Motherboard definitions

 

 

Motherboard definitions

Motherboard definitions

Number   Currently no listings A   ABIOS   AC’97   Address bus   AGP   AMR   AT Bus   AT Keyboard   ATX B   Baby AT   Back side bus   BAT   Bus   BIOS C   Chipset   CMOS   CNR   Communication and Network Riser   Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor   Controller D   Data bus   Daughter board   DB Connector   DB-9   DB-15   DB-19   DB-25   DB-37   DB-50   Dual BIOS   DVMT   Dynamic Video Memory Technology E EFI   EIDE   EISA   Electron Tube   ESDI   Expansion slot     F   FireWire   Front Side Bus   FSB G   Currently no listings H   Hard disk controller I   IDE   IHA   Industry Standard Architecture   ISA   Input/output bus   Input/output controller J   Currently no listings K   Currently no listings L   Local bus M   Main board   mb   MCA   Memory bus   Motherboard N   Northbridge   NuBus O   On-board P   PCI   PCI Express   PCIe   Piggyback board   POST   Power On Self Test   PSMB_Def_PS_By_2/2 Q   Quartz crystal R   Riser card   RTC S   Serial Port   Southbridge   System Bus T   Currently no listings U   USB V   VESA Local Bus   VL Bus   VME Bus   VRM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ABIOS                                                                                                 Back

Short for Advanced BIOS, the ABIOS a type of BIOS that is capable of supporting calls in Protected Mode. ABIOS was first used with the IBM PS/2 running the OS/2 operating system. Today, all new computers have a BIOS that is an Advanced BIOS.

 

AC’97                                                                                                              Back

Short for Audio Codec, AC’97 is an Intel audio component that is integrated into Intel chipsets.

 

Bus                                                                                                                 Back

When referring to a computer, the bus also known as the address bus, data bus, or local bus is a data connection connection between two or more devices connected to the computer. For example, a bus enables a computer processor to communicate with the memory or a video card to communicate with the memory. A bus is capable of being parallel or a serial bus and today all computers utilize two types of buses, an internal or local bus and an external bus. An internal bus enables a communication between internal components such as a computer video card and memory and an external bus is capable of communicating with external components such as a SCSI scanner. A computer or devices bus speed or throughput is always measured in bits per second or megabytes per second.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AGP                                                                                                                 Back

Short for Accelerated Graphics Port, AGP is an advanced port designed for Video cards and 3D accelerators. Designed by Intel, August of 1997 AGP introduces a dedicated point-to-point channel so that the graphics controller can directly access the system memory. Below is an illustration of what the AGP slot may look like on your your motherboard.   The AGP channel is 32-bits wide and runs at 66 MHz. This translates into a total bandwidth of 266 MBps, as opposed to the PCI bandwidth of up to 133 MBps. AGP also supports two optional faster modes, with throughputs of 533 MBps and 1.07 GBps. and also allows 3-D textures to be stored in main memory rather than video memory.  Each computer with AGP support will either have one AGP slot or onboard AGP video. If the user wishes to have multiple video cards in the computer they would have one AGP video card as well as one or more PCI video cards.  The AGP aperture size is an available option configurable commonly through the computer BIOS that is commonly set to a default of 64MB. AGP aperture size defines how much system memory the AGP controller is allowed to use for texture maps. While it may be possible to increase the overall performance or prevent problems with some video cards we recommend you leave the AGP aperture size at 64MB unless instructed otherwise by your video card manufacturer. Not all operating systems support AGP because of limited or no driver support. It is also important to Note that earlier versions of Windows did not incorporate AGP support. agp

 

AMR                                                                                                                Back

Released September 8, 1998, AMR is short for Audio/Modem Riser and allows OEMs to create one card that has the functionality of either Modem or Audio or both Audio and Modem on one card. This new specification allows for the motherboard to be manufactured at a lower cost and free up industry standard expansion slots in the system for other additional plug-in peripherals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

MODIO                                                                                                            Back

Created by Smart Link, MODIO is the modem over audio technology that provides full-featured data communications simultaneously with the audio functions of the PCs sound device.

