K8T Master2-FAR7
MS-9617 (v1.X) Workstation Board
English Version
G52-S9617X1
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Safety Instructions
1. Always read the safety instructions carefully.
2. Keep this User’s Manual for future reference.
3. Keep this equipment away from humidity.
4. Lay this equipment on a reliable flat surface before setting it up.
5. The openings on the enclosure are for air convection hence protects the equip-
ment from overheating. DO NOT COVER THE OPENINGS.
6. Make sure the voltage of the power source and adjust properly 110/220V be-
fore connecting the equipment to the power inlet.
7. Place the power cord such a way that people can not step on it. Do not place
anything over the power cord.
8. Always Unplug the Power Cord before inserting any add-on card or module.
9. All cautions and warnings on the equipment should be noted.
10. Never pour any liquid into the opening that could damage or cause electrical
shock.
11. If any of the following situations arises, get the equipment checked by a service
personnel:
† The power cord or plug is damaged.
† Liquid has penetrated into the equipment.
† The equipment has been exposed to moisture.
† The equipment has not work well or you can not get it work according to
User’s Manual.
† The equipment has dropped and damaged.
† The equipment has obvious sign of breakage.
12. DONOT LEAVETHIS EQUIPMENT INANENVIRONMENT UNCONDITIONED,STOR-
AGE TEMPERATUREABOVE 600 C (1400F), IT MAY DAMAGE THE EQUIPMENT.
CAUTION: Danger of explosion if battery is incorrectly replaced.
Replace only with the same or equivalent type recommended by the
manufacturer.
iii
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FCC-B Radio Frequency Interference Statement
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 reasonable protection
against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates,
uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accor-
dance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular
installation. If this equipment does 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 measures listed
below.
† Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
† Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
† Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to
which the receiver is connected.
† Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/television technician for help.
Notice 1
The changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible for
compliance could void the user’s authority to operate the equipment.
Notice 2
Shielded interface cables and A.C. power cord, if any, must be used in order to
comply with the emission limits.
VOIR LANOTICED’INSTALLATIONAVANTDE RACCORDERAU RESEAU.
Micro-Star International
MS-9617
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions:
(1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and
(2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that
may cause undesired operation.
iv
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WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Statement
v
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vi
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vii
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CONTENTS
Copyright Notice ..............................................................................................................ii
Trademarks .......................................................................................................................ii
Revision History ..............................................................................................................ii
Technical Support ...........................................................................................................ii
Safety Instructions .......................................................................................................... iii
FCC-B Radio Frequency Interference Statement ........................................................ iv
WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Statement.................................... v
Chapter 1. Getting Started .................................................................................... 1-1
Mainboard Specifications ................................................................................... 1-2
Mainboard Layout................................................................................................ 1-4
MSI Special Features .......................................................................................... 1-5
Core Center .................................................................................................. 1-5
Chapter 2. Hardware Setup .................................................................................. 2-1
Quick Components Guide .................................................................................... 2-2
Central Processing Unit: CPU ............................................................................. 2-3
CPU Installation Procedures for Socket 940 ............................................. 2-4
Installing AMD OpteronTM CPU Cooling System ........................................ 2-5
Memory................................................................................................................. 2-7
Installing DDR Modules ................................................................................ 2-7
Memory Population Rules ............................................................................ 2-8
Power Supply ...................................................................................................... 2-9
SSI 4-Pin VGA Power Connector: JPWR2 (Optional) ............................... 2-9
SSI 8-Pin CPU Power Connector: JPWR1 .................................................. 2-9
SSI 24-Pin System Power Connector: JPR1 ........................................... 2-10
Back Panel ...........................................................................................................2-11
Mouse Connector (Green) / Keyboard Connector (Purple) ...................2-11
Serial Ports ................................................................................................. 2-12
USB Connectors ........................................................................................ 2-12
RJ-45 LAN Jack .......................................................................................... 2-13
Audio Port Connectors .............................................................................. 2-13
Parallel Port Connector: LPT1 ................................................................... 2-14
Connectors ........................................................................................................ 2-15
Floppy Disk Drive Connector: FDD1.......................................................... 2-15
Hard Disk Connectors: IDE1, IDE2 ............................................................ 2-15
Serial ATA/Serial ATA RAID Connectors: SATA1, SATA2 ....................... 2-16
SCSI LED Connector: J7 ............................................................................ 2-17
viii
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Fan Power Connectors: CFAN1/2, SFAN1, NBFAN1 .............................. 2-17
IrDA Infrared Module Header: JIR1........................................................... 2-18
Front Panel Audio Connector: JAUD1 ...................................................... 2-18
Chassis Intrusion Switch Connector: JCI1 .............................................. 2-19
CD-In Connector: JCD1 ............................................................................. 2-19
Front Panel Connectors: JFP1, JFP2 ....................................................... 2-19
D-Bracket™ 2 Connector: JLED ............................................................... 2-20
Front USB Connectors: JUSB1, JUSB2 ................................................... 2-22
Jumper................................................................................................................ 2-23
Clear CMOS Jumper: JBAT1 ..................................................................... 2-23
Slots .................................................................................................................... 2-24
AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) Pro Slot .............................................. 2-24
PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) Slots ...................................... 2-24
PCI Interrupt Request Routing................................................................... 2-24
Chapter 3. BIOS Setup ............................................................................................ 3-1
Entering Setup ..................................................................................................... 3-2
Control Keys ................................................................................................ 3-2
Getting Help .................................................................................................. 3-3
The Main Menu ..................................................................................................... 3-4
Standard CMOS Features ................................................................................... 3-6
Advanced BIOS Features ................................................................................... 3-8
Advanced Chipset Features ............................................................................ 3-10
Integrated Peripherals ....................................................................................... 3-14
Power Management Setup ............................................................................... 3-19
PC Health Status ................................................................................................ 3-22
Frequency/Voltage Control ............................................................................... 3-24
Load Fail-Safe/Optimized Defaults .................................................................. 3-25
Set Supervisor/User Password ....................................................................... 3-26
Appendix A: VIA VT8237R SATA RAID.................................................................A-1
Introduction ..........................................................................................................A-2
BIOS Configuration ..............................................................................................A-3
Installing RAID Software & Drivers ..................................................................A-10
Using VIA RAID Tool ..........................................................................................A-13
Appendix B: Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Channel Audio Function .......................... B-1
Installing the Audio Driver ................................................................................... B-2
Installation for Windows 98SE/ME/2000/XP .............................................. B-2
ix
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Software Configuration ...................................................................................... B-4
Sound Effect ................................................................................................ B-5
Speaker Configuration ................................................................................ B-7
3D Audio Demo ............................................................................................. B-9
General ....................................................................................................... B-10
SPDIF .......................................................................................................... B-11
Microphone Effect ..................................................................................... B-12
Using 2-, 4-, 6- & 8- Channel Audio Function ................................................. B-13
x
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Chapter 1. Getting
Sta
Getting Started
Thank you for choosing the K8T Master2-FAR7 (MS-9617 v1.x), an
excellent ATX workstation board from MSI. Based on the innovative
VIA® K8T800 Pro and VIA® VT8237R chipsets for optimal system
efficiency, the K8T Master2-FAR7 mainboard accommodates dual latest
AMD Opteron DPTM/UPTM processors in the 940-pin lidded ceramic micro
PGA package, and supports up to four 144-bit DDR registered ECC
DIMMs (at 200, 266, 333 and 400MHz) to provide the maximum of 8
GB memory capacity. This mainboard provides a cost-effective and
professional solution for high-end workstation and server markets.
