FIC FA31 User Manual

FA31

MAINBOARD

MANUAL

DOC No.: M99B003
Rev. : A0
Date : 3, 2000
Part No. : 25-11433-00

Notice

Handling Precautions

Warning:

1. Static electricity may cause damage to the integrated circuits on

the mainboard. Before handling any motherboard outside of its
protective packaging, ensure that your body is not electrostatically
charged.

2. There is a danger of explosion if the battery is incorrectly replaced.
Replace only with the same or an equivalent type of battery as
recommended by the manufacturer.

3. Discard used batteries according to the manufacturer’s
instructions.

Observe the following basic precautions when handling the motherboard
or other computer components:

n Wear a static wrist strap which fits around your wrist and is

connected to a natural earth ground.

n T ouch a grounded or anti-static surface or a metal fixture such as a

water pipe.

n Ensure add-on cards, mainboards, and models do not come into

contact with the golden fingers connectors, plugged into the expan­sion slot.

The above methods prevent static build-up and allow it to be discharged
properly.

Trademark

All trademarks mentioned in this manual are registered property of
the respective owners.

Handling Precautions

This manual may not, in whole or in part, be photocopied, reproduced,
transcribed, translated, or transmitted in whatever form without the
written consent of the manufacturer, except for copies retained by the
purchaser for personal archival purposes.

T able of Contents

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Quick Installation

Mainboard Layout ......................................................................... 1-2

1). CPU Speed Select, Clear CMOS, Clear Password,

FSB Speed Select, OVD Enable...................................................... 1- 3

2). Front Panel Block Cable Connection ........................................ 1- 4

3). CPU Fan Installation ................................................................. 1- 4

Chapter 2 General Information

About the Mainboard.................................................................... 2-1

Package Checklist .......................................................................... 2- 2

Install Memory Modules ............................................................... 2- 2

Install and Remove DIMMs ...................................................... 2-2

Install the CPU ............................................................................... 2 - 3

Connectors .................................................................................... 2 - 4

Pin Assignments of Some Connectors...................................... 2-4

BIOS Setup .................................................................................... 2 - 5

Quick Installation

Chapter 1

Quick Installation

The mainboard has several user-adjustable jumpers on the board that allow you to
configure your system to suit your requirements. This chapter contains information
on the various jumper settings on your mainboard.

To set up your computer, you must complete the following steps:

■ Step 1 - Set system jumpers/switches

■ Step 2 - Install memory modules

■ Step 3 - Install the Central Processing Unit (CPU)

■ Step 4 - Install expansion cards

■ Step 5 - Connect ribbon cables, cabinet wires, and power supply

■ Step 6 - Set up BIOS software

■ Step 7 - Install supporting software tools

WARNING: Excessive torque may damage the mainboard. When
using an electric screwdriver on the mainboard, make sure that
the torque is set to the allowable range of 5.0 ~ 8.0kg/cm.

Mainboard components contain very delicate Integrated Circuit
(IC) chips. To prevent static electricity from harming any of the
mainboard’s sensitive components, you should follow the
following precautions whenever working on the computer:

1. Unplug the computer when working on the inside.

2. Hold components by the edges and try not to touch the IC

||||chips, leads, or circuitry.

3. Wear an anti-static wrist strap which fits around the wrist.

4. Place components on a grounded anti-static pad or on the bag
that came with the component whenever the components are
separated from the system.

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FA31 Mainboard Manual

Mainboard Layout

1 - 2

Quick Installation

1). CPU Speed Select, Clear CMOS, Clear
Password, FSB Speed Select, OVD Enable

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FA31 Mainboard Manual

2). Front Panel Block
Cable Connection

3). CPU Fan Installation

This connector is linked to the CPU fan. When the system is in suspend mode, the
CPU fan will turn off; when it reverts back to full on mode, the fan will turn back on.

Without sufficient air circulation, the CPU may overheat resulting in damage
to both the CPU and the mainboard.

