CHAPTER 7

Motherboards

In this chapter, you will learn how to

•   Explain how motherboards work

•   Recognize modern expansion buses

•   Upgrade and install motherboards

•   Troubleshoot motherboard problems

The motherboard provides the foundation for the personal computer. Every piece of hardware, from the CPU to the lowliest expansion card, directly or indirectly plugs into the motherboard. The motherboard contains the wires—called traces—that make up the buses of the system. It holds the vast majority of the ports used by the peripherals, and it distributes the power from the power supply (see Figure 7-1). Without the motherboard, you literally have no PC.

Figure 7-1 Traces visible beneath the CPU socket on a motherboard

This chapter starts ...

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