Supero SUPER P4QH6, SUPER P4QH8 User Manual

®

SUPER P4QH8
SUPER P4QH6

USER’S MANUAL

Revision 1.0a

SUPER

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.

SUPERMICRO COMPUTER 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 COMPUTER BE LIABLE FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT,
SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, 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, THE VENDOR SHALL NOT HAVE
LIABILITY FOR ANY HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, OR DATA 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.
Supermicro's total liability for all claims will not exceed the price paid for the hardware
product.

Unless you request and receive written permission from SUPER MICRO COMPUTER, 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 © 2002 by SUPER MICRO COMPUTER INC.
All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

iii

Preface

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 SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 mainboard. The SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 sup­ports up to four Intel XeonTM MP processors of up to 1.6+ GHz at a 400 MHz
system (front side) bus speed. Please refer to the support section of our
web site for a complete listing of supported processors (http://
www.supermicro.com/TechSupport.htm).

Manual Organization

Chapter 1 includes a checklist of what should be included in your

mainboard box, describes the features, specifications and performance of
the SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 mainboard and provides detailed information about
the chipset.

Chapter 2 begins with instructions on handling static-sensitive devices.
Read this chapter when you want to install the processor and DIMM memory
modules and when mounting the mainboard in the chassis. Also refer to
this chapter to connect the floppy and hard disk drives, SCSI drives, the IDE
interfaces, the parallel and serial ports and the twisted wires for the power
supply, the reset button, the power LED, the speaker and the keyboard.

If you encounter any problems, see Chapter 3, which describes trouble­shooting procedures for the video, the memory and the setup configuration
stored in CMOS. For quick reference, a general FAQ [Frequently Asked
Questions] section is provided. Instructions are also included for contact­ing technical support. In addition, you can visit our web site at
www.supermicro.com/techsupport.htm for more detailed information.

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

Appendix A gives information on BIOS error beep codes.

Appendix B provides POST checkpoint codes.

iv

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

Preface

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

Manual Organization ................................................................................................... ii i

Chapter 1: Introduction

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

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

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

SuperP4QH8/P4QH6 Image..................................................................... 1-3

Super P4QH8/P4QH6 Layout.................................................................. 1-4

Super P4QH8/P4QH6 Quick Reference ............................................... 1-5

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

ServerWorks GC-HE Chipset: System Block Diagram ....................... 1-8

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

1-3 Special Features............................................................................................. 1-9

ATI Graphics Controller .......................................................................... 1-9

BIOS Recovery ......................................................................................... 1-9

Recovery from AC Power Loss ........................................................... 1-9

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

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

1-6 Power Supply ............................................................................................... 1-13

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 PGA Processor Installation ........................................................................... 2-1

2- 3 Installing Memory in the MEC ....................................................................... 2-5

2- 4 I/O Ports/Control Panel Connectors ............................................................. 2-8

2-5 Connecting Cables ........................................................................................ 2-10

Main ATX Power Supply Connection ................................................. 2-10

Secondary Power Connection ............................................................. 2-10

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

IDE/HDD LED ........................................................................................... 2-10

PWR_ON .................................................................................................. 2-11

Reset ......................................................................................................... 2-11

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

v

NIC_LED ................................................................................................... 2-11

I2C .............................................................................................................. 2-12

Chassis Intrusion ................................................................................... 2-12

Keyboard Lock ....................................................................................... 2-12

Overheat LED ......................................................................................... 2-12

Speaker ................................................................................................... 2-1 2

Fan Headers ........................................................................................... 2-13

Serial Ports ............................................................................................. 2-13

ATX PS/2 Keyboard and Mouse Ports ................................................ 2-13

Universal Serial Bus (USB) Connector .............................................. 2-13

IPMB ......................................................................................................... 2-13

SMB ........................................................................................................... 2-14

Wake-On-LAN ......................................................................................... 2-14

Wake-On-Ring ......................................................................................... 2-14

Power Supply Fail Header ................................................................... 2-14