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
Mainboard Specifications
CPU
† Supports dual Socket 940 for AMD OpteronTM processors, from 1.4 ~ 3.6 GHz
com.tw/program/products/server/svr/pro_svr_qvl.php)
Chipset
† VIA® K8T800 Pro Northbridge
- HyperTransport link to the AMD OpteronTM CPU
- 800/600/400/200 MHz “Double Data Rate” operation both direction
- AGP v3.0 compliant with 8X transfer mode
† VIA® VT8237R Southbridge
- Integrated Hardware Sound Blaster/Direct Sound AC97 audio
- Ultra DMA 66/100/133 master mode PCI EIDE controller
- Supports Serial ATA RAID
- Supports eight high-speed USB 2.0 ports at up to 480Mb/s transfer
- Extensive ACPI-compliant power management
- Integrated Faster Ethernet LPC
Main Memory
† 144-bit DDR at 200/266/333/400 MHz
† Supports four 184-pin DDR DIMMs up to 8GB
† Supports interleaving memory within DIMMs
† ChipKill ECC allows continuous correction of 4-bit errors in a failed x 4 memory
device
com.tw/program/products/server/svr/pro_svr_qvl.php)
Slots
† One AGP Pro 8x/4x slot.
† Four 32-bit/33 MHz PCI slots
HDD Interface
†
An IDE controller on the VT8237R chipset
- Provides IDE HDD/CD-ROM with PIO, Bus Master and Ultra DMA 133/100/66
operation modes
- Can connect up to 4 IDE devices
† Serial ATA/150 controller integrated in VT8237R
- Up to 150MB/sec transfer rate
- Can connect up to two Serial ATA drives
Onboard Peripherals
† 2 x IDE ports
† 1 x PS/2 keyboard port and 1 x PS/2 mouse port
† 2 x serial ports
† 1 x parallel port supports SPP/EPP/ECP mode
1-2
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Getting Sta rted
† 1 x RJ-45 port (with LEDs)
† 8 x USB ports (front*4 and rear*4)
† 2 x SATA ports
Networking
† Broadcom BCM5705 Gigabit Ethernet controller
Audio
† AC’97 link controller integrated in VIA VT8237R
† 8-channel audio codec Realtek ALC850
- Compliance with AC97 v2.3 Spec
- Meets PC2001 audio performance requirement
Power Management Features
† Wake up on LAN (WOL), wake up on PCI
† RTC alarm and wake up
† Wake up on keyboard/mouse/USB from S1
† Supports ACPI S1, S4, S5 function
System Management
† SMBus (I2C)
† Temperature, voltage, and fan monitors
† Chassis intrusion
BIOS
† The mainboard BIOS provides “Plug & Play” BIOS which detects the peripheral
devices and expansion cards of the board automatically
† The mainboard provides a Desktop Management Interface (DMI) function which
records your mainboard specifications
† Supports boot from LAN, USB Device 1.1 & 2.0, and SATA HDD
Dimension
† ATX Form Factor: 12.0 x 10.0 inch (H x W)
Mounting
† 9 mounting holes (ATX Form standard)
MSI Reminds You...
To create a bootable RAID volume for a Windows 2000 environment,
Microsoft’s Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 (SP4) is required. As the
end user cannot boot without SP4, a combination installation CD must
be created before attempting to install the operating system onto the
bootable RAID volume.
To create the combination installation CD, please refer to the follow-
ing website:
sp4/HFdeploy.htm
1-3
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
Mainboard Layout
Top: Mouse
Bottom: Keyboard
JPR1
CFAN1
Top :
Parallel Port
Bottom:
COM A
COMB
Top: SPDIF Out
Bottom: USB Ports
Top: LAN Jack
Bottom: USB Ports
T: Line-In
M: Line-Out
B: Mic
T: RS-Out
M: CS-Out
B: SPDIFOut
JPWR2
VIA
K8T800 Pro
PCI1
BIOS
PCI2
PCI3
JCI1
IDE1
IDE2
W83627
THF
VIA
VT8237R
J7
PCI4
ALC850
FDD1
JCD1 JAUD1
SATA1 SATA2
JBAT1
JIR1
JLED
SFAN1
K8T Master2-FAR7 (MS-9617 v1.X) ATX Workstation Board
1-4
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Getting Sta rted
MSI Special Features
Core Center
The Core Center is a new utility you can find in the CD-ROM disk. The utility is just like
your PC doctor that can detect, view and adjust the PC hardware and system status
during real time operation. In the left side it shows the current system status, including
the Vcore, 3.3V, +5V and 12V. In the right side it shows the current PC hardware
status such as the CPU & system temperatures and all fans speeds.
