Supermicro X7DCA-3 User Manual

®

SUPER

X7DCA-3

X7DCA-i

USER’S MANUAL

Revision 1.0a

The information in this User’s Manual has been carefully reviewed and is believed to be accurate.
The vendor assumes no responsibility for any inaccuracies that may be contained in this document,
makes no commitment to update or to keep current the information in this manual, or to notify any
person or organization of the updates. Please Note: For the most up-to-date version of this

manual, please see our web site at www.supermicro.com.

Super Micro Computer, Inc. ("Supermicro") reserves the right to make changes to the product
described in this manual at any time and without notice. This product, including software, if any,
and documentation may not, in whole or in part, be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated or
reduced to any medium or machine without prior written consent.

IN NO EVENT WILL SUPERMICRO BE LIABLE FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL,
SPECULATIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE USE OR INABILITY TO
USE THIS PRODUCT OR DOCUMENTATION, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF
SUCH DAMAGES. IN PARTICULAR, SUPERMICRO SHALL NOT HAVE LIABILITY FOR ANY
HARDWARE, SOFTW ARE, OR DA TA STORED OR USED WITH THE PRODUCT, INCLUDING THE
COSTS OF REPAIRING, REPLACING, INTEGRATING, INSTALLING OR RECOVERING SUCH
HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, OR DATA.

Any disputes arising between manufacturer and customer shall be governed by the laws of Santa
Clara County in the State of California, USA. The State of California, County of Santa Clara shall
be the exclusive venue for the resolution of any such disputes. Super Micro's total liability for
all claims will not exceed the price paid for the hardware product.

FCC Statement: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class
A digital device pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide
reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial
environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not
installed and used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instruction manual, may cause harmful
interference with radio communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely
to cause harmful interference, in which case you will be required to correct the interference at your
own expense.

California Best Management Practices Regulations for Perchlorate Materials: This Perchlorate
warning applies only to products containing CR (Manganese Dioxide) Lithium coin cells. “Perchlorate
Material-special handling may apply. See www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate”

WARNING: Handling of lead solder materials used in this
product may expose you to lead, a chemical known to
the State of California to cause birth defects and other
reproductive harm.

Manual Revision 1.0a
Release Date: June 3, 2008

Unless you request and receive written permission from Super Micro Computer, Inc., you may not
copy any part of this document.

Information in this document is subject to change without notice. Other products and companies
referred to herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies or mark
holders.

Copyright © 2008 by Super Micro Computer, Inc.
All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

Preface

About This Manual

This manual is written for system integrators, PC technicians and
knowledgeable PC users. It provides information for the installation and use of the

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i motherboard. The X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i sup­ports dual Intel Xeon Quad-Core/Dual-Core 5400/5300/5200/51 00 Series proces­sors (w/771 LGA) with a front side bus speed of 1.333 GHz or 1.066 GHz. With dual
64-bit Xeon Quad-Core/Dual-Core processors built-in, the X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i offers
substantial functionality enhancements to the motherboards based on the Intel Core
microarchitecture while remaining compatible with the IA-32 software. The features
include Intel Virtualization Technology, Enhanced Intel SpeedStep technology, and
Extended Memory 64 Technology (EM64T). These features allow the motherboard
to operate at much higher speeds with better power management in much safer
thermal environments than the traditional motherboards. The X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i
is ideal for intense computing environments, complex business applications and
high- end workstations. Please refer to the motherboard specifi cations pages on
our web site (http://www.supermicro.com/products/motherboard/) for updates. This
product is intended to be professionally installed.

Preface

Manual Organization

Chapter 1 describes the features, specifi cations and performance of the mainboard

and provides detailed information about the chipset.
Chapter 2 provides hardware installation instructions. Read this chapter when

installing the processor, memory modules and other hardware components into
the system.

If you encounter any problems, see Chapter 3, which describes troubleshooting
procedures for the video, the memory and the system setup stored in the CMOS.

Chapter 4 includes an introduction to the BIOS, and provides detailed information
on running the CMOS Setup utility.

Appendix A provides BIOS POST Error Codes. Appendix B and Appendix C list
the Windows OS Installation and Other Software Installation Instructions.

Conventions Used in the Manual

Special attention should be given to the following symbols for proper installation and
to prevent damage done to the components or injury to yourself.

iii

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Danger/Caution: Instructions to be strictly followed to prevent cata­strophic system failure or to avoid bodily injury.

Warning: Important information given to ensure proper system installation
or to prevent damage to the components.

Note: Additional Information given to differentiate various models or to
ensure correct system setup.

iv

Notes

Table of Contents

v

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Table of Contents

Preface

About This Manual ........................................................................................... iii

Manual Organization ........................................................................................ iii

Conventions Used in the Manual .......................................................................iii

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-1 Overview ............................................................................................................ 1-1

Checklist ................................................................................................... 1-1

Contacting Supermicro ............................................................................. 1-2

X7DCA-3/i Image ...................................................................... 1-3

X7DCA-3/i Layout ...................................................................... 1-4

Quick Reference ...................................................................................... 1-5

Motherboard Features ................................................................................ 1-6

Intel 5100 Chipset: System Block Diagram ............................................. 1-8

1-2 Chipset Overview ............................................................................................... 1-9

1-3 Special Features .............................................................................................. 1-10

1-4 PC Health Monitoring ........................................................................................1-10

1-5 ACPI Features ................................................................................................. 1-11

1-6 Power Supply ................................................................................................... 1-12

1-7 Super I/O ............................................................................................................1-13

Chapter 2: Installation

2-1 Static-Sensitive Devices .................................................................................... 2-1

Precautions ................................................................................................ 2-1

Unpacking ................................................................................................ 2-1

2-2 Processor and Heatsink Installation .................................................................. 2-2

2-3 Installing DIMMs ................................................................................................ 2-6

2-4 Control Panel Connectors and IO Ports ............................................................ 2-8

Back Panel Connectors/IO Ports...................................................................2-8

Front Control Panel .......................................................................................2-9

Front Control Panel Pin Defi nitions ............................................................. 2-10

NMI Button .............................................................................................2-10

Power LED ............................................................................................. 2-10

HDD LED .............................................................................................. 2-11

NIC1/NIC2 LED Indicators ..................................................................... 2-11

Overheat/Fan Fail LED ......................................................................... 2-12

Power Fail LED ........................................................................................2-12

Reset Button .............................................................................................2-13

Power Button .......................................................................................... 2-13

vi

Table of Contents

2-5 Connecting Cables .......................................................................................... 2-14

ATX Power Connector .......................................................................... 2-14

Processor Power Connector ................................................................. 2-14

Universal Serial Bus (USB) ..................................................................... 2-15

Fan Headers .......................................................................................... 2-16

Chassis Intrusion .................................................................................... 2-16

Power Force-On ....................................................................................... 2-16

ATX PS/2 Keyboard and Mouse Ports .....................................................2-17

Serial Ports .............................................................................................. 2-17

Wake-On-Ring ..........................................................................................2-18

Wake-On-LAN ..........................................................................................2-18

GLAN 1/2 (Ethernet) Ports ....................................................................... 2-19

Power LED/Speaker Header .................................................................. 2-19

Alarm Reset ..............................................................................................2-20

PWR Supply Failure/PWR Fault Detect ................................................... 2-20

T-SGPIO Headers .................................................................................... 2-21

Power SMB Connector .............................................................................2-21

BP PWR SMB Connector .........................................................................2-22

SAS PWR SMB Connector ...................................................................... 2-22

PWR Fault ................................................................................................ 2-23

Overheat LED/Fan Fail ............................................................................ 2-23

High Defi nition Audio ................................................................................ 2-24

CD and Auxiliary Audio Headers .............................................................. 2-24

Front Panel Audio Control ........................................................................ 2-25

2-6 Jumper Settings ............................................................................................... 2-26

Explanation of Jumpers ......................................................................... 2-26

GLAN Enable/Disable ............................................................................ 2-26

CMOS Clear ............................................................................................ 2-27

Watch Dog ................................................................................................ 2-27

2

I

C Bus to PCI Slots ................................................................................. 2-28

SAS Enable .............................................................................................. 2-28

2-7 Onboard Indicators .......................................................................................... 2-29

GLAN LEDs .............................................................................................. 2-29

Onboard Power LED ................................................................................ 2-29

SAS LED Indicators ................................................................................. 2-30

2-8 Floppy, SIMLP IPMI and Hard Disk Drive Connections .................................. 2-31

Floppy Connector .................................................................................... 2-31

IDE Connectors ........................................................................................ 2-32

SIMLP IPMI Slot ...................................................................................... 2-32

vii

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Chapter 3: Troubleshooting

3-1 Troubleshooting Procedures .............................................................................. 3-1

Before Power On ....................................................................................... 3-1

No Power ................................................................................................... 3-1

No Video .................................................................................................. 3-2

Losing the System’s Setup Confi guration ................................................ 3-2

Memory Errors ........................................................................................... 3-2

3-2 Technical Support Procedures ........................................................................... 3-3

3-3 Frequently Asked Questions .............................................................................. 3-3

3-4 Returning Merchandise for Service .................................................................... 3-4

Chapter 4: BIOS

4-1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 4-1

4-2 Running Setup .................................................................................................... 4-2

4-3 Main BIOS Setup ................................................................................................ 4-2

4-4 Advanced Setup ................................................................................................... 4-6

4-5 Security Setup ..................................................................................................4-21

4-6 Boot Setup ......................................................................................................... 4-23

4-7 Exit ..................................................................................................................... 4-24

Appendices:

Appendix A: BIOS POST Error Codes .......................................................................A-1

Appendix B: The Windows OS Installation Instructions .............................................B-1

Appendix C: Other Installation Instructions ................................................................C-1

viii

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 1

Introduction

1-1 Overview

Checklist

Congratulations on purchasing your computer motherboard from an acknowledged
leader in the industry. Supermicro boards are designed with the utmost attention to
detail to provide you with the highest standards in quality and performance. Check
that the following items have all been included with your motherboard. If anything
listed here is damaged or missing, contact your retailer.

All are included in the Retail Box.

One (1) Super mic ro Main board

•

One (1) fl oppy ribbon cable (CBL-0 022L)•

Six (6) SATA c ables (C BL-00 44 L) (X7DC A- i)•

Four (4) SATA cables (CBL-0044L) (X7DCA-3)•

Two (2) SAS cable s (CBL-0 097L) (X7 DCA- 3)•

One (1) I/O bac kplan e shiel d (MCP 26 0-74301-O N)•

One (1) Super micr o CD co ntaini ng drive rs and ut iliti es•

One (1) User 's/ BIOS M anual•

1-1

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Contacting Supermicro

Headquarters

Address: Super Micro Computer, Inc.

980 Rock Ave.
San Jose, CA 95131 U.S.A.

Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail] (General Information)

[e-mail] (Technical Support)

Web Site: www.supermicro.com

Europe

Address: Super Micro Computer B.V.

Het Sterrenbeeld 28, 5215 ML
's-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands

Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail] (General Information)

[e-mail] (Technical Support)
[e-mail] (Customer Support)

Asia-Pacifi c

Address: Super Micro, Inc.

4F, No. 232-1, Liancheng Rd.
Chung-Ho 235, Taipei County
Taiwan, R.O.C.

Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Web Site: www.supermicro.com.tw
Technical Support:
Email: [e-mail]
Tel: [phone], ext.132 or 139

1-2

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i Image

Chapter 1: Introduction

Note: The drawings and pictures shown in this manual were based on the
latest PCB Revision available at the time of publishing of the manual. The
motherboard you’ve received may or may not look exactly the same as the
graphics shown in the manual.

1-3

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i Motherboard Layout

(not drawn to scale)

KB/MS

JUSB1

COM1

JCOM1

JCOM2

COM2

JLAN3

JC1

Audio CTRL

CD1

X7DCA-i

J22

JC2

S I/O

JKM1

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

J21

FAN6

FAN5

JPW1

JPL2

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

J12

SLOT5 PCI 33 MHz

J18

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

J13

JI2C1
JI2C2

J19

J10

J11

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100 MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

J20

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A

DIMM1B

DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

J17

JPF

J14

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1

DIMM1-2

DIMM0-2

DIMM1-3

DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

J15

USB6/7

JUSB3

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J6

ITE

CTRL

USB4/5

JUSB2

J3P1

USB8

J23

JBT1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

J24

CPU1

CPU2

JL1

LES1

JP1

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JWOR1

JAR

JP3

JPW2

SP1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1

I-SATA2

I-SATA3

I-SATA4

I-SATA5

JSM2

JSM1

FAN4

LE1

FAN8

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

FAN1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

FAN3

JWD1

JWOL1

Notes:

Jumpers not indicated are for test purposes only.

•

See Chapter 2 for detailed information on jumpers, I/O ports and JF1 front panel •
connections.

" " indicates the location of Pin 1.

•

When LE1 is on, make sure to unplug the power cable before removing or •
installing components.

SAS and its related components and features are available for the X7DCA-3

•

only. RAID 0, 1 and 10 are enabled through the LSI SAS Controller. (I-Button
is optional.)