Front Panel NMI Header........................................................................ 2-15

2- 6 DIP Switch Settings ..................................................................................... 2-15

DIP Switch 1: Processor Speed ......................................................... 2-15

2- 7 Jumper Settings ............................................................................................ 2-16

CMOS Clear............................................................................................. 2-16

SCSI Termination Enable/Disable.......................................................... 2-16

LAN Enable/Disable ................................................................................ 2-17

Sp rea d S pe ctr um Ena bl e/ Dis ab le ......................................................... 2-17

Third Power Supply Fail Alarm Enable/Disable .................................. 2-17

LVD Channel A SCSI Termination Enable/Disable............................. 2-18

LVD Channel B SCSI Termination Enable/Disable ............................. 2-18

Overheat Fan Force On ........................................................................ 2-18

VGA Enable/Disable ............................................................................... 2-18

2-8 Debug LEDs................................................................................................... 2-19

2- 9 Parallel Port, Floppy/Hard Disk Drive and SCSI Connections ............... 2-20

Parallel Port Connector ......................................................................... 2-20

Floppy Connector ................................................................................... 2-21

IDE Connectors ...................................................................................... 2-2 1

Ultra320/160 SCSI Connectors ............................................................. 2-22

2-10 Installing Software Drivers......................................................................... 2-23

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

vi

Chapter 3: Troubleshooting

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

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

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

No Video ................................................................................................... 3-1

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

Losing the System’s Setup Configuration ........................................... 3-2

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

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

3-4 Returning Merchandise for Service............................................................ 3-5

Chapter 4: AMIBIOS

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

4- 2 BIOS Features.................................................................................................. 4- 2

4- 3 Running Setup.................................................................................................. 4-2

Main Menu.................................................................................................. 4-3

4-4 Advanced BIOS Setup .................................................................................... 4-4

4- 5 Chipset Setup................................................................................................. 4-14

4-6 PCI PnP Setup ................................................................................................ 4-16

4-7 Power Setup .................................................................................................. 4-18

4- 8 Boot Setup...................................................................................................... 4-20

4-9 Security Setup ............................................................................................... 4-22

4-10 Exit Setup ....................................................................................................... 4-24

Appendices:

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

Appendix B: BIOS POST Checkpoint Codes ......................................................... B- 1

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-1

Introduction

Chapter 1

Introduction

1-1 Overview

Checklist

Congratulations on purchasing your motherboard from a 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.

Please check that the following items have been included with your mother­board. If anything listed here is damaged or missing, contact your retailer.

One (1) Supermicro Mainboard

Four (4) CPU heatsink fans

Four (4) sets of CPU heatsink retention clips

One (1) MEC (Memory Extension Card)

One (1) MEC Retention Plate with screws (SKT-0124)

One (1) CPU Retention Plate with screws (SKT-0125)

One (1) UDMA/100 ribbon cable for IDE devices

One (1) floppy ribbon cable

One (1) COM port serial ribbon cable

One (1) I/O back panel shield (CSE-PT2)

One (1) Supermicro CD and diskettes containing drivers and utilities

One (1) User's/BIOS Manual

One (1) 68-pin Ultra320/160 SCSI cable

One (1) set of SCSI driver diskettes

One (1) SCSI manual

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

1-2

Introduction

Contacting Supermicro

Headquarters

Address: SuperMicro 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: SuperMicro 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-Pacific

Address: SuperMicro, Taiwan

D5, 4F, No. 16 Chien-Ba Road

Chung-Ho 235, Taipei Hsien, 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

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-3

Introduction

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6

Figure 1-1. SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 Image

Note: The only difference between the P4QH8 and the P4QH6 is the type of

onboard SCSI controller (Ultra320 and Ultra160, respectively).

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

1-4

Introduction

Figure 1-2. SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 Layout

(not drawn to scale)

- Memory modules must be installed in fours (see Section 2-3).

- DIP Switch 1 sets the processor speed (see Section 2-6).