When you click the red triangles in the left and right sides, two sub-menus will open
for users to overclock, overspec or to adjust the thresholds of system to send out the
warning messages. If you click the Core Center button on the top, a screen pops up
for you to choose the “Auto mode” or “User mode” of CPU fan. You may adjust the
speeds of CPU fans and system fan here.
1-5
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
Left-side: Current system status
In the left sub-menu, you can configure the settings of FSB, Vcore, Memory Voltage
and AGP Voltage by clicking the radio button in front of each item and make it available
(the radio button will be lit as yellow when selected), use the “+” and “-” buttons to
adjust, then click “ok” to apply the changes. Then you can click Save to save the
desired FSB you just configured.
Also you may click Auto to start testing the maximal CPU overclocking value, The
CPU FSB will automatically increase the testing value until the PC reboots. Or you may
click Default to restore the default values.
Right-side: PC hardware status during real time operation
In the right sub-menu, here you can configure the PC hardware status such as CPU
& system temperatures and fan speeds. You may use the scroll bars to adjust each
item, then click “ok” to apply the changes. The values you set for the temperatures
are the maximum thresholds for the system for warnings, and the value for fan
speeds are the minimum thresholds.
Top-side: User mode/Auto mode
Here you may adjust the CPU fan speed. If you choose User mode, you may adjust
the CPU fan speed in 8 different modes, from Stop to Full speed.
MSI Reminds You...
Items shown on Core Center may vary depending on your system status.
1-6
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Chapter 2. Hardware
Set
Hardware Setup
This chapter provides you with the information about hardware setup
procedures. While doing the installation, be careful in holding the
components and follow the installation procedures. For some
components, if you install in the wrong orientation, the components
will not work properly.
Use a grounded wrist strap before handling computer components.
Static electricity may damage the components.
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
Quick Components Guide
CFAN1, p.2-17
JPR1, p.2-10
DDR1~4, p.2-7
CFAN2, p.2-17
I/O Ports,
p.2-11
CPU1, p.2-3
CPU2, p.2-3
JPWR1,
p.2-9
JPWR2, p.2-9
NBFAN1, p.2-17
AGP1, p.2-24
JUSB1, p.2-22
JUSB2, p.2-22
JFP2, p.2-19
PCI Slots, p.2-24
JCI1, p.2-19
J7, p.2-17
JFP1, p.2-19
IDE1/2,
p.2-15
JBAT1, p.2-23
JCD1, p.2-19
FDD1, p.2-15
SATA1/2, p.2-16
SFAN1, p.2-17
JAUD1, p.2-18
JIR1, p.2-18
JLED, p.2-20
2-2
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Hardware Setup
Central Processing Unit: CPU
The mainboard supports dual AMD® Opteron processors. The mainboard uses two
CPU sockets called Socket 940 for easy CPU installation. You can install SINGLE or
DUAL CPUs on the mainboard to meet your own needs. Keep the following points in
mind before installing CPU(s).
1. If SINGLE CPU is intended, always install the CPU on the CPU1 socket.
CPU1
CPU2
2. To install DUAL CPUs on the board, you must use the same type of CPUs
running at the same frequency.
When you are installing the CPU, make sure the CPU has a Heat Sink and a
cooling fan attached on the top to prevent overheating. If you do not find the
Heat Sink and cooling fan, contact your dealer to purchase and install them before
turning on the computer.
For more information on compatible components, please visit http://www.msi.com.
tw/program/products/server/svr/pro_svr_qvl.php .
MSI Reminds You...
Overheating will seriously damage the CPU and system, always make
sure the cooling fan can work properly to protect the CPU from
overheating.
The system temperature needs to remain under 45°C.
We highly recommend that the direction of inlet air should follow the
direction indicated above for better cooling effect.
2-3
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CPU Installation Procedures for Socket 940
Open Lever
1. Make sure that the computer is
turned off, and the power cord dis-
connected before installing the CPU.
2. Pull the lever sideways away
from the socket, and raise it up to a
90-degree angle.
Cut edge
3. Locate the cut edge of the CPU.
When the CPU is installed into the
socket, this cut edge should be
aligned with the corner marking an
arrow on the Socket 940.
Please note that the CPU can only fit
in a correct orientation, DO NOT use
force to install the CPU into the
Corner marking
an arrow
socket.
Press down
the CPU
4. Place the CPU onto the socket and
press it down firmly into the socket.
The pins of the CPU should be em-
bedded into the socket completely.
Close
Lever
5. Close the lever to secure the CPU.
Do not close the lever until the CPU’s
pins are fully inserted; otherwise,
the pins may be damaged.
O
X
2-4
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Hardware Setup
Installing AMD OpteronTM CPU Cooling System
When you are installing the CPU, make sure the CPU has a heat sink and a
cooling fan attached on the top to prevent overheating. If you do not find the
heat sink and cooling fan, contact your dealer to purchase and install them before
turning on the computer.
MSI Reminds You...
Please refer to the recommended CPU fans at AMD® official website
or consult the vendors for proper CPU cooling fan.
u ForCPU2
1. Locate the 4 screws of the heatsink
to the 4 screw holes in the CPU area
on the mainboard.
2. Use the screw driver to fasten each
screw into each screw hole. Please
note the orientation of the heatsink/
cooler for CFAN2 should be the same
as shown below to prevent the in-
tervention with AGP card.
screw holes
MSI Reminds You...
Overheating
Overheating will seriously damage the CPU and system, always make
sure the cooling fan can work properly to protect the CPU from
overheating.
