EVGA Z370 Micro operation manual

EVGA Z370 MICRO (121-KS-E375)

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User Guide

EVGA Z370 MICRO Specs and Initial Installation

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Table of Contents

User Guide ............................................................................................................... - 1 -

EVGA Z370 MICRO ................................................................................................. - 1 -

Specs and Initial Installation..................................................................................... - 1 -

Before You Begin… ................................................................................................. - 4 -

Parts NOT in the Kit ............................................................................................................. - 5 -

Intentions of the Kit .............................................................................................................. - 5 -

Motherboard ............................................................................................................. - 6 -

Motherboard Specifications .................................................................................................. - 6 -

Unpacking and Parts Descriptions ........................................................................... - 8 -

Intel® Z370 Micro Motherboard LED reference .................................................................. - 9 -

Intel® Z370 Micro Motherboard Component Legend......................................................... - 11 -

PCIe Slot Breakdown ......................................................................................................... - 21 -

M.2 Slot Breakdown ........................................................................................................... - 21 -

Preparing the Motherboard ................................................................................................. - 22 -

Installing the CPU .............................................................................................................. - 22 -

Installing the CPU Cooling Device .................................................................................... - 24 -

Installing System Memory (DIMMs) ................................................................................. - 25 -

Installing the I/O Shield ...................................................................................................... - 26 -

Installing the Motherboard...................................................................................... - 26 -

Securing the Motherboard into a System Case ................................................................... - 27 -

Installing M.2 devices ......................................................................................................... - 29 -

Tested CPU ......................................................................................................................... - 32 -

Tested Memory ................................................................................................................... - 32 -

Tested M.2 Key-M ............................................................................................................. - 33 -

Tested M.2 Key-E............................................................................................................... - 33 -

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Connecting Cables .............................................................................................................. - 34 -

Onboard Buttons ................................................................................................................. - 45 -

First Boot ................................................................................................................ - 46 -

M.2 SSD, PCIe SSD, and NVMe SSD Installation steps ................................................... - 48 -

Internal RAID Controller ......................................................................................... - 50 -

Fan Header and PWM Setup ................................................................................. - 85 -

Setting Up SLI and PhysX...................................................................................... - 89 -

Realtek HD Audio Manager ............................................................................................... - 93 -

Installing Drivers and Software ............................................................................ - 116 -

Windows 10 Driver Installation ........................................................................................ - 116 -

Warranty and Overclocking .............................................................................................. - 117 -

Troubleshooting ................................................................................................... - 118 -

SSD / HDD is not detected ............................................................................................... - 118 -

System does not POST, and POST code indicator reads “C” ........................................... - 120 -

System does not POST, and POST code indicator reads “55” or “b7” ............................. - 121 -

System does not POST, and POST code indicator reads “d7” ......................................... - 121 -

Have a question not covered above, or want some online resources? .............................. - 122 -

POST Beep codes ............................................................................................................. - 123 -

POST Port Debug LED .................................................................................................... - 124 -

EVGA Glossary of Terms ................................................................................................ - 130 -

Compliance Information ....................................................................................... - 133 -

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Before You Begin…

The Z370 Micro ushers in the new era of Intel®'s mainstream motherboards with performance and features normally reserved for full-size motherboards. Supporting Coffee Lake-S, Intel®’s 8th Generation Core processors, the Z370 Micro can be driven by up to 6 physical cores + Hyper-Threading. This board contains standard features, including USB 3.0, M.2, Intel® Optane™ support,

7.1 Channel audio, reinforced PCI-e slots, an Intel® Gigabit NIC and included Intel® Dual-Band WiFi + Bluetooth. However, there is nothing standard about the Z370 Micro’s overclocking ability. The Micro features a Highly-Efficient Digital VRM, 8 VCORE phases, an External Clock Generator, and full EVGA E-LEET X support. Lastly, a board this powerful would not be complete without 2-Way SLI Support to ensure your dominance over the field. With the EVGA Z370 Micro, mainstream performance just found its new home.