1-4

Chapter 1: Introduction

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i Quick Reference

Jumper Description Default Setting

JBT1 CMOS Clear (See Section 5-10)

2

JI

C1/JI2C2,JI2C3/JI2C4 I2C to PCI/PCI-X/E Slots Pins 2-3 (Disabled)
JPL1/JPL2 LAN1/2 Enable/Disable Pins 1-2 (Enabled)
JPS1 SAS Enabled (X7DCA-3) Pins 1-2 (Enabled)
JWD1 Watch Dog Pins 1-2 (Reset)

Connector Description

Audio/JC2/CD1 Audio Microphone, Line-In/Line-Out/CD-In
COM1/COM2 COM1/COM2 Serial Ports
FAN 1-8 Chassis/CPU Fan Headers
Floppy Floppy Drive Connector (JFDD1)
IDE1 IDE Drive Connector
I-SATA0 ~ I-SATA5 SATA Ports
J5 Back Panel Power System Management (I
J6 Power Supply SMBus I

2

C Header

2

C)

J3P1 Power Supply Failure LED
JAR Alarm Rest Header
JD1 Onboard Speaker/Power LED
JF1 Front Panel Control Connector
JL1 Chassis Intrusion Header
JOH1 Overheat Warning Header
JP3 SAS Power System Management I

2

C Header
JPF Power Failure Header
JPW1/JPW2/JPW3 4-Pin /8-pin/24-Pin ATX Power Connectors
JWOL1 Wake-On-LAN Header
JWOR1 Wake-On-Ring Header
LAN1/2 Gigabit Ethernet (RJ45) Ports
SAS 0~ 3, 4~7 Serial Attached SCSI Connectors (X7DCA-3 Only)
SIMLP SIMLP (Remote Management) Slot
T-SGPIO-1/T-SGPIO-2 Serial General Purpose Input/Output Headers
USB0~3,USB4~5,6~7,8, 9 Universal Serial Bus (USB) Ports, Headers

LED Indicator Description

LE1 Power LED
LES1/LES2 SAS LED Indicators

1-5

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Motherboard Features

CPU

Dual Intel•
Series processors at a front side bus speed of 1333 MHz/1067 MHz

®

64-bit Xeon LGA 771 Quad-Core/Dual-Core 5400/5300/5200/5100

Memory

Six 240-pin DIMM sockets with support up to 32 GB ECC Buffered (Registered) •
DDR2 667/533 Memory (*See Section 2-3 in Chapter 2.)

Chipset

Intel 5100 chipset, including: the 5100 Memory Control Hub (MCH), the ICH9R •
SouthBridge and PXH-V

Expansion Slots

Two PCI-Exp. x16 slots (Slot 4/Slot 6, Slot 4: x4 signal in x 16 slot) •
Two PCI-X 133/100 MHz slots (Slot 1/Slot 2)•
Two 32-bit PCI 33 MHz slot (Slot 3/Slot 5)•
One SIMLC IPMI Slot (Slot 7)•

BIOS

8 Mb Phoenix•

®

Flash ROM

DMI 2.3, PCI 2.2, ACPI 1.0, Plug and Play (PnP), USB Keyboard support,

•

Hardware BIOS Virus Protection and SMBIOS 2.3

PC Health Monitoring

Onboard voltage monitors for CPU core voltage, Memory voltage, Chipset, •
+1.8V, +3.3V, +5V, +12V, −12V, +3.3V standby, +5V standby and VBAT)

Fan status monitor with fi rmware control

•

CPU/chassis temperature monitors•
Low noise fan speed control •
CPU fan auto-off in sleep mode•
Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) fan control•
I• 2C temperature sensing logic
Thermal Monitor 2 (TM2) support

•

CPU slow-down on temperature overheat•
CPU thermal trip support for processor protection•
Power-up mode control for recovery from AC power loss•
Chassis intrusion detection•
System resource alert via Supero Doctor III•

1-6

Chapter 1: Introduction

ACPI Features

Slow blinking LED for suspend state indicator•
Main switch override mechanism•
ACPI Power Management•
Power-on mode for power recovery•

Onboard I/O

Six SATA ports (supporting RAID0, 1, 10 and 5 in the Windows OS environ-•
ment)

Eight SAS ports (supporting RAID0, 1, 10 and 5.) (*See Note 5 on Page 1-4)

•

One SIMLP IPMI 2.0 socket•
Dual Intel 82573V/L LAN chips support two Giga-bit LAN ports•
One ATA/ 100 EIDE for a total of two IDE devices (backward-compatible)•
One fl oppy port interface •
Two COM ports(1 header, 1 port)•
Up to ten USB 2.0 (Universal Serial Bus) (four ports, six headers)•

7.1 High-Defi nition (HD) Audio•
Super I/O: Winbond W83627HG•

Other

External modem ring-on•
Wake-on-LAN (WOL)•
Wake-on-Ring (WOR)•
Console redirection•
Onboard Fan Speed Control by Thermal Management via BIOS•

CD/Diskette Utilities•

BIOS fl ash upgrade utility and device drivers•

Dimensions

Extended ATX 13.05" (L) x 12.075" (W) (331.47 mm x 306.71 mm)•

1-7

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Ports
#0~3

Ports
#4~7

PCI-X

PCI-X

PCI-E x16

SAS

LSI 1068

133/100MHz

133/100MHz

VRD

PCI-Exp x16

PCI-E x16

PCI-Exp x4

to PCIE or SAS

PXH-V

PHY#1

iI82573V

PHY#2

i82573L

1333/1067

PCI-Exp x4

PCI-Exp x4

Processor #2

MT/S

Ports

#4,5

#6,7

#2

Port

#3

Port

Lanes 1~4

Lane 5

Lane 6

Processor #1

MCH

5100

Port #0

DMI

ICH9

1333/1067

MT/S

PCIE x4

VRD

1C

1B

1A

DDR2 667/533

3.0 Gb/S

3C

2B

2A

DDR2 667/533

SATA#0~5

USB 2.0

LPC

FWH /TPM

COM1
External

USB

#0~3

#4~9

COM2
Inernal/SOL

IDE

PCI-33
PCI-33

SIMLP

PCI 33MHz

Parallel

Port

SIO

W83627

HF

MS
KB

Block Diagram

Note: This is a general block diagram. Please see the previous Motherboard Fea-

tures pages for details on the features of each motherboard.

1-8

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-2 Chipset and Processor Features Overview

Built upon the functionality and the capability of the Intel 5100 chipset, the X7DCA-3/
X7DCA-i motherboard provides the performance and feature set required for dual
processor-based high-end computer systems with confi guration options optimized
for energy-effi cient graphic applications and CAD (Computer-Aided Drawing)
systems. The 5100 chipset supports single or dual Intel Xeon 64-bit Quad-Core/
Dual-Core 5400/5300/5200/5100 Series processors with front side bus speeds of
up to 1.333 GHz. The chipset consists of the 5100 Memory Controller Hub (MCH),
Intel I/O Controller Hub (ICH9R) and the I/O subsystem.

The 5100 Memory Controller Hub (MCH)

The Intel 5100 MCH chip is designed for symmetric multiprocessing across two
independent front side bus interfaces. Each front side bus uses a 64-bit wide,
1066/1333 MTS data bus capable of transferring data at 8.5/10.6 GB/s for a total
bandwidth of 17/21.3 GB/s. The MCH supports a 36-bit wide address bus and up
to four DDR2 667 MHz/533 MHz DIMM modules, providing a total memory capacity
of up to 32 GB.

The 5100 MCH also provides two x4 & one x16 PCI-Express interfaces and one x4
DMI Interface to the ICH9R. Each PCI Express port on the MCH provides 4 GB/s
bi-directional bandwidth if confi gured as a x8 port, or 2 GB/s bi-directional bandwidth
if confi gured as a x4 port.

The Ninth Generation I/O Controller Hub (ICH9)

The I/O Controller ICH9R provides the data buffering and interface arbitration re­quired for the system to operate effi ciently. It also provides the bandwidth needed
for the system to maintain its peak performance. The Direct Media Interface (DMI)
provides the connection between the MCH and the ICH9R. The ICH9R supports up
to two PCI-Express x8 slots, six Serial ATA ports and ten USB 2.0 ports/headers.
In addition, the ICH9R offers the Intel Matrix Storage Technology which provides
various RAID options for data protection and rapid data access. It also supports the
next generation of client management through the use of PROActive technology in
conjunction with Intel's next generation Gigabit Ethernet controllers.

1-9

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

1-3 Special Features

Recovery from AC Power Loss

BIOS pr ovides a set ting fo r you to determi ne how the syst em will res pond whe n
AC power is lo st an d the n re sto red t o the sy ste m. You can cho os e for t he sy stem
to remain powered off (in which case you must hit the power switch to turn it
back on) or for it to aut omat ic all y retur n to a p ower- on state. S ee t he Power Lo st
Contr ol setting i n the Advanc ed BIOS Setup s ection to c hange this s etting. Th e
default set tin g is Last St ate.

1-4 PC Health Monitoring

This section describes the PC health monitoring features of the X7DCA-3/X7DCA­i. All have an onboard System Hardware Monitor chip that supports PC health
monitoring.

Onboard Voltage

An onboard voltage monitor will scan the voltages of CPU Cores, Chipset, Memory,
+1.8V, +3.3 (Standby), +5V (Standby), +12V, -12V and VBAT continuously. Once
a voltage becomes unstable, a warning is given or an error message is sent to
the screen. Users can adjust the voltage thresholds to defi ne the sensitivity of the
voltage monitor.

Fan Status Monitor with Firmware Control

The PC health monitor can check the RPM status of the cooling fans. The onboard
CPU and chassis fans are controlled by Thermal Management via BIOS (under
Hardware Monitoring in the Advanced Setting).

Environmental Temperature Control

The thermal control sensor monitors the CPU temperature in real time and will turn
on the thermal control fan whenever the CPU temperature exceeds a user-defi ned
threshold. The overheat circuitry runs independently from the CPU. Once it detects
that the CPU temperature is too high, it will automatically turn on the thermal fan
control to prevent any overheat damage to the CPU. The onboard chassis thermal
circuitry can monitor the overall system temperature and alert users when the chas­sis temperature is too high.

1-10

Chapter 1: Introduction

CPU Overheat LED and Control

This feature is available when the user enables the CPU overheat warning function
in the BIOS. This allows the user to defi ne an overheat temperature. When the CPU
temperature reaches the pre-defi ned overheat threshold, both the overheat fan and
the warning LED are triggered.

System Resource Alert

This feature is available when used with Supero Doctor III in the Windows OS
environment or used with Supero Doctor II in Linux. Supero Doctor is used to
notif y the user of cer tain system events. For example, if the system is running
low on vir tual memor y and there is insuffi cient hard drive space for saving the
data, you c an be a lerted of the p otent ial p rob lem. You can also c o nfi gure Supero
Docto r to provide yo u with warn ings when t he system tempe rature goe s beyond
a pre- de fi ned range.

1-5 ACPI Features

ACPI stands for Advanced Confi guration and Power I nter face. T he ACPI spe cifi -
cation defi nes a fl exible and abst rac t ha rd ware i nterfac e th at prov id es a st a nda rd
way to integrate powe r manage ment featur es throu ghout a PC sys tem, inclu ding
its hardware, operating system and application software. This enables the system
to automat ically turn o n and off peri pherals such as C D-RO Ms, network c ards,
hard disk dr ives and p rinter s. This al so incl udes co nsumer d evices c onne cted to
the PC suc h as VCRs, T Vs, teleph ones and s tereos.

In addition to enabling operating system-directed power management, ACPI
provid es a gener ic system eve nt mecha nism for Pl ug and Play an d an oper ating
system-independent interface for confi guration control. ACPI leverages the Plug
and Play BIO S dat a str uc ture s whi le pr ovid ing a pr oc es sor a rch itec tur e- in dep en ­dent implementation that is compatible with Windows 2000, Windows XP and
Windows 2003 Servers.

Slow Blinking LED for Suspend-State Indicator

When the CPU goes into a suspend state, the chassis power LED will start blinking
to indic ate t hat t he C PU i s in s usp e nd m od e. W he n th e us er p re s se s any key, the
CPU will wake -u p and the L ED will auto matic ally st op blink ing and r emain on.

1-11

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Main Switch Override Mechanism

When an ATX power supply is used, the power button can function as a system
suspend button to make the system enter a SoftOff state. The monitor will be
suspended and the hard drive will spin down. Pressing the power button again
will cause the whole system to wake-up. During the SoftOff state, the ATX power
supply provides power to keep the required circuitry in the system alive. In case
the system malfunctions and you want to turn off the power, just press and hold
the power button for 4 seconds. This option can be set in the Power section of the
BIOS Setup routine.

External Modem Ring-On

Wake-up events can be triggered by a device such as the external modem ringing
when the system is in the Standby or Off state. The external modem ring-on can
only be used with an ATX 2.01 (or above) compliant power supply.

Wake-On-LAN is defi ned as the ability of a management application to remotely
power up a computer that is powered off. Remote PC setup, up-dates and asset
tracking can occur after hours and on weekends so that daily LAN traffi c is kept
to a minimum and users are not interrupted. The motherboard has a 3-pin header
(WOL) to connect to the 3-pin header on a Network Interface Card (NIC) that has
WOL capability. In addition, an onboard LAN controller can also support WOL
without any connection to the WOL header. The 3-pin WOL header is to be used
with a LAN add-on card only.

Note: Wake-On-LAN requires an ATX 2.01 (or above) compliant power supply.

1-6 Power Supply

As with all computer products, a stable power source is necessary for proper and
reliable operation. It is even more important for processors that have high CPU
clock rates.

The X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i can only accommodate 24-pin ATX power supply. Although
most power supplies generally meet the specifi cations required by the motherboard,
some are inadequate. You should use one that will supply at least 500W of power.
In addition, the 12V 8-pin is also required for adequate power supply to the CPU.
Also your power supply must supply 1.5A for the Ethernet ports.

It is strongly recommended that you use a high quality power supply that meets
ATX power supply Specifi cation 2.02 or above. It must also be SSI compliant (info
at http://www.ssiforum.org/). Additionally, in areas where noisy power transmission
is present, you may choose to install a line fi lter to shield the computer from noise.
It is recommended that you also install a power surge protector to help avoid prob­lems caused by power surges.

