Chapter 2: Safety
2-3
2-3 ESD
Precautions
!
Electrostatic discharge (ESD) is generated by two objects with different electrical
charges coming into contact with each other. An electrical discharge is created to
neutralize this difference, which can damage electronic com ponents and printed
circuit boards. The following measures are generally suffi cient to neutralize this
difference before contact is made to protect your equipment from ESD:
•
Use a grounded wrist strap designed to prevent static discharge.
•
Keep all components and printed circuit boards (PCBs) in their antistatic bags
until ready for use.
•
Touch a grounded metal object before removing the board from the antistatic
bag.
•
Do not let components or PCBs come into contact with your clothing, which may
retain a charge even if you are wearing a wrist strap.
•
Handle a board by its edges only; do not touch its components, peripheral chips,
memory modules or contacts.
•
When handling chips or modules, avoid touching their pins.
•
Put the serverboard and peripherals back into their antistatic bags when not
in use.
•
For grounding purposes, make sure your computer chassis provides excellent
conductivity between the power supply, the case, the mounting fasteners and
the serverboard.