Furthermore, this board is designed not only for overclockers, but also for gamers with NVIDIA® 2-Way SLI Support, without the need for PLX chips; an external clock generator; blazing-fast networking, featuring an Intel® i219 NIC; Intel® Dual-Band AC WiFi + BT; an M.2 Key-M slot and much more!

Lastly, a motherboard is only as good as its BIOS, and the EVGA Z370 Micro features an updated UEFI/BIOS GUI with a focus on overclocking and functionality in a lean, straightforward package. You won’t need to be an expert to configure your motherboard, but if you are, you’ll find features unavailable anywhere else.

Combining the best of current technology with the latest innovations, EVGA is

further refining motherboard performance!

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Parts NOT in the Kit

This kit contains all the hardware necessary to install and connect your new EVGA Z370 Micro Motherboard. However, it does NOT contain the following items, which must be purchased separately in order to make the system fullyfunctional and install an Operating System:

 Intel

Socket 1151 Processor

 DDR4 System Memory  CPU Cooling Device  PCI Express Graphics Card  Power Supply  Hard Drive or SSD  Keyboard / Mouse  Monitor  (Optional) Optical Drive

EVGA assumes you have purchased all the necessary parts needed to allow for proper system functionality. For a full list of supported CPUs on this motherboard, please visit www.evga.com/support/motherboard

Intentions of the Kit

When replacing a different model motherboard in a PC case, you may need to reinstall your operating system, even though the current HDD/SSD may already have one installed. Keep in mind, however, you may sometimes also need to reinstall your OS after a RMA even if your motherboard remains the same due to issues that occurred prior to replacing the motherboard.

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Motherboard

Motherboard Specifications

 Size:

mATX form-factor of 9.6 inches x 9.6 inches (243.8x243.8mm)

 Microprocessor support:

Intel® Socket 1151 Processor

 Operating Systems:

Supports Windows 10 64-Bit

 Contains Intel

Z370 chipset

 System Memory support:

Supports Dual channel DDR4 up to 4133MHz+ (OC). Supports up to 32GB of DDR4 memory.

 PS/2 Port:

1x port on the rear panel I/O

Supports both PS/2 keyboard and mouse

 USB 2.0 Ports:

4x from Intel® Z370 PCH – 2x internal via 1 FP headers

Supports hot plug Supports wake-up from S3 mode Supports transfer speeds up to a 480 Mbps with full backwards compatibility

 USB 3.0 Ports:

8x from Intel® Z370 PCH – 6x external, 2x internal via 1 FP headers

Supports transfer speeds up to 5Gbps with full backwards compatibility

 SATA Ports:

Intel® Z370 PCH Controller 6x SATA 3/6 Gbit/s (600 MB/s) data transfer rate

- Support for RAID0, RAID1, RAID5, AND RAID10

- Supports hot plug

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 Onboard LAN:

1x Intel® i219V Gigabit (10/100/1000) Ethernet PHY

 Onboard Audio:

Realtek Audio (ALC1220) Supports 7.1 Channel HD Audio with Optical S/PDIF Out

 Power Functions:

Supports ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface) Supports S0 (normal), S3 (suspend to RAM), S4 (Suspend to disk - depends

on OS), and S5 (soft - off)

 PCI-Express Expansion Slots:

2x PCIe x16 slot 1x16/8, 1x8 1x PCIe x4 slot 1x4

 PCIe 3.0 Support:

Low power consumption and power management features

 SLI and Crossfire Support:

2-Way SLI and Quad SLI (Dual-processor video cards are required to be

PCIe Gen3 NATIVE)

2-Way Crossfire (Dual-processor video cards are required to be PCIe Gen3

NATIVE)

 Additional Expansion Slots:

1x M.2 Key-M 80mm slot PCIe/NVMe and Optane 1x M.2 Key-E slot Includes Intel® 8265NGW 802.11AC/BT4.2

 Fan Headers:

6x 4-pin PWM controlled headers

ALL FAN HEADERS HAVE A MAXIMUM POWER LIMIT OF 1 AMP @ 12 VOLTS (12 WATTS) EXCEDING THIS LIMIT WILL CAUSE IRREPARABLE DAMAGE TO THE BOARD.