- Refer also to Chapter 2 for the locations of the I/O ports, Front Control
Panel (JF1) connectors and details on jumper settings and pin definitions.

- VRM Slots: These are included to support future processors with
different voltage requirements (VRM modules not included).

- Jumpers not indicated are for test purposes only.

*The P4QH6 has an AIC-7899 SCSI controller.

CPU1

CPU2

ATX POWER

CPU4

CPU3

SMB

IPMI

J38

J47

BATTERY

IPMB

COM2/4

Speaker

VGA Port

CPU FAN1

KYBD/

MOUSE

ATI

Rage XL

J20

J21

Parallel

Port

USB0/1

COM1

LAN

J13

MEC Slot

J5

J9

JPA1/JPA2

J10

J7

J6

J8

PCI-X #1 (P1)

PCI-X #2 (P1)

PCI-X #3 (S1)

PCI-X #4 (S1)

PCI-X #5 (P2)

PCI-X #6 (P2)

Ultra III LVD/SE ChB

AIC-7902*

Ultra III LVD/SE ChA

CHS

FAN3

CHS

FAN4

SUPER P4QH8

®

Floppy

PRI IDE

SEC IDE

SW1

BIOS

North
Bridge

South

Bridge

WOL

I/O

Bridge

I/O

Bridge

CPU

FAN2

JF1

CHS FAN2

OH FAN2

OH FAN1

CHS

FAN1

+12V PWR

Conn

CPU FAN3

CPU FAN4

JP64

JP50

JP47

JP52

PWR
LED

VRM Slot

VRM Slot

JBT1

J15

J19

J14

+12V PWR

Conn

JA1

JA2

J63

J62

JPL1

JP55

JP60

CMOS Clear

Contact

Pads

JP5

Debug LEDs

D20 - D13

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-5

Introduction

P4QH8/P4QH6 Quick Reference

Jumper Description Default Setting

JA4 SCSI Enable/Disable Pins 1-2 (Enabled)
JBT1 CMOS Clear See Section 2-7
JPA1/JA2 SCSI Ch A/B Term En/Dis Open (Enabled)
JPL1 LAN Enable/Disable Pins 1-2 (Enabled)
JP5 Spread Spectrum Closed (Enabled)
JP47 3rd P/S Fail Alarm En/Dis Open (Disabled)
JP48 Overheat Fan Force On Open (Normal)
JP55,60 VGA Enable/Disable Pins 1-2 (Enabled)

Connector Description

ATX PWR CONN Primary ATX Power Connector
COM1/3 COM1/3 Serial Port Connector
COM2/4 COM2/4 Serial Port /Header
CPU/CH/OH FAN CPU/Overheat/Chassis Fan Headers
D13-D20 Debug LEDs (see Section 2-8)
IPMI IPMI Slot (optional)
JA1/JA2 Ultra320/160 Channel A/B LVD SCSI
JF1 Front Control Panel Header
JP46 Power Supply Fail Header
JP50 Front Panel NMI Header
JP52 Wake-On-Ring (WOR) Connnector
JP62 IPMB Connector
J14 Primary IDE Hard Disk Drive Connector
J15 Secondary IDE Hard Disk Drive Connector
J19 Floppy Disk Drive Connector
J20 Parallel Printer Port
J21 PS/2 Keyboard/Mouse
J38 +12V 8-pin Power Connector
J47 +12V 4-pin Power Connector
J63 System Management Bus Connector
LAN Ethernet Port (Mb LAN)
MEC Slot Memory Expansion Card Slot
USB 0/1 Universal Serial Bus Ports
WOL Wake-on-LAN Header

Note: The only difference between the P4QH8 and the P4QH6 is the type of
the onboard SCSI (Ultra320 and Ultra160, respectively).

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

1-6

Introduction

Motherboard Features

CPU

• One, two or four Intel XeonTM MP processors of up to 1.6+ GHz with a

512KB L3 cache at a front side bus speed of 400 MHz.