Damage may occur to the mainboard and/or the CPU fan if these pins are
used incorrectly. These are not jumpers, do not place jumper caps over these
pins.

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General Information

Chapter 2

General Information

About the Mainboard

The new Micro A TX, Socket 370 1stMainboard F A31 supports a full range of
the latest generation Intel® and Cyrix processors. Intel’s new Celeron ™ and
lightening fast Coppermine processors of up to 933MHz*, are supported with
Front Side Bus of 66 / 100 / 133 MHz, while Cyrix Joshua Processors of 433­566* MHz and future Cyrix Samuel Processors of 500-733MHz* are supported
by Front Side Bus speeds of 66 / 100 / 133 MHz. (* : not yet tested)

The F A31 is based around the VIA Apollo Pro 694X North-Bridge and the VIA
Super South. The North Bridge supports AGP 4 x bandwidth which enables
the increase of the AGP bus of up to 66x4 MHz, providing vastly improved
data transfer speeds for graphics as well as reducing power consumption. The
VIA Super South supports Sound Blaster Pro, which provides exceptional
onboard audio capabilities.

With 3 DIMM, the FA31 affords a large 1.5 GB of memory support, while
support for the PC133 protocol results in a highly promoted and advanced
system performance. Ultra DMA 66 allows for high-range bandwidth and high­speed data transfer necessary for the improvement of idle CPU sequential
transfers.

The F A31 comes equipped with the new NOVUS range of innovative features
features such as AudioAlert! (option), the W orld’s first voice warning system
for motherboards. In the event of no CPU, memory or VGA being detected, the
AudioAlert! facility will provide an audible voice warning. Other features in­clude EasyKey , which provides instant keyboard access to the BIOS Sub
menus for adjustments to Clock and Default settings, and LogoGenie, which
allows you to create your own customized logo to be displayed during system
boot up. BIOS Guardian is an Anti Virus utility that provides a fire-wall against
viruses that attack your system BIOS. Extensive connectivity is provided by 2
serial ports, 1 parallel port, 1 PS/2 mouse and 1 keyboard connector, 4 USB
connectors(2 in rear side, 2 in front side) and 1 media connector ( MIDI/Game
port, Line-in, Line-out, Mic-in). 1 AGP 4x and 3 PCI provide additional expan­sion (ISA bus slot is optional).

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FA31 Mainboard Manual

Package Checklist

If you discover any item below was damaged or lost, please contact your
vendor.

Ö The mainboard Ö This user manual

Ö One FDD cable Ö One HDD cable Ö One ATA 66 cable
Ö Two Software CDs (CD Pro, CD Plus and its manual)

Install Memory Modules

This mainboard provides three onboard DIMM sockets supporting 3.3V (un­buffered) SDRAM DIMM modules. Either 32, 64, 128, 256, 512 MB DIMM can
be installed on these three sockets. The maximum total memory supported is
up to 1.5 GB.

Install and Remove DIMMs

1 . Locate the DIMM slots on the mainboard.

2. Install the DIMM straight down into the DIMM slot using both hands.

3. The clip on both ends of the DIMM slot will close up to hold the DIMM
in place when the DIMM reaches the slot’s bottom.

Press the clips with both hands to remove the DIMM.

2 - 2

General Information

Install the CPU

The mainboard has built-in Switching Voltage Regulator to support CPU Vcore
autodetection. That is, it has the ability to detect and recognize the CPU
voltage, clock, ratio and enables users to set up the CPU frequency from the
BIOS Setup Screen. Users can adjust the frequency through “Frequency /
Voltage Control” of the BIOS Setup Screen.

T o install the CPU, do the following:

1 . Lift the lever on the side of the CPU socket.

2. Handle the chip by its edges and try not to touch any of the pins.

3 . Place the CPU in the socket. The chip has a notch to correctly locate the

chip. Align the notch with pin one of the socket. Pin one is located in the
blank triangular area. Do not force the chip. The CPU should slide easily
into the socket.