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Unpacking and Parts Descriptions

The following accessories are included with the EVGA Z370 Micro Motherboard:

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Intel® Z370 Micro Motherboard LED reference

The EVGA Z370 Micro Motherboard has several LEDs indicating power, connectivity, and activity. Below is the location of the LEDs and their function.

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1. CPU 12v. Error LED a. RED: Voltage failure. The LED will remain on when the motherboard

detects an initialization failure in the CPU 12v. power connector. (This may be caused by a failure to connect an 8-pin ATX/EPS power connector, a power supply failure, or a failure with the CPU 12v. connector)

2. CPU Error LED a. RED: CPU error (This may be caused by improper installation, failed

CPU, or damage to the socket).

3. Memory Error LED a. RED: Memory initialization failed. (This may be caused by memory

module improper installation or failed memory.)

4. 5VSB a. WHITE: Voltage detected (Does not mean PSU is outputting in-spec;

only that this specific voltage is detected)

5. POST Code Indicator a. After bootup, this will display the CPU temperature. b. During boot, this LED will cycle through many different hexadecimal

POST codes with a range of 00-FF to indicate which aspect of the Power On Self Test (POST) is currently running.

i. For list of POST Codes, please see Page 125.

1. CPU 12v. Error LED 3. Memory Error LED 5. POST Code Indicator

2. CPU Error LED 4. 5VSB

LED Component Legend

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Intel® Z370 Micro Motherboard Component Legend

The EVGA Z370 Micro Motherboard with the Intel® Z370 and PCH Chipset. Figure 1 shows the motherboard and Figure 2 shows the back panel connectors.

FIGURE 1. Z370 Micro Motherboard Layout

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**For a FULL description of the above legend, please see Page 14.

1. CPU Socket 1151 10. M.2 Socket 3 Key-M 80mm 19. USB 2.0 Headers

2. Intel Z370 PCH (Southbridge) 11. PCI-E Slot x16/x8 20. Front Panel Audio Connector

3. PWM Fan Header (1 a mp) 12. PCI-E Slot x8 21. Front Panel Connectors

4. DDR4 Memory DIMM Slots 1-2 13. PCI-E Slot x4 22. BIOS Select Switch

5. 24-pin ATX power connector 14. RGB LED Controller Hea der 23. CMOS Battery

6. 8-pin EPS Connector 15. Power Button 24. PC Speaker

7. 4-pin ATX Connector 16. Reset Button 25. Rear Panel Connectors (Figure 2)

8. Supplemental PCI-E 6-pin Power 17. Debug LED / CPU Temp

9. Intel Sata 6G Ports 18. USB 3.0 Hea ders

Component Legend

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Figure 2. Chassis Rear Panel Connectors

1. BIOS / CMOS Res et 4. USB 3.0 7. Optical Out

2. PS/2 Keyboard Port 5. M.2 Socket 1 Key-E 32mm 8. Analog Audio Jacks

3. USB 2.0 6. Intel i219 NIC

I/O Hub Legend

Analog Audio Port Breakdown

2/2.1

Channel

4.0/4.1

Channel

5.1

Channel

7.1

Channel

Blue Line In Line In Line In

* Rear Speakers Out

Front Spea kers Out /

Front Spea kers + Sub

Pink Mic In Mic In Mic In

Mic In

Blac k Side Speakers Out Side Speake rs Out Side Speake rs Out

Orange Cente r / Sub Out Center / Sub Out

3.5mm Audio Jack Legend

Front Spea kers Out

Green

Front Spea kers Out

* Onl y us ed in 7.1 and is cha nged via Real tek Software from withi n Wi ndows.

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Component Legend Descriptions

1. CPU Socket 1151 This is the interface for the Central Processing Unit (CPU), and supports Core i5, and Core i7 models compatible with the Intel® 1151 Socket and Coffee Lake-S architecture.