Note: Please refer to the support section of our web site for a complete listing of supported
processors (http://www.supermicro.com/TechSupport.htm). See Section 2-2 for more details.

Memory

• MEC (Memory Expansion Card) with 16 184-pin DIMM sockets support-

ing up to 32 GB of registered ECC DDR-200 (PC1600) SDRAM

Note: Memory modules must be installed four at a time into the MEC (see Section 2-3). DDR­266 (PC2100) is supported but only at 200 MHz.

Chipset

• ServerWorks Grand Champion HE

Expansion Slots

• Six 64-bit, 100 MHz PCI-X slots

• One MEC slot

• One 32-bit PCI slot for debug POST card

BIOS

• 4 Mb AMI® Flash ROM

• APM 1.2, DMI 2.1, PCI 2.2, ACPI 1.0, Plug and Play (PnP), SYMBIOS 2.3

PC Health Monitoring

• Four onboard voltage monitors for CPU core, +3.3V, +5V and +12V

• Four-fan status monitor with firmware/software on/off control

• CPU fan auto-off in sleep mode

• Power-up mode control for recovery from AC power loss

• System overheat LED and control

• System resource alert

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-7

Introduction

Onboard I/O

• AIC-7902 for dual channel Ultra320 SCSI (P4QH8)

• AIC-7899 for dual channel Ultra160 SCSI (P4QH6)

• Integrated ATI Rage XL 8 MB Graphics Controller

• Intel 82550 for integrated onboard Ethernet

• Dual channel ATA/100 EIDE bus master controller

• 1 floppy port interface

• 2 Fast UART 16550A compatible serial ports

• 1 EPP/ECP (Enhanced Parallel Port/Extended Capabilities Port)

• PS/2 mouse and PS/2 keyboard ports

• 2 USB 1.1 (Universal Serial Bus) ports

Other

• Internal/external modem ring-on

• Recovery from AC power loss control

• Wake-on-LAN (WOL)

CD/Diskette Utilities

• BIOS flash upgrade utility

• Device drivers

Dimensions

• SWTX: 16" x 13" (406 x 330 mm)

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

1-8

Introduction

Figure 1-5. ServerWorks GC-HE Chipset:

System Block Diagram

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

Features Section for details on the features of your motherboard.

CMIC

400 MHz Host Bus

CPU 2 CPU 1CPU 4 CPU 3

CIOB30

REM C

288-bit ,

200 MHz

Memory

Bus

REM C

REM C

REM C

Memory Board (32 GB Total

)

CIOB30

DIMM Slots

ZCR

PCI-X Slot

SCSI

PCI-X Slot

PCI-X Slot

PCI-X Slot

PCI-X Slot

PCI-X Slot

CSB5

IPMI

SIO USB 1.1

ATA-100

IDE

BIOS

Serial

Port

Parallel

Port

Floppy

ATA-100

IDE

LAN VGA

Thin IMB

IMB Bus

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-9

Introduction

1-2 Chipset Overview

The ServerWorks Grand Champion HE Classic chipset was designed for
quad processor systems with very high memory capacity requirements.
The chipset is comprised of three major components: CMIC (Champion
Memory and I/O Controller), CIOB30 (Champion I/O Bridge) and REMC (Reli­ability Enhanced Memory Controller).

The CMIC interfaces directly with the front side (system) bus and integrates
the functions of the main memory controller for DDR memory. The CIOB30 is
the I/O bridge between the IMB interface and the dual peer PCI-X bus inter­faces. The REMCs perform address and data path multiplexing between the
CMIC and main memory. Each set of four DIMM slots has its own REMC.

1-3 Special Features

ATI Graphics Controller

The P4QH8/P4QH6 has an integrated ATI video controller based on the Rage
XL graphics chip. The Rage XL utilizes 8 MB of memory and fully supports
sideband addressing. This onboard graphics package can provide a band­width of up to 512 MB/sec over a 32-bit graphics memory bus.

BIOS Recovery

The BIOS Recovery function allows you to recover your BIOS image file if
the BIOS flashing procedure fails (see Section 3-3).

