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ASUS P4B-FX motherboard user guide

4-1

4.1

Managing and updating your BIOS

4.1.1 Using the computer system for the first time

It is recommended that you save a copy of the original motherboard BIOS
along with a Flash Memory Writer utility (AFLASH.EXE) to a bootable
floppy disk in case you need to reinstall the BIOS later. AFLASH.EXE is a
Flash Memory Writer utility that updates the BIOS by uploading a new
BIOS file to the programmable flash ROM on the motherboard. This file
works only in DOS mode. To determine the BIOS version of your
motherboard, check the last four numbers of the code displayed on the
upper left-hand corner of your screen during bootup. Larger numbers
represent a newer BIOS file.

1. Type FORMAT A:/S at the DOS prompt to create a bootable system

disk. DO NOT copy AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS to the disk.

2. Type COPY D:\AFLASH\AFLASH.EXE A:\ (assuming D is your

CD-ROM drive) to copy AFLASH.EXE to the boot disk you created.

BIOS setup must specify “Floppy” as the first item in the boot
sequence.

4. In DOS mode, type A:\AFLASH <Enter> to run AFLASH.

If the word “unknown” appears after Flash Memory:, the memory chip
is either not programmable or is not supported by the ACPI BIOS and
therefore, cannot be programmed by the Flash Memory Writer utility.

AFLASH works only in DOS mode. It does not work in the DOS prompt
within Windows and does not work with certain memory drivers that
may be loaded when you boot from the hard drive. It is recommended
that you reboot using a floppy disk.

3. Reboot the computer from the floppy disk.

Summary of Contents for P4B-FX

Page 1: ...Motherboard P4B FX User Guide ...

Page 2: ...A PARTICULAR PURPOSE IN NO EVENT SHALL ASUS ITS DIRECTORS OFFICERS EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT SPECIAL INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES INCLUDING DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS LOSS OF BUSINESS LOSS OF USE OR DATA INTERRUPTION OF BUSINESS AND THE LIKE EVEN IF ASUS HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES ARISING FROM ANY DEFECT OR ERROR IN THIS MANUAL OR PRODUCT SPECI...

Page 3: ...atures 1 6 Chapter 2 Hardware information 2 1 2 1 Motherboard installation 2 1 2 1 1 Placement direction 2 1 2 1 2 Screw holes 2 1 2 2 Motherboard layout 2 2 2 3 Before you proceed 2 3 2 4 Central Processing Unit CPU 2 4 2 4 1 Overview 2 4 2 4 2 Installing the CPU 2 5 2 4 3 Installing the heatsink and fan 2 7 2 4 4 Connecting the CPU fan cable 2 9 2 5 System memory 2 10 2 5 1 Overview 2 10 2 5 2 M...

Page 4: ...enu bar 4 6 4 2 2 Legend bar 4 6 4 3 Main menu 4 8 4 3 1 Primary Secondary Master Slave 4 9 4 3 2 Keyboard Features 4 13 4 4 Advanced Menu 4 15 4 4 1 Chip Configuration 4 17 4 4 2 I O Device Configuration 4 19 4 4 3 PCI Configuration 4 21 4 5 Power Menu 4 23 4 5 1 Power Up Control 4 25 4 5 2 Hardware Monitor 4 27 4 6 Boot Menu 4 28 4 7 Exit Menu 4 30 Chapter 5 Software support 5 1 5 1 Install an o...

Page 5: ...v Contents 5 2 5 DOS Utilities menu 5 6 5 2 6 ASUS Contact Information 5 6 5 2 7 Other information 5 7 5 3 Software information 5 9 5 3 1 ASUS Update 5 9 Glossary G 1 Index I 1 ...

Page 6: ... cause harmful interference to radio or television reception which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver Connect the equipment to an outlet on a circuit different from that to which t...

Page 7: ...your area If you are not sure about the voltage of the electrical outlet you are using contact your local power company If the power supply is broken do not try to fix it by yourself Contact a qualified service technician or your retailer Operation safety Before installing the motherboard and adding devices on it carefully read all the manuals that came with the package Before using the product ma...

Page 8: ...orm when installing system components It includes description of the switches jumpers and connectors on the motherboard Chapter 3 Powering up This chapter describes the power up sequence and gives information on the BIOS beep codes Chapter 4 BIOS setup This chapter tells how to change system settings through the BIOS Setup menus Detailed descriptions of the BIOS parameters are also provided Chapte...

Page 9: ...are products The ASUS websites are listed in the ASUS contact information on page x 2 Optional Documentation Your product package may include optional documentation such as warranty flyers that may have been added by your dealer These documents are not part of the standard package WARNING Information to prevent injury to yourself when trying to complete a task CAUTION Information to prevent damage...