4 . Swing the lever to the down position to lock the CPU in place.
5 . Place the cooling fan with heatsink on top of the installed CPU.

NOTE: The pin alignments might be different for different
mainboards. Please follow the directions in step three above to
locate pin one and install the CPU.

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FA31 Mainboard Manual

Connectors

FLOPPY Floppy Diskette Drive Connector
PRIMARY,

SECONDARY IDE HDD Device Connectors
POWER ATX Power Connector
CPU_F AN CPU Fan Connector
CHS_F AN System Case Fan Connectors
WOL W ake on LAN Connector
CD_IN1/2 CD Audio-In Connector
IR Infrared Port Module Connector
FPNL Connectors for Front Panel LEDs

and Switches on Front Panel
PS2_KB, PS2_MS PS/2 Keyboard and Mouse Connector
USB1/2, USB3/4 Universal Serial Bus Connectors
LPT Printer Connector
COM1/2 Serial Port Connector
GAME Joystick/MIDI Device Connector
LINE_OUT , LINE_IN,
MIC_IN Audio I/O Jacks

2 - 4

General Information

BIOS Setup

Standard CMOS Features allows you to record some basic system hard ware
configuration and set the system clock and error handling. If the mainboard is
already installed in a working system, you will not need to select this option
anymore. However, if the configuation stored in the CMOS memory on the
mainboard gets lost or damaged, or if you change the system hardware con­figuration, you will need to specify the configuration values. The configura­tion values usually get lost or corrupted when the power of the onboard
CMOS battery weakens.

Advanced BIOS Features contains the entries that allows you to improve the
system performance, or lets you set up some system features according to
your preference. Some entries here are required by the board’s design to re­main in their default settings.

Advanced Chipset Features controls the configuration of the mainboard’s
chipset.

Integrated Peripherals allows you to configure the parameters that your pe­ripheral devices provided to take advantage of them.

Power Management Setup allows you to reduce the system power consump­tion. It provides some features for turning off the video display and shutting
down some peripheral devices, such as hard disks, after a specified time pe­riod.

PnP/PCI Configurations allows you to set up the PCI bus slots. All PCI bus
slots on the system use INTA#, thus all installed PCI adapter cards must be
set to this value.

PC Health Status allows you and technicians to monitor data provided by the
BIOS on this mainboard. Some of them are not user-configurable.

Frequency/V oltage Contr ol allows you to configure the frequency and volt­age of your processor.

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FA31 Mainboard Manual

Load Fail-Safe Defaults is for settings that provide a more efficient computer .
If the computer will not boot, select this option and try to diagnose the prob­lem after the computer boots. These settings do not give optimal performance.

Load Optimal Defaults is selected for settings which provide the best system
performance.

Set Supervisor/User Password

To enable the Supervisor/User passwords, select the item from the Standard
CMOS Setup. Y ou will be prompted to create your own password. Type your
password up to eight characters and press Enter. You will be asked to confirm
the password. T ype the password again and press Enter . T o disable password,
press Enter twice when you are prompted to enter a password. A message
appears, confirming the password is disabled

Under the BIOS Feature Setup, if Setup is selected under the Security Option
field and the Supervisor/User Password is enabled, you will be prompted
password every time you try to enter the CMOS Setup Utility. If System is
selected and the Supervisor/User Password is enabled, you will be requested
to enter the Password every time when you reboot the system or enter the
CMOS Setup utility.

Save & Exit Setup allows you to write the current settings to CMOS and exit.

Exit Without Saving allows you to exit without writing the current settings to

CMOS.

NOTE: BIOS Guardian by default is enabled. It must be disabled
in order to reflash BIOS, thus effectively acts as a fire-wall

against viruses that can attack the BIOS while the system is
running.

BIOS Guardian can be disabled as follows:
1 . Go to BIOS Set Up Menu. (Press Del key while booting.)
2 . Go to Advanced BIOS Features Submenu.

3. Disable BIOS Guardian.

4. Save the setting, and restart system.

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