2. Intel® Z370 PCH (Southbridge) The Platform Controller Hub (PCH) handles the role that was previously held by the South Bridge. On Z370 motherboards, the CPU and PCH are directly linked via DMI 3.0, which uses 4 lanes to provide transfer rates at up to 8 GT/s per lane. From there, the PCH allocates bandwidth to smaller PCIe slots and devices, such as M.2 Key-E, USB, audio, etc. In simplified terms, the PCH works as a hub for peripherals that are less bandwidth-intensive.

3. PWM Fan Headers 4-pin fan headers that control the fan speed based on a configurable curve or static percentage. PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation) works by pulsing power to

the fan at a constant rate and sending the RPM signal to the fan’s controller via

a Sense cable, rather than adjusting fan speed by increasing and decreasing voltage. This method is preferable because it eliminates voltage-based fan stall points. Please see Page 85 for more in-depth PWM breakdown and PWM controls within BIOS/UEFI.

4. DDR4 Memory Slots The memory slots support up to two 288-pin DDR4 DIMMs in Dual-Channel mode. Dual-Channel mode will be enabled only upon using two sticks of supported memory. Using 1 DIMM may significantly lower performance depending on the application; for best use, use a 2 stick kit of RAM. 32GB of RAM is supported in a 2x16GB configuration; 32GB modules are *NOT* officially supported. At the time of this manual’s release, the Z370 Micro officially supports up to 4133MHz+ speeds. These speeds cannot be guaranteed, however, because Intel® only certifies the speed of the memory controller up to 2666MHz for the Coffee Lake-S platform, and all speeds above Intel®’s certified speeds require overclocking, including XMP automatic operation.

5. 24-pin ATX power connector The main power for the motherboard is located on the right side of the board and parallel to the PCB; this is also described as a “right-angle” connector (See Page 35 for more specifics to the connector itself, and associated wiring/pinouts). The 24-pin connector IS directional and the connector needs

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the tab on the socket to line up with the release clip located on the 24-pin connector from the power supply. This connector pulls the bulk of the power for all components. Other connectors, such as CPU +12V EPS, PCIe (video card AND motherboard sides), have been added to reduce the load and increase longevity due to wiring and trace limitations.

6. 8-pin EPS Connector The +12V EPS is dedicated power for the CPU (See Page 36 for more specifics to the connector itself, and associated wiring/pinouts). Carefully choose the correct power cable by consulting with the installation manual for your power supply. This connector is designed to only work with an EPS or CPU cable. System builders sometimes make the mistake of plugging in a PCIe 8-pin or 6+2-pin connector, which will prevent the board from completing POST and possibly short or damage the board. Although PCIe and EPS cables appear similar, they are wired differently and attaching the wrong connector may cause damage to the motherboard.

Alternatively, if no power cable is connected or detected, the system will not POST and will hang at POST code “C.”

7. 4-pin Supplemental ATX Connector The ATX power connector on the Z370 Micro provides additional power to the CPU. This connector requires the appropriate 4-pin ATX power that is provided by your power supply – often as part of a 4+4-pin CPU connector. This connector is not essential to running the system, but may provide additional power to the CPU under a heavy load, overclocking, and/or benchmarking. The 4-pin power connector may be installed in addition to the 8pin EPS connector; it may not be installed in place of the 8-pin EPS connector.

8. Supplemental PCIe 6-pin Power Connector There is a 6-pin PCIe connector at the bottom of the motherboard (See Page 43 for more specifics to the connector itself, and associated wiring/pinouts). This connector provides dedicated power to the PCIe x16 slots, augmenting the power provided by the 24-pin and the GPU directly.

This is optional for a single card solution, but is recommended for SLI, CFX, and dual-processor video cards.