Page 10: ...COMPUTER INTERNATIONAL America Address 6737 Mowry Avenue Mowry Business Center Building 2 Newark CA 94560 USA General Fax 1 510 608 4555 General Email tmd1 asus com Technical Support Support Fax 1 510 608 4555 Notebook Tel 1 877 918 ASUS 2787 Web Site www asus com Support Email tsd asus com ASUS COMPUTER GmbH Europe Address Harkortstr 25 40880 Ratingen BRD Germany General Fax 49 2102 442066 Genera...

Page 11: ...hapter 1 This chapter describes the features of the P4B FX motherboard It includes brief explanations of the special attributes of the motherboard and the new technology it supports Product introduction ...

Page 12: ...ASUS P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 13: ...ution graphics via an AGP 4X slot high speed data transfers using the ATA100 protocol and AC 97 compliant audio features the P4B FX is your perfect vehicle to get ahead in the world of power computing 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 P4B FX package for the following items ASUS ...

Page 14: ...ations will also help you avoid mistakes that may damage the board and its components This section presents the motherboard components and points out their specific locations A brief description of each component follows Refer to Chapter 2 for detailed information on these components 1 3 1 Identifying the motherboard components Proceed to the succeeding pages for a brief description of each compon...

Page 15: ...incorrect insertion of the floppy disk cable ATX power connector This 20 pin connector connects to an ATX 12V power supply The power supply must have at least 1A on the 5V standby lead 5VSB IDE connectors These dual channel bus master IDE connectors support up to four Ultra DMA 100 66 PIO Modes 3 4 IDE devices Both the primary blue and secondary black connectors are slotted to prevent incorrect in...

Page 16: ...port two enhanced serial ports one with infrared support and a MIDI interface compatible with MPU 401 UART mode Audio CODEC This AC 97 audio codec provides stereo analog I O on the motherboard and peripheral devices to deliver high quality audio to PC connected speakers headphones and microphones The codec includes analog to digital and digital to analog sample rate converters as power amplifiers ...

Page 17: ... PS 2 keyboard port This purple 6 pin connector is for a PS 2 keyboard PS 2 mouse port This green 6 pin connector is for a PS 2 mouse 22 23 25 26 Figure 1 2 Pre installed Heatsink Retention Module Base This motherboard is shipped with the heatsink retention module base already installed This module should fit the retention mechanism that comes with a boxed CPU You do not have to remove the retenti...

Page 18: ... 4 processor utilizes the advanced 0 18 micron processor core in FC PGA2 package for a 2 0GHz frequency while the Northwood processor uses the 0 13 micron processor core with 512KB L2 cache for up to a speedy 2 4GHz frequency The P4 offers optimized performance for audio video and Internet applications Onboard LAN optional The motherboard incorporates the RealTek 8100B LAN chip to support 10BASE T...

Page 19: ... Hardware information This chapter describes the hardware setup procedures that you have to perform when installing system components It includes details on the switches jumpers and connectors on the motherboard ...

Page 20: ...ASUS P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 21: ...herboard placement and screw holes 2 1 1 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 Refer to the image below 2 1 2 Screw holes Place six 6 screws into the holes indicated by circles to secure the motherboard to the chassis Make sure to unplug the power ...

Page 22: ...F X Accelerated Graphics Port AGP CR2032 3V Lithium Cell CMOS Power ATX Power Connector 2Mbit Firmware Hub Super I O Intel 845 Memory Controller Hub MCH CPU_FAN SYSTEM 1 1 1 DIMM Socket 1 64 72 bit 168 pin module 0 1 DIMM Socket 2 64 72 bit 168 pin module 2 3 ATX12V AUX CD1 Socket 478 PCI1 PS 2KBMS T Mouse B Keyboard Audio Codec Realtek RTL8100B RJ 45 Top USB1 USB2 Bottom COM1 PARALLEL PORT COM2 G...

Page 23: ...ject such as the power supply case before handling components to avoid damaging them due to static electricity 3 Hold components by the edges and do not to touch the ICs on them 4 Whenever you uninstall any component place it on a grounded antistatic pad or in the bag that came with the component 5 Before you install or remove any component ensure that the ATX power supply is switched off or the p...

Page 24: ...Burst micro architecture features the hyper pipelined technology rapid execution engine 400MHz system bus and execution trace cache Together these attributes improve system performance by allowing higher processor frequencies faster execution of integer instructions and a data transfer rate of 3 2GB s Note in the illustration that the CPU has a gold triangular mark on one corner This mark indicate...