 

 

AT Bus                                                                                                            Back

Used for the IBM AT and compatible computers to transfer information from one component to the other at speeds of up to 16-bits of data at a time.

 

AT keyboard                                                                                                  Back

Also known as the 101-key keyboard, the AT keyboard is the US standard keyboard introduced in 1986 by IBM and is used with the IBM compatible computer. This is one of the most common keyboards used today and can easily be identified as a keyboard that does not include the extra three Windows keys introduced by Microsoft. An AT keyboard may also be used to describe a keyboard that uses the AT (Din5) port; this type of keyboard has been widely replaced by new standards such as PS/2 and USB keyboards. Below is an example of the AT interface found on the back computers. AT/Din5 port

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ATX                                                                                                                 Back

 

Designed and released in 1995, Intel ATX is a new motherboard form factor with a physical design like the traditional board (30.5 cm X 19 cm) shifted 90 degrees for better placing of the units. The I/O connectors COM1, COM2 and LPT, keyboard, mouse and USB are mounted directly on the motherboard. The ATX board requires specifically designed chassis with an I/O access opening measuring 1¾ by 6¼ inch.  The ATX motherboard includes advanced control facilities, where the BIOS program continually checks the CPU temperature and voltages, the cooling fans RPM, etc. If over heating occurs, the PC will shut down automatically. The PC can also be turned on by, for example, modem signals, since the power supply is controlled by the main board. The on/off button will turn the PC “down” without turning it completely off. The computer will also not be able to be turned off while the computer boots up; if, however, the computer freezes as it is turning on, to turn the computer off you must press and hold the power button for 5 seconds and it will turn off.

BAT                                                                                                                 Back

 

Short for Baby AT, Baby-AT is a motherboard form factor. BAT is also the file extension of a batch file.

Back side bus                                                                                               Back

 

Sometimes abbreviated as BSB, the back side bus is the computer bus used to connect the CPU to the L2 Cache and was first introduced with the Intel Pentium Pro. The back side bus is a part of the CPU and has a speed that is dependent on the speed of the processor.

 

Bus                                                                                                                 Back

 

When referring to a computer, the bus also known as the address bus, data bus, or local bus is a data connection connection between two or more devices connected to the computer. For example, a bus enables a computer processor to communicate with the memory or a video card to communicate with the memory. A bus is capable of being parallel or a serial bus and today all computers utilize two types of buses, an internal or local bus and an external bus. An internal bus enables a communication between internal components such as a computer video card and memory and an external bus is capable of communicating with external components such as a SCSI scanner. A computer or devices bus speed or throughput is always measured in bits per second or megabytes per second.

 

 

 

BIOS                                                                                                               Back

 

Short for Basic Input/Output System, BIOS is a chip located on all computer motherboards that contains instructions and setup for how your system should boot and how it operates.

Chipset                                                                                                          Back

 

A designated group of microchips that are designed to work with one or more related functions that were first introduced in 1987. When referring the the main motherboard chipset such as the Intel Chipsets, these chipsets will generally include the functions of the CPU, PCI, ISA, USB, etc… An example of an Intel chipset is the i820 or the Intel 820 chipset. Chips or Chips and Technologies is also a computer company.

CMOS                                                                                                              Back

 

Also known as a RTC/NVRAM or CMOS RAM, CMOS is short for Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor. CMOS is an on-board semiconductor chip powered by a CMOS battery inside computers that stores information such as the system time and system settings for your computer. A CMOS is similar to the Apple Macintosh computer’s PRAM.

CNR                                                                                                                 Back

 

Short for Communication and Network Riser, CNR is a specification that supports audio, modem USB and Local Area Networking interfaces of core logic chipsets. This technology was first introduced by Intel February 07, 2000 and was mainly developed by leading hardware and software developers who helped release the AMR (Audio / Modem Riser). Today, CNR is being shipped with several different computer manufacturer’s computers.