Replacing the CPU
While replacing the CPU, always turn off the power supply or unplug
the power supply’s power cord from grounded outlet first to ensure the
safety of CPU.
2-5
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
u ForCPU1
1. Locate the CPU and its retention mod-
ules on the motherboard.
2. Position the heatsink/cooler onto the
retention modules. Connect the wires
to the fan power connector (CFAN1),
then press down the fan until its four
clips get wedged in the holes of the
retention modules.
retention modules
fan power
3. Hook one end of the clip into the hole
of the retention module, then push
down the handle to hook the other
end to the retention module.
4. Repeat step 3 on the other clip.
handle
2-6
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Hardware Setup
Memory
The mainboard provides four slots for 184-pin DDR SDRAM DIMM
(Double In-Line Memory Module) modules and supports up to 8GB memory size. You
can install PC3200/DDR400, PC2700/DDR333, PC2100/DDR266, or PC1600/DDR200
modules on the DDR DIMM slots (DDR 1~4).
DDR DIMM Slots
(DDR1~4)
Installing DDR Modules
1. The DDR DIMM has only one notch on the center of module. The module will only fit
in the right orientation.
2. Insert the DIMM memory module vertically into the DIMM slot. Then push it in until the
golden finger on the memory module is deeply inserted in the socket.
MSI Reminds You...
You can barely see the golden finger if the module is properly inserted
in the socket.
3. The plastic clip at each side of the DIMM slot will automatically close.
Notch
Volt
2-7
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
Memory Population Rules
The mainboard supports DDR200/266/333/400 memory interface.
Each DIMM slot supports up to a maximum size of 2GB. Users can install either single-
or double-sided modules depending on their needs.
Memory modules can be installed in any combination as follows:
Slot
Memory Module Population Rules (Dual channel - 128 bits)
DIMM 1
DIMM 2
DIMM 3
DIMM 4
Install
Install
Install
Install
Install
Install
Install
Install
Slot
Memory Module Population Rules (Single channel - 64 bits)
Install
DIMM 1
DIMM 2
DIMM 3
DIMM 4
Install
Install
Install
For more information on compatible components, please visit http://www.msi.com.
tw/program/products/server/svr/pro_svr_qvl.php .
MSI Reminds You...
Make sure that you install memory modules of the same type and
density on DDR DIMMs.
2-8
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Hardware Setup
Power Supply
The mainboard supports SSI power supply for the power system, while ATX power
supply is also available for this mainboard. Before inserting the power supply
connector, always make sure that all components are installed properly to ensure
that no damage will be caused.
SSI 4-Pin VGA Power Connector: JPWR2 (Optional)
This connector is used to provide +12V power output to AGP Pro add-on card.
JPWR2 Pin Definition
3
4
1
2
PIN
SIGNAL
1
2
3
4
GND
GND
12V
JPWR2
12V
SSI 8-Pin CPU Power Connector: JPWR1
This connector is used to provide the power output to the CPU.
JPWR1 Pin Definition
4
1
8
5
PIN
SIGNAL
PIN
SIGNAL
1
2
3
4
GND
GND
GND
GND
5
6
7
8
+12V
+12V
+12V
+12V
JPWR1
MSI Reminds You...
For this JPWR1 power connector, you may use the
4-pin ATX power supply or 8-pin SSI power supply
as you like. If you’d like to use the SSI power supply,
please remove the sticker (covered the 1, 2, 5 and 6
pins, shown as the photo in the right) marked “SSI
ONLY” on the JPWR1 power connector to insert the
SSI power supply in the proper orientation for cor-
rect alignment. If you’d like to use the ATX power
supply, please just insert your power supply in the
rest pins without removing the sticker.
2-9
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
SSI 24-Pin System Power Connector: JPR1
This connector allows you to connect an SSI power supply. To connect the SSI
power supply, make sure the plug of the power supply is inserted in the proper
orientation and the pins are aligned. Then push down the power supply firmly into the
connector.
JPR1
24
12
13
1
JPR1 Pin Definition
PIN
SIGNAL
PIN
SIGNAL
1
2
+3.3V
+3.3V
GND
+5V
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
+3.3V
-12V
3
GND
PS-ON#
GND
GND
GND
Res
4
5
GND
+5V
6
7
GND
PWROK
5VSB
+12V
+12V
+3.3V
8
9
+5V
10
11
12
+5V
+5V
GND
MSI Reminds You...
For this JPR1 power connector, you may use the 20-pin ATX power
supply or 24-pin SSI power supply as you like. If you’d like to use the
SSI power supply, please remove the sticker (covered the 11, 12, 23
and 24 pins, shown as the photo below) marked “SSI ONLY” on the
JPR1 power connector to insert the SSI power supply in the proper
orientation for correct alignment. If you’d like to use the ATX power
supply, please just insert your power supply in the rest pins without
removing the sticker.
2-10
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Hardware Setup
Back Panel
SPDIF
Out
L-In
RS-Out
Parallel
LAN
(Coaxial)
Mouse
L-Out
Mic
CS-Out
SPDIF Out
(Optical)
Keyboard COM Port
COM Port
USB Ports
Mouse Connector (Green) / Keyboard Connector (Purple)
The mainboard provides a standard PS/2® mouse/keyboard mini DIN connector for
attaching a PS/2® mouse/keyboard. You can plug a PS/2® mouse/keyboard directly
into this connector. The connector location and pin assignments are as follows:
6
5
3
4
1
2
PS/2 Mouse / Keyboard
(6-pin Female)
Pin Definition
PIN
SIGNAL
DESCRIPTION
1
2
3
4
5
6
Mouse/Keyboard Data Mouse/Keyboard data
NC
Noconnection
Ground
GND
VCC
+5V
Mouse/KeyboardClock Mouse/Keyboardclock
NC Noconnection
2-11
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
Serial Ports
The mainboard offers two 9-pin male DIN serial ports. The ports are 16550A high
speed communications ports that send/receive 16 bytes FIFOs. You can attach a
serial mouse or other serial devices directly to them.