Page 25: ... ZIF socket on the motherboard 2 Unlock the socket by pressing the lever sideways then lift it up to a 90 100 angle Figure 2 4 Intel 478 pin ZIF Socket Figure 2 5 CPU Socket Lever at 90 100 Angle Socket Lever Make sure that the socket lever is lifted up to 90 100 angle otherwise the CPU does not fit in completely 90 100 ...

Page 26: ...it fits in place The CPU fits only in one correct orientation DO NOT force the CPU into the socket to prevent bending the pins and damaging the CPU 5 When the CPU is in place press it firmly on the socket while you push down the socket lever to secure the CPU The lever clicks on the side tab to indicate that it is locked Figure 2 6 Installing the CPU Figure 2 7 Installed CPU Gold Mark ...

Page 27: ...g sure that the heatsink fits properly on the retention module base When you buy a boxed Intel Pentium 4 478 Northwood Processor the package usually includes the heatsink fan and retention mechanism In case you buy a CPU separately make sure that you use only Intel certified heatsink and fan Your boxed Intel Pentium 4 478 Northwood Processor package should come with installation instructions for t...

Page 28: ...f the module base Keep the retention locks lifted upward while fitting the retention mechanism to the module base Make sure that the fan and retention mechanism assembly perfectly fits the heatsink and module base otherwise you cannot snap the hooks into the holes Figure 2 9 Installing the Fan and Retention Mechanism Retention Hole Retention Hook Snapped to the Retention Hole Retention Lock ...

Page 29: ...e CPU fan cable to the connector on the motherboard labeled CPUFAN 3 Push down the locks on the retention mechanism to secure the heatsink and fan to the module base Figure 2 10 Fan and Retention Mechanism Installed and Locked Figure 2 11 CPU Fan Connector When secure the retention locks should point to opposite directions CPU Fan Connector CPUFAN ...

Page 30: ...gurations Figure 2 12 DIMM Sockets Location and SDR DIMMs Install DIMMs in any of the following combinations DIMM Location 168 pin DIMM SDR Total Memory Socket 1 Rows 0 1 64MB 128MB 256MB 512MB 1GB x1 Socket 2 Rows 2 3 64MB 128MB 256MB 512MB 1GB x1 Total system memory Max 2GB DIMMs are keyed with notches so that they fit in only one direction DO NOT force a DIMM into a socket to avoid damaging the...

Page 31: ... the components Figure 2 14 Installed DIMM Follow these steps to install a DIMM 1 Unlock a DIMM socket by pressing the retaining clips outward 2 Align a DIMM on the socket such that the notches on the DIMM match the breaks on the socket 3 Firmly insert the DIMM into the socket until the retaining clips snap back in place and the DIMM is properly seated Figure 2 13 Installing a DIMM Unlocked Retain...

Page 32: ...emove a DIMM 1 Simultaneously press the retaining clips outward to unlock the DIMM Figure 2 15 Removing a DIMM Support the DIMM lightly with your fingers when pressing the retaining clips The DIMM might get damaged when it flips out with extra force 2 Remove the DIMM from the socket ...

Page 33: ...ame with it and make the necessary hardware settings for the card 2 Remove the system unit cover if your motherboard is already installed in a chassis 3 Remove the bracket opposite the slot that you intend to use Keep the screw for later use 4 Align the card connector with the slot and press firmly until the card is completely seated on the slot 5 Secure the card to the chassis with the screw you ...

Page 34: ... 6 14 Floppy Disk Controller 7 15 Printer Port LPT1 8 3 System CMOS Real Time Clock 9 4 ACPI Mode when used 10 5 IRQ Holder for PCI Steering 11 6 IRQ Holder for PCI Steering 12 7 PS 2 Compatible Mouse Port 13 8 Numeric Data Processor 14 9 Primary IDE Channel 15 10 Secondary IDE Channel These IRQs are usually available for ISA or PCI devices IRQ assignments for this motherboard A B C D E F G H PCI ...

Page 35: ...Port AGP slot that supports 1 5V AGP cards When you buy an AGP card make sure that you ask for one with 1 5V specification Take note of the notches on the card golden fingers to ensure that they fit the AGP slot on your motherboard Below is an example of a 1 5V AGP card Figure 2 18 Accelerated Graphics Port AGP Slot Location Figure 2 17 Installed PCI Card P4B FX P4B FX Accelerated Graphics Port AG...

Page 36: ...face and technologies such as broadband DSL and wireless System Management Bus SMB for Plug n Play functionality Power to provide the signals required for power management and the main power supplies to operate the CNR circuitry The CNR is tagged to replace the current Audio Modem Riser AMR slot because of its flexibility and added features Also the CNR slot does not take up the motherboard space ...