1-12

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-7 Super I/O

The disk drive adapter functions of the Super I/O chip include a fl oppy disk drive
controller that is compatible with industry standard 82077/765, a data separator,
write pre-compensation circuitry , decode logic, data rate selection, a clock generator ,
drive interface control logic and interrupt and DMA logic. The wide range of functions
integrated onto the Super I/O greatly reduces the number of components required
for interfacing with fl oppy disk drives. The Super I/O supports 360 K, 720 K, 1.2
M, 1.44 M or 2.88 M disk drives and data transfer rates of 250 Kb/s, 500 Kb/s or
1 Mb/s. It also provides two high-speed, 16550 compatible serial communication
ports (UARTs). Both UARTs provide legacy speed with baud rate of up to 115.2
Kbps as well as an advanced speed with baud rates of 250 K, 500 K, or 1 Mb/s,
which support higher speed modems.

The Super I/O supports one PC-compatible printer port (SPP), Bi-directional Printer
Port (BPP) , Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP) or Extended Capabilities Port (ECP).

The Supe r I/O provid es funct i ons that co m p l y with ACPI (Advan ced Confi guration
and Power Interfac e), whic h i ncludes sup port of l e g a c y a n d AC PI p o we r m an a g e­ment through an SMI or SCI function pin. It also features auto power management
to reduce power consumpt ion.

1-13

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Notes

1-14

Chapter 2: Installation

Chapter 2

Installation

2-1 Static-Sensitive Devices

Electro-Static-Discharge (ESD) can damage electronic com ponents. To prevent
damage to your system board, it is important to handle it very carefully . The following
measures are generally suffi cient to protect your equipment from ESD.

Precautions

Use a grounded wrist strap designed to prevent static discharge.•

Touch a grounded metal object before removing the board from the antistatic •
bag.

Handle the board by its edges only; do not touch its components, peripheral

•

chips, memory modules or gold contacts.

When handling chips or modules, avoid touching their pins.

•

Put the motherboard and peripherals back into their antistatic bags when not •
in use.

For grounding purposes, make sure your computer chassis provides excellent

•

conductivity between the power supply, the case, the mounting fasteners and
the motherboard.

Use only the correct type of onboard CMOS battery as specifi ed by the

•

manufacturer. Do not install the onboard battery upside down to avoid possible
explosion.

Unpacking

The motherboard i s s h i p ped in antistatic packagi n g to avoid static damage. When
unpacking the board, make sure the person handling it is static protected.

2-1

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

!

2-2 Processor and Heatsink Fan Installation

Warning: When handling the processor package, avoid placing

direct pressure on the label area of the fan.

Notes:

Always c onnec t the powe r cor d last and al ways remove it b efore ad ding, 1.
removin g or chan ging any c ompon ents. M ake sure that yo u insta ll the pr o­cess or into the C PU soc ket before you i nstall t he CPU he atsink .

Intel's boxed Xeon CPU package contains the CPU fan and heatsink assem-2.
bly. If you buy a CPU separately, make sure that you use only Intel-certifi ed
multi-directional heatsink and fan.

Make sure to install the motherboard into the chassis before you install the 3.
CPU heatsink and fan.

When purchasing a motherboard with an LGA 771 CPU Socket, make sure 4.
that the CPU plastic cap is in place, and none of the CPU Socket pins are
bent; otherwise, contact the retailer immediately.

Refer to the Chipset/MB Features Section for more details on CPU support.5.

Installing the LGA771 Processor

Press the load lever to release 1.
the load plate, which covers the
CPU socket, from its locking
position.

Gently lift the load lever to open 2.
the load plate.

Use your thumb and your index 3.
finger to hold the CPU at the
North Center Edge and the South
Center Edge of the CPU.

PnP Cap on
top of the
Load Plate

Load Lever

Load Plate
(with PnP Ca p
attach ed)

2-2

Loading the Processor into the Socket

!

North

Align CPU Pin1 (the CPU corner 1.
marked with a triangle) against the
socket corner that is marked with a
triangle cutout.

Align the CPU key that is the 2.
semi-circle cutout below a gold dot
against the socket key, the notch
on the same side of the triangle
cutout on the socket.

Once aligned, carefully lower the 3.
CPU straight down to the socket.
(Do not drop the CPU on the
socket. Do not move the CPU
horizontally or vertically. Do not
rub the CPU against the surface
or against any pins of the socket
to avoid damage to the CPU or
the socket.)

With the CPU installed in the 4.
socket, inspect the four corners of
the CPU to make sure that the CPU
is properly installed. Then, close
the load plate.

Socket Key
(Socket Notch)

CPU Key (semi­circle cutout)
below the circle.

Center
Edge

South
Center
Edge

Corner with a
triangle cutout

Load Lever

CPU in the
CPU socket

Chapter 2: Installation

gold dot

CPU Pin1

Use your thumb to gently push the 5.
load lever down to lock it.

Plastic cap is

If the CPU is properly installed into 6.
the soc ket, the plastic c ap will be
automatically released from the
load plate wh en th e cli p is pus hed
in the clip lock. Remove the plastic
cap fr om the mo ther board.

Warning: Please save th e plasti c PnP ca p. The moth erbo ard must

be shipp ed with t he PnP ca p prope rly in stalle d to protec t the CP U

socket pins . Shipm ent with out the Pn P cap pr oper ly insta lled wi ll

cause da mage to t he soc ket pins.

released from
the load plate
if the CPU
properly in­stalled.

2-3

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

!

Installing the Heatsink

CEK Heatsink Installation

Do not apply any thermal grease to the 1.
heatsink or the CPU die; the required
amount has already been applied.

Place the heatsink on top of the CPU 2.
so that the four mounting holes are
aligned with those on the retention
mechanism.

Screw in two diagonal screws (ie the #1 3.
and the #2 screws) until just snug (-do
not fully tighten the screws to avoid
possible damage to the CPU.)

Finish the installation by fully tightening 4.
all four screws.

CEK Passive Heatsink

Screw#1 Screw#2

Screw#1

To Un-install the Heatsink

Warning: We do not recommend that the CPU or the heatsink be

removed. However, if you do need to uninstall the heatsink, please

follow the instructions on the next page to uninstall the heatsink to

prevent damage done to the CPU or the CPU socket.

Screw#2

2-4

Unscrew and remove the heatsink 1.
screws from the motherboard in the
sequence as shown in the picture on
the right.

Hold the heatsink as shown in the pic-2.
ture on the right and gently wriggle the
heatsink to loosen it from the CPU. (Do
not use excessive force when wriggling
the heatsink!!)

Once the heatsink is loosened, remove 3.
the heatsink from the CPU socket.

Clean the surface of the CPU and the 4.
heatsink to get rid of the old thermal
grease. Reapply the proper amount
of thermal grease on the surface be­fore you re-install the CPU and the
heatsink.

Chapter 2: Installation

Mounting the Motherboard in the Chassis

All motherboards have standard mounting holes to fi t different types of chassis.
Make sure that the locations of all the mounting holes for both motherboard and
chassis match. Make sure that the metal standoffs click in or are screwed in tightly.
Then, use a screwdriver to secure the motherboard onto the motherboard tray.

Note: some components are very close to the mounting holes. Please take
precautionary measures to prevent damage done to these components when
you install the motherboard into the chassis.

2-5

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

2-3 Installing DIMMs

Note: Check the Supermicro web site for recommended memory modules.

CAUTION

Exercise extreme care when installing or removing DIMM

module s to prevent any po ssib le damag e. Also n ote that th e

memor y is i nterle aved to imp rove per for manc e (see step 1).

DIMM Installation (See Figure 2-2)

Insert the desired number of DIMMs into the memory slots, starting with DIMM •
#1A. The memory scheme is interleaved, so you must install two modules at a
time, beginning with DIMM 1A, DIMM 1B, then DIMM 2A, DIMM 2B, and DIMM
3A, DIMM 3B.

Insert each DIMM module vertically into its slot. Pay attention to the notch along

•

the bottom of the module to prevent inserting the DIMM module incorrectly.

Gently press down on the DIMM module until it snaps into place in the slot.

•

Repeat for all modules (see step 1 above).

Memory Support

The X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i supports up to 32 GB Buffered (Registered) ECC DDR2
667/533 in 6 DIMMs. Populating me mory slots of t he same bank with a pai r of
memory modules of the same size and same type will result in two-way Interleaved
Memo ry w hich w ill imp rove mem or y per for manc e.

Notes:
1: Due to OS limit atio ns, so me op erat ing sys tems may n ot show m ore t han

4 GB of memory.
Note 2: Due to memo ry allo cation to sys tem devices, memory r emaining

availabl e for operatio nal use will be re duced when 4 G B of RAM i s used.
The redu c ti on i n me mo ry availabi lity is disp ro po rtion al. (Refe r to t he f ol low ­ing Mem or y Availabil ity Table for det ails.

2-6

Possible System Memory Allocation & Availability

Chapter 2: Installation

System Device Size Physical Memory

Firmware Hub fl ash memory (System BIOS) 1 MB 3.99
Local APIC 4 KB 3.99
Area Reserved for the chipset 2 MB 3.99
I/O APIC (4 Kbytes) 4 KB 3.99
PCI Enumeration Area 1 256 MB 3.76
PCI Express (256 MB) 256 MB 3.51
PCI Enumeration Area 2 (if needed) -Aligned on 256-

MB boundary­VGA Memory 16 MB 2.85
TSEG 1 MB 2.84
Memory available to OS and other applications 2.84

512 MB 3.01

Remaining (-Available)
(4 GB Total System Memory)

Installing and Removing DIMMs

Notch

DDR2 ECC (Buffered) Memory

Notch

X7DCA-i

To Remo v e :

Use your thumbs to
gently push the re­lease tabs near both
ends of the module
to release it from the
slot.

Release Tab

Release Tab

Release Tab

To Install: Insert module vertically and press
down until i t sn ap s into p lace. Pay attenti on t o th e
alignme nt notch at th e botto m.

Top View of DDR2 ECC Slot

Release Tab

2-7

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

2-4 Control Panel Connectors/IO Ports

The I/O p ort s are col or cod ed in co nforma nce wit h the PC 9 9 speci fi cation. See
the fi gure be low for t he col ors an d loc ation s of the var ious I /O por ts .

Back Panel Connectors/IO Ports

X7DCA-i

11

10

Back Panel I/O Port Locations and Defi nitions

Back Panel Connectors

1 Keyboard (Purple) 10 LAN 1
2 PS/2Mouse (Green) 11 LAN 2

14

13

12

17

16

15

3 USB 0 12 Side_Surround (Grey)
4 USB 1 13 Back_Surround (Black)
5 USB 2 14 CEN/LFE (Orange)
6 USB 3 15 Microphone-In (Pink)
7 COM 1 (Turquoise) 16 Front (Green)
8 COM 2 (Turquoise) 17 Line-In (Blue)
9 Parallel Port

(See Section 2-5 for details.)

2-8

Chapter 2: Installation

o

n

Front Control Panel

JF1 contains header pins for various buttons and indicators that are normally lo­cated on a control panel at the front of the chassis. These connectors are designed
specifi cally for use with Supermicro server chassis. See the fi gure b elow for the
descriptions of the various control panel buttons and LED indicators. Refer to the
following section for descriptions and pin defi nitions.

Front Control Panel Header (JF1) Pins

COM1

COM2

Audio CTRL

CD1

S I/O

X7DCA-i

KB/MS

PRINTER

AUDIO

JC2

FAN6

2/3

USB

0/1/

JPL2

LAN
CTRL

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

FAN5

JPW1

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

J6

J3P1

CPU

FAN7

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

FAN1

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

BANK1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2

DIMM1-3

BANK3 BANK2

DIMM0-3

5100

Intel

MCH

I-button

ITE

CTRL

Battery

T-SGPIO2

PXH-V

USB8

USB6/7

USB4/5

J5

JPW3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A
DIMM3B

JI2C4

JI2C3

JAR

JP3

JPW2

20

19

FAN1

CTRL

SAS

JWOR1

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

I-SATA0
I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

FAN4

12

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

LES1

JPS1

BIOS

JP1

USB9

JL1

1920

Ground

X

Power LED

HDD LED

NMI

X

Vcc

Vcc

NIC1 LED

NIC2 LED

OH/Fan Fail LED

PWR Fail LED

Ground

Ground

2-9

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Reset

PWR

1

2

Reset Butto

Power Butt

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

o

n

Front Control Panel Pin Defi nitions

NMI Button

The non-maskable interrupt button
header is located on pins 19 and 20
of JF1. Refer to the table on the right
for pin defi nitions.

Power LED

The Power LED connection is located
on pins 15 and 16 of JF1. Refer to the
table on the right for pin defi nitions.

NMI Button

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition
19 Control
20 Ground

Power LED

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition
15 +5V
16 Ground

COM1

COM2

Audio CTRL

CD1

X7DCA-i

KB/MS

PRINTER

AUDIO

JC2

S I/O

FAN6

2/3

USB

0/1/

JPL2

LAN
CTRL

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

FAN5

JPW1

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

A. NMI
B. PWR LED

J6

J3P1

CPU

FAN7

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

FAN1

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

BANK1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2

DIMM1-3

BANK3 BANK2

DIMM0-3

5100

Intel

MCH

I-button

Battery

T-SGPIO2

USB6/7

JBT1

ITE

CTRL

JPS1

PXH-V

BIOS

USB8

USB9

USB4/5

J5

JPW3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B

DIMM3A
DIMM3B

JI2C4
JI2C3

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

CPU1

LE1

JF1

B

FAN2

Ground

X

Power LED

HDD LED

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

NIC1 LED

NIC2 LED

OH/Fan Fail LED

PWR Fail LED

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

FAN4

Ground

Ground

CPU2

Intel

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS
CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

2-10

1920

A

NMI

X

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Reset

Reset Bu tto

Power Butt

PWR

2

1

o

n

HDD LED

The HDD LED connection is located
on pins 13 and 14 of JF1. Attach a
hard drive LED cable here to display
disk activity (for any hard drives on the
system, including SAS, Serial ATA and
IDE). See the table on the right for pin
defi nitions.