Controller                                                                                                      Back

 

A hardware device that is an expansion card and/or integrated onto the computer motherboard that enables communication between the computer and another hardware device. Below are some examples of the types of controllers you may find in a computer.  Graphics controller or AGP controller – Enables the graphics card to properly work with the computer. IDE disk controller or ATA/ATAPI controller – Enables computer hard disk drives to communicate with the computer. SCSI controller – Enables SCSI drives to communicate with the computer.

 

 

 

 

 

Daughter board Or Piggyback Boards                                                     Back

 

Also known as piggyback boards, daughter boards are expansion boards that commonly connect directly to the motherboard and give the computer an added feature such as modem capability. Today, these types of boards are not found or used in desktop computers and have been replaced with ISA or PCI boards. However, many laptops use these types of boards. To disable these boards it is required that the user physically remove it from the motherboard.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DB Connector                                                                                               Back

 

A type of connector that usually would hook to the parallel or serial port. Most common data base connectors are the DB-9, DB-15, DB-19, DB-25, DB-37, and DB-50, the number indicates how many active lines the connector has, but not always meaning how many pins. DB-9 & DB-15: The DB-9 and DB-15 are also found on Network cards. The DB-9 cable is sometimes used for Token-Ring adapters and the DB-15 is used for the Thicknet coaxial cables. The DB-9 port is also found on the NeXT computer used to connect laser printers. DB-19: The DB-19 is a connector found on the Apple Macintosh, NeXT and some Atari computers, and is generally used to connect external disk drives. DB-25: The DB-25 interface was an older type of serial connector. The DB-25 port is also a type of SCSI interface. DB-37: Connector found on various network devices used to connect network hubs and other network devices and perform various other functions. Companies that utilize this cable include Cisco, Nortel, SMC… The DB-37 connector is also used on other devices that connect such devices as sensors, switches, satellite antennas, control systems, video and audio studio automation, security control systems and various other equipment. DB-50: SCSI connector that is rarely used or found today.

 

 

Dual BIOS                                                                                                      Back

 

A computer motherboard that contains two BIOS chips, a main BIOS and a backup BIOS. This type of motherboard setup helps a motherboard recover from any issues that may happen during a BIOS update, helps protect the BIOS from any potential virus, and helps with any other issues that may arise related to the BIOS.

 

DVMT                                                                                                              Back

 

Short for Dynamic Video Memory Technology, DVMT is an architecture that offers breakthrough performance for the motherboard through efficient memory utilization and Direct AGP.

EFI                                                                                                                  Back

 

Short for Extensible Firmware Interface, EFI is a new BIOS standard developed by Intel and introduced with the release of IA-64 that greatly improves the features available in the BIOS. Some of the major changes in EFI include getting rid of the boot loader allowing the BIOS to select the Operating System, EFI enables vendors to create drivers that cannot be reverse engineered, and has a small shell that can be run at boot that allows a small manageable working environment without anything on the computer. The official Intel EFI specification page can be found at http://www.intel.com/technology/efi/

EIDE                                                                                                                Back

 

Short for Enhanced IDE, EIDE is the next generation of IDE interface that was developed by Western Digital and an interface commonly used on IBM compatible computers. EIDE supports data rates from 4 and 16.6 MBps. In addition to being faster than IDE drives, EIDE supports drives up to 8.4GB. Supports faster PIO modes 3 and 4 as well as multiword DMA modes 1 and 2. ATA-2 also adds additional support for LBA drives which allows support for drives larger than 528 MB. EIDE is also referred to as ATA-2, Fast ATA or Fast IDE.

EISA                                                                                                                Back

 

Short for Extended Industry Standard Architecture, EISA, also known as Extended ISA, is a standard developed in 1988 for IBM and IBM compatible computers to compete with the IBM MCA bus. The EISA bus is found on Intel 80386, 80486 and early Pentium computers. Today, the EISA bus is not commonly used or found as PCI and AGP have become the popular bus for the IBM compatible computers.