Page 37: ...ins 2 3 Disabled by default The USB device wake up feature requires a power supply that can provide at least 1A on the 5VSB lead If this requirement is not met the system does not power up The total current consumed must NOT exceed the power supply capability 5VSB whether under normal condition or in sleep mode Figure 2 20 USB Device Wake up Settings Before changing any jumper setting make sure to...

Page 38: ...ply that can provide at least 1A on the 5VSB lead If this requirement is not met the system does not power up The total current consumed must NOT exceed the power supply capability 5VSB whether under normal condition or in sleep mode 3 Audio CODEC 3 pin AUD_EN1 on audio models only This jumper allows you to enable or disable the audio CODEC on the motherboard Disable the audio CODEC if you desire ...

Page 39: ...RAM data The RAM data in CMOS that include system setup information such as system passwords is powered by the onboard button cell battery To erase the RTC RAM 1 Turn OFF the computer and unplug the power cord 2 Remove the battery 3 Short the two pads for a few seconds 4 Re install the battery 5 Plug the power cord and turn ON the computer 6 Hold down the Del key during the boot process and enter ...

Page 40: ... Pin 1 on the connectors Pin 1 is usually on the side closest to the power connector on hard drives and CD ROM drives but may be on the opposite side on floppy disk drives 1 Hard disk activity LED 2 pin IDELED This connector supplies power to the hard disk activity LED The read or write activities of any device connected to the primary or secondary IDE connector cause this LED to light up P4B FX P...

Page 41: ...r settings BIOS supports specific device bootup If you have more than two UltraDMA 100 66 devices purchase another UltraDMA 100 66 cable You may configure two hard disks to be both master devices with two ribbon cables one for the primary IDE connector and another for the secondary IDE connector Figure 2 26 IDE Connectors 1 Pin 20 on each IDE connector is removed to match the covered hole on the U...

Page 42: ...nectors Lack of sufficient air flow within the system may damage the motherboard components These are not jumpers DO NOT place jumper caps on the fan connectors 3 Floppy disk drive connector 34 1 pin FLOPPY This connector supports the provided floppy drive ribbon cable After connecting one end to the motherboard connect the other end to the floppy drive Pin 5 is removed to prevent incorrect insert...

Page 43: ...that support this feature Use the five pins as shown in Back View and connect a ribbon cable from the module to the motherboard SIR connector according to the pin definitions If you installed an infrared module enable the UART2 Use Standard Infrared parameter in BIOS to set UART2 for use with IR See section 4 4 2 I O Device Configuration for details Figure 2 30 Infrared Module Connector P4B FX P4B...

Page 44: ...31 Power Supply Connectors 1 Make sure that your system has an ATX 12V power supply designed for the P4 CPU This type of power supply should have a 4 pin 12V power plug 2 Make sure that the power supply can provide at least 8A on the 12V lead and at least 1A on the 5 volt standby lead 5VSB The minimum recommended wattage is 230W or 300W for a fully configured system The system may become unstable ...

Page 45: ...onnector connects to an optional front panel audio module using a 3 pin audio cable If your chassis has this audio module you can connect a headphone speaker to the front panel connector Figure 2 33 Headphone True level Line Out Connector P4B FX P4B FX Internal Audio Connectors CD1 Black AUX White Right Audio Channel Left Audio Channel Ground P4B FX P4B FX True Level Line Out Header HPHONE 1 Earph...

Page 46: ...ted to the Microphone pink jack on the rear panel You may only use one microphone at a time P4B FX P4B FX Chassis Alarm Lead CHASSIS 5Volt Power Supply Stand By Ground Chassis Signal 1 11 Chassis alarm lead 4 1 pin CHASSIS This lead is for a chassis designed with intrusion detection feature This requires an external detection mechanism such as a chassis intrusion sensor or microswitch When you rem...

Page 47: ...ing Speaker Lead 4 pin SPEAKER This 4 pin connector connects to the case mounted speaker and allows you to hear system beeps and warnings System Message LED Lead 2 pin MSGLED This 2 pin connector is for the system message LED that indicates receipt of messages from a fax modem The normal status for this LED is ON when there is no incoming data signal The LED blinks when data is received The system...

Page 48: ...pend switch to this 2 pin connector ATX Power Switch Soft Off Switch Lead 2 pin PWRSW This connector connects a switch that controls the system power Pressing the power switch turns the system between ON and SLEEP or ON and SOFT OFF depending on the BIOS or OS settings Pressing the power switch while in the ON mode for more than 4 seconds turns the system OFF Reset Switch Lead 2 pin RESET This 2 p...

Page 49: ...Chapter 3 Powering up This chapter describes the power up sequence and gives information on the BIOS beep codes ...