9. Intel® SATA 6Gbit/s Ports The Intel® Z370 PCH has a 6-port SATA 3/6 Gbit/s controller (See Page 44 for specifics on the connectors). This controller is backwards compatible with SATA and SATA II devices, and supports SSDs, HDDs and various types of optical devices (CDROM, DVDROM, BD-ROM, etc). The controller also

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supports NCQ, TRIM, hot swap capability (provided the proper HDD/SSD bays/racks are installed), and RAID levels 0/1/5/10.

10. M.2 Socket 3 Key-M 80mm M.2 is an SSD form factor standard, which uses up to four PCIe lanes and utilizes Gen3 speeds. Most popularly paired with NVMe SSDs, this standard offers substantially faster transfer speeds and seek time than SATA interface standards. All M.2 devices are designed to connect via a card-bus style connector, secured by bolting into place, and powered by the connector – rather than a dedicated data cable and power cable.

This socket will support Key-M devices of 80mm, 60mm, and 42mm length. This connector can utilize only PCIe/NVMe-based M.2 SSDs or Intel® Optane

NVMe devices.

11. PCIe Slot x16/x8 PCIe x16/x8 slots are primarily for video cards. These full-length slots will provide 8 or 16 lanes of bandwidth to a full-size card, and are backwardscompatible with x8, x4, and x1-length cards.

Coffee Lake-S Socket 1151 processors have 16 PCIe lanes available for routing. The 16 PCIe lanes are pulled from the CPU and shared with the x16 PCIe slot 2 (PE2). Lanes automatically switch from x16/x0 to x8/x8 when the motherboard detects a card in slot PE2.

12. PCIe Slot x8 PCIe x8 slots are primarily used for video cards, and share lanes from adjacent x16 slots, when populated. These full-length slots will provide 8 lanes of bandwidth to a full-size card, and are backwards-compatible with x8, x4, and x1-length cards.

This slot is limited to a maximum of 8 lanes as it shares bandwidth with the primary PCIe x16 slot 1 (PE1). This slot is primarily recommended for secondary video cards, such as the 2nd card in a SLI configuration, or a PhysX card.

* Please see the description for Physical (length) vs Electrical (lanes) on Page 19.

13. PCIe Slot x4 PCIe x4 slot PE3 uses up to 4 Gen 3 lanes from the PCH. This slot is typically used for sound cards, WiFi, USB, LAN or other peripheral cards.

Using this slot will have *NO EFFECT* on the bandwidth or throughput of the x16 slots used for SLI because this slot uses only PCH bandwidth.

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14. RGB LED Controller Header The RBG header is a 4 pin header that allows a software based control within windows for RGB devices via ELEET-X. Please see Page 38 for control specifics.

15. Power Button This is an onboard power button, and may be used in place of, or in conjunction with, a front panel power button wired to the board. Benching systems, or test benches before final assembly, are best served by using the onboard power because it removes the need to wire a Power/Reset button or cross posts with a screwdriver, which is a semi-common practice. This button provides a safer and easier option than jumpering the Power posts.

16. Reset Button This is an onboard system reset button, and may be used in place of, or in conjunction with, a front panel system reset button wired to the board. Benching systems, or test benches before final assembly, are best served by using the onboard power because it removes the need to wire a Power/Reset button or cross posts with a screwdriver, which is a semi-common practice. This button provides a safer and easier option than jumpering the Power posts.

17. Debug LED / CPU Temp This is a two-digit POST code reader, displaying in hexadecimal, which means the characters available (when working as intended) are 0-9, A-F and has a cap of 255 characters. The POST codes are listed in the troubleshooting section on Page 125. After the system boots, it will display the temperature in Celsius. This temperature is specifically for the CPU socket, which usually reads slightly higher than a given CPU core. To read this temperature in Fahrenheit, take the value in Celsius, multiply by 9/5 (or 1.8) and add 32.

18. USB 3.0 Headers The USB3.0 header is used to connect additional USB interface plugs to the motherboard; these headers are most often used to connect the motherboard to the chassis to enable the USB3.0 ports on the chassis. These will function similarly to the USB3.0 ports found on the motherboard’s rear I/O hub, but can also be used for the chassis’ front panel USB, auxiliary ports that mount in the card slots, and certain devices that directly connect to the header.