 

Electron tube                                                                                                Back

 

Also known as a vacuum tube, an electron tube is a glass tube and/or bulb that looks similar to light bulbs used in house lights today. Electron tubes were used in early computers as on and off switches for digital transmission. Today, electron tubes are no longer used in computers and have been replaced by various types of transistors.

 

 

ESDI                                                                                                                Back

 

Short for Enhanced Small Device Interface, ESDI is an early standard interface found on IBM high end PS/2 computers that allowed hard drives, tape drives, and diskette drives to work with a computer. Capable of transferring data at about 1MB to 3MB a second.  Today, ESDI has been outdated by storage interfaces such as IDE, EIDE, and SCSI.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Expansion Slot                                                                                             Back

 

A slot located inside a computer on the motherboard or riser board that allows additional boards to be connected to it. Below is a listing of some of the expansion slots commonly found in IBM compatible computers as well as other brands of computers and a graphic illustration of a motherboard and its expansion slots. Common types of expansion slots: AGP AMR CNR EISA ISA PCI VESA   mainboard

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FireWire                                                                                                         Back

 

Also known as IEEE 1394, firewire is a technology of bus that has a bandwidth of 400-1000 Mbps and can handle up to 63 units on the same bus and is hot swappable.

 

FSB                                                                                                                 Back

 

Short for Front Side Bus, FSB is also known as the Processor Bus, Memory Bus, or System Bus and connects the CPU with the main memory and is used to connect to other components within the computer. The FSB can range from speeds of 66 MHz, 133 MHz, 100 MHz, 266 MHz, 400 MHz, and up. The FSB is now another important consideration when looking at purchasing a computer Motherboard or a new computer.  The FSB speed can generally be set either using the system BIOS or with jumpers located on the computer motherboard. While most motherboards will allow you to set the FSB to any setting, ensure that the FSB is properly set unless you plan to Overclock the computer. Issues such as hardware lockups, data corruption or other errors may arise with older hardware, such as old SCSI cards and a newer front side bus such as a motherboard with a 100MHz FSB. Verify your component’s compatibility with your motherboard and/or Motherboard FSB speed. In addition, verify that the FSB is properly set; overclocking the computer can also cause these types of issues.

Back side bus                                                                                               Back

 

Sometimes abbreviated as BSB, the back side bus is the computer bus used to connect the CPU to the L2 Cache and was first introduced with the Intel Pentium Pro. The back side bus is a part of the CPU and has a speed that is dependent on the speed of the processor.

Hard disk controller                                                                         Back

 

Generally abbreviated as HDC, the hard disk controller is the interface that allows the computer to interface with a hard disk drive. Today, hard disk drives have the controller built on to them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IDE                                                                                                                  Back

 

Short for Integrated Drive Electronics or IBM Disc Electronics, IDE is more commonly known as ATA and is a standard interface for IBM compatible hard drives. IDE is different from the Small Computer Systems Interface (SCSI) and Enhanced Small Device Interface (ESDI) because its controllers are on each drive, meaning the drive can connect directly to the motherboard or controller. IDE and its updated successor, Enhanced IDE (EIDE), are the most common drive interfaces found in IBM compatible computers today. Below is a picture of the actual IDE connector and cable. IDE

IHA                                                                                                                 Back

 

Short for Intel Hub Architecture, IHA is the replacement for the Northbridge and Southbridge found on computer motherboards. The IHA is found on all Intel’s 800 series chipsets, and much like the predecessor, the IHA has two parts, the GMCH and the ICH.  The GMCH, or Graphics and AGP Memory Control Hub for short, is similar to the Northbridge and helps control the AGP and memory. The ICH, or I/O Controller Hub for short, is similar to the Southbridge and is responsible for the I/O ports and PCI controller.

 

Graphics & Memory Controller Hub (GMCH)                                          Back

Equivalent to a Northbridge with integrated graphics in Intel’s Hub Architecture. Hub architecture components are linked using a high-speed “hub link” bus, rather than the Northbridge’s PCI bus.