Page 50: ...ASUS P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 51: ...ess the ATX power switch If your monitor complies with green standards or if it has a power standby feature the monitor LED may light up or switch between orange and green after the system LED turns on The system then runs the power on tests While the tests are running the BIOS beeps or additional messages appear on the screen If you do not see anything within 30 seconds from the time you turned o...

Page 52: ...ou can press the ATX power switch after exiting or shutting down the operating system If you use Windows 95 98 2000 XP click the Start button click Shut Down then click the OK button to shut down the computer The power supply should turn off after Windows shuts down The message You can now safely turn off your computer does not appear when shutting down with ATX power supplies ...

Page 53: ...Chapter 4 BIOS setup This chapter tells how to change system settings through the BIOS Setup menus Detailed descriptions of the BIOS parameters are also provided ...

Page 54: ...ASUS P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 55: ...r numbers represent a newer BIOS file 1 Type FORMAT A S at the DOS prompt to create a bootable system disk DO NOT copy AUTOEXEC BAT and CONFIG SYS to the disk 2 Type COPY D AFLASH AFLASH EXE A assuming D is your CD ROM drive to copy AFLASH EXE to the boot disk you created BIOS setup must specify Floppy as the first item in the boot sequence 4 In DOS mode type A AFLASH Enter to run AFLASH If the wo...

Page 56: ...apter 4 BIOS Setup 5 Select 1 Save Current BIOS to File from the Main menu and press Enter The Save Current BIOS To File screen appears 6 Type a filename and the path for example A XXX XX XXX then press Enter ...

Page 57: ... then press Enter The Update BIOS Including Boot Block and ESCD screen appears 5 Type the filename of your new BIOS and the path for example A XXX XX XXX then press Enter To cancel this operation press Enter 6 When prompted to confirm the BIOS update press Y to start the update Update the BIOS only if you have problems with the motherboard and you are sure that the new BIOS revision will solve you...

Page 58: ...ge Flashed Successfully appears 8 Follow the onscreen instructions to continue If you encounter problems while updating the new BIOS DO NOT turn off the system because this may cause boot problems Just repeat the process and if the problem persists load the original BIOS file you saved to the boot disk If the Flash Memory Writer utility is not able to successfully update a complete BIOS file the s...

Page 59: ... record them in the CMOS RAM of the EEPROM The EEPROM on the motherboard stores the Setup utility When you start up the computer the system provides you with the opportunity to run this program Press Delete during the Power On Self Test POST to enter the Setup utility otherwise POST continues with its test routines If you wish to enter Setup after POST restart the system by pressing Ctrl Alt Delet...

Page 60: ...ar The keys in the legend bar allow you to navigate through the various setup menus The following table lists the keys found in the legend bar with their corresponding functions Navigation Key s Function Description F1 or Alt H Displays the General Help screen from any where in the BIOS Setup Esc Jumps to the Exit menu or returns to the main menu from a sub menu Left or Right arrow Selects the men...

Page 61: ... window press Enter or Esc Sub menu Note that a right pointer symbol as shown on the left appears to the left of certain fields This pointer indicates that you can display a sub menu from this field A sub menu contains additional options for a field parameter To display a sub menu move the highlight to the field and press Enter The sub menu appears Use the legend keys to enter values and move from...

Page 62: ...lid values for month day and year are Month 1 to 12 Day 1 to 31 Year up to 2084 Use the Tab or Shift Tab keys to move between the month day and year fields Legacy Diskette A Legacy Diskette B 1 44M 3 5 in Sets the type of floppy drive installed Configuration options None 360K 5 25 in 1 2M 5 25 in 720K 3 5 in 1 44M 3 5 in 2 88M 3 5 in Floppy 3 Mode Support Disabled This is required to support older...

Page 63: ... may be because the hard disk drive is too old or too new If the hard disk was already formatted on an older system Setup may detect incorrect parameters In these cases select User Type HDD to manually enter the IDE hard disk drive parameters Refer to the next section for details Before attempting to configure a hard disk drive make sure you have the correct configuration information supplied by t...

Page 64: ...Esc key to return to the Main menu When the Main menu appears the hard disk drive field displays the size for the hard disk drive that you configured User Type HDD After entering the IDE hard disk drive information into BIOS use a disk utility such as FDISK to partition and format new IDE hard disk drives This is necessary so that you can write or read data from the hard disk Make sure to set the ...

Page 65: ... This field configures the number of sectors per track Refer to the drive documentation to determine the correct value To make changes to this field set the Type field to User Type HDD and the Translation Method field to Manual CHS Capacity This field shows the drive s maximum CHS capacity as calculated by the BIOS based on the drive information you entered Maximum LBA Capacity This field shows th...

