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A7N8X-XE
User Guide
Motherboard
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E2126 First Edition July 2005 Copyright © 2005 ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. All Rights Reserved. No part of this manual, including the products and software described in it, may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language in any form or by any means, except documentation kept by the purchaser for backup purposes, without the express written permission of ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. (“ ASUS”). Product warranty or service will not be extended if: (
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Contents Notices ...........................................................................................................v Safety Information ..........................................................................................vi About This Guide .......................................................................................... vii A7N8X-XE Specifications Summary ............................................................ viii Chapter 1: Product Introduction 1.1 Welcome! .......
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Contents Chapter 2: BIOS Setup 2.1 Managing and Updating Your BIOS ............................................... 2-2 2.1.1 Creating a bootable floppy disk ....................................... 2-2 2.1.2 Using AFUDOS to copy the current BIOS ....................... 2-3 2.1.3 Using AFUDOS to update the BIOS ............................... 2-3 2.1.4 ASUS CrashFree BIOS utility ......................................... 2-5 2.1.5 Using ASUS EZ Flash to update the BIOS ..................... 2-6 2.1
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Notices Federal Communications Commission Statement This device complies with FCC Rules Part 15. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: • This device may not cause harmful interference, and • This device must accept any interference received including interference that may cause undesired operation. This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonab
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Safety Information Electrical safety • To prevent electrical shock hazard, disconnect the power cable from the electrical outlet before relocating the system. • When adding or removing devices to or from the system, ensure that the power cables for the devices are unplugged before the signal cables are connected. If possible, disconnect all power cables from the existing system before you add a device. • Before connecting or removing signal cables from the motherboard, ensure that all power
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About This Guide How this guide is organized This manual contains the following parts: • Chapter 1: Product Introduction This chapter describes the features of the motherboard and the new technology it supports. It also lists the hardware setup procedures that you have to perform when installing system components. It includes description of the jumpers and connectors on the motherboard. • Chapter 2: BIOS Information This chapter tells how to change system settings through the BIOS Setup me
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A7N8X-XE Specifications Summary CPU Socket A for AMD Athlon™ XP/Sempron™ Duron™ processors ® Chipset NVIDIA nForce 2 Ultra 400 ® NVIDIA nForce 2 MCP-RAID Front Side Bus (FSB) 400/333/266 MHz Memory 3 x 184-pin DDR DIMM Dockets for up to 3GB memory Support DDR 400/333/266, non-ECC, un-buffered memory Support Dual Channel Architecture 1 x AGP 8X Expansion Slots 5 x PCI 2 x UltraDMA 133/100/66/33 Storage 2 x Serial ATA, RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 0 + 1 support C-Media CMI9761A 6-channel CODEC A
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A7N8X-XE Specifications Summary Support CD Drivers ASUS PC Probe Anti-Virus Software ASUS LiveUpdate Accessary Userʼs Manual UltraDMA cable FDD cable I/O shield SATA cable Form factor ATX, 12” x 7.8” (30.5cm x 19.8cm) * Specifications are subject to change without notice. ix
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This chapter describes the motherboard features and the new technologies it supports. Product 1 Introduction
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1.1 Welcome! ® Thank you for buying an ASUS A7N8X-XE motherboard! The motherboard delivers a host of new features and latest technologies, making it another standout in the long line of ASUS quality motherboards! Before you start installing the motherboard, and hardware devices on it, check the items in your package with the list below. 1.2 Package contents Check your motherboard package for the following items. Motherboard ASUS A7N8X-XE motherboard Cables Serial ATA signal cable and Serial AT