 

 

 

 

 

Northbridge                                                                                                   Back

 

An integrated circuit (generally Intel or VIA) that is responsible for the communications between the CPU interface, AGP, PCI and the memory. The northbridge gets its name for commonly being North of the PCI bus. Below is a graphic illustration of the ASUS P5AD2-E motherboard and some basic explanations of each of the major portions of the motherboard, including the northbridge. As shown in the below picture, it’s common for the northbridge and southbridge to have a heatsink; in addition, the northbridge is usually slightly larger than the southbridge. Some newer motherboards have replaced the northbridge and the southbridge with IHA.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

           

Southbridge                                                                                                  Back

 

An integrated circuit ( generally Intel or VIA ) on the motherboard that is responsible for the hard disk drive controller, I/O controller and integrated hardware such as sound card or video card if present on the motherboard. The Southbridge gets its name for commonly being South of the PCI bus. Below is a graphic illustration of the ASUS P5AD2-E motherboard and some basic explanations of each of the major portions of the motherboard including the southbridge. As shown in the below picture, it’s common for the northbridge and southbridge to have a heatsink; in addition, the northbridge is usually slightly larger than the southbridge. Some newer motherboards have replaced the northbridge and the southbridge with IHA.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Graphics & Memory Controller Hub (GMCH)                                          Back

Equivalent to a Northbridge with integrated graphics in Intel’s Hub Architecture. Hub architecture components are linked using a high-speed “hub link” bus, rather than the Northbridge’s PCI bus.

 

IA-64                                                                                                              Back
Merced is the code name for a new 64-bit microprocessor from Intel that will begin to appear in new workstations and enterprise servers over the next few years. It’s the first of Intel’s IA-64 series and, because of its greatly increased I/O bandwidth relative to today’s 32-bit microprocessors, it will make possible visual computing or the ability to interact dynamically with visual (and therefore high bandwidth) images as models of work objects.

 

I/O Controller Hub (ICH)                                                                           Back                                                              
Equivalent to the Southbridge in Intel’s Hub Architecture. Hub architecture components are linked using a high-speed “hub link” bus, rather than the Northbridge’s PCI bus.

 

Interrupt                                                                                                        Back                                                                                      

An interrupt is a signal informing a program that an event has occurred. When a program receives an interrupt signal, it takes a specified action (which can be to ignore the signal). Interrupt signals can cause a program to suspend itself temporarily to service the interrupt.

Interrupt signals can come from a variety of sources. For example, every keystroke generates an interrupt signal. Interrupts are generated by other devices, such as printers, to indicate that some event has occurred. These are called hardware interrupts. Interrupt signals initiated by programs are called software interrupts. PCs support 256 types of software interrupts and 15 hardware interrupts. Each type of software interrupt is associated with an interrupt handler — a routine that takes control when the interrupt occurs. For example, when you press a key on your keyboard, this triggers a specific interrupt handler. The complete list of interrupts and associated interrupt handlers is stored in a table called the interrupt vector table, which resides in the first 1 KB of addressable memory.

Note: software interrupts are provided by the BIOS (or other software) as part of runtime services. Software interrupts are either called directly by software applications, or invoked to handle a hardware interrupt.

 

 

 

 

I/O (Input/Output)                                                                         Back

Describes any operation, program or device that transfers data to or from a computer. A typical I/O device includes a printer, hard disk, keyboard and mouse. Some devices are basically input-only devices (keyboard and mouse); others are primarily output-only devices (printer) and others provide both input and output of data (hard disk, diskette, writeable CD-ROMs).

I/O Controller Hub (ICH)                                                                           Back

Equivalent to the Southbridge in Intel’s Hub Architecture. Hub architecture components are linked using a high-speed “hub link” bus, rather than the Northbridge’s PCI bus.

ISA                                                                                                                  Back

 

Short for Industry Standard Architecture, ISA is a standard of computer bus. Below is a graphic of what an ISA expansion card may look like as well as the slot it connects into on the motherboard.

 

 

Input/output bus                                                                                                     Back

 

The pathway used for input and output devices to communicate with the computer processor.

