Parts of Motherboard
Parts of Motherboard 1. Back Panel Connectors & Ports
Connectors and ports for connecting the computer to external devices such as display ports, audio ports, USB ports, Ethernet ports, PS/2 ports etc.
2. PCI Slots
PCI: Peripheral Component Interconnect
Slot for older expansion cards such as sound cards, network cards, connector cards. See image below for a close-up view.
Have been largely taken over by PCI-Express x1 slots
3. PCI Express x1 Slots
Slot for modern expansion cards such as sound cards, network cards (Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Bluetooth), connector cards (USB, FireWire, eSATA) and certain low-end graphics cards.
4. PCI Express x16 Slot
Slot for discrete graphic cards and high bandwidth devices such as top-end solid state drives.
5. Northbridge Also known as Memory Controller Hub (MCH).
Chipset that allows the CPU to communicate with the RAM and graphics card.
Beginning from the Sandy Bridge generation of Intel CPUs, motherboards no longer have this component as it has been integrated within the CPU itself.
6. CPU Socket
Insert CPU here.
7. ATX 12V Power Connector
Connects to the 4-pin power cable of a power supply unit which supplies power to the CPU.
8. Front Panel USB & Audio Connectors
Connects to USB and audio ports at the front/top of a computer case.
9. Front Panel Connectors
Connects to the power switch, reset switch, power LED and hard drive LED of a computer case.
10. IDE Connector
Connects to older hard drive disks and optical drives for data transfer.
Have been largely taken over by SATA connectors
11. CMOS Battery
Supplies power to store BIOS settings and keep the real-time clock running.
The CMOS battery found on most motherboards is the CR2032 lithium coin cell.
12. Southbridge
Also known as the Input/Output Controller Hub (ICH).
Chipset that allows the CPU to communicate with PCI slots, PCI-Express x 1 slots (expansion cards), SATA connectors (hard drives, optical drives), USB ports
Connectors and ports for connecting the computer to external devices such as display ports, audio ports, USB ports, Ethernet ports, PS/2 ports etc.
2. PCI Slots
PCI: Peripheral Component Interconnect
Slot for older expansion cards such as sound cards, network cards, connector cards. See image below for a close-up view.
Have been largely taken over by PCI-Express x1 slots
3. PCI Express x1 Slots
Slot for modern expansion cards such as sound cards, network cards (Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Bluetooth), connector cards (USB, FireWire, eSATA) and certain low-end graphics cards.
4. PCI Express x16 Slot
Slot for discrete graphic cards and high bandwidth devices such as top-end solid state drives.
5. Northbridge Also known as Memory Controller Hub (MCH).
Chipset that allows the CPU to communicate with the RAM and graphics card.
Beginning from the Sandy Bridge generation of Intel CPUs, motherboards no longer have this component as it has been integrated within the CPU itself.
6. CPU Socket
Insert CPU here.
7. ATX 12V Power Connector
Connects to the 4-pin power cable of a power supply unit which supplies power to the CPU.
8. Front Panel USB & Audio Connectors
Connects to USB and audio ports at the front/top of a computer case.
9. Front Panel Connectors
Connects to the power switch, reset switch, power LED and hard drive LED of a computer case.
10. IDE Connector
Connects to older hard drive disks and optical drives for data transfer.
Have been largely taken over by SATA connectors
11. CMOS Battery
Supplies power to store BIOS settings and keep the real-time clock running.
The CMOS battery found on most motherboards is the CR2032 lithium coin cell.
12. Southbridge
Also known as the Input/Output Controller Hub (ICH).
Chipset that allows the CPU to communicate with PCI slots, PCI-Express x 1 slots (expansion cards), SATA connectors (hard drives, optical drives), USB ports