NIC1/NIC2 LED Indicators

The NIC (Network Interface Control­ler) LED connection for GLAN port1 is
located on pins 11 and 12 of JF1 and
the LED connection for GLAN Port2
is on Pins 9 and 10. Attach the NIC
LED cables to display network activity .
Refer to the table on the right for pin
defi nitions.

Chapter 2: Installation

HDD LED

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition
13 +5V
14 HD Active

GLAN1/2 LED

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition
9/11 Vcc
10/12 Ground

COM1

COM2

Audio CTRL

CD1

S I/O

X7DCA-i

KB/MS

PRINTER

AUDIO

JC2

FAN6

FAN5

2/3

USB

0/1/

JPL2

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

JPW1

JPW3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C4

JI2C1

JI2C3

JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

A. HDD LED
B. NIC1 LED
C. NIC2 LED

J6

J3P1

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1

BANK1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2

DIMM1-3

BANK3 BANK2

DIMM0-3

5100

Intel

MCH

JBT1

ITE

CTRL

JPS1

PXH-V

BIOS

USB8

USB9

USB4/5

J5

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

I-button

Battery

T-SGPIO2

USB6/7

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

CPU1

CPU2

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

A

B

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2

Intel

I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

FAN4

JWD1

JWOL1

C

OH/Fan Fail LED

PWR Fail LED

Ground

X

Power LED

HDD LED

NIC1 LED

NIC2 LED

Ground

Ground

1920

NMI

X

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Reset

Reset Bu tto

Power Butt

PWR

2

1

2-11

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

o

n

Overheat/Fan Fail LED (OH)

Connect an LED to the OH/Fan Fail
connection on pins 7 and 8 of JF1 to
provide advanced warnings of chassis
overheating or fan failure. Refer to the
table on the right for pin defi nitions.

Power Fail LED

The Power Fail LED connection is
located on pins 5 and 6 of JF1. Refer
to the table on the right for pin defi ni-
tions.

OH/Fan Fail LED

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition
7 Vcc
8 Ground

OH/Fan Fail Indicator

Status

State Defi nition
Off Normal
On Overheat
Flash-

Fan Fail

ing

PWR Fail LED

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition
5 Vcc
6 Ground

COM1

COM2

Audio CTRL

CD1

X7DCA-i

KB/MS

PRINTER

AUDIO

JC2

S I/O

FAN6

2/3

USB

0/1/

JPL2

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

FAN5

JPW1

JPW3

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

A. OH/Fan Fail LED
B. PWR Supply Fail

J6

J3P1

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

BANK1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2

DIMM1-3

BANK3 BANK2

DIMM0-3

5100

Intel

MCH

I-button

Battery

JPF

T-SGPIO2

USB6/7

JBT1

ITE

CTRL

JPS1

PXH-V

BIOS

USB8

USB9

USB4/5

J5

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JI2C4
JI2C3

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

OH/Fan Fail LED

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

FAN4

PWR Fail LED

CPU1

CPU2

LES1

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

Ground

X

Power LED

HDD LED

NIC1 LED

NIC2 LED

A

B

Ground

Ground

2-12

1920

NMI

X

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Reset

Reset Bu tto

Power Butt

PWR

2

1

o

n

Reset Button

The Reset Button connection is located
on pins 3 and 4 of JF1. Attach it to the
hardware reset switch on the computer
case. Refer to the table on the right for
pin defi nitions.

Power Button

The Power Button co nn e c t i o n i s l o cated
on pins 1 and 2 of JF1. Momentarily
contacting both pins will power on/off
the system. This button can also be
configured to function as a suspend
butto n (with a set ting in th e BIOS - see
Chapter 4). To turn of f the power w hen
set to suspe nd mode, press t he button
for at least 4 seconds. Refer to the table
on the r ight for p in defi nitions.

Chapter 2: Installation

Reset Button

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition
3 Reset
4 Ground

Power Button

Pin Defi nitions (JF1)

Pin# Defi nition

1 Signal
2 +3V Standby

COM1

COM2

Audio CTRL

JC2

CD1

S I/O

X7DCA-i

KB/MS

USB

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

2/3
0/1/

JPL2

LAN1/2

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

LAN

CTRL

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

A. Reset Button
B. PWR Button

1920

J6

J3P1

CPU

FAN7

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

FAN1

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

BANK1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2

DIMM1-3

BANK3 BANK2

DIMM0-3

5100

Intel

MCH

I-button

Battery

JPF

T-SGPIO2

USB6/7

JBT1

ITE

CTRL

JPS1

PXH-V

BIOS

USB8

USB9

USB4/5

J5

JPW3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A
DIMM3B

JI2C4
JI2C3

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

OH/Fan Fail LED

PWR Fail LED

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

FAN4

CPU1

CPU2

LES1

SAS
CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

2-13

Ground

Power LED

HDD LED

NIC1 LED

NIC2 LED

X

Ground

Ground

NMI

X

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Vcc

Reset

Reset Bu tto

A

Power Butt

PWR

2

1

B

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

2-5 Connecting Cables

ATX Power Connector

A 24-pin main power supply connec­tor is loc ated at JPW 3, and an 4 -pin
power co nnec tor is la ctate d at JP W1
on the motherboard. These power
connectors meet the SSI EPS 12V
specifi cation. See the table on the
right fo r pin defi nitions. For t he 8 -pi n
CPU Power c onnector (JPW 2), refer
to the item below.

Processor Power Connector

In addition to the Primary ATX power
connector, the 12V 8-pin CPU PWR
connector at JPW2 must also be con­nected to provide adequate power to
your processors. See the table on the
right for pin defi nitions.

ATX Power 24-pin Connector

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition Pin # Defi nition
13 +3.3V 1 +3.3V
14 -12V 2 +3.3V
15 COM 3 COM
16 PS_ON 4 +5V
17 COM 5 COM
18 COM 6 +5V
19 COM 7 COM
20 Res (NC) 8 PWR_OK
21 +5V 9 5VSB
22 +5V 10 +12V
23 +5V 11 +12V
24 COM 12 +3.3V

12V 4-pin Power

Pin Defi nitions

Pins Defi nition
1 and 2 Ground
3 and 4 +12V

12V 8-pin CPU PWR

Pin Defi nitions

Pins Defi nition
1 through 4 Ground
5 through 8 +12V

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

C

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

A

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

Required Connections

B

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

JF1

FAN2

SP1

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. 24-pin ATX PWR
B. 8-pin Processor PWR

JD1

JOH1

FAN3

2-14

Chapter 2: Installation

D

E

Universal Serial Bus (USB)

There are ten USB 2.0 (Universal Serial
Bus) ports/headers on the motherboard.
Four of them are Back Panel USB ports:
USB 0~3 (JPUSB1). The other six are
Front Panel USB connectors: USB 4~5
(JUSB2), USB 6~7 (JUSB3), USB 8 (J23)
and USB 9 (J24). See the tables on the
right for pin defi nitions.

Back Panel USB

(USB 0~3)

Pin# Defi nitions
1 +5V
2 PO­3 PO+
4 Ground
5 N/A

Front Panel USB

Pin Defi nitions (USB 4~9)

USB 4/6
Pin # Defi nition

USB 5/7/8/9

Pin # Defi nition
1 +5V 1 +5V
2 PO- 2 PO­3 PO+ 3 PO+
4 Ground 4 Ground
5 Key 5 No connection

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

A

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

DIMM1-2

DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN1

Battery

C

USB6/7

FAN7

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

J5

J6

PXH-V

J3P1

CTRL

B

USB4/5

JAR

JP3

JPW2

I-SATA0
I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

SP1

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. Backpanel USB 0~3

FAN1

B. Front Panel USB 4~5
C. Front Panel USB 6~7

JF1

D. Front Panel USB 8
E. Front Panel USB 9

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

FAN3

2-15

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

G

F

E

D

H

I

Fan Headers

The X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i has fi ve chassis/
system fan headers (Fans 1~Fan 6), and
two CPU Fans (Fans 7~8). All these fans
are 4-pin fans. These 4-pin headers also
support 3-pin fans. See the table on the right
for pin defi nitions.

Note: The onboard fan speeds are
controlled by Thermal Management
via BIOS Hardware Monitoring in the
Advanced Setting. (The default setting
is Disabled.)

Chassis Intrusion

A Chassis Intrusion header is located at
JL1 on the motherboard. Attach an appro­priate cable from the chassis to inform you
of a chassis intrusion when the chassis is
opened.

Fan Header

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 Ground
2 +12V
3 Tachometer
4 PWR Modulation

Chassis Intrusion

Pin Defi nitions (JL1)

Pin# Defi nition
1 Intrusion Input
2 Ground

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

CPU1

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

A

B

A. Fan 1
B. Fan 2
C. Fan 3
D. Fan 4
E. Fan 5
F. Fan 6

CPU2

JD1

G. Fan 7 (CPU Fan)
H. Fan 8 (CPU Fan)

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JWOR1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

JBT1

ITE

LES1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

JP1

JL1

USB8

I. Chassis Intrusion

C

FAN3

2-16

Chapter 2: Installation

ATX PS/2 Keyboard and PS/2
Mouse Ports

The ATX PS/2 keyboard and the PS/2
mouse are located at JKM1. See the
table on the right for pin defi nitions.
(The mouse port is above the key­board port.) See the table on the right
for pin defi nitions.

Serial Ports

COM1 and COM2 are serial port
connectors located at JCOM1 and
JCOM2 on the IO Backpanel. See the
table on the right for pin defi nitions.

PS/2 Keyboard and

Mouse Port Pin

Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 Data
2NC
3 Ground
4 VCC
5 Clock
6NC

Serial Port Pin Defi nitions

(COM1/COM2)

Pin # Defi nition Pin # Defi nition
1 DCD 6 DSR
2 RXD 7 RTS
3 TXD 8 CTS
4 DTR 9 RI
5 Ground 10 NC

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

B

C

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

A

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

FAN5

JPW1

JPW3

LAN
CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)
JI2C1

JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A
DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

ITE

USB8

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

2-17

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2

Intel

I-SATA3
I-SATA4

ICH9R

I-SATA5

FAN4

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. Keyboard/Mouse
B. COM1
C. COM2

FAN3

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Wake-On-Ring

The Wake-On-Ring header is located
at JWOR1. This feature allows your
computer to be "awakened" by an
incoming call to the modem when the
system is in the suspend state. See
the table on the right for pin defi ni-
tions. You must have a Wake-On-Ring
card and cable to use this feature.

Wake-On-LAN

The Wake-On-LAN header is located
at JWOL1 on the motherboard. See
the table on the right for pin defi ni-
tions. (You must have a LAN card
with a Wake -On-LAN c on n e c t o r, and
cable to u se this fe ature.)

Wake-On-Ring

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 Ground
2 Wake-up

Wake-On-LAN

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 +5V Standby
2 Ground
3 Wake-up

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN1

USB6/7

FAN7

Battery

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

J5

J6

PXH-V

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

B

FAN4

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

A

JL1

JWOR1

A. WOR
B. WOL

2-18

GLAN 1/2 (Giga-bit Ethernet
Ports)

Two G-bit Ethernet ports are located
at JLAN3 on the I/O backplane. These
ports accept RJ45 type cables.

Power LED/Speaker

On the JD1 header, pins 1-3 are for a
power LED, and pins 4-7 are for the
speaker. See the table on the right for
speaker pin defi nitions.

Note: The speaker connector
pins are for use with an external
speaker. If you wish to use the on­board speaker, you should close
pins 6-7 with a jumper.

Chapter 2: Installation

GLAN1/2

Speaker Connector

Pin Defi nitions

Pin Setting Defi nition
Pins 6-7 Internal Speaker
Pins 4-7 External Speaker

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

FAN5

JPW1

JPW3

LAN
CTRL

A

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)
JI2C1

JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A
DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

ITE

USB8

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

2-19

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2

Intel

I-SATA3
I-SATA4

ICH9R

I-SATA5

FAN4

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. GLAN1/2
B. PWR LED/Speaker

B

FAN3

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Alarm Reset

If three power supplies are installed,
the system will notify you when any of
the three power modules fails. Con­nect JAR to a micro-switch to turn
off the alarm that is activated when a
power module fails. See the table on
the right for pin defi nitions.

PWR Supply Failure/PWR
Fault Detect

The system can notify you in the event
of a power supply failure. This feature
is available when three power supply
units are installed in the chassis with
one acting as a backup. If you only
have one or two power supply units
installed, you should disable this (the
default setting) with JPF to prevent
false alarms.

Alarm Reset

Pin Defi nitions

Pin Setting Defi nition
Pin 1 Ground
Pin 2 +5V

PWR Supply PWR Fault

Pin Defi nitions

Jumper Setting Defi nition
On Enabled
Off Disabled (Default)

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

A

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. Alarm Reset
B. PWR Fault

FAN3

2-20

T-SGPIO Headers

Chapter 2: Installation

Two T -SGPIO (Serial-Link General Pur­pose Input/Output) headers are located
at J14 and J15 on the motherboard.
These headers are used to commu­nicate with the Seriel-Link System
Monitoring chip on the backplane. See
the table on the right for pin defi nitions.
Refer to the board layout below for the
locations of the headers.

Power SMB (I2C) Connector

Power SMB (I2C) Connector (J6) moni­tors the status of the power supply, fan
and system temperature. See the table
on the right for pin defi nitions.

T-SGPIO1/2

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition Pin Defi nition
1NC 2 NC
3 Ground 4 DATA Out

5 Load 6 Ground
7 Clock 8 NC

Note: NC= No Connections

PWR SMB

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 Clock
2 Data

3 PWR Fail
4 Ground
5 +3.3V

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C3

JI2C4

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A
DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

C

J6

J3P1

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

BANK1

DIMM1-2

DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3

BANK3 BANK2

DIMM0-3

5100

Intel

MCH

I-button

Battery

B

A

T-SGPIO2

PXH-V

USB6/7

USB4/5

J5

ITE

CTRL

USB8

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2

Intel

I-SATA3
I-SATA4

ICH9R

I-SATA5

FAN4

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. T_SGPIO1
B. T_SGPIO2
C. Power SMB

FAN3

2-21

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

BP PWR SMB (I2C) Connector

Backplane Power SMB(I2C) Connector
(J5) monitors power supply and temper­atures of backplane IO connectors. See
the table on the right for pin defi nitions.