 

 

 

 

Input/output controller                                                                              Back

 

Also known as an input/output interface, IOC, or PIOC for Peripheral input/output controller. The input/input controller is a device that interfaces between an input or output device and the computer or hardware device. The input/output controller on computers is commonly located on the motherboard. However, an I/O controller can also be an internal add-on that can either be used as a replacement or to allow for additional input or output devices for the computer.

 

Motherboard                                                                                     Back

 

Also known as the mb, mainboard, mobo, backplane board, planar board, or system board. The Motherboard is a printed circuit that is the foundation of a computer and allows the CPU, RAM, and all other computer hardware components to function with each other. Below is a graphic illustration of the ASUS P5AD2-E motherboard and some basic explanations of each of the major portions of the motherboard.  ISA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mb / MB                                                                                                                     Back

 

Mb is short for megabit and is 1,000,000 bits, or 106, Mb commonly usually expresses the rate at which data is transferred, for example, “10/100 Mbps” represents 10 or 100 megabits per second, the common speed of a standard network card. Also abbreviated as meg, MB is short for megabyte. A MB is a common measurement used with computer storage media. A Megabyte is equal to 1,048,576 bytes; however, the IEC defines that one MB is equal to 1,000,000 bytes, or 106. Therefore, a MB could really equal either of these values.  mb or MB is also short for Motherboard, see our motherboard definition for additional information.

MCA                                                                                                                            Back

 

Short for Micro Channel Architecture, MCA was introduced by IBM in 1987. MCA, or the Micro Channel bus, was a competition for ISA bus. The MCA bus offered several additional features over the ISA such as a 32-bit bus (although there was also a 16-bit bus), automatically configure cards (similar to what Plug and Play is today), and bus mastering for greater efficiency.

Memory Bus Or FSB                                                                                                Back  

 

Short for Front Side Bus, FSB is also known as the Processor Bus, Memory Bus, or System Bus and connects the CPU with the main memory and is used to connect to other components within the computer. The FSB can range from speeds of 66 MHz, 133 MHz, 100 MHz, 266 MHz, 400 MHz, and up. The FSB is now another important consideration when looking at purchasing a computer Motherboard or a new computer.  The FSB speed can generally be set either using the system BIOS or with jumpers located on the computer motherboard. While most motherboards will allow you to set the FSB to any setting, ensure that the FSB is properly set unless you plan to Overclock the computer. Issues such as hardware lockups, data corruption or other errors may arise with older hardware, such as old SCSI cards and a newer front side bus such as a motherboard with a 100MHz FSB. Verify your component’s compatibility with your motherboard and/or Motherboard FSB speed. In addition, verify that the FSB is properly set; overclocking the computer can also cause these types of issues.

NuBus                                                                                                               Back

 

A 32-bit bus that was originally developed at MIT and defined in IEEE 1196. NuBus was most notably used in the Apple Macintosh II computer system; however, it is no longer being used in any computers today.

 

 

On-board                                                                                                       Back

 

Also known as integrated, on-board is a term used to describe a hardware component that is located on a circuit board. On-board is commonly used to refer to a component, such as a sound card or video card, that is integrated onto the motherboard. Unlike expansion cards, users cannot remove these components from their computer; however, they can commonly be disabled through software or the BIOS.

PCI                                                                                                                  Back

 

Short for Peripheral Component Interconnect, PCI was originally developed by Intel as an expansion to the ISA bus. Below is a graphic illustration of the PCI slot on a motherboard.

PCI Express                                                                                                  Back

 

Originally known as 3rd Generation I/O (3GIO), PCI Express, or PCIe, was approved as a standard on July 2002 and is a computer bus found in computers. PCI Express is designed to replace PCI and AGP and is available in several different formats: x1, x2, x4, x8, x12, x16 and x32. Below are some graphic illustrations of what the PCI Express would look like on the motherboard.  The official specifications for PCI Express can be found at http://www.pci-sig.com

 

Piggyback Boards Or Daughter board                                                     Back

 

Also known as piggyback boards, daughter boards are expansion boards that commonly connect directly to the motherboard and give the computer an added feature such as modem capability. Today, these types of boards are not found or used in desktop computers and have been replaced with ISA or PCI boards. However, many laptops use these types of boards. To disable these boards it is required that the user physically remove it from the motherboard.