USB 3.0 standard is 900mA @ 5V for unpowered devices. If your USB device requires more power, it is recommended to attach a powered USB Hub.

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19. USB 2.0 Headers The USB2.0 header is used to connect additional USB interface plugs to the motherboard; these headers are most often used to connect the motherboard to the chassis to enable the USB2.0 ports on the chassis. These will function similarly to the USB2.0 ports found on the motherboard’s hardwired I/O hub, but these can also be used for the chassis’ front panel USB, auxiliary ports that mount in the card slots, and certain devices that directly connect to the header.

USB 2.0 standard is 500mA @ 5V per port (header total is 1000mA) for unpowered devices. If your USB device requires more power, it is recommended to attach a powered USB Hub.

20. Front Panel Audio Connector This motherboard header is used to plug in the audio cable included with most PC chassis. This connector is required for audio recording and/or playback via the audio connectors on the chassis. This header has a connector that looks similar to the USB2.0 header and uses the standard “HD Audio” jack. Some chassis may provide two headers: one labeled HD Audio, and one labeled AC’97 – an AC’97 cable is not compatible with this header on the Z370 Micro.

21. Front Panel Connectors The Front Panel Connectors are the four main chassis connections. These include the Power Switch, Power LED, Reset Switch, and HDD LED. The Power and Reset switches are “Momentary Switches,” rather than “Latching Switches,” which means the connection between two posts only needs a brief moment to turn on the device, as opposed to requiring a constant connection. For example, the Power and Reset switches can be triggered instantly with a screwdriver by simultaneously touching the + and - posts.

The Power LED will power on with the system, indicating the system is on and can blink in conjunction with CPU activity.

HDD LED will blink during access to the SATA ports and M.2 SSDs.

22. BIOS Select Switch This switch toggles between physical BIOS chips. The Z370 Micro features two BIOS chips soldered to the PCB. Each chip holds only the settings and profiles that have been saved to the BIOS chip while active. This allows you to swap between two physically different BIOS chips. If instructions are needed for hotflashing a BIOS, please contact EVGA Customer Service (Page 122 for contact info).

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23. CMOS Battery The +3V CMOS battery backup provides uninterruptable power to the BIOS/UEFI to store all its settings; otherwise, each power on would act as if the BIOS was just reset. These batteries typically last several years and rarely need to be replaced.

24. PC Speaker This is a small mono low-fidelity speaker, which is permanently attached to the motherboard. Its primary use is for debugging purposes. A POST beep may indicate a successful POST or various tones for USB initialization, while other beeps may indicate an issue during the POST process. Please see Page 123 for more details.

25. Rear Panel I/O Connectors (Figure 2) This is the section referred to as the I/O Hub. This panel contains the hardwired USB, Sound, and Ethernet connections. Please see Page 13 for a component level breakdown.

* There are two numeric references for PCI-Express: one is mechanical, which is the actual slot-length footprint across the motherboard, while the second is electrical, which is a reference to how many PCIe lanes are routed to the slot.

PCI Express was designed with a universal architecture; you can install x1 cards, such as sound cards or USB controllers, into an x16 slot. Many types of cards can use various numbers of PCIe lanes; similarly, some applications might only use certain parts of a card (e.g. compute apps), requiring only a single PCIe lane to accomplish its task without affecting performance. This is why there are x16 mechanical slots with an x1 electrical PCIe lane. Using the entire length of a PCIe slot is unnecessary, nor does it cause an adverse effect to use a shorter form-factor bus card in a slot that physically can hold a larger form-factor bus card.

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Card Slots

The Z370 MICRO features two x16 PCIe slots, one x4 PCIe slot, one Socket 3 Key-M M.2 80mm (backwards compatible with Key-M 60mm, and 42mm), and one Socket 1 Key-E M.2.

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PCIe Slot Breakdown

PCIe Lane Distribution (All Socket 1151 processors provide 16 lanes.)