SAS Power SMB (I2C) Connector
(X7DCA-3)

SAS Power SMB (I2C) Connector (JP3)
monitors the status of Power Supply
System Management Bus for SAS ports
0~3, 4~7. See the table on the right for
pin defi nitions.

BP PWR SMB

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 SMBDAT_ICH_EXIT
2 GND

3 SMBCLK_ICH_EXIT
5NC

SAS SMB PWR

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 TWSI_SDA
2 Ground

3 TWSI_SCK

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

A

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

B

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. PWR SMB
B. SAS PWR SMB

2-22

Power Fault (PWR Supply
Failure)

Connect a cable from your power
supply to the Power Supply Failure
header at J3P1 to provide warnings
of any power supply failure. This
warning signal is passed through the
PWR_LED pin to indicate of a power
failure on the chassis. See the table
on the right for pin defi nitions.

Overheat LED/Fan Fail (JOH1)

The JOH1 header is used to con­nect an LED to provide warnings of
chassis overheating or fan failure.
This LED will blink to indicate a fan
failure. Refer to the table on right for
pin defi nitions.

Chapter 2: Installation

PWR Supply Failure

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 PWR 1: Fail
2 PWR 2: Fail

3 PWR 3: Fail
4 Signal: Alarm Reset

Note: This feature is only available when using
Supermicro redundant power supplies.

Overheat LED

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 5vDC
2 OH Active

OH/Fan Fail LED

Pin Defi nitions

State Message
Solid Overheat
Blinking Fan Fail

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

DIMM1-2

DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

FAN7

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

J5

J6

PXH-V

A

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

A. SAS PWR SMB
B. Keylock

CPU1

CPU2

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

B

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JWOR1

I-SATA0
I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

JBT1

ITE

LES1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

JP1

JL1

USB8

2-23

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

High Defi nition Audio (HDA)

This motherboard features a 7.1+2 Channel
High Defi nition Audio (HDA) (JC1) codec that
provides 10 DAC channels, simultaneously
supporting 7.1 sound playback and two chan­nels of independent stereo sound output (mul­tiple streaming) through the front panel stereo
out for the front L&R, rear L&R, center and
subwoofer speakers. This feature is activated
with an Advanced software included in the CD­ROM that came with your motherboard. Sound
is then output through the Line In, Line Out
and MIC jacks (See at the picture at right.)

CD and Auxiliary (FP) Audio Headers

A 4-pin CD header is located at CD1, and an
Auxiliary (Front Panel) header is located at
JC2 on the motherboard. These headers allow
you to use the onboard sound for audio CD
playback. Connect an audio cable from your
CD drive to the header that fi ts your cable's
connector. Only one CD header can be used
at any one time. See the tables at right for pin
defi nitions.

Orange:
CEN/LFE

Black: Back
Surround

Grey: Side
Surround

CD1

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition
1 Left Stereo Signal
2 Ground
3 Ground
4 Right Stereo Signal

Blue: Line-In

Green:Front

Pink: Mic-In

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

A

Audio CTRL

JC2

B

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. H.D Audio
B. CD1

FAN3

2-24

Front Panel Audio Control

Chapter 2: Installation

When front panel headphones are
plugged in, the back panel audio output
is disabled. This is done through the FP
Audio header (JC2). If the front panel in­terface card is not connected to the front
panel audio header, jumpers should be
installed on the header (JC2) pin pairs
1-2, 5-6, and 9-10. If these jumpers are
not installed, the back panel line out
connector will be disabled, and micro­phone input Pin 1 will be left fl oating,
which can lead to excessive back panel
microphone noise and cross talk. See
the table at right for pin defi nitions.

HD Front Panel Audio

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Signal
1 MIC_L
2 AUD_GND
3 MIC_R
4 FP_Audio-Detect
5 Line_2_R
6 Ground
7 FP_Jack-Detect
8 Key
9 Line_2_L
10 Ground

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

A

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

DIMM1-2

DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

FAN7

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

J5

J6

PXH-V

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

I-SATA0
I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. FP Audio

FAN3

2-25

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Connector

Pins

Jumper

Cap

Setting

2-6 Jumper Settings

Explanation of
Jumpers

To modify the operation of the
motherboard, jumpers can be used
to choose between optional settings.
Jumpers create shorts between two pins
to change the function of the connector.
Pin 1 is ident ifi ed with a square solder
pad on the printed circuit board. See
the motherboard layout pages for jumper
locations.

Note: On two pin jumpers, "Closed"
means the jumper is on and "Open"

means th e jumper i s off t he pins .

GLAN Enable/Disable

JPL1/JPL2 enable or disable GLAN
Port1/GLAN Port2 on the mother­board. See the table on the right for
jumper settings. The default setting is
Enabled.

3 2 1

3 2 1

Pin 1-2 short

GLAN Enable

Pin# Defi nition
1-2 Enabled (default)
2-3 Disabled

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

B

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

A

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

JAR

JP3

JPW2

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

SP1

FAN8

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. GLAN Port1 Enable
B. GLAN Port2 Enable

FAN1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

FAN3

JWD1

JWOL1

2-26

Chapter 2: Installation

CMOS Clear

JBT1 is used to clear CMOS. Instead of pins, this "jumper" consists of contact
pads to prevent t he accident al clearin g of CMOS. To clear CMOS , use a metal
objec t such as a sma ll screwdr iver to touc h both pad s at the same t ime to shor t
the co nnec ti on. A lways rem ove the AC p ower c ord f rom t he syste m befo re cl ear­ing CMO S. Note: For an ATX power supply, you must c ompletel y shut down t he
system, rem ove the AC powe r cor d and the n shor t JBT1 to cl ear CM OS.

Watch Dog Enable/Disable

Watch Dog is a sy stem moni tor that c an reb oot
the system w hen a sof tware a pplicat ion hang s.
Close pins 1-2 to reset the system if an applica­tion hangs. Close pins 2-3 to generate a non­maskable interrupt signal for the application that
hangs. See the table on the ri ght for jumper set­tings. Watch Dog must also be enabled in the
BIOS.

J6

J3P1

Intel

JPF

T-SGPIO1

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

DIMM1-2

DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

FAN7

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

J5

PXH-V

CTRL

USB4/5

CPU1

CPU2

A

JBT1

ITE

LES1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

JP1

JL1

USB8

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

IDE1

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JWOR1

Watch Dog

Jumper Settings (JWD)

Jumper Setting Defi nition
Pins 1-2 Reset

(default)
Pins 2-3 NMI
Open Disabled

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

I-SATA0
I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

FAN4

A. Clear CMOS
B. Watch Dog Enable

FAN3

B

2-27

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

E

D

I2C Bus to PCI Slots

Jumpers JPI2C1/JPI2C2 allow you to
connect the System Management Bus

2

(I

C) to PCI-X slots, while JPI2C3/

2

C4, PCI -E xpress s lots. The def ault

JPI
setting is set to Disabled. See the table
on the r ight fo r jumpe r sett ings.

SAS Enable/Disable

JPS1 allows you to enable or disable
SAS Con necto rs.The default po sitio n is
on pins 1 an d 2 to e na bl e SA S. S e e th e
table o n the r ight fo r jumper s ett ings.

(This feature is available on the X7D­CA-3 only.)

I2C to PCI-Slots

Jumper Settings

Jumper Setting Defi nition
1-2 Enabled
2-3 Disabled (Default)

SAS Enable/Disable Jumper

Settings

Both Jumpers Defi nition
Pins 1-2 Enabled (Default)
Pins 2-3 Disabled

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

A

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

B

C

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

A. I2C1

2

C2

B. I

2

C3

C. I

2

C4

D. I

CPU1

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

E. SAS Enable

FAN2

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

2-28

Chapter 2: Installation

2-7 Onboard Indicators

GLAN LEDs

There ar e tw o GL AN p or ts o n the mot h­erboard. Each Gigabit Ethernet LAN port
has two L EDs. Th e green L ED indic ates
activity, while the Link LED may be
green, amber or off to indicate the speed
of the connection. See th e tables at r ight
for more i nform ation.

Onboard Power LED (LE1)

An Onboard Power LED is located at LE1
on the motherboard. When this LE D is li t,
the system is on. Be sure to turn off the
system and unplug the power cord before
removing or installing components. See
the layout b elow fo r the LED l ocat ion.

Activity
LED

Link
LED

Rear View
(when viewing from the back of the chassis.)

GLAN Activity Indicator

LED Setting

Color Status Defi nition
Green Flashing LAN Active

GLAN Link Indicator

LED Settings

LED Color Defi nition
Off No Connection or 10 Mbps
Green 100 Mbps
Amber 1 Gbps

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

A

B

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

DIMM1-2

DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

FAN7

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

J5

J6

PXH-V

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

Intel

ICH9R

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JWOR1

C

I-SATA0
I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

ITE

LES1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

JP1

JL1

USB8

A. GLAN Port1 LEDs
B. GLAN Port2 LEDs
C. Onboard PWR LED

FAN3

2-29

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

SAS_LED Indicators (LES1/LES2)

Two SAS_LEDs are located at LES1
and LES2 on the motherboard.
These LEDs indicate the status of SAS
connections. Refer to the table on the
right for LES1 and LES2 settings. See the
layout below for the LED locations.

(Available on the X7DCA-3 only)

SAS LED Indicators

Settings

LED# Description
LES1: On SAS Active
LES2: On SAS Active

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A

DIMM3B

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

J6

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

J3P1

CTRL

USB4/5

JAR

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

FAN4

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

A

B

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

A. LES1: SAS LED
B. LES2: SAS LED

2-30

Chapter 2: Installation

2-8 Floppy Drive, SIMLP IPMI and Hard Disk Drive
Connections

Note the following when connecting the fl oppy and hard disk drive cables:

• The fl oppy disk drive cable has seven twisted wires.

• A red mark on a wire typically designates the location of pin 1.

Floppy Drive Connector

Floppy Connector

The fl oppy connector is located at
JFDD1. See the table below for pin
defi nitions.

J6

J3P1

JPF

T-SGPIO1

IDE1

Intel

DIMM1-1

DIMM0-1
DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3
DIMM0-3

5100

MCH

I-button

T-SGPIO2

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

Battery

USB6/7

BANK1

BANK3 BANK2

PXH-V

J5

CTRL

USB4/5

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

LAN

CTRL

FAN5

JPW1

JPW3

LAN
CTRL

JPL1

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)
JI2C1

JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

A

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JI2C4
JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A
DIMM2B
DIMM3A
DIMM3B

Pin# Defi nition Pin # Defi nition
1 Ground 2 FDHDIN
3 Ground 4 Reserved
5 Key 6 FDEDIN
7 Ground 8 Index
9 Ground 10 Motor Enable
11 Ground 12 Drive Select B
13 Ground 14 Drive Select B
15 Ground 16 Motor Enable
17 Ground 18 DIR
19 Ground 20 STEP
21 Ground 22 Write Data
23 Ground 24 Write Gate
25 Ground 26 Track 00
27 Ground 28 Write Protect
29 Ground 30 Read Data
31 Ground 32 Side 1 Select
33 Ground 34 Diskette

JAR

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

Intel

ITE

USB8

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

ICH9R

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

Pin Defi nitions (Floppy)

JP3

JPW2

FAN1

LE1

JF1

FAN2

JD1

JOH1

SP1

FAN3

FAN8

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2
I-SATA3
I-SATA4
I-SATA5

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

FAN4

A. Floppy Disk Drive

2-31

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

IDE Connector

An IDE C onn ect or is lo ca ted at J17 on
the moth er boar d. See th e tab le on t he
right fo r pin defi nitions.

SIMLP IPMI Slot

There is a Low Profi le SIMLP IPMI Slot
on the motherboard. R efer to the lay out
below fo r the IPM I Slot lo cati on.

IDE Drive Connectors

Pin Defi nitions

Pin# Defi nition Pin # Defi nition
1 Reset IDE 2 Ground
3 Host Data 7 4 Host Data 8
5 Host Data 6 6 Host Data 9
7 Host Data 5 8 Host Data 10
9 Host Data 4 10 Host Data 11
11 Host Data 3 12 Host Data 12
13 Host Data 2 14 Host Data 13
15 Host Data 1 16 Host Data 14
17 Host Data 0 18 Host Data 15
19 Ground 20 Key
21 DRQ3 22 Ground
23 I/O Write 24 Ground
25 I/O Read 26 Ground
27 IOCHRDY 28 BALE
29 DACK3 30 Ground
31 IRQ14 32 IOCS16
33 Addr1 34 Ground
35 Addr0 36 Addr2
37 Chip Select 0 38 Chip Select 1
39 Activity 40 Ground

COM1

COM2

CD1

X7DCA-i

Audio CTRL

JC2

S I/O

KB/MS

2/3

USB

0/1/

PRINTER

AUDIO

FAN6

JPL2

LAN1/2

CTRL

LAN

FAN5

JPW1

LAN

CTRL

JPL1

A

SLOT7 SIMLP IPMI

SLOT6 PCI-E X16

SLOT5 PCI 33MHz

SLOT4 PCI-E X4 (in X16 slot)

JI2C1
JI2C2

SLOT3 PCI 33MHz

SLOT2 PCI-X 133/100MHz

SLOT1 PCI-X 133/100MHz

FLOPPY

JPW3

JI2C4

JI2C3

DIMM1A
DIMM1B
DIMM2A

DIMM2B

DIMM3A

DIMM3B

J6

J3P1

CPU

FAN7

FAN1

DIMM1-1
DIMM0-1

BANK1

DIMM1-2
DIMM0-2
DIMM1-3

BANK3 BANK2

DIMM0-3

5100

Intel

MCH

I-button

Battery

JPF

T-SGPIO2

T-SGPIO1

PXH-V

B

IDE1

USB6/7

USB4/5

J5

ITE

CTRL

USB8

CPU1

CPU2

JBT1

JPS1

BIOS

USB9

JAR

JP3

JPW2

LE1

JF1

FAN2

SP1

FAN8

I-SATA0

I-SATA1
I-SATA2

Intel

I-SATA3
I-SATA4

ICH9R

I-SATA5

FAN4

JWD1

SAS4~7

SAS0~3

JWOL1

LES1

LES2

SAS

CTRL

JP1

JL1

JWOR1

FAN1

JD1

JOH1

A. IDE
B. SIMLP

FAN3

2-32

Chapter 3: Troubleshooting

Chapter 3

Troubleshooting

3-1 Troubleshooting Procedures

Use the following procedures to troubleshoot your system. If you have followed all
of the procedures below and still need assistance, refer to the ‘Technical Support
Procedures’ and/or ‘Returning Merchandise for Service’ section(s) in this chapter.