Page 66: ...ecrease system performance Configuration options Disabled Enabled PIO Mode 4 This option lets you set a PIO Programmed Input Output mode for the IDE device Modes 0 through 4 provide successive increase in performance Configuration options 0 1 2 3 4 Ultra DMA Mode Disabled Ultra DMA capability allows improved transfer speeds and data integrity for compatible IDE devices Set to Disabled to suppress ...

Page 67: ... Keyboard Auto Repeat Rate 6 Sec This controls the speed at which the system registers repeated keystrokes Options range from 6 to 30 characters per second Configuration options 6 Sec 8 Sec 10 Sec 12 Sec 15 Sec 20 Sec 24 Sec 30 Sec Keyboard Auto Repeat Delay 1 4 Sec This field sets the time interval for displaying the first and second characters Configuration options 1 4 Sec 1 2 Sec 3 4 Sec 1 Sec ...

Page 68: ...program allows you to specify passwords in the Main menu The passwords control access to the BIOS during system startup Passwords are not case sensitive meaning passwords typed in either uppercase or lowercase letters are accepted The BIOS Setup program allows you to specify two different passwords a Supervisor password and a User password If you did not set a Supervisor password anyone can access...

Page 69: ...CI bus The bus frequency external frequency multiplied by the bus multiple equals the CPU speed The setting of this field depends on the CPU Frequency Multiple CPU Memory Frequency Ratio Auto This field determines whether the memory clock frequency is set to be in synchronous or asynchronous mode with respect to the system frequency The options that appear in the popup menu vary according to the C...

Page 70: ...RQ12 whether or not a PS 2 mouse is detected at startup Configuration options Enabled Auto USB Legacy Support Auto This motherboard supports Universal Serial Bus USB devices The default of Auto allows the system to detect a USB device at startup If detected the USB controller legacy mode is enabled If not detected the USB controller legacy mode is disabled When you set this field to Disabled the U...

Page 71: ...formation about the module such as memory type size speed voltage interface and module banks Configuration options User Defined By SPD SDRAM CAS Latency 3T This item controls the latency between the SDRAM read command and the time the data actually becomes available The SDRAM CAS Latency parameter appears only when you set the SDRAM Configuration to User Defined SDRAM RAS to CAS Delay 3T This item...

Page 72: ... processor It can greatly improve the display speed by caching the display data You must set this to UC uncacheable if your display card does not support this feature otherwise the system may not boot Configuration options UC USWC Memory Hole At 15M 16M Disabled This field allows you to reserve an address space for ISA expansion cards Setting the address space to a particular setting makes that me...

Page 73: ... both You can also set both channels to Disabled Configuration options Both Primary Secondary Disabled 4 4 2 I O Device Configuration Floppy Disk Access Control R W When set to Read Only this parameter protects files from being copied to floppy disks by allowing reads from but not writes to the floppy disk drive The default setting R W allows both reads and writes Configuration options R W Read On...

Page 74: ...tions Normal EPP ECP ECP EPP ECP DMA Select 3 This field allows you to configure the parallel port DMA channel for the selected ECP mode This selection is available only if you select ECP or ECP EPP in Parallel Port Mode above Configuration options 1 3 Onboard AC97 Audio Controller Auto Onboard AC97 Modem Controller Auto Auto allows the BIOS to detect whether you are using any modem audio device I...

Page 75: ...ting this field to Enabled corrects this problem If you are using standard VGA cards leave this field to the default setting Disabled Configuration options Disabled Enabled PCI Latency Timer 32 Leave this field to the default setting 32 for best performance and stability USB Function Both This motherboard supports Universal Serial Bus USB devices Set this field to Primary or Both if you want to co...

Page 76: ...that this particular IRQ is NOT required by a legacy ISA card Set the IRQ field to Yes if you install a legacy ISA card that requires a unique IRQ and you are NOT using ICU Configuration options No ICU Yes 4 4 3 1 PCI IRQ Resource Exclusion Onboard LAN Boot ROM Disabled This parameter allows you to enable or disable the boot ROM on the onboard LAN chipset Set this field to Enabled if you wish to u...

Page 77: ...When set to Max Saving system power is conserved to its greatest amount This setting automatically puts the system into suspend mode after a brief period of system inactivity Min Saving allows the least power saving as the system enters suspend mode only after a long period of inactivity Configuration options User Defined Disabled Min Saving Max Saving You should install the Advanced Power Managem...

Page 78: ... hard disk drives in the system after a period of inactivity as set in this user configurable field This feature does not affect SCSI hard drives Configuration options Disabled 1 Min 2 Min 3 Min 15 Min ACPI Suspend To RAM Disabled This field allows you to enable or disable the ACPI Suspend to RAM feature To support this feature the 5VSB of the power supply should have the capacity to provide more ...