 PE1 – x16 (Gen3, x16 lanes from CPU, x8 shared with PE2)  PE2 – x16 (Gen3, x8 lanes from CPU, shares 8 of PE1’s 16 lanes)  PE3 – x4 (Gen3, x4 lanes from PCH)

M.2 Slot Breakdown

M.2 Lane Distribution

 M.2 Key-M (80mm) – x4

o M.2 Enable/Disable is set within the BIOS

 M.2 Key-E (32mm) – x1

o M.2 Enable/Disable is set within the BIOS

 This motherboard does NOT have any lane replication via PLX; all lanes are

native and derived from CPU or PCH. This also allows for improved backwards compatibility for Gen 2 devices.

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Preparing the Motherboard

Installing the CPU

Note: EVGA strongly recommends that you completely disconnect AC power from

your power supply prior to changing your CPU. This ensures the motherboard will use the correct startup procedure for all onboard devices. If AC power is not disconnected, the replacement is still supported, but may require additional reboots to boot successfully.

Be very careful when handling the CPU. Hold the processor only by the edges and do not touch the bottom of the processor.

Note: Use extreme caution when working with the

CPU to avoid damaging the pins in the motherboard’s CPU socket!

Do not remove the socket cover until you

have installed the CPU. This installation guide was created without using a socket cover to better illustrate the CPU Socket area. However, users should remove the cover as the last step, not the first step.

Use the following procedure to install the CPU onto the motherboard.

1. Unhook the socket lever by pushing

down and away from the socket.

2. Pull the socket lever back and gently lift

the load plate to open the socket. Make sure to avoid touching or dropping items into the socket; otherwise, you may damage the board socket and/or CPU pins, which may void your warranty.

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3. Align the notches on the CPU to the notches in the socket, and lower the

processor straight down into the socket.

Note: The gold triangle key on the CPU

should match the triangle key on the socket cover.

Note: Make sure the CPU is fully seated

and level in the socket.

4. Lower the load plate so that it is resting

on the CPU.

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5. Carefully lock the right lever back into

place by lowering it down to the hook, then push the lever towards the socket and down under the hook.

6. Remove the plastic protective socket cover by pulling it straight up and away

from the socket.

Note: After removing the CPU socket cover, it is recommended to store it in case

you ever need to transport your motherboard. If you ever remove the CPU, it is highly recommended to reinstall the socket cover.

Installing the CPU Cooling Device

There are many different cooling devices that can be used with this motherboard. Follow the instructions that come with your cooling assembly.

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Installing System Memory (DIMMs)

Your Z370 Micro has (2) 288-pin slots for DDR4 memory. These slots support 4GB, 8GB and 16GB DDR4 DIMMs. There must be at least one memory slot populated for the board to boot and operate.

The Intel® Z370 chipset supports Dual-Channel DDR4 memory, a maximum of 32GB and up to 4133MHz+ (OC). It is recommended to always use a 2 DIMM kit for Coffee Lake-S. Fill the memory slots in the following order: 2, then 1. See chart to the right:

Use the following procedure to install memory DIMMs. Note that there is a key notch near the center of the DIMM slots. This matches the gap on a DDR4 DIMM to ensure the memory is installed properly, and to prevent the incorrect installation of memory.

1. Unlock a DIMM slot by pressing the top-side module clips outward.

2. Align the memory module to the DIMM slot, and insert the module

perpendicular to the DIMM slot, pressing straight down to seat the module. The plastic clips at top side of the DIMM slot automatically lock the DIMM into the connector.

Note: The memory controller on most Coffee Lake-S CPUs runs at a default

frequency of 2666MHz. Achieving memory speeds above 2666MHz+ may require using the XMP profile or manual setting of the memory timings, frequency and voltages and/or overclocking of the CPU. Using an XMP Profile for speeds over 2666MHz is considered overclocking.

Refer to the memory manufacturer specifications for the recommended

memory timings. For overclocking support you can visit our forums:

http://forums.evga.com/

Slot 1 Slot 2

1 DIMM

2 DIMM X X

RAM slot fill order

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Installing the I/O Shield

The motherboard kit comes with an I/O shield that is used to block internal components from dust and foreign objects, while also promoting correct airflow within the chassis.