Pin Definition
1
2
3
4
5
PIN
SIGNAL
DESCRIPTION
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
DCD
SIN
DataCarry Detect
Serial In or Receive Data
Serial Out or Transmit Data
DataTerminal Ready
Ground
SOUT
DTR
GND
DSR
RTS
CTS
RI
6
7
8
9
DataSetReady
9-Pin Male DIN Connector
RequestToSend
Clear To Send
RingIndicate
USB Connectors
The rear panel provides four OHCI (Open Host Controller Interface) Universal Serial
Bus roots for attaching USB devices such as keyboard, mouse or other USB-compat-
ible devices. You can plug the USB device directly into them.
USB Port Description
PIN
SIGNAL
DESCRIPTION
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
VCC
+5V
-Data 0
+Data0
GND
Negative Data Channel 0
PositiveDataChannel 0
Ground
1
5
2
6
3
7
4
8
VCC
+5V
-Data 1
+Data 1
GND
Negative Data Channel 1
PositiveDataChannel 1
Ground
USB Ports
2-12
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Hardware Setup
RJ-45 LAN Jack
The mainboard provides 1 standard RJ-45 jack for connection to single Local Area
Network (LAN). This Giga-bit LAN enables data to be transferred at 1000, 100 or
10Mbps. You can connect a network cable to it.
Giga-bit LAN Pin Definition
PIN
SIGNAL
DESCRIPTION
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
D0P
D0N
D1P
D2P
D2N
D1N
D3P
D3N
Differential Pair0+
Differential Pair 0-
Differential Pair1+
Differential Pair2+
Differential Pair 2-
Differential Pair 1-
Differential Pair3+
Differential Pair 3-
RJ-45 LAN Jack
Audio Port Connectors
The left 3 audio jacks are 2-channel mode for stereo speaker output. Line Out is a
connector for Speakers or Headphones. Line In is used for external CD player, Tape
player, or other audio devices. Mic is a connector for microphones.
However, there is an advanced audio application provided by Realtek ALC850 to
offer support for 7.1-channel audio operation and can turn rear audio connectors
from 2-channel to 4-/5.1-/7.1 channel audio.
S/PDIF Out-Coaxial
Rear Speaker Out
Line In
(in 7.1CH / 6CH)
Center/Subwoofer
Line Out
Speaker Out
( in 7.1CH / 6CH)
S/PDIF Out-Optical
MIC
(in 7.1CH / 6CH)
2-13
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Parallel Port Connector: LPT1
The mainboard provides a 25-pin female centronic connector as LPT. A parallel port
is a standard printer port that supports Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP) and Extended
Capabilities Parallel Port (ECP) mode.
13
1
14
25
Pin Definition
SIGNAL
PIN
DESCRIPTION
1
STROBE
DATA0
DATA1
DATA2
DATA3
DATA4
DATA5
DATA6
DATA7
ACK#
BUSY
PE
Strobe
2
Data0
3
Data1
4
Data2
5
Data3
6
Data4
7
Data5
8
Data6
9
Data7
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
Acknowledge
Busy
PaperEnd
Select
SELECT
AUTOFEED#
ERR#
INIT#
AutomaticFeed
Error
InitializePrinter
SelectIn
Ground
Ground
Ground
Ground
Ground
Ground
Ground
Ground
SLIN#
GND
GND
GND
GND
GND
GND
GND
GND
2-14
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Hardware Setup
Connectors
The mainboard provides connectors to connect to FDD, IDE HDD, case, LAN, USB
Ports, CPU/system power supply fans, ... and etc.
Floppy Disk Drive Connector: FDD1
The mainboard provides a standard floppy disk drive connector that supports 360K,
720K, 1.2M, 1.44M and 2.88M floppy disk types.
FDD1
Hard Disk Connectors: IDE1, IDE2
The mainboard provides a 32-bit Enhanced PCI IDE and Ultra DMA 33/66/100/133
controller that supports PIO mode 0 ~ 4, Bus Master, and Ultra DMA 33/66/100/133
function. You can connect up to four hard disk drives, CD-ROM drives, 120MB floppy
disk drive (reserved for future BIOS), and other devices.
IDE1
IDE2
IDE1 (Primary IDE Connector)
The first hard drive should always be connected to IDE1. IDE1 can connect a
Master and a Slave drive. You must configure second hard drive to Slave
mode by setting the jumper accordingly.
IDE2 (Secondary IDE Connector)
IDE2 can also connect a Master and a Slave drive.
MSI Reminds You...
If you install two hard disks on cable, you must configure the second
drive to Slave mode by setting its jumper. Refer to the hard disk docu-
mentation supplied by hard disk vendors for jumper setting instructions.
2-15
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Serial ATA/Serial ATA RAID Connectors: SATA1, SATA2
SATA1 & SATA2 are dual high-speed Serial ATA interface ports. Each supports 1st
generation serial ATA data rates of 150 MB/s. Both connectors are fully compliant
with Serial ATA 1.0 specifications. Each Serial ATA connector can connect to 1 hard
disk device. Please refer to Appendix VIA VT8237 Serial ATA RAID for detailed
software installation procedures.
SATA1/2 Pin Definition
PIN
SIGNAL
PIN
SIGNAL
SATA1
SATA2
1
GND
2
TXP
3
5
7
TXN
RXN
GND
4
6
GND
RXP
1
7
1
7
Take out the dust cover and
connect to the hard disk devices
Optional Serial ATA cable
Connect to SATA1/2
MSI Reminds You...
Please do not fold the Serial ATA cable into 90-degree angle. Otherwise,
the loss of data may occur during transmission.
2-16
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Hardware Setup
SCSI LED Connector: J7
Connect the J7 to the LED connector on the add-on SCSI adaptor and the HDD LED will
blink when add-on SCSI device is active.