Recovery from AC Power Loss

BIOS provides a setting for you to determine how the system will respond
when AC power is lost and then restored to the system. You can choose
for the system to remain powered off (in which case you must hit the
power switch to turn it back on) or for it to automatically return to a power
on state. See the Power Lost Control setting in the Advanced BIOS Setup
section (Peripheral Device Configuration) to change this setting. The de­fault setting is Always On.

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

1-10

Introduction

1-4 PC Health Monitoring

This section describes the PC health monitoring features of the SUPER
P4QH8/P4QH6. These motherboards have an onboard System Hardware
Monitor chip that supports PC health monitoring.

Onboard Voltage Monitors for the CPU Cores, +5V and +12V

The onboard voltage monitor will scan these voltages 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 define the
sensitivity of the voltage monitor.

Fan Status Monitor with Firmware/Software On/Off Control

The PC health monitor can check the RPM status of the CPU cooling fans.
The onboard 3-pin CPU fans are controlled by the power management func­tions. The thermal fan is controlled by the overheat detection logic.

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-defined threshold. The overheat circuitry runs independently from
the CPU. It can continue to monitor for overheat conditions even when the
CPU is in sleep mode. Once it detects that the CPU temperature is too high,
it will automatically turn on the thermal control fan to prevent any overheat
damage to the CPU.

CPU Fan Auto-Off in Sleep Mode

The CPU fan activates when the power is turned on. It can be turned off
when the CPU is in sleep mode. When in sleep mode, the CPU will not run
at full power, thereby generating less heat.

System Resource Alert

This feature is available when used with Intel's LANDesk Client Manager
(optional). It is used to notify the user of certain system events. For
example, if the system is running low on virtual memory and there is insuf­ficient hard drive space for saving the data, you can be alerted of the
potential problem.

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-11

Introduction

Hardware BIOS Virus Protection

The system BIOS is protected by hardware that prevents viruses from
infecting the BIOS area. The user can only change the BIOS content
through the flash utility provided by Supermicro. This feature can prevent
viruses from infecting the BIOS area and destroying valuable data.

Auto-Switching Voltage Regulator for the CPU Core

The auto-switching voltage regulator for the CPU core can support up to
20A current and auto-sense voltage IDs ranging from 1.4V to 3.5V. This
will allow the regulator to run cooler and thus make the system more stable.

1-5 ACPI Features

ACPI stands for Advanced Configuration and Power Interface. The ACPI
specification defines a flexible and abstract hardware interface that pro­vides a standard way to integrate power management features throughout
a PC system, including its hardware, operating system and application soft­ware. This enables the system to automatically turn on and off peripherals
such as CD-ROMs, network cards, hard disk drives and printers. This also
includes consumer devices connected to the PC such as VCRs, TVs, tele­phones and stereos.

In addition to enabling operating system-directed power management, ACPI
provides a generic system event mechanism for Plug and Play and an oper­ating system-independent interface for configuration control. ACPI lever­ages the Plug and Play BIOS data structures while providing a processor
architecture-independent implementation that is compatible with Win­dows2000.

Microsoft OnNow

The OnNow design initiative is a comprehensive, system-wide approach to
system and device power control. OnNow is a term for a PC that is always
on but appears to be off and responds immediately to user or other re­quests.

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

1-12

Introduction

Slow Blinking LED for Suspend-State Indicator

When the CPU goes into a suspend state, the chassis power LED will start
blinking to indicate that the CPU is in suspend mode. When the user presses
any key, the CPU will wake-up and the LED will automatically stop blinking
and remain on.

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. Depressing
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 depress 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 SoftOff state. Note that external modem
ring-on can only be used with an ATX 2.01 (or above) compliant power
supply.