Note: Always disconnect the power cord before adding, changing or installing
any hardware components.

Before Power On

Make sure that there are no short circuits between the motherboard and the 1.
chassis.

Disconnect all ribbon/wire cables from the motherboard, including those for 2.
the keyboard and mouse. Remove all add-on cards.

Install a CPU in CPU Socket and connect the chassis speaker and the power 3.
LED to the motherboard. (Make sure that the CPU is properly seated. Be sure
to check all jumper settings as well.)

No Power

Make sure that there are no short circuits between the motherboard and the 1.
chassis.

Make sure that all jumpers are set to their default positions. 2.

Make sure that the 115V/230V switch on the power supply is properly set.3.

Turn the power switch on and off to test the system. The battery on your moth-4.
erboard may be old. Check to verify that it still supplies ~3VDC. If it does not,
replace it with a new one.

3-1

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

No Video

If the power is on but you have no video, remove all the add-on cards and 1.
cables.

Use the speaker to determine if any beep codes exist. Refer to the Appendix 2.
for details on beep codes.

Losing the System’s Setup Confi guration

Make sure that you are using a high quality power supply. A poor quality 3.
power supply may cause the system to lose the CMOS setup information.
Refer to Section 1-6 for details on recommended power supplies.

The bat ter y on your m other boar d may be old. C heck to ve rif y that i t still sup -4.
plies ~3V DC. If it d oes not , repla ce it wi th a new one.

If the above steps do not fi x the Setup Confi guration problem, contact your 5.
vendor for repairs.

NOTE

If you are a system integrator, VAR or OEM, a POST diagnostics card is recom­mended. Fo r I/O po rt 8 0h c odes , refer to A pp. B.

Memory Errors

Make sure the DIMM modules are properly and fully installed. Check if 1.
DIMMs of different speeds or types have been installed. Also make sure that
the BIOS setup is confi gured for the fastest speed of RAM used.

It is rec omme nded to us e the sa me R AM sp eed fo r all DIM Ms in t he system .2.
Make sure you ar e using t he cor rect t ype of D DR 2 Buf fere d (Registe red)
ECC 667/533 S DR AM (*r eco mmend ed by the man ufact urer.)

Check f or bad DI MM mo dules o r slots by swap ping a sin gle mo dule bet ween 3.
four slot s and not ing the r esults . Make sure al l memor y m odule s are full y
seated in th eir slot s. As an inter leaved m emor y sch eme is use d, you must
instal l two mo dules at a t ime, be ginning w ith Ba nk 1, then Bank 2, an d so on
(see Sect ion 2-3). Che ck th e posit ion of t he 115V/23 0V switch on the p ower
supply.

3-2

Chapter 3: Troubleshooting

3-2 Technical Support Procedures

Before contacting Technical Support, please take the following steps. Also, note that
as a motherboard manufacturer, Supermicro does not sell directly to end-users, so
it is best to fi rst check with your distributor or reseller for troubleshooting services.
They should know of any possible problem(s) with the specifi c system confi guration
that was sold to you.

Please go through the ‘Troubleshooting Procedures’ and 'Frequently Asked 1.
Question' (FAQ) sections in this chapter or see the FAQs on our web site
(http://www.supermicro.com/support/faqs/) before contacting Technical Sup­port.

BIOS upgrades can be downloaded from our web site at http://www.supermi-2.
cro.com/support/bios/.

If you still cannot resolve the problem, include the following information when 3.
contacting Supermicro for technical support:

Motherboard model and PCB revision number

•

BIOS release date/version (this can be seen on the initial display when your •
system fi rst boots up)

System confi guration

•

An example of a Technical Support form is on our web site at http://www.•
supermicro.com/support/contact.cfm/.

Distr ibutor s: For immediate as sistan ce, pleas e have your acc ount numbe r ready
when plac ing a cal l to our techni cal suppo rt dep artm ent. We can be re ached by
e- mail at supp or t@sup ermi cro.co m or by fax at : (408) 503 - 80 00, o ption 2 .

3-3 Frequently Asked Questions

Question: What are the various types of memory that my motherboard can
support?

Answer: The X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i has six 240-pin DIMM slots that support DDR2

FBD ECC 667/533 SDRAM modules. It is strongly recommended that you do not
mix memory modules of different speeds and sizes. (See Chapter 2 for detailed
Information.)

3-3

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Question: How do I update my BIOS?
Answer: It is recommended that you do not upgrade your BIOS if you are experi-

encing no problems with your system. Updated BIOS fi les are located on our web
site at http://www.supermicro.com/support/bios/. Please check our BIOS warning
message and the information on how to update your BIOS on our web site. Also,
check the current BIOS revision, and make sure that it is newer than your BIOS
before downloading. Select your motherboard model and download the BIOS fi le to
your computer. Unzip the BIOS fi les onto a bootable fl oppy and reboot your system.
Follow the Readme.txt to continue fl ashing the BIOS.

Warning: Do not shut down or reset the system while updating BIOS to
prevent possible system boot failure!

Question: What's on the CD that came with my motherboard?
Answer: The supplied compact disc has quite a few drivers and programs that will

greatl y enhanc e your sys tem. We rec omme nd that you r eview th e CD and in stall
the appl ic ati on s you ne ed. A pp lic at io ns on t he C D inc lu de c hip set dr ive rs f or t he
Window s OS, and s ecur ity a nd audio d river s.

3-4 Returning Merchandise for Service

A receipt or copy of your invoice marked with the date of purchase is required be­fore any warranty service will be rendered. You can obtain service by calling your
vendor for a Returned Merchandise Authorization (RMA) number. When returning
to the manufacturer, the RMA number should be prominently displayed on the
outside of the shipping carton, and mailed prepaid or hand-carried. Shipping and
handling charges will be applied for all orders that must be mailed when service
is complete.

This warranty only covers normal consumer use and does not cover damage in­curred in shipping or from failure due to the alternation, misuse, abuse or improper
maintenance of products.

During the warranty period, contact your distributor fi rst for any product problems.

3-4

Chapter 4: BIOS

Chapter 4

BIOS

4-1 Introduction

This chapter describes the Phoenix BIOS™ Setup utility for the X7DCA-3/i. The
Phoenix ROM BIOS is stored in a fl ash chip and can be easily upgraded using a
fl oppy disk-based program.

Note: Due to periodic changes to the BIOS, some settings may have been
added or deleted and might not yet be recorded in this manual. Please
refer to the Manual Download area of the Supermicro web site <http://www.
supermicro.com> for any changes to the BIOS that may not be refl ected
in this manual.

System BIOS

The BIOS is the Basic Input Output System used in all IBM® PC, XT™, AT®, and

®

PS/2

compatible computers. The Phoenix BIOS stores the system parameters,
types of disk drives, video displays, etc. in the CMOS. The CMOS memory requires
very little electrical power. When the computer is turned off, a backup battery pro­vides power to the CMOS Logic, enabling it to retain system parameters. Each time
the computer is powered on, the computer is confi gured with the values stored in
the CMOS Logic by the system BIOS, which gains control at boot up.
information that determines the system parameters may be changed by entering
the BIOS Setup utility. This Setup utility can be accessed by pressing the <Delete>
key at the appropriate time during system boot. (See below.)

The CMOS

Starting the Setup Utility

Normally , the only visible POST (Power On Self Test) routine is the memory test. As
the memory is being tested, press the <Delete> key to enter the main menu of the
BIOS Setup utility. From the main menu, you can access the other setup screens,
such as the Security and Power menus. Beginning with Section 4-3, detailed de­scriptions are given for each parameter setting in the Setup utility.

Warning: Do not shut down or reset the system while updating BIOS to
prevent possible boot failure.

4-1

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

4-2 Running Setup

Note: Default settings are in bold text unless otherwise noted.

The BIOS setup options described in this section are selected by choosing the ap­propriate text from the main BIOS Setup screen. All displayed text is described in
this section, although the screen display is often all you need to understand how
to set the options (See the next page).

When you fi rst power on the computer, the Phoenix BIOS™ is immediately acti-
vated.

While the BIOS is in control, the Setup program can be activated in one of two
ways:

By pressing <Delete> immediately after turning the system on, or1.

When the message shown below appears briefl y at the bottom of the screen 2.
during the POST (Power On Self-Test), press the <Delete> key to activate
the main Setup menu:

Note: Press the <Delete> key to enter Setup

4-3 Main BIOS Setup

All main Setup options are described in this section. The main BIOS Setup screen
is displayed below.

Use the Up/Down arrow keys to move among the different settings in each menu.
Use the Left/Right arrow keys to change the options for each setting. Press the
<Esc> key to exit the CMOS Setup Menu. Items that use submenus are indicated
with the
submenu.

Xicon. With the item highlighted, press the <Enter> key to access the

4-2

Chapter 4: BIOS

System Time

To set the system date and time, key in the correct information in the appropriate
fi elds. Then press the <Enter> key to save the data.

System Date

Using the arrow keys, highlight the month, day and year fi elds, and enter the correct
data. Press the <Enter> key to save the data.

BIOS Date

This fi eld displays the date when this version of BIOS was built.

Legacy Diskette A

This setting allows the user to set the type of fl oppy disk drive installed as diskette A.
The options are Disabled, 360Kb 5.25 in, 1.2MB 5.25 in, 720Kb 3.5 in, 1.44/1.25MB,

3.5 in and 2.88MB 3.5 in.

XIDE Primary Master/Slave, IDE Secondary Master/Slave,
SATA Port 3, SATA Port 4, and Ext. Primary Master/Slave

These settings allow the user to set the parameters of IDE Primary Master/Slave,
IDE Secondary Master/Slave, SATA Port 3, SATA Port 4, and Ext. Primary Master/
Slave. Press <Enter> to activate the following submenu screen for detailed options
of these items. Set the correct confi gurations accordingly.

The following items will be displayed in the submenu:

Type

This feature allows you to select the type of IDE hard drive. Select Auto to allow
the BIOS to automatically confi gure the parameters of the HDD installed at the
connection. Enter a number between 1 to 39 to select a predetermined HDD

4-3

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

type. Select User to allow the user to enter the parameters of the HDD installed.
Select CDROM if a CDROM drive is installed. Select ATAPI if a removable disk
drive is installed.

CHS Format (Available on the Primary Master/Slave slots only)

The following items will be displayed by the BIOS:

TYPE:

This item displays the type of IDE or SATA Device.

Cylinders:

This item indicates the status of Cylinders.

Headers:

This item indicates the number of headers.

Sectors:

This item displays the number of sectors.

Maximum Capacity:

This item displays the maximum storage capacity of the system.

LBA Format

Total Sectors:

This item displays the number of total sectors available in the LBA Format.

Maximum Capacity:

This item displays the maximum capacity in the LBA Format.

Multi-Sector Transfers

This item allows the user to specify the number of sectors per block to be used
in multi-sector transfer. The options are Disabled, 4 Sectors, 8 Sectors, and
16 Sectors.

LBA Mode Control

This item determines whether the Phoenix BIOS will access the IDE Channel 0
Master Device via the LBA mode. The options are Enabled and Disabled.

32 Bit I/O

This option allows the user to enable or disable the function of 32-bit data transfer.
The options are Enabled and Disabled.

4-4

Chapter 4: BIOS

Transfer Mode

This option allows the user to set the transfer mode. The options are Standard,
Fast PIO1, Fast PIO2, Fast PIO3, Fast PIO4, FPIO3/DMA1 and FPIO4/DMA2.

Ultra DMA Mode

This option allows the user to select Ultra DMA Mode. The options are Disabled,
Mode 0, Mode 1, Mode 2, Mode 3, Mode 4, and Mode 5.

Serial ATA

This setting allows the user to enable or disable the function of Serial ATA. The
options are Disabled and Enabled.

Native Mode Operation

This setting allows the user to select the native mode for ATA. The options are:
Serial ATA, and Auto.

Serial ATA (SATA) RAID Enable

Select Enable to enable Serial ATA RAID Functions. (For the Windows OS environ­ment, use the RAID driver if this feature is set to Enabled. When this item is set to
Enabled, the item: "ICH RAID Code Base" will be available for you to select either
Intel or LSI Host RAID fi rmware. If this item is set to Disabled, the item-SATA AHCI
Enable will be available.) The options are Enabled and Disabled.

ICH RAID Code Base (Available when SATA RAID is Enabled.)

Select Intel to enable Intel's SA TA RAID fi rmware. Select LSI to use LSI's HostRAID
fi rmware. The options are Intel and LSI.

SATA AHCI (Available when SATA RAID is Disabled.)