Pin Definition
J7
PIN
SIGNAL
1
1
2
3
4
VCC5
SCSI LED
HDD LED
VCC5
Fan Power Connectors: CFAN1/2, SFAN1, NBFAN1
The fan power connectors support system cooling fan with +12V. When connecting
the wire to the connectors, always note that the red wire is the positive and should
be connected to the +12V; the black wire is Ground and should be connected to GND.
If the mainboard has a System Hardware Monitor chipset onboard, you must use a
specially designed fan with speed sensor to take advantage of the CPU fan control.
SENSOR
+12V
+12V
GND
GND
CFAN1/
SFAN1
NBFAN1
CFAN2
MSI Reminds You...
Please refer to the recommended CPU fans at AMD® official website
or consult the vendors for proper CPU cooling fan.
2-17
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IrDA Infrared Module Header: JIR1
The connector allows you to connect to IrDA Infrared module. You must configure the
setting through the BIOS setup to use the IR function. JIR1 is compliant with Intel®
Front Panel I/O Connectivity Design Guide.
Pin Definition
Pin
Signal
JIR1
1
2
3
4
5
6
NC
1
2
5
6
NC
VCC5
GND
IRTX
IRRX
Front Panel Audio Connector: JAUD1
The JAUD1 front panel audio connector allows you to connect to the front panel
audio and is compliant with Intel® Front Panel I/O Connectivity Design Guide.
JAUD1
10
9
2
1
Pin Definition
DESCRIPTION
PIN
SIGNAL
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
AUD_MIC
Front panelmicrophoneinput signal
Groundusedby analogaudio circuits
Microphonepower
AUD_GND
AUD_MIC_BIAS
AUD_VCC
AUD_FPOUT_R
AUD_RET_R
HP_ON
Filtered +5V used by analog audiocircuits
Rightchannel audiosignal to front panel
Rightchannel audio signal returnfrom front panel
Reserved forfutureuseto control headphone amplifier
No pin
KEY
AUD_FPOUT_L
AUD_RET_L
Leftchannelaudio signal to frontpanel
Leftchannel audio signal returnfrom frontpanel
MSI Reminds You...
If you don’t want to connect to the front audio header,
pins 5 & 6, 9 & 10 have to be jumpered in order to have
signal output directed to the rear audio ports. Otherwise,
the Line-Out connector on the back panel will not
function.
6
10
5
9
2-18
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Hardware Setup
Chassis Intrusion Switch Connector: JCI1
This connector is connected to a 2-pin chassis switch. If the chassis is opened, the
switch will be short. The system will record this status and show a warning mes-
sage on the screen. To clear the warning, you must enter the BIOS utility and clear the
record.
GND
2
1
CINTRU
JCI1
CD-In Connector: JCD1
JCD1
The connector is for CD-ROM audio connector.
R
L
GND
Front Panel Connectors: JFP1, JFP2
The mainboard provides two front panel connectors for electrical connection to the
front panel switches and LEDs. The JFP1 is compliant with Intel® Front Panel I/O
Connectivity Design Guide.
JFP1 Pin Definition
PIN
SIGNAL
DESCRIPTION
JFP1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
HD_LED_P
FPPWR/SLP
HD_LED_N
FPPWR/SLP
RST_SW_N
PWR_SW_P
RST_SW_P
PWR_SW_N
RSVD_DNU
Hard disk LED pull-up
2
1
MSG LED pull-up
HDD
LED
Power
LED
Power
Harddisk activeLED
MSG LED pull-up
Reset
Switch
Reset Switch low reference pull-down toGND
Power Switchhigh referencepull-up
Reset Switchhigh reference pull-up
PowerSwitchlowreferencepull-downtoGND
Reserved. Donot use.
Switch
9 10
JFP2 Pin Definition
SIGNAL PIN SIGNAL
JFP2
8 7
PIN
1
GND
2
SPK-
Speaker
3
5
7
SLED
PLED
NC
4
6
8
BUZ+
BUZ-
SPK+
Power
LED
2 1
2-19
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D-Bracket™ 2 Connector: JLED
The mainboard comes with a JLED connector for you to connect to D-Bracket™ 2. D-
Bracket™ 2 is an external USB Bracket that supports
both USB1.1 & 2.0 spec. It integrates four LEDs and
allows users to identify system problems through 16
various combinations of LED signals.
Pin Definition
Pin
Signal
1
DBG1 (high for green color)
DBR1 (high for red color)
DBG2 (high for green color)
DBR2 (high for red color)
DBG3 (high for green color)
DBR3 (high for red color)
DBG4 (high for green color)
DBR4 (high for red color)
Key
2
3
4
9
10
1
2
5
6
JLED
7
8
9
10
NC
Connect to JLED
D-Bracket™ 2
(Optional)
1
3
2
4
Connect to JUSB1/2
LEDs
Red
Green
Description
D-Bracket™ 2
System Power ON
1
3
2
4
The D-LED will hang here if the processor is damaged or
not installed properly.
Early Chipset Initialization
Memory Detection Test
Testing onboard memory size. The D-LED will hang if the
memory module is damaged or not installed properly.
Operating System Booting
2-20
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Hardware Setup
Decompressing BIOS image to RAM for fast booting.
1
3
2
4
Initializing Keyboard Controller.
Testing VGA BIOS
This will start writing VGA sign-on message to the screen.
Processor Initialization
This will show information regarding the processor (like
brand name, system bus, etc...)
Testing RTC (Real Time Clock)
Initializing Video Interface
This will start detecting CPU clock, checking type of video
onboard. Then, detect and initialize the video adapter.
BIOS Sign On
This will start showing information about logo, proces-
sor brand name, etc...
Testing Base and Extended Memory
Testing base memory from 240K to 640K and extended
memory above 1MB using various patterns.
Assign Resources to all ISA.
Initializing Hard Drive Controller
This will initialize IDE drive and controller.