Wake-On-LAN (WOL)

Wake-On-LAN is defined as the ability of a management application to re­motely power up a computer that is powered off. Remote PC setup, up­dates and asset tracking can occur after hours and on weekends so that
daily LAN traffic is kept to a minimum and users are not interrupted. The
motherboards have a 3-pin header (WOL) to connect to the 3-pin header on
a Network Interface Card (NIC) that has WOL capability. Wake-On-LAN
must be enabled in BIOS. Note that Wake-On-Lan can only be used with an
ATX 2.01 (or above) compliant power supply.

Chapter 1: Introduction

1-13

Introduction

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 CPU clock rates of 1 GHz and above.

The SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 accommodates ATX power supplies. Although
most power supplies generally meet the specifications required by the CPU,
some are inadequate. Your power supply must have 24-pin, 8-pin and 4­pin power connectors and should supply at least 600W of power - an even
higher wattage power supply is recommended for high-load configurations.
Also your power supply must provide a +5V standby voltage that supplies
at least 720 mA of current. In addition, 1.5A is needed for the LAN port.

It is strongly recommended that you use a high quality power supply that
meets ATX power supply Specification 2.02 or above. Additionally, in ar­eas where noisy power transmission is present, you may choose to install
a line filter 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. For the P4QH8/P4QH6, we recommend the Supermicro
SC862 4U chassis (CSE-0035) and the SC850 P4 power supply (PWS-

0039), which provides 700 watts of continuous power.

1-7 Super I/O

The disk drive adapter functions of the Super I/O chip include a floppy 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 floppy 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), one of which supports serial infrared communication. Each UART
includes a 16-byte send/receive FIFO, a programmable baud rate generator,
complete modem control capability and a processor interrupt system.
Each UART includes a 16-byte send/receive FIFO, a programmable baud
rate generator, complete modem control capability and a processor inter­rupt system. 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.

SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

1-14

Introduction

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 Super I/O provides functions that comply with ACPI (Advanced Con­figuration and Power Interface), which includes support of legacy and ACPI
power management through an SMI or SCI function pin. It also features
auto power management to reduce power consumption.

The IRQs, DMAs and I/O space resources of the Super I/O can flexibly
adjust to meet ISA PnP requirements, which suppport ACPI and APM (Ad­vanced Power Management).

Chapter 2: Installation

2-1

Chapter 2

Installation

2-1 Static-Sensitive Devices

Electric-Static-Discharge (ESD) can damage electronic components. The
precautions listed below are generally sufficient to protect your equipment
from ESD. Also, to prevent damage to your system board, it is important to
handle it very carefully. Also note that the size and weight of the P4QH8/
P4QH6 motherboard system board can cause it to bend if handled improp­erly, which may result in damage. To prevent the P4QH8/P4QH6 from bend­ing, always keep one hand under the center of the board to support it when
handling.

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.

Unpacking

The motherboard is shipped in antistatic packaging to avoid static damage.
When unpacking the board, make sure the person handling it is static protected.

2-2 PGA Processor and Heatsink Installation

When handling the processor package, avoid placing direct
pressure on the label area of the fan. Also, do not place the
motherboard on a conductive surface, which can damage the
BIOS battery and prevent the system from booting up.

!

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SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

IMPORTANT: Always connect the power cord last and always remove it
before adding, removing or changing any hardware components. Make
sure that you install the processor into the CPU socket before you install
the CPU heat sink.

1. Locate the following components, which are included in the shipping
package. The amounts shown are for each CPU.

Retention brackets

(2)

Clips (2)

Screws* (4)

*These screws are for mounting the
motherboard to the CPU retention plate,
which should be placed between the
motherboard and the chassis to secure
the CPUs.

White pegs (4)

2. Insert the white pegs into the
black anchors. Do not force the
white pegs all the way in - only
about 1/3 of the way into the black
anchors.

3. Place a retention bracket in the
proper position and secure it by
pressing pegs into two of the retention
holes until you hear a *click*. The
clicking sound indicates that the peg is
locked and secured in the retention
plate.