 

POST                                                                                                               Back

 

When referring to a message board, a post refers to an article published on an Internet newsgroup, forum, or other bulletin board area. It is also the act of publishing such a message. Short for Power On Self Test, the POST is generally represented by a beep or several beeps.

 

PS/2                                                                                                               Back

 

Often referred to as the mouse and/or keyboard port, the PS/2 port was developed by IBM for connecting a computer mouse or keyboard to a PC. The PS/2 port is a mini DIN plug that contains six pins that is found on almost all IBM compatible computers today. Below is a picture of an actual PS/2 plug as well as a graphic illustration of the connection.  PS/2 was also a type of IBM compatible computer. PS2 is also short for PlayStation 2, a gaming console system developed by Sony.

Quartz crystal                                                                                              Back

 

Type of crystal used in watches, computers and other devices to keep time. The Quartz crystal vibrates or ticks an exact 60-seconds per minute when electricity is applied to it. Depending upon the quality of the quartz crystal and other factors, the quartz crystal may not properly tick exactly 60 seconds each minute, possibly causing a computer to not keep the proper time.

Riser board                                                                                                    Back

 

A circuit board that connects directly into the computer motherboard and provides the ability for additional expansion cards to be added to the computer. Riser boards were used with LPX motherboards and today are rarely used with the introduction of ATX motherboards that allow expansion cards to be connected directly to the computer.

RTC                                                                                                                 Back

 

Short for Real-Time Clock, RTC is a battery powered clock that is an IC located on the computer motherboard that allows the computer to keep time. The RTC keeps track of the second, minute, hour, day, month and year.

Serial port                                                                                                     Back

 

A connection or interface on the computer used to connect a serial device to the computer. Serial ports are typically identified on IBM compatible computers as COM (communications) ports. For example, a mouse might be connected to COM1 and a modem to COM2. With the introduction of USB and FireWire, Serial ports are not being used as frequently as they had been in the past.

 

USB                                                                                                                 Back

 

Short for Universal Serial Bus, USB is a standard that was introduced in 1995 by Intel, Compaq, Microsoft and several other IT computer companies. USB 1.x is an external bus standard that supports data transfer rates of 12 Mbps and is capable of supporting up to 127 peripheral devices. The image to the right is an example of a USB device, the SMC EZ Connect Wireless Bluetooth adapter adds Bluetooth connectivity for your computer. USB 2.0, also known as “hi-speed USB”, was developed by Compaq, Hewlett Packard, Intel, Lucent, Microsoft, NEC and Philips and was introduced in 2001. Hi-speed USB is capable of supporting a transfer rate of up to 480 Mbps and is backwards compatible, meaning it is capable of supporting USB 1.0 and 1.1 devices and cables.

VL Bus                                                                                                            Back

 

Also abbreviated as VLB, VL Bus is short for VESA Local Bus.

Controller                                                                                                      Back

 

A hardware device that is an expansion card and/or integrated onto the computer motherboard that enables communication between the computer and another hardware device. Below are some examples of the types of controllers you may find in a computer.  Graphics controller or AGP controller – Enables the graphics card to properly work with the computer. IDE disk controller or ATA/ATAPI controller – Enables computer hard disk drives to communicate with the computer. SCSI controller – Enables SCSI drives to communicate with the computer.

VMEbus                                                                                                          Back

 

Short for VERSAmodule Eurocard bus, VMEbus is a computer bus first developed in 1981, by Motorola that is capable of sending data at 8, 16, 32, and 64-bits at a time.

VRM                                                                                                                Back

 

Short for Voltage Regulator Module, VRM is a module that is installed on a motherboard or system board that regulates the voltage to the processor.