Initializing Floppy Drive Controller
This will initialize Floppy Drive and controller.
Boot Attempt
This will set low stack and boot via INT 19h.
2-21
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Front USB Connectors: JUSB1, JUSB2
The mainboard provides two standard USB 2.0 pin headers. USB 2.0 technology
increases data transfer rate up to a maximum throughput of 480Mbps, which is 40
times faster than USB 1.1, and is ideal for connecting high-speed USB interface
peripherals such as USB HDD, digital cameras, MP3 players, printers, modems
and the like.
Pin Definition
PIN
1
SIGNAL
VCC
PIN
2
SIGNAL
VCC
9
10
1
2
3
USB0-
4
USB1-
USB1+
GND
5
USB0+
GND
6
JUSB1, JUSB2
7
8
(USB 2.0)
9
Key(no pin)
10
USBOC
Connect to JUSB1/JUSB2
(the USB pinheader in YELLOW color)
USB 2.0 Bracket
(Optional)
MSI Reminds You...
Note that the pins of VCC and GND must be connected correctly to
avoid possible damage.
2-22
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Hardware Setup
Jumper
The motherboard provides the following jumpers for you to set the computer’s function.
This section will explain how to change your motherboard’s function through the use
of jumpers.
Clear CMOS Jumper: JBAT1
There is a CMOS RAM on board that has a power supply from external battery to keep
the data of system configuration. With the CMOS RAM, the system can automatically
boot OS every time it is turned on. If you want to clear the system configuration, use
the JBAT1 (Clear CMOS Jumper ) to clear data.
1
1
1
3
3
JBAT1
Keep Data
Clear Data
MSI Reminds You...
You can clear CMOS by shorting 2-3 pin while the system is off. Then
return to 1-2 pin position. Avoid clearing the CMOS while the system is
on; it will damage the mainboard.
2-23
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Slots
This mainboard provides one AGP Pro slot and four 32-bit/33MHz PCI slots.
AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) Pro Slot
AGP Pro is a Hardware Interface for high-power graphics cards which can deliver
more electrical power than the standard AGP Hardware Interface. It is simply an
extended slot that adds power pins to both ends of the slot to facilitate certain
graphics cards' added power requirements. Because of its added pins, an AGP Pro
card won't fit into a standard slot.
For the same reason, however, motherboards with a wider AGP Pro slot can accom-
modate a standard card. In this case, the added power pins of an AGP Pro slot go
safely unused.
PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) Slots
The PCI slots allow you to insert the expansion cards to meet your needs. When
adding or removing expansion cards, make sure that you unplug the power supply
first. Meanwhile, read the documentation for the expansion card to make any neces-
sary hardware or software settings for the expansion card, such as jumpers,
switches or BIOS configuration.
PCI Interrupt Request Routing
The IRQ, acronym of interrupt request line and pronounced I-R-Q, are hardware lines
over which devices can send interrupt signals to the microprocessor. The PCI IRQ
pins are typically connected to the PCI bus INT A# ~ INT D# pins as follows:
Order 1
INTA#
INT B#
INTC#
INTD#
Order 2
INT B#
INTC#
INTD#
INTA#
Order 3
INTC#
INTD#
INTA#
INT B#
Order 4
INTD#
INTA#
INT B#
INTC#
PCI Slot 1
PCI Slot 2
PCI Slot 3
PCI Slot 4
2-24
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Chapter 3. BIOS Setup
BIOS Setup
This chapter provides information on the BIOS Setup program and
allows you to configure the system for optimum use. You may need
to run the Setup program when:
² An error message appears on the screen during the system boot-
ing up, and requests you to run SETUP.
² You want to change the default settings for customized features.
MSI Reminds You...
1. The items under each BIOS category described in this chapter
are under continuous update for better system performance.
Therefore, the description may be slightly different from the lat-
est BIOS and should be held for reference only.
2. Upon boot-up, the 1st line appearing after the memory count is
the BIOS version. It is usually in the format:
W9617VMS V1.0 150305 where:
1st digit refers to BIOS maker as A = AMI, W = AWARD,
and P = PHOENIX.
2nd - 5th digit refers to the model number.
6th digit refers to the chipset as I = Intel, N = nVidia, and V = VIA.
7th - 8th digit refers to the customer as MS = all standard
customers.
V1.0 refers to the BIOS version.
150305 refers to the date this BIOS was released.
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Entering Setup
Power on the computer and the system will start POST (Power On Self Test) process.
When the message below appears on the screen, press <DEL> key to enter Setup.
Press DEL to enter SETUP
If the message disappears before you respond and you still wish to enter Setup,
restart the system by turning it OFF and On or pressing the RESET button. You may
also restart the system by simultaneously pressing <Ctrl>, <Alt>, and <Delete> keys.
Control Keys
<• >
Move to the previous item
<¯ >
Move to the next item
<¬ >
<® >
Move to the item in the left hand
Move to the item in the right hand
<Enter>
<Esc>
Select the item
Jumps to the Exit menu or returns to the main menu from a
submenu
<+/PU>
Increase the numeric value or make changes
<-/PD>
<F1>
Decrease the numeric value or make changes
General help, only for Status Page Setup Menu and Option
Page Setup Menu
<F5>
<F6>
<F7>
<F10>
Load Previous Values
Load Fail-safe Defaults
Load Optimized Defaults
Save and Exit Setup
3-2
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BIOS Setup
Getting Help
After entering the Setup menu, the first menu you will see is the Main Menu.
Main Menu
The main menu lists the setup functions you can make changes to. You can use the
control keys ( • ¯ ) to select the item. The on-line description of the highlighted setup
function is displayed at the bottom of the screen.
Sub-Menu
If you find a right pointer symbol (as shown in the right view) appears to the left of
certain fields that means a sub-menu containing
additional options can be launched from this field.
You can use control keys ( • ¯ ) to highlight the
field and press <Enter> to call up the sub-menu.