Two pegs in
position

One retention bracket in
position

Black anchors (4)

Anchor/peg
assemblies

Processor Support:

Single or Dual: Intel Xeon MP processors to 1.6 GHz. Install processors
into the CPU1 (single) socket or CPU1 and and CPU4 sockets (dual).
Quad: Intel Xeon MP processors to 1.6 GHz.

Chapter 2: Installation

2-3

5. Lift the lever on the CPU socket:

lift the lever completely or you will
damage the CPU socket when
power is applied. (Install CPU1
first.)

Socket lever

6. Install the CPU in the socket. Make sure
that pin 1 of the CPU is seated on pin 1 of
the socket (both corners are marked with a
triangle). Install a CPU into CPU socket #1
first (you may install 2 or 4 CPUs).

Pin 1

7. Press the lever down until
you hear it *click* into the
locked position.

Socket lever in
locked position

4. Secure the other retention

bracket into position by
repeating Step 3.

8. Apply the proper amount of thermal
compound to the CPU die and place
the heatsink and fan on top of the
CPU.

Heatsink

9. Secure the heatsink by locking the
retention clips into their proper
position.

10. Connect the three wires of

the CPU fan to the respective CPU
fan connector. Repeat steps for
the other three CPUs. For a dual
configuration, install the next CPU
into the CPU4 socket.

CPU fan
connector

CPU fan
wires

Retention clip

CPU

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SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

Figure 2-1. 603PGA Socket: Empty and with Processor Installed

Warning! Make

sure you lift the
lever completely
when installing the
CPU. If the lever is
only partly raised,
damage to the
socket or CPU may
result.

!

Chapter 2: Installation

2-5

2-3 Installing Memory in the MEC

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

http://www.supermicro.com/TECHSUPPORT/FAQs/Memory_vendors.htm

CAUTION

Exercise extreme care when installing or removing DIMM
modules to prevent any possible damage. The MEC must be

populated in the manner described in Step 2 below.

Memory Support: The P4QH8/P4QH6 supports 128MB/256MB/512MB/
1GB and 2GB registered ECC DDR-266/200 SDRAM DIMM memory
modules*. Non-ECC or unbuffered SDRAM memory is not supported.

1. Removing the MEC (Memory Expansion Card):

You should remove the MEC whenever installing or removing DIMMs. The
MEC is attached to a retention plate with four screws. Do not remove
these. Instead, remove only the two screws that secure the MEC
retention plate to the chassis. After removing the board, place it on an
antistatic bag before inserting the DIMMs.

2. Populating the MEC:

Important: Because memory is accessed by a four-way interleaving

scheme, you must install modules four at a time and in the order shown
in Figure 2-2 and described here: Always install DIMMs from the bottom
of the MEC card up and in groups of four. If four DIMMs are to be
installed, you must populate the four DIMM slots along the bottom of the
MEC (see Figure 2-2). If eight are to be installed, you must populate the
eight bottom DIMM slots, and so on. It is recommended that all installed
DIMMs be the same brand, type, size and speed.

3. Inserting DIMMs:

Insert each DIMM module vertically into its slot. Pay attention to the notch
along the bottom of the module to prevent inserting it incorrectly. Gently
press down on the DIMM module until it snaps into place in the slot (see
Figure 2-3). If you use too much pressure when inserting the DIMMs you
may bend and damage the MEC.

*Note: TheP4QH8/P4QH6 has been designed to support 2GB DIMM
modules in each memory slot, but it has only been validated for 1GB

memory modules.

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SUPER P4QH8/P4QH6 User’s Manual

Figure 2-2. Populating the MEC

(Four DIMM installation shown)

4. Installing the MEC:

After populating the MEC, carefully install it back into its slot on the
motherboard, making sure it is fully seated. Finish by tightening the two
screws that secure the retention plate to the chassis.

Note: Always install DIMMs from the bottom of the MEC card up and in
groups of four. If four DIMMs are to be installed, you must populate the
four DIMM slots along the bottom of the MEC (as shown in Figure 2-2). If
eight are to be installed, you must populate the eight bottom DIMM slots,
and so on.