Page 79: ...for powering up the computer when the external modem receives a call while the computer is in Soft off mode Configuration options Disabled Enabled The computer cannot receive or transmit data until the computer and applications are fully running Thus connection cannot be made on the first try Turning an external modem off and then back on while the computer is off causes an initialization string t...

Page 80: ...S 2 Mouse Disabled When set to Enabled this parameter allows you to use the PS 2 mouse to turn on the system This feature requires an ATX power supply that provides at least 1A on the 5VSB lead Configuration options Disabled Enabled Automatic Power Up Disabled This allows an unattended or automatic system power up You may configure your system to power up at a certain time of the day by selecting ...

Page 81: ...otations per minute RPM If any of the fans is not connected to the fan connectors on the motherboard the specific field will show N A VCORE Voltage 3 3V Voltage 5V Voltage 12V Voltage The onboard hardware monitor automatically detects the voltage output through the onboard voltage regulators and show the values on these fields If any of the monitored items is out of range the following error messa...

Page 82: ...ard Drive ATAPI CD ROM and Other Boot Device Removable Device Legacy Floppy Configuration options Disabled Legacy Floppy LS 120 ZIP ATAPI MO IDE Hard Drive This field allows you to select which IDE hard disk drive to use in the boot sequence Pressing Enter will show the product IDs of all connected IDE hard disk drives ATAPI CD ROM This field allows you to select which ATAPI CD ROM drive to use in...

Page 83: ...ot sector The system halts and displays a warning message when it detects a virus If this occurs you can either allow the operation to continue or use a virus free bootable floppy disk to restart and investigate your system Configuration options Disabled Enabled Quick Power On Self Test Enabled This field speeds up the Power On Self Test POST routine by skipping retesting a second third and fourth...

Page 84: ...ff When you select this option a confirmation window appears Select Yes to save changes and exit Pressing Esc does not immediately exit this menu Select one of the options from this menu or F10 from the legend bar to exit If you attempt to exit the Setup program without saving your changes the program prompts you with a message asking if you want to save your changes before exiting Pressing Enter ...

Page 85: ...ng the values to the non volatile RAM Discard Changes This option allows you to discard the selections you made and restore the previously saved values After selecting this option a confirmation appears Select Yes to discard any changes and load the previously saved values Save Changes This option saves your selections without exiting the Setup program You can then return to other menus and make f...

Page 86: ...4 32 Chapter 4 BIOS Setup ...

Page 87: ...Chapter 5 Software support This chapter describes the contents of the support CD that comes with the motherboard package ...

Page 88: ...ASUS P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 89: ...ctions in this chapter to install the software and drivers contained in the support CD Because motherboard settings and hardware options vary use the setup procedures presented in this chapter for general reference only Refer to your OS documentation for more information 5 2 Support CD information The support CD that came with the motherboard contains useful software and several utility drivers th...

Page 90: ...d icons that link you to the software drivers utilities and other information contained in the support CD If the welcome screen did not appear automatically locate and double click on the file ASSETUP EXE from the BIN folder in the support CD to display the menus Click on a button to display the available options Place your mouse cursor on an icon and click to display the specified item ...

Page 91: ...r of the first screen to display the second menu screen To return to the first menu screen click on the Back button on the lower right corner of the second screen ASUS Update This program allows you to download the latest version of the BIOS from the ASUS website Before using the ASUS Update make sure that you have an Internet connection so you can connect to the ASUS website Intel LDCM Administra...

Page 92: ...udio Applications This item installs the Cyberlink PowerPlayer SE 5 0 and Cyberlink VideoLive Mail 4 0 Direct X This item installs the Microsoft V8 0a driver PC cillin This item installs the PC cillin 2000 V7 0 anti virus software View the PC cillin online help for detailed information Acrobat Reader This item installs the Adobe Acrobat Reader V5 0 The Acrobat Reader software is for viewing files ...

Page 93: ...u may install this utility in three modes interactive silent and unattended preload The interactive mode requires user input during installation This is not required in the silent and unattended preload modes Refer to the online help or readme file that came with the utility Intel Application Accelerator This item installs the Intel Application Accelerator for Microsoft Windows 98 98SE ME NT4 0 20...

Page 94: ...cking the ASUS Contact Information button displays as stated You may also find this information on page x of this user guide 5 2 5 DOS Utilities menu The DOS utilities menu includes items that you can run in DOS mode These items are also present in the software menu ...

Page 95: ...the support CD This section shows the pop up windows that appear when you click the icons Browse this CD The window displays the support CD contents in graphical format The screens in this section are for reference only and may not exactly reflect the details you see on your screen Motherboard Info The window displays the general specifications of the P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 96: ...al Support Form The window displays the ASUS Technical Support Request Form that you have to fill up when requesting technical support Readme The window displays the contents of the support CD and a brief description of each in text format ...