Then you can use the control keys to enter val-
ues and move from field to field within a sub-
menu. If you want to return to the main menu, just
press <Esc >.
General Help <F1>
The BIOS setup program provides a General Help screen. You can call up this screen
from any menu by simply pressing <F1>. The Help screen lists the appropriate keys
to use and the possible selections for the highlighted item. Press <Esc> to exit the
Help screen.
3-3
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MS-9617 ATX Worksta tion Boa rd
The Main Menu
Once you enter Phoenix-Award WorkstationBIOS CMOS Setup Utility, the Main Menu
will appear on the screen. The Main Menu allows you to select from several setup
functions and two exit choices. Use arrow keys to select among the items and press
<Enter> to accept or enter the sub-menu.
Standard CMOS Features
Use this menu for basic system configurations, such as time, date etc.
Advanced BIOS Features
Use this menu to setup the items of Award® special enhanced features.
Advanced Chipset Features
Use this menu to change the values in the chipset registers and optimize your system’s
performance.
Integrated Peripherals
Use this menu to specify your settings for integrated peripherals.
Power Management Setup
Use this menu to specify your settings for power management.
PC Health Status
This entry shows your PC health status.
Frequency/Voltage Control
Use this menu to specify your settings for frequency/voltage control.
3-4
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BIOS Setup
Load Fail-Safe Defaults
Use this menu to load the BIOS values for the best system performance, but the
system stability may be affected.
Load Optimized Defaults
Use this menu to load factory default settings into the BIOS for stable system perfor-
mance operations.
Set Supervisor Password
Use this menu to set Supervisor Password.
Set User Password
Use this menu to set User Password.
Save & Exit Setup
Save changes to CMOS and exit setup.
Exit Without Saving
Abandon all changes and exit setup.
3-5
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Standard CMOS Features
The items in Standard CMOS Features Menu are divided into 11 categories. Each
category includes no, one or more than one setup items. Use the arrow keys to
highlight the item and then use the <PgUp> or <PgDn> keys to select the value you
want in each item.
Date
The date format is <day> <month> <date> <year>.
[day]
Day of the week, from Sun to Sat, determined by BIOS. Read-
only.
[month]
[date]
[year]
The month from Jan. through Dec.
The date from 1 to 31 can be keyed by numeric function keys.
The year can be adjusted by users.
Time
The time format is <hour> <minute> <second>.
IDE Primary/Secondary Master/Slave
Press PgUp/<+> or PgDn/<-> to select [Manual], [None] or [Auto] type. Note that the
specifications of your drive must match with the drive table. The hard disk will not
work properly if you enter improper information for this category. If your hard disk
drive type is not matched or listed, you can use [Manual] to define your own drive
type manually.
If you select [Manual], related information is asked to be entered to the following
items. Enter the information directly from the keyboard. This information should be
provided in the documentation from your hard disk vendor or the system manufacturer.
[Access Mode]
[Capacity]
The settings are CHS, LBA, Large, Auto.
The formatted size of the storage device.
3-6
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BIOS Setup
[Cylinder]
[Head]
Number of cylinders.
Number of heads.
[Precomp]
[Landing Zone]
[Sector]
Write precompensation.
Cylinder location of the landing zone.
Number of sectors.
Halt On
The setting determines whether the system will stop if an error is detected at boot.
Available options are:
[All Errors]
[Disabled]
[All, But Keyboard]
[All, But Diskette]
[All, But Disk/Key]
The system stops when any error is detected.
The system doesn’t stop for any detected error.
The system doesn’t stop for a keyboard error.
The system doesn’t stop for a disk error.
The system doesn’t stop for either a disk or a key-
board error.
Base/Extended/Total Memory
The three items show the memory status of your system (read only).
3-7
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Advanced BIOS Features
Hard Disk Boot Priority
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears:
Select the hard disk priority (from the 1st to the 8th) in this list. Use the arrow-
up and arrow-down keys to select a device, then press <+> to move it up or <->
to move it down.
Quick Power On Self Test
Select Enabled to reduce the amount of time required to run the power-on self-test
(POST). A quick POST skips certain steps. We recommend that you normally disable
quick POST. Better to find a problem during POST than lose data during your work.
First/Second/Third Boot Device
The items allow you to set the sequence of boot devices where BIOS attempts to load
the disk operating system.
Boot Other Device
Setting the option to [Enabled] allows the system to try to boot from other device if the
system fails to boot from the 1st/2nd/3rd boot device.
Boot Up NumLock Status
Toggle between [On] or [Off] to control the state of the NumLock key when the
system boots. When toggled [On], the numeric keypad generates numbers instead of
controlling cursor operations.
3-8
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BIOS Setup
Security Option
This specifies the type of BIOS password protection that is implemented. Settings are
described below:
Option
Description
Setup
The password prompt appears only when end users try to run
Setup.
System
A password prompt appears every time when the computer is pow-
ered on or when end users try to run Setup.
Video BIOS Shadow
This allows you to copy Video BIOS to shadow RAM. When setting to [Enabled], the
performance improves. Settings: [Enabled] and [Disabled].
3-9
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Advanced Chipset Features
MSI Reminds You...
Change these settings only if you are familiar with the chipset.
DRAM Configuration
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears:
Current FSB Frequency, Current DRAM Frequency
Those two items are read-only to show the current FSB and DRAM Frequency
information.
3-10
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BIOS Setup
Timing Mode
This field has the capacity to automatically detect all of the DRAM timing. If you
set this field to [Manual], the following fields will be selectable. The settings are:
[Auto], [Manual].
Memclock index value (Mhz)
When it is set to [Manual] in Timing Mode, user can place an artificial memory
clock on the system. Please note that memory is prevented from running faster
than this frequency.
CAS# Latency (Tcl)
When the Timing Mode is set to [Manual], the field is adjustable.This controls
the CAS latency, which determines the timing delay (in clock cycles) before
SDRAM starts a read command after receiving it. Settings: [