Select Enable to enable the function of Serial ATA Advanced Host Interface. (Take
caution when using this function. This feature is for advanced programmers only.
The options are Enabled and Disabled.)

System Memory

This display informs you how much system memory is recognized as being present
in the system.

Extended Memory

This display informs you how much extended memory is recognized as being pres­ent in the system.

4-5

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

4-4 Advanced Setup

Choose Advanced from the Phoenix BIOS Setup Utility main menu with the arrow
keys. You should see the following display. The items with a triangle beside them
have submenus that can be accessed by highlighting the item and pressing <En­ter>.

XBoot Features

Access the submenu to make changes to the following settings.

QuickBoot Mode

If enabled, this feature will speed up the POST (Power On Self Test) routine by
skipping certain tests after the computer is turned on. The settings are Enabled
and Disabled. If Disabled, the POST routine will run at normal speed.

QuietBoot Mode

This setting allows you to Enable or Disable the graphic logo screen during boot­up.

ACPI Mode

Use the setting to determine if you want to employ ACPI (Advanced Confi guration
and Power Interface) power management on your system. The options are Yes
and No.

ACPI Sleep Mode

This feature allows you to decide which ACPI (Advanced Confi guration and Power
Interface) power management mode to use when in the sleep mode. The options
are S1, S3 and S1S3.

4-6

Chapter 4: BIOS

Power Button Behavior

If set to Instant-Off, the system will power off immediately as soon as the user hits
the power button. If set to 4-sec., the system will power off when the user presses
the power button for 4 seconds or longer. The options are Instant-off and 4-sec
override.

Resume On Modem Ring

Select On to “wake your system up” when an incoming call is received by your
modem. The options are On and Off.

Power Loss Control

This setting allows you to choose how the system will react when power returns
after an unexpected loss of power. The options are Stay Off, Power On, and Last

State.

Watch Dog

If enabled, this option will automatically reset the system if the system is not active
for more than 5 minutes. The options are Enabled and Disabled.

Summary Screen

This setting allows you to Enable or Disable the summary screen which displays
the system confi guration during bootup.

XMemory Cache

Cache System BIOS Area

This setting allows you to designate a reserve area in the system memory to be used
as a System BIOS buffer to allow the BIOS to write (cache) data into this reserved
memory area. Select Write Protect to enable this function, and this area will be
reserved for BIOS ROM access only. Select Uncached to disable this function and
make this area available for other devices.

Cache Video BIOS Area

This setting allows you to designate a reserve area in the system memory to be
used as a Video BIOS buffer to allow the BIOS to write (cache) data into this
reserved memory area. Select Write Protect to enable the function and this area
will be reserved for Video BIOS ROM access only. Select Uncached to disable this
function and make this area available for other devices.

Cache Base 0-512K

If enabled, this feature will allow the data stored in the base memory area: Block
0-512K to be cached (written) into a buffer , a storage area in Static DROM (SDROM)

4-7

X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

or to be written into L1, L2 cache inside the CPU to speed up CPU operations.
Select Uncached to disable this function. Select Write Through to allow data to be
cached into the buffer and written into the system memory at the same time. Se­lect Write Protect to prevent data from being written into the base memory area of
Block 0-512K. Select Write Back to allow the CPU to write data back directly from
the buffer without writing data to the System Memory for fast CPU data process­ing and operation. The options are Uncached, Write Through, Write Protect, and

Write Back.

Cache Base 512K-640K

If enabled, this feature will allow the data stored in the memory area: 512K-640K to
be cached (written) into a buffer, a storage area in the Static DROM (SDROM) or
written into L1, L2, L3 cache inside the CPU to speed up CPU operations. Select
Uncached to disable this function. Select Write Through to allow data to be cached
into the buffer and written into the system memory at the same time. Select Write
Protect to prevent data from being written into the base memory area of Block 512­640K. Select Write Back to allow the CPU to write data back directly from the buffer
without writing data to the System Memory for fast CPU data processing and opera­tion. The options are Uncached, Write Through, Write Protect, and Write Back.

Cache Extended Memory

If enabled, this feature will allow the data stored in the extended memory area
(above 1MB) to be cached (written) into a buffer, a storage area in Static DROM
(SDROM) or written into L1, L2 cache inside the CPU to speed up CPU operations.
Select Uncached to disable this function. Select Write Through to allow data to be
cached into the buffer and written into the system memory at the same time. Select
Write Protect to prevent data from being written into the system memory area above
1MB. Select Write Back to allow the CPU to write data back directly from the buffer
without writing data to the System Memory for fast CPU data processing and opera­tion. The options are Uncached, Write Through, Write Protect, and Write Back.

Discrete MTRR Allocation

If enabled, MTRRs (-Memory Type Range Registers) are confi gured as distinct,
separate units and cannot be overlapped. Set to Enabled to enhance graphic perfor­mance when using a Linux graphic driver that requires write-combining confi guration
with 4GB or more memory. The options are Enabled and Disabled.

Reset Confi guration Data

If set to Yes, this setting clears the Extended System Confi guration Data- (ESCD)
area. The options are Yes and No.

4-8

Chapter 4: BIOS

XSlot1 PCI-X 133/100 MHz, Slot2 PCI-X 133/100 MHz, Slot3
PCI 33 MHz, Slot4 PCI-Exp. x8/x4, Slot5 PCI 33 MHz, and
Slot6 PCI-Exp. x16

Access the submenu for each of the settings above to make changes to the fol­lowing:

Option ROM Scan

When enabled, this setting will initialize the device expansion ROM. The options
are Enabled and Disabled.

Enable Master

This setting allows you to enable the selected device as the PCI bus master. The
options are Enabled and Disabled.

Latency Timer

This setting allows you to set the clock rate for Bus Master. A high-priority, high­throughout device may benefi t from a greater clock rate. The options are Default,

0020h, 0040h, 0060h, 0080h, 00A0h, 00C0h, and 00E0h. For Unix, Novell and
other Operating Systems, please select the option: other. If a drive fails after the
installation of a new software, you might want to change this setting and try again.
A different OS requires a different Bus Master clock rate.

Large Disk Access Mode

This setting determines how large hard drives are to be accessed. The options are
DOS or Other (for Unix, Novelle NetWare and other operating systems).

XAdvanced Chipset Control

Access the submenu to make changes to the following settings.

Warning: Take caution when changing the Advanced settings. An incorrect
setting, a very high DRAM frequency or an incorrect DRAM timing may
cause the system to become unstable. When this occurs, reset the setting
to the default setting.

Crystal Beach Features

Select Enabled to use th e Intel I/O AT (Acc eleration Technolog y) to acce lerate
the performance of TOE devices. (Note: A T OE device is a specialized, dedicated
processor that is installed on an add-on card or a network card to handle some
or all pac ket proces sing of this ad d-on c ard. For this m otherb oard, the TOE de ­vice i s built inside t he ICH9 R South Br idge chip.) The optio ns are Enabled and
Disabled.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

SERR Signal Condition

This setting specifi es the ECC Error conditions that an SERR# is to be asserted.
The options are None, Single Bit, Multiple Bit, and Both.

4GB PCI Hole Granularity

This feature allows you to select the granularity of PCI hole for PCI slots. If MTRRs
are not enough, this option may be used to reduce MTRR occupation. The options
are: 256 MB, 512 MB, 1GB and 2GB.

Azalia Audio

Select Auto to allow the BIOS automatically enable the onboard Azalia Audio if
detected. The settings are Auto and Disabled.

Route Port 80h Cycles to

This feature allows the user to decide which bus to send debug information to. The
options are PCI and LPC.

Enable Multi-Media Timer

Select Yes to activate a set of timers that are alternative to the traditional 8254
timers for the OS use. The options are PCI and LPC.

USB Host Controller 1

Select Enabled to activate USB Host Controller 1. The settings are Enabled and
Disabled.

USB Host Controller 2

Select Enabled to activate USB Host Controller 2. The settings are Enabled and
Disabled.

Legacy USB Support

This setting allows you to enable support for Legacy USB devices. The settings
are Enabled and Disabled.

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Chapter 4: BIOS

XAdvanced Processor Options

Access the submenu to make changes to the following settings.

CPU Speed

This is a display that indicates the speed of the installed processor.

Frequency Ratio (Available if supported by the CPU.)

The feature allows the user to set the internal frequency multiplier for the CPU. The
default setting is Default.

Core-Multi-Processing (Available if supported by the CPU.)

Set to Enabled to use a processor's Second Core and beyond. (Please refer to
Intel's web site for more information.) The options are Disabled and Enabled.

Machine Checking (Available if supported by the CPU.)

Set to Enabled to activate the function of Machine Checking and allow the CPU to
detect and report hardware (machine) errors via a set of model-specifi c registers

(MSRs). The options are Disabled and Enabled.

Thermal Management 2 (Available if supported by the CPU.)

Set to Enabled to use Thermal Management 2 (TM2) which will lower CPU voltage
and frequency when the CPU temperature reaches a predefi ned overheat threshold.
Set to Disabled to use Thermal Manager 1 (TM1), allowing CPU clocking to be
regulated via CPU Internal Clock modulation when the CPU temperature reaches
the overheat threshold.

C1 Enhanced Mode (Available if supported by the CPU.)

Set to Enabled to enable Enhanced Halt (C1) State to lower CPU voltage/frequency
to prevent the processor from overheating. The options are Enabled and Disabled.

Please refer to Intel’s web site for details.)

Execute Disable Bit (Available if supported by the CPU.)

Set to Enabled to allow the processor to classify areas in memory where an ap­plication code can execute and where it cannot, and thus preventing a worm or
a virus from inserting and creating a fl ood of codes to overwhelm the processor
or damage the system during an attack. The options are Disabled and Enabled.
For more information regarding this function, please refer to Intel's and Microsoft's
web sites.

Adjacent Cache Line Prefetch (Available if supported by the CPU.)

The CPU fetches the cache line for 64 bytes if this option is set to Disabled. The
CPU fetches both cache lines for 128 bytes as comprised if Enabled. The default

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

settings are Disabled for the Intel 5100 Series Processors and Enable for the 5000
Series Processors.

Hardware Prefetcher (Available if supported by the CPU.)

Set to Enabled to activate the hardware components that are used in conjunction
with software programs to prefetch data in order to shorten execution cycles and
maximize data processing effi ciency. The options are Disabled and Enabled.

Echo TPR

Set to Enabled to prevent xTPR messages from being sent to the system. The
options are Disabled and Enabled.

Intel <R> Virtualization Technology (Available when supported by the CPU.)

Select Enabled to use the feature of Virtualization Technology to allow one platform
to run multiple operating systems and applications in independent partitions, creat­ing multiple "virtual" systems in one physical computer. The options are Enabled
and Disabled.

Note: If there is any change to this setting, you will need to power off and
restart the system for the change to take effect. Please refer to Intel’s
web site for details.

Intel EIST Support (Available when supported by the CPU.)

Select Enabled to use the Enhanced Intel SpeedStep Technology and allow the
system to automatically adjust processor voltage and core frequency in an effort
to reduce power consumption and heat dissipation. The options are Enabled and
Disabled. Please refer to Intel’s web site for details.

XCPU Cache Control

Direct Cache Access (Available if supported by the CPU.)

Set to Enable to route inbound network IO traffi c directly into processor caches
to reduce memory latency and improve network performance. The options are

Disabled and Enabled.

DCA Delay Clocks (Available if supported by the CPU.)

This featu re allow s the user t o set the c lock d elay set ting fr om sno op to prefetc h
for Dir ect C ache Ac c ess. S elec t a set ting f rom 8 ( bus cyc les) to 120 (bus cycle s)
(in 8 -cyc le inc rement). Th e default s etti ng is 32 (bus cycles).

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Chapter 4: BIOS

XI/O Device Confi guration

Access the submenu to make changes to the following settings.

KBC Clock Input

This setting allows you to select clock frequency for KBC. The options are 6MHz,
8MHz, 12MHz, and 16MHz.

Serial Port A

This setting allows you to assign control of serial port A. The options are Enabled
(user defi ned), Disabled, and Auto (BIOS- or OS- controlled).

Base I/O Address

This setting allows you to select the base I/O address for serial port A. The options
are 3F8, 2F8, 3E8, and 2E8.

Interrupt

This setting allows you to select the IRQ (interrupt request) for serial port A. The
options are IRQ3 and IRQ4.

Serial Port B

This setting allows you to assign control of serial port B.The options are Enabled
(user defi ned), Disabled, Auto (BIOS controlled) and OS Controlled.

Mode

This setting allows you to set the type of device that will be connected to serial
port B. The options are Normal and IR (for an infrared device).

Base I/O Address

This setting allows you to select the base I/O address for serial port B. The options
are 3F8, 2F8, 3E8 and 2E8.

Interrupt

This setting allows you to select the IRQ (interrupt request) for serial port B. The
options are IRQ3 and IRQ4.

Parallel Port

This setting allows you to assign control of the parallel port. The options are Enabled
(user defi ned), Disabled and Auto (BIOS- or OS- controlled).

Base I/O Address

Select the base I/O address for the parallel port. The options are 378, 278 and
3BC.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Interrupt

This setting allows you to select the IRQ (interrupt request) for the parallel port.
The options are IRQ5 and IRQ7.

Mode

This feature allows you to specify the parallel port mode. The options are Output
only, Bi-Directional, EPP and ECP.

DMA Channel

This item allows you to specify the DMA channel for the parallel port. The options
are DMA1 and DMA3.

Floppy Disk Controller

This setting allows you to assign control of the fl oppy disk controller. The options
are Enabled (user defi ned), Disabled, and Auto (BIOS and OS controlled).

Base I/O Address

This setting allows you to select the base I/O address for the Floppy port. The op­tions are Primary and Secondary

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Chapter 4: BIOS

XDMI Event Logging

Access the submenu to make changes to the following settings.

Event Log Validity

This is a display to inform you of the event log validity. It is not a setting.