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Serial ATA technology Serial ATA is the next generation ATA specification that provides scalable performance for today and tomorrow. With up to 150MB/s data transfer rate, Serial ATA is faster than current Parallel ATA, while providing 100% software compatibility. A7N8X-XE supports RAID 0, RAID 1 and RAID 0 + 1. See page 1-19 for details. Integrated 10/100 LAN controller A 10/100Mbps Fast Ethernet controller is embedded in this motherboard to give you a fast and reliable connection to a
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1.3.2 Innovative ASUS features CrashFree BIOS CrashFree BIOS allows users to restore BIOS data from a floppy diskette even when BIOS code and data are corrupted during upgrade or invaded by virus. Unlike other competing vendorsʼ products, ASUS motherboards now enable users to enjoy this protection feature without the need to pay for an extra ROM. See page 2-5 for details. ASUS EZ Flash BIOS With ASUS EZ Flash, you can update BIOS before entering operating system. No more DOS-based flash
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1.4 Before you proceed Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components or change any motherboard settings. • Unplug the power cord from the wall socket before touching any component. • Use a grounded wrist strap or touch a safely grounded object or a metal object, such as the power supply case, before handling components to avoid damaging them due to static electricity • Hold components by the edges to avoid touching the ICs on them. • Whenever you uninstall
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1.5 Motherboard overview 1.5.1 Motherboard layout 19.9cm (7.8in) PS/2KBMS PS2USBPW CPU_FAN T: Mouse Socket 462 B: Keyboard SPDIF_O A7N8X-XE COM1 USB34 nVidia nForce 2 Ultra 400 LAN_USB12 FSB_SEL0 FSB_SEL1 Top:Line In Center:Line Out Bottom:Mic In ATXPWR CD CLRTC AUX CR2032 3V AGP Lithium Cell CMOS Power REALTEK RTL8201BL PCI1 SATA2 MCP-RAID PCI2 SATA1 A7N8X-XE PCI3 4Mb IDE1 BIOS PCI4 IDE2 CM19761A USB56 PCI5 CHA_FAN USB78 FP_AUDIO JR1JL1 PANEL FLOPPY 1-6 Chapter 1: Product Introduction PARALLEL
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1.5.2 Placement direction When installing the motherboard, make sure that you place it into the chassis in the correct orientation. The edge with external ports goes to the rear part of the chassis as indicated in the image below. 1.5.3 Screw holes Place seven screws into the holes indicated by circles to secure the motherboard to the chassis. Do not overtighten the screws! Doing so can damage the motherboard. Place this side towards-- the rear of the chassis A7N8X-XE ASUS A7N8X-XE Motherboa
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1.6 Central Processing Unit (CPU) 1.6.1 Overview The motherboard has a Socket A for installation. The AMD Athlon™/Sempron™ /Duron™ CPU has a “marked” corner. This corner is usually indicated with a notch, and/or a golden square or triangle. Refer to this indicator when orienting the CPU. A fan and heatsink should be installed on top of the CPU to prevent overheating. Do not use processors with core speeds of less than 1GHz. CPU NOTCH TO INNER CORNER LOCK LEVER ® A7N8X-XE CPU NOTCH AMD™ CPU A7N
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1.7 System memory 1.7.1 Overview The motherboard has three Double Data Rate (DDR) DIMM sockets that support up to 3 GB unbuffered non-ECC DDR400/333/266 DDR SDRAM DIMMs. Each DIMM socket is double-sided. ® A7N8X-XE A7N8X-XE 184-pin DDR DIMM sockets 1.7.2 Memory configurations You may install single or double-sided 64 MB, 128 MB, 256 MB, 512 MB, and 1 GB DDR DIMMs to the sockets. Table 1 Recommended memory configurations Sockets Mode DIMM_A1 DIMM_A2 DIMM_B1 Single-channel (1) Populated
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DDR400 Qualified Vendors List Size Vendor Model CL Brand SS/DS Component DIMM socket support (Optional) A* B* C* 256MB Kingston KVR333X64C25/256 N/A Kingston SS D3208DH1T-6 Pass Pass Pass 256MB Kingston KVR333X64C25/256 N/A Hynix SS HY5DU56822BT-J Pass Pass Pass 256MB Kingston KVR333X64C25/256 N/A Hynix DS HY5DU56822BT-D43 Pass Pass Pass 512MB Kingston KVR333X64C25/512 N/A Kingston DS D3208DH1T-6 Pass Pass - 512MB Kingston KVR333X64C25/512 N/A Hynix DS HY5DU56822BT-J Pass Pass Pass 512MB K
