support.dell.com
Checking Inside the Computer
7-7
Figure 7-5. Inside the Chassis
The system board holds the computer's control circuitry and other electronic compo-
nents. Some hardware options are installed directly on the system board. Drive
support is as follows:
•
The three 5.25-inch external drive bays provide space for up to three drives,
including a 3.5-inch diskette drive (standard) and, typically, an optional CD-ROM
drive and/or tape drive.
•
The removable hard-disk drive cage provides space for up to three 1-inch hard-
disk drives.
When you look inside the computer, note the DC power cables leading from the
power supply. The power cables supply power to the system board, drives, and any
expansion cards that connect to external peripherals.
The wide ribbon cables are the interface cables for internal drives. For the diskette
drive, an interface cable connects each drive to an interface connector on the system
board or on an expansion card. For IDE devices, interface cables connect the devices
power supply
AC power
receptacle
security
cable lock
input/output
(I/O) panel
expansion
card slots
padlock ring
system board
drive power cable
drive interface
cable
external
drive bays
internal
drive bays
905grbk0.book Page 7 Friday, September 1, 2000 9:30 AM