Event Log Capacity

This is a display to inform you of the event log capacity. It is not a setting.

View DMI Event Log

Highlight this item and press <Enter> to view the contents of the event log.

Event Logging
This setting allows you to Enable or Disable event logging.

ECC Event Logging
This setting allows you to Enable or Disable ECC event logging.

Mark DMI Events as Read

Highlight this item and press <Enter> to mark the DMI events as read.

Clear All DMI Event Logs

Select Yes and press <Enter> to clear all DMI event logs. The options are Yes
and No.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

XConsole Redirection

Access the submenu to make changes to the following settings.

COM Port Address

This item allows you to specify which COM port to direct the remote console to:
Onboard COM A or Onboard COM B. The default setting is Disabled.

BAUD Rate

This item allows you to set the BAUD rate for console redirection. The options are
300, 1200, 2400, 9600, 19.2K, 38.4K, 57.6K, and 115.2K.

Console Type

This item allows you to set console redirection type. The options are VT100,
VT100/8bit, PC-ANSI/7bit, PC ANSI, VT100+,

Flow Control

VT-UTF8 and ASCII.

This item allows you to select the fl ow control option for console redirection. The
options are: None, XON/XOFF, and CTS/RTS.

Console Connection

This item allows you to decide how console redirection is to be connected: either

Direct or Via Modem.

Continue CR after POST

This item allows you to decide if you want to continue with console redirection after
the POST routine. The options are On and Off.

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Chapter 4: BIOS

XHardware Monitor Logic

Highlight an item and hit <Enter> to see the status of the item:

CPU1 Temperature/CPU1 Second Core Temperature

CPU2 Temperature/CPU2 Second Core Temperature

CPU1 Temperature/CPU2 Temperature/ CPU3 Temperature/ CPU4
Temperature

System Temperature

Fan1-Fan8 Speeds

If the feature of Auto Fan Control is enabled, the BIOS will automatically display
the status of the fans indicated in this item.

Fan Speed Control Modes

This feature allows the user to decide how the system controls the speeds of the
onboard fans. The CPU temperature and the fan speed are correlative. When the
CPU on-die temperature increases, the fan speed will also increase, and vice versa.
If the option is set to 3-pin fan, the fan speed is controlled by voltage. If the option
is set to 4-pin, the fan speed will be controlled by Pulse Width Modulation (PWM).
Select 3-pin if your chassis came with 3-pin fan headers. Select 4-pin if your chas­sis came with 4-pin fan headers. Select Workstation if your system is used as a
Workstation. Select Server if your system is used as a Server. Select Disable to
disable fan speed control and allow the onboard fans to constantly run at full speed
(12V). The Options are: 1. Disable, 2. 3-pin (Server), 3. 3-pin (Workstation), 4. 4-pin
(Server) and 5. 4-pin (Workstation).

Voltage Monitoring

The following items will be monitored and displayed:
Vcore A/Vcore B, -12V/+12V, P1V5/P_VTT/Vbat, +3.3V, 5Vsb/5VDD

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

XIPMI (The option is available only when an IPMI card is
installed in the system.)

IPMI Specifi cation Version: This item displays the current IPMI Version.

Firmware Version: This item displays the current Firmware Version.

System Event Logging

Select Enabled to enable IPMI Event Logging. When this function is set to Disabled,
the system will continue to log events received via system interface. The options
are Enabled and Disabled.

Clear System Event Logging

Enable this function to force the BIOS to clear the system event logs during the
next cold boot. The options are Enabled and Disabled.

Existing Event Log Number

This item displays the number of the existing event log.

Event Log Control

System Firmware Progress
Enable this function to log POST progress. The options are Enabled and Dis-

abled.

BIOS POST Errors
Enable this function to log POST errors. The options are Enabled and Dis-

abled.

4-18

Chapter 4: BIOS

BIOS POST Watch Dog

Set to Enabled to enable POST Watch Dog. The options are Enabled and

Disabled.

OS Boot Watch Dog

Set to Enabled to enable OS Boot Watch Dog. The options are Enabled and

Disabled.

Timer for Loading OS (Minutes)

This feature allows the user to set the time value (in minutes) for the previous
item: OS Boot Watch Dog by keying-in a desired number in the blank. The
default setting is 10 (minutes.) (Please ignore this option when OS Boot Watch
Dog is set to Disabled.)

Time Out Option

This feature allows the user to determine what action to take in an event of a
system boot failure. The options are No Action, Reset, Power Off and Power
Cycles.

XSystem Event Log/System Event Log (List Mode)

These options display the System Event (SEL) Log and System Event (SEL) Log
in List Mode. Items include: SEL (System Event Log) Entry Number, SEL Record
ID, SEL Record Type, Time Stamp, Generator ID, SEL Message Revision, Sensor
Type, Sensor Number, SEL Event Type, Event Description, and SEL Event Data.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

XRealtime Sensor Data

This feature display information from motherboard sensors, such as temperatures,
fan speeds and voltages of various components.

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Chapter 4: BIOS

4-5 Security

Choose Security from the Phoenix BIOS Setup Utility main menu with the arrow
keys. You should see the following display. Security setting options are displayed
by highlighting the setting using the arrow keys and pressing <Enter>. All Security
BIOS settings are described in this section.

Supervisor Password Is:

This feature indicates if a supervisor password has been entered to the system.
Clear means such a password has not been used, and Set means a supervisor
password has been entered.

User Password Is:

This feature indicates if a user password has been entered to the system. Clear
means such a password has not been used, and Set means a user password has
been entered.

Set Supervisor Password

When the item Set "Supervisor Password" is highlighted, hit the <Enter> key. When
prompted, type the Supervisor's password in the dialogue box to set or to change
supervisor's password, which allows access to the BIOS.

Set User Password

When the item "Set User Password" is highlighted, hit the <Enter> key. When
prompted, type the user's password in the dialogue box to set or to change the
user's password, which allows access to the system at boot-up.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Password on Boot

This setting allows you to determine if a password is required for a user to enter
the system at system boot. The options are Enabled (password required) and
Disabled (password not required).

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Chapter 4: BIOS

4-6 Boot

Choose Boot from the Phoenix BIOS Setup Utility main menu with the arrow keys.
You should see the following display. See details on how to change the order and
specs of boot devices in the Item Specifi c Help window. All Boot BIOS settings
are described in this section.

Boot List

Candidate
List

Boot Priority Order/Excluded from Boot Orders

The devices included in the boot list section (above) are bootable devices listed in
the sequence of boot order as specifi ed. The boot functions for the devices included
in the candidate list (above) are currently disabled. Use a <+> key or a <-> key to
move the device up or down. Use the <f> key or the <r> key to specify the type of
an USB device, either fi xed or removable. You can select one item from the boot
list and hit the <x> key to remove it from the list of bootable devices (to make its
resource available for other bootable devices). Subsequently , you can select an item
from the candidate list and hit the <x> key to remove it from the candidate list and
put it in the boot list. This item will then become a bootable device. See details on
changing the boot priority order of a device in the "Item Specifi c Help" window.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

4-7 Exit

Choose Exit from the Phoenix BIOS Setup Utility main menu with the arrow keys.
You should see the following display. All Exit BIOS settings are described in this
section.

Exit Saving Changes

Highlight this item and hit <Enter> to save any changes you've made and to exit
the BIOS Setup utility.

Exit Discarding Changes

Highlight this item and hit <Enter> to exit the BIOS Setup utility without saving any
changes you may have made.

Load Setup Defaults

Highlight this item and hit <Enter> to load the default settings for all items in the
BIOS Setup. These are the safest settings to use.

Discard Changes

Highlight this item and hit <Enter> to discard (cancel) any changes you've made.
You will remain in the Setup utility.

Save Changes

Highlight this item and hit <Enter> to save any changes you've made. You will
remain in the Setup utility.

4-24

Appendix A: BIOS POST Error Codes

Appendix A

BIOS POST Error Codes

This section lists the POST (Power On Self Test) Error codes for the Phoenix BIOS.
POST codes are divided into two categories: recoverable and terminal. The recover­able error codes are listed below.

Recoverable POST Errors

When a recoverable type of error occurs during POST, the BIOS will display an
POST code that describes the problem. BIOS may also issue one of the following
beep codes:

1 long and two short beeps - video confi guration error

•

1 repetitive long beep - no memory detected•

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Notes

A-2

Appendix B: Installing the Windows OS

Appendix B

Installing the Windows OS

After all hardware components have been installed, you must fi rst confi gure Intel
South Bridge RAID Settings before you install the Windows OS and other software
drivers. T o confi gure RAID settings, please refer to RAID Confi guration User Guides
posted on our web site at www.supermicro.com/support/manuals.

B-1 Installing the Windows XP/2000/2003 OS for
Systems with RAID Functions

Insert Microsoft's Windows XP/2000/2003 Setup CD in the CD Driver, and the 1.
system will start booting up from CD.

Press the <F6> key when the message-" Press F6 if you need to install a 2.
third party SCSI or RAID driver" displays.

When the Windows XP/2000/2003 Setup screen appears, press "S" to specify 3.
additional device(s).

Insert the driver diskette-"ITE RAID XP/2000/2003 Driver for IDE" into Drive 4.
A: and press the <Enter> key.

When the Windows XP/2000/2003 Setup screen appears, press "S" to specify 5.
additional device(s).

Insert the driver diskette-"Intel AA RAID XP/2000/2003 Driver for ICH9R" into 6.
Drive A: and press the <Enter> key.

Choose the Intel(R) ICH9R 7. SATA RAID Controller from the list indicated in
the XP/2000/2003 Setup Screen, and press the <Enter> key.

Press the <Enter> key to continue the installation process. (If you need to 8.
specify any additional devices to be installed, do it at this time.) Once all
devices are specifi ed, press the <Enter> key to continue with the installation.

From the Windows XP/2000/2003 Setup screen, press the <Enter> key. The 9.
XP/2000/2003 Setup will automatically load all device fi les and then, continue
the Windows XP/2000/2003 installation.

After the Windows XP/2000/2003 OS Installation is completed, the system will 10.
automatically reboot.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

B-2 Installing the Windows XP/2000/2003 OS for
Systems without RAID Functions

Insert Microsoft's Windows XP/2000/2003 Setup CD in the CD Driver, and the 1.
system will start booting up from CD.

Press the <F6> key when the message-" Press F6 if you need to install a 2.
third party SCSI or RAID driver" displays.

When the Windows XP/2000/2003 Setup screen appears, press "S" to specify 3.
additional device(s).

Insert the driver diskette-"ITE RAID XP/2000/2003 Driver for IDE" into Drive 4.
A: and press the <Enter> key.

Press the <Enter> key to proceed with the installation process. (If you need 5.
to specify any additional devices to be installed, do it at this time.) Once all
devices are specifi ed, press the <Enter> key to continue with the installation.

From the Windows XP/2000/2003 Setup screen, press the <Enter> key. The 6.
XP/2000/2003 Setup will automatically load all device fi les and then continue
with the Windows XP/2000/2003 installation.

After the Windows XP/2000/2003 OS Installation is completed, the system will 7.
automatically reboot.

Insert the Supermicro Setup CD that came with your motherboard into the CD 8.
Drive during system boot, and the main screen will display.

B-2

Appendix C: Installing Other Software Programs and Drivers

Appendix C

Installing Other Software Programs and Drivers

C-1 Installing Other Drivers

Afte r you've inst alled th e Windows O perati ng System, a sc reen as sho wn below
will app ear. Yo u are ready t o instal l soft ware p rogra ms and dr ivers th at have not
yet been installed. To install th e s e s oftwa r e p r o g r a m s a n d drivers, c l i ck the ico n s
to the ri ght of the se items .

Driver/Tool Installation Display Screen

Notes:

1. Click the icons showing a hand writing on the paper to view the readme
fi les for e ac h i tem . Cl ic k a c o m pu ter i c o n o n t he r i g ht of an i te m to i nst a ll
an item (fro m top to the bottom) one at a ti me. After installing each

ite m, yo u m u st r e-b o o t t h e sys t em b ef o r e p ro c e e d in g w i t h t h e n ext
item on the list.

2. The X7DCA-3 supports SAS RAID features. To confi gure the LSI SAS
HostRAID, please refer to the LSI folder for the LSI SAS HostRAID Utility
and documentation. The LSI folder is included in the CD-ROM that came
with your motherboard.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

C-2 Confi guring Supero Doctor III

The Supero Doctor III program is a Web-based management tool that supports
remote management capability. It includes Remote and Local Management tools.
The local management is called the SD III Client. The Supero Doctor III program
included on the CDROM that came with your motherboard allows you to monitor
the environment and operations of your system. Supero Doctor III displays crucial
system information such as CPU temperatures, system voltages and fan status.
See the Figure below for a display of the Supero Doctor III interface.

Note 1: Both default username and password are ADMIN.
Note 2: In the Windows OS environment, the Supero Doctor III settings

take precedence over the BIOS settings. When fi rst installed, Supero
Doctor III adopts the temperature threshold settings previously set in the
BIOS. Any subsequent changes to these thresholds must be made within
Supero Doctor, since the SD III settings override the BIOS settings. For
the Windows OS to adopt the BIOS temperature threshold settings, please
change the SDIII settings to be the same as those set in the BIOS.

Supero Doctor III Interface Display Screen-I (Health Information)

C-2

Appendix C: Installing Other Software Programs and Drivers

Supero Doctor III Interface Display Screen-II (Remote Control)

Note: SD III Sof t ware c an be dow nlo aded f rom o ur Web site at: f t p://f tp.

supermicro.com/utility/Supero_D octor_III/. You can also download SDIII
User's Guide at: http://ww w.supermicro.com/PRODUCT/Manuals/SDIII/
UserG uide.pdf. For th e Linux OS, we will st ill recom mend that you use
Supero Doctor II.

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X7DCA-3/X7DCA-i User's Manual

Notes

C-4