
5
Chapter 1
Introduction
The G686IPA design is based on the Intel 440FX (Natoma) chipset. It is
equipped with a 387-pin Zero Insertion Force (ZIF) CPU socket to sup-
port Intel
®
Pentium Pro™ CPUs running at 150MHz, 166MHz, 180MHz
and 200MHz. Pentium Pro™ CPUs have 256KB or 512KB L2 internal
cache providing optimum system performance.
The G686IPA supports 8MB to 512MB of system memory using EDO or
fast page mode DRAM. It is equipped with 4 SIMM sockets allowing
you to install x32 or x36 SIMM. The x36 SIMM supports parity checking
which informs the user of memory failure and prevents error accumula-
tion.
The G686IPA system board is designed to fit into an ATX form factor
chassis. It is equipped with two NS16C550A-compatible serial ports, an
SPP/ECP/EPP parallel port, a floppy disk drive controller, and two PCI
IDE connectors with bus mastering capabilities that highly reduce CPU
use during disk transfer. This system board is also equipped with one
PS/2 mouse port, one PS/2 keyboard port, two USB connectors and
one IrDA connector for wireless connectivity between your computer
and peripheral devices.