ4 2E8/IRQ3 Disabled

UART 2 Mode

Sets mode for the second serial port UART . If you select an IR module type, the second serial port will not be available. The setting options are:

Standard (default) – (used by COM2 serial port) ASKIR HPSIR

The infrared mode you select here should be the same as the infrared module you are connected to the mainboard. You can also manually configure the Duplex, RxD and TxD settings if the defaults are not correct for the installed module. See the screen illustration on the next page.

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Onboard Parallel Port

Sets the I/O address for the onboard parallel port. The setting

options are:

378H/IRQ7 (default) Disabled 278H/IRQ5 3BCH/IRQ7

If you set this option to ‘Disabled’, the next option, ‘Onboard

Parallel Mode’,

will not appear on the screen.

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Onboard Parallel Mode

Selects the parallel port mode. The setting options are:

SPP (default) ECP/EPP EPP/SPP ECP

If you set this option to ‘SPP’ or ‘EPP/SPP’, the ‘ECP Mode Use DMA’ option will not appear on the screen. If you set this option to ‘SPP’ or ‘ECP’, the ‘Parallel Port EPP Type’ option will not appear on the screen.

ECP Mode Use DMA

Selects the ECP Mode DMA channel. The setting options are:

3 (default) 1

Parallel Port EPP Type

Sets the EPP protocol version. The setting options are:

EPP 1.7 (default) EPP 1.9

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PC Health Monitor

T o enter this section of the Setup program, highlight this menu

item in the main menu and press the Enter key.

Menu Commands

The menu commands for this screen are the same as for the

BIOS Features Setup screen.

What The Health Monitor Does

This section of the CMOS Setup utility is connected to the

sensor technology on the mainboard. The sensor monitors the voltage and temperature status for the items listed on the screen.

There are two sections on the screen, Warning Messages and

PC Status. The Warning Messages section has settings that control the monitoring function. The PC Status section displays the current status of the listed items as detected by the onboard sensor, including voltage readings and temperatures.

Warning Messages

This section of the screen lists the items monitored by the

sensor and enables warning messages which appear during the POST (Power On Self Test), which runs when your computer is starting up. If the sensor detects a condition outside safe parameters during start-up, it will generate a warning message.

You can set the expected core voltage for the CPU under CPU

Voltage. The options for the rest of the items listed are Enabled and Disabled.

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The monitored items and default settings are:

**** Warning Messages **** CPU Core Voltage Enabled Vcc3 Voltage (3.36V) Enabled Vcc2 Voltage (2.5V) Enabled Vcc Voltage (5V) Enabled +12V Voltage Enabled –12V Voltage Enabled –5V Voltage Enabled CPU Fan Disabled Power Fan Disabled Mainboard Temperature Enabled Chassis Enabled

PC Status

When you call up the PC Health Monitor screen this section displays the current readings from the onboard sensor. The readings are for the same items as in the Warning Message list.

The last line, System Status indicates the current evaluation of the system state in terms of the monitored items listed. Under normal conditions it will display ‘OK!’ as the system status. If there is a problem a warning will appear.

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Supervisor & User Password Settings

To use either of these commands, highlight one in the main

menu and press Enter. A message will appear prompting you to enter a password.

Type in a password. The password is case sensitive, and can

be up to 8 alphanumeric characters. Press Enter when you finish typing in the password.

If you typed in a password, the message “Confirm Password”

will appear. Confirm the password by typing it again and pressing Enter. The message box will close.

If you decide you don’t want to set a password after you acti-

vate this command, or if you want to eliminate an existing password, press Enter without typing anything else. The message “Password Disabled” will appear and the message box will close.

When you set a password, the Security Option line in BIOS

Features Setup controls when the password is required. You can set the option to require the password when the system boots up or when calling up the CMOS Setup utility . The mainboard ships with no password.

IDE HDD Auto Detection

When you install an IDE hard drive, you can use this feature

to automatically detect the drive parameters and enter them in the appropriate Hard Disk section of Standard CMOS Setup. However, since the Auto settings in Standard CMOS Setup perform the same function, you do not need to configure IDE hard disk drives from here. If you want to use this feature, highlight it in the main menu and press the Enter key.

Save And Exit Setup

When you select this and press Enter the values entered dur-

ing the current session are recorded in CMOS memory.

Exit Without Saving

When you select this and press Enter the Setup Utility closes

without recording any changes made during the current session.

ECS P6LX-A P6LX-A User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

1: P6LX-A Package & Product Information

Manual Features

Package Contents

Mainboard Features

Component Information

Expansion Slots

Memory Sockets & Modules

CPU Socket & CPU

Port & Controller Connections

2: Using Your Mainboard

System Controls

Hardware Controls & Indicators

CMOS Setup Utility Controls

Hardware Features

Onboard Ports

Connectors

Optional Hardware Connectors

The CPU Retention Module

Firmware & Software

How To Use The CMOS Setup Utility

Clearing CMOS

Flashing The BIOS

Bus Master Drivers

SCSI Support Software

3: Reconfiguring Your Mainboard

Installing Expansion Cards

ISA Cards & Slots

Configuring Expansion Card Resources In CMOS Setup

Adding System Memory

Memory Configurations

Installing A CPU Upgrade

The Basic Procedure

Configuring Internal Clock Speed & Factor

CPU Jumper Table & Illustrations

Adding An IDE Peripheral

IDE Transfer Modes

Installing IDE Devices

Adding SCSI Devices

SCSI Device IDs

SCSI Termination

Installing an AGP Card

4: P6LX-A Reference Information

Using This Section

Jumper Configuration & Connector Summary

The AGP Slot

Supported CPUs

System Memory Specifications

Memory Configurations

CMOS Setup Utility Summary

Using the CMOS Setup Utility

Accessing The CMOS Setup Utility

Standard CMOS Setup

BIOS Features Setup

Chipset Features Setup

Power Management Setup

PNP/PCI Configuration

Load BIOS Defaults

Load Optimum Settings

Integrated Peripherals

PC Health Monitor