Expansion Cards Part 1: (of a 3 part series)

Expansion Slots PCI on motherboards available to enable a number of improvements in the system to a computer, but compatible with this card for a slot available must be addressed before making any purchase decisions. Most types of expansion cards for modern computer systems can be divided into three formats: PCI, AGP and PCI Express. Each of these formats will be dealt with separately in this three-part series of Tech Tips, the PKI. The letters stand for PCI Peripheral Component Interconnect, and is the term used to describe a bus that connects directly elements of the system memory and processor system via the FSB. I am communication on a motherboard, the duration of buses has nothing to do with the large yellow taking children to school. It May a number of buses on a computer, and a PCI bus, they are all responsible for traffic management of communication devices for different processors. The FSB is a high-speed connection that controls communication processor with themes such as hard disks, memory and PCI devices, without processor speed with all management responsibilities. First developed by Intel in early 1990, PCI has been established even before (or less), bus architectures, such as the ISA (Industry Standard Architecture), and VL-Bus (local Ves), which was in the years 1980 and 1990. The original specifications for the PCI bus at a speed of 33 MHz, with 32-bit wide bus and a maximum width of band 132 megabytes per second. There were no changes to the PCI standard has increased significantly this statement, taking to 66 MHz, 64 bits, and 512 megabytes per second. 32-bit and 64-bit versions have different physical properties, and most motherboards only offer 32-bit connections. The original had the power specification PCI-devices that operate at 5V DC, and the revisions was an opportunity to continue using the devices 5V, and is now able to operate on 3.3 VDC. A simple explanation 32-bit and 64 bit can be read on the analogy of buses and traffic. Think of all the little as one lane of traffic on the road. Think of a 32-bit bus lanes 32 and 64-bit bus has 64 lanes. Like a greater number of cars can travel on a multi-lane road, more data can be transferred to a bus, with a little more important. The controllers can support multiple places share a PCI bus, and although not particularly frequent, May include more than one PCI bus. According to the form factor the size of the motherboard, and other characteristics that may occupy space on the disk, you can expect to have a six PCI slots in a typical motherboard. For example, mATX format offers two 32-bit PCI, while the ATX format features six 32-bit PCI. A 32-bit PCI This includes 124-pin mating with a slot in a system motherboard, and is well on a 32-bit or 64-bit housing (even if the transfer data 32 bits any location ). A 64-bit PCI This includes 184-pin mating with places in a system motherboard, but in general, can participate in a 32-bit and slots, provided that the characteristics of the map mother not to interfere. Once installed on a 32-bit slot, the transfer of data to a 64-bit cards will be limited to 32 bits. The STL2 Dual Socket 370 Intel Server Board w / VRM The STL2 Dual Socket 370 Intel Server Board is a good reference for comparing 32-bit and 64-bit PCI. Looking to the lower left corner of the motherboard has four 32-bit PCI slots and two 64-bit PCI. After this series of deadlines for technical advice will be AGP and PCI Express, which each have their own unique physical characteristics. Although the different format of PCI cards can be used, PCI, AGP and PCI Express will not work (or appropriate) in the second slot. Most PCI 32-bit variety and selection of items available is quite broad. Graphics cards, sound cards, network cards, RAID controllers, TV tuners, modem and USB / Firewire controllers are all issues that can be added to a system using a PCI card. Most of the points mentioned in the preceding paragraph may be found in modern motherboard, but on board these units do not have the capacity to upgrade. Provide PCI devices plug and play, which allows the user to install (or remove) a device with ease. For example, a low-cost 2-channel sound card May be good enough for some early, but how May decide that something like 7.1-channel Sound Blaster Audigy 2 provides the sound quality they really want. Graduation is a question of whether to turn off the system, the exchange of letters, restart, and install new software and drivers (OK, maybe a little more simplified). The good thing about PCI cards is that even if you have a card with a function (for example, built-in audio that is mentioned above), the motherboard's BIOS is generally you can disable this feature if you do not want to add to an atmosphere of expansion cards (Audigy sound card mentioned in the example above), or the card can complement the role which has already been incorporated (as a RAID card FDI). The only area which has led the development of the PGA are the results based on the PCI graphics card. The requirements for fast video games and other graphics applications requiring a wide bandwidth, but only that it was not available on the PCI bus. Since all devices share the width of available PCI bus banda, even faster, separate bus was forced to deal with only graphics. PCI graphics cards are still available, however, and make a simple way to add a second monitor to a system which currently operates in an AGP or PCI Express graphics cards. The last word PCI has been around the world, and seems to have a place at least in the near future of architecture. AGP and PCI Express offers performance benefits that the standard PCI can not match, but for many applications, the performance offered by PCI is more than sufficient. Be sure to leave before the next technical advice in this range as a basis for AGP. The technology http://www.geeks.com http://www.geeks.com/pix/techtips.htm advice and assistance http://www.geeks.com/pix/techtips.htm computer