Before installing the motherboard, install the I/O shield from the inside of the chassis. Press the I/O shield into place and make sure it fits securely.

Installing the Motherboard

Installing the motherboard into a system case depends on several factors: whether you are replacing an existing motherboard, whether you are building a new PC, and the type of chassis that will house your PC components. You must first determine if it would be easier to secure the motherboard to the chassis or if it would be easier to install other components prior to this step. It is normally easier to secure the motherboard first.

Note: Make sure that the CPU fan assembly has enough clearance for your

installed DIMMs, expansion cards, and for the case side panels to lock into place. Also, make sure the CPU fan assembly aligns with the vents on the case side and back panels; correctly aligned, airflow will properly exhaust from the chassis. The CPU fan assembly orientation will depend upon both the CPU fan manufacturer’s instructions and your chosen chassis.

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Securing the Motherboard into a System Case

Most system cases require metal standoffs fastened to the inside of the chassis to allow the motherboard to be mounted to the chassis and prevent short circuits. If any stud fails to align with a motherboard mounting hole, we recommended that you remove that standoff to prevent the possibility of a short circuit. Furthermore, ensure that all standoffs are fully tightened prior to mounting the motherboard to the chassis. Please review the installation manual included with your chassis for the

proper installation of the motherboard standoffs.

1. Carefully place the motherboard onto the standoffs located inside the

chassis.

2. Align the mounting holes with the standoffs.

3. Align the connectors to the I/O shield and/or I/O cover.

4. Ensure that the fan assembly is aligned with the chassis vents according to

the fan assembly instruction.

5. Secure the motherboard with eight (8) screws (See next page for mount

hole location). Ensure that each screw is lined up with and fastened to its corresponding standoff under the board. Double-check alignment to make sure nothing gets cross-threaded.

Tip: If you have difficulty fastening some of the screws, especially near the I/O hub, first try to loosely fasten all other screws on the motherboard, but do not completely tighten the screws. This may help to hold the board in place, allowing you to thread and fasten the remaining screws. Once all screws are properly threaded, remember to go back and tighten the rest of the screws.

6. See the picture below for a zoomed-in view of a hole to place over a

standoff, as well as the locations of standoff holes for the Z370 Micro.

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1. All safe locations to secure the board to a standoff are circled in white.

2. Keep in mind that when the screws are installed, but not fully

tightened, the motherboard should have 1-2mm of movement; this can help when mounting cards or tight-fits with other components.

3. Once the board is properly aligned, be sure to fully-tighten the board to

the chassis before proceeding.

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Installing M.2 devices

Securing an M.2 device to the motherboard requires a few extra steps compared to other current drive or slot-based connectors. M.2 devices used on this motherboard - Socket 3 (for SSDs) and Socket 1 (for WiFi/Bluetooth) – are installed and attached differently. A Socket 3 device will be installed horizontally, while a Socket 1 device will be installed vertically by using the included right-angle adapter. Below are images from an installation of an SSD on a Socket 3 Key-M.

1. Remove the screw that comes pre-attached to the M.2’s retention standoff; this will be used to keep the device in place. By default, the standoff is placed at the 80mm interval for the Socket 3 slot. If your device is longer or shorter than 80mm, you will need to unscrew the standoff and fasten it to the correct retention socket.

2. Insert the M.2 device at a slight angle - approximately 45 degrees to the board. This

will allow the contacts (colloquially called “Gold Fingers”) to seat completely into the

slot. If the device is fully seated, you should be able to release it and the device will rest at an angle of about 30 degrees on its own, as shown in the picture below.

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3. Gently push the M.2 device down on the raised end. There will be some tension this is normal - then use the screw you removed in Step 1 to secure the device. Below, you can see that the contacts will be nearly invisible when the device is properly seated and the copper mounting semi-circle is partially visible around the screw.

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