Building a computer system offers educational, practical and financial rewards.
Building a computer system provides more than financial rewards. Evaluating your own requirements for a computer and selecting the components that meet those requirements ensures that the computer fits your needs. Choosing the components for the computer allows you to select the highest quality components your budget allows. Assembling the computer provides you with the knowledge you need to upgrade it when necessary. And building a computer system is much easier than you might think.
Instructions
Preparation
1. Remove the computer case cover.
2. Install a power supply unit (PSU) in the case if the case is not equipped with one. Align the PSU fan toward the rear of the computer case and the wires toward the front. Place the PSU in the case, and align the PSU and case screw holes. Use chassis screws to secure the PSU.
3. Locate the CPU socket on the motherboard, and open the CPU socket lever. Align the keyed corner of the CPU to the keyed corner of the socket. Drop the CPU into the socket without using any force. Close the CPU socket lever.
4. Apply and spread a few small drops of thermal paste to the top of the CPU. Set the heat sink down squarely on top of the CPU. Align the heat sink clips to the socket tabs, and secure the heat sink to the CPU. Refer to the CPU manual for additional information.
5. Locate the memory slots on the motherboard. Open the clips at each end of a memory slot. Align the notches on the memory module so they fit correctly into the memory slot, and slide the module into the grooves in the clips. Apply firm pressure across the top of the memory module to slide it into the memory slot until both clips close and lock.
6. Insert the faceplate supplied with the motherboard into the hole cut for it in the back of the case.
Installing the Motherboard
7. Align the mounting holes in the motherboard to the corresponding holes in the case. After noting the matching holes, install the standoffs in the holes in the case. (Refer to the motherboard product manual for additional information about installing the standoffs.) Use the screws provided to attach the motherboard to the standoffs.
8. Connect the power cable from the PSU to the motherboard. The connectors are keyed to ensure correct installation. Some motherboards require additional power connections from the PSU. Refer to the motherboard product manual for additional power connection information.
9. Connect the following devices on the case to the corresponding connectors on the motherboard: power switch, reset switch, power LED/key lock switch, hard drive LED, PC speaker. These connections are usually located together on the motherboard. Refer to your motherboard product manual for information about these connections.
Installing the Hard Drive
10. Set the jumpers on the back of the hard drive to "cable select" if the drive is an IDE drive. SATA drives do not require jumper settings.
11. Remove the drive rack from the computer case if the case has a removable drive rack. Align the hard drive and drive rack screw holes. Attach the hard drive using the screws provided and insert the drive rack into the case. If the drive rack is not removable, position the hard drive in the drive rack in the case. Align the hard drive and drive rack screw holes. Attach the hard drive using the screws provided.
12. Locate a power cable at the PSU with a connector that matches the hard drive power connector, and attach the power cable connector to the hard drive power connector.
13. Locate the end of the IDE ribbon cable with one connector, and attach the connector to the primary IDE controller. Attach one of the IDE connectors on the other end of the cable to the connector on the hard drive. Align the side of the ribbon cable with the red stripe to pin 1 on the hard drive connector. For a SATA drive, the cable attaches to a SATA controller.
Installing the Optical Drive
14. Select a drive bay in which to install your CD or DVD optical drive. Remove the drive bay cover, and if a metal plate covers the drive bay, remove it.
15. Slide out the drive rails if your case has removable drive rails. Attach the optical drive to the drive rails with the screws provided. Slide the assembly into the case. If the case does not have removable drive rails, position the optical drive in the drive bay. Align the optical drive and drive rail screw holes and attach the optical drive using the screws provided.
16. Locate a power cable at the PSU with a connector that matches the optical drive power connector, and attach the power cable connector to the optical drive power connector.
17.Attach the end of the optical drive ribbon cable with one connector to the secondary IDE controller connector, and connect a connector on the other end of the ribbon cable to the optical drive connector. Align the side of the ribbon cable with the red stripe to pin 1 on the optical drive connector.
Installing the Video Card
18. Locate a slot on the motherboard that matches the type of video card selected. There are three types: ISA, PCI and AGP.
19. Remove the metal plate that covers the slot in which you plan to install the video card.
20. Insert the video card into the slot, and secure it with a screw.
Completing the Build
21. Replace the computer case cover.
22. Attach the keyboard, mouse and monitor to your computer. Connect the monitor power cord to the power outlet on your computer, and connect the computer power cord to a power supply.
23. Press the computer power switch to boot up the computer. When the BIOS screen appears, refer to the motherboard manual for instructions on configure the BIOS. Before saving and exiting the BIOS setup, insert the bootable CD supplied with your operating system into the optical drive. When you save and exit the BIOS setup, the computer will reboot.
24. Follow the prompts to prepare the hard drive and optical drive for use and to install the operating system when the computer reboots.
Tags: optical drive, hard drive, drive drive, drive rack, cable with, power cable