Page 97: ...ate The ASUS Update is a utility that allows you to update the motherboard BIOS and drivers This utility requires an Internet connection either through a network or an Internet Service Provider ISP Follow these steps to use the ASUS Update 2 Select your desired update method then click Next 1 Launch the utility from your Windows Start menu Programs AsusUpdate Vx xx xx AsusUpdate The ASUS Update in...

Page 98: ...oad Click Next 5 Follow the instructions on the succeeding screens to complete the update process If you selected the option to update the BIOS from a file a window pops up prompting you to locate the file Select the file click Save then follow the screen instructions to complete the update process ...

Page 99: ...Glossary This part lists the technical terms that you may encounter when reading this document ...

Page 100: ...ASUS P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 101: ...software This enables the system to automatically turn ON and OFF peripherals such as CD ROMs network cards hard disk drives and printers as well as consumer devices connected to the PC such as VCRs TVs phones and stereos With this technology peripherals are also able to activate the PC For example inserting a tape into a VCR can turn on the PC which could then activate a large screen TV and high ...

Page 102: ...errupting the CPU Bus master IDE driver and bus master IDE hard disk drives are required to support bus master IDE mode Byte Binary Term One byte is a group of eight contiguous bits A byte is used to represent a single alphanumeric character punctuation mark or other symbol Cache Memory A type of RAM that allows a faster from the CPU than a regular RAM The cache memory eliminates the CPU wait stat...

Page 103: ...on the motherboard An expansion card add functions that are not present in the motherboard Flash ROM A non volatile memory device that retains its data even when power is removed This device is similar to EPROM but unlike EPROM which can be erased only using an ultra violet light flash ROM can be electrically erased Flash ROM is normally used for system BIOS which initiates hardware devices and se...

Page 104: ...o a single server See also WAN Wide Area Network Modem A device that allows a computer to talk to another computer through the phone system Network An interconnected computer system linked by telephone wires or other means OS Operating System The software that controls the overall operation of a computer system The OS tasks include memory allocation input and output distribution interrupt processi...

Page 105: ...ed and read but not modified SCSI Small Computer System Interface High speed multi threaded I O interface defined by the X3T9 2 committee of the American National Standards Institute ANSI for connecting many peripheral devices The standard covers 10MBytes sec to 160MBytes sec data rates SDRAM Synchronous DRAM A type of DRAM with access signals that are synchronized with the CPU clock eliminating t...

Page 106: ...erals such as keyboard mouse joystick scanner printer modem and monitor to share bandwidth through a host scheduled token based protocols This allows attaching or detaching while the host and other peripherals are in operation Supports synchronous and asynchronous transfer types over the same set of wires up to 12Mbit sec USB 2 0 provides 40 times the transfer rate compared to USB 1 0 and competes...

Page 107: ...Index This part contains an alphabetical list of the topics found in this document ...

Page 108: ...ASUS P4B FX motherboard ...

Page 109: ...9 C Central Processing Unit CPU 2 4 CPU socket 1 3 fan connector 2 9 installation 2 5 Level 1 Level 2 Cache 4 15 Speed 4 15 Chip Configuration 4 17 Clear RTC RAM 2 19 Communications and Networking Riser 2 16 Connectors ATX 12V 1 4 ATX power 1 3 chassis alarm 2 22 fan 2 22 Floppy disk 1 3 2 22 Game MIDI 1 5 HDD LED 2 20 IDE 1 3 internal audio 2 25 panel 2 27 power supply 2 24 primary secondary IDE ...

Page 110: ...tor Transfers 4 11 O Onboard LED 2 3 Operating system installation 5 1 P Parallel Port 1 5 4 20 Modes 4 20 Password Supervisor 4 14 User 4 14 PC cillin 5 4 PCI Configuration 4 21 PCI Latency Timer 4 21 PCI VGA Palette Snoop 4 21 PIO Mode 4 12 Plug Play O S 4 30 Power Management 4 24 Power On Self Test 4 30 Powering off 3 2 PS 2 Keyboard Port 1 5 PS 2 Mouse Function Control 4 16 PS 2 Mouse Port 1 5...

Page 111: ...oftware menu 5 3 Technical Support Form 5 8 Welcome screen 5 1 Suspend Mode 4 25 System Controller North Bridge 1 3 South Bridge 1 3 System Date 4 8 System memory configurations 2 10 System Time 4 8 U UART2 4 21 Ultra DMA Mode 4 12 USB Legacy Support 4 17 USB ports 1 5 USWC 4 18 V Video Memory 4 19 Z ZIF socket 2 4 ...

Page 112: ...I 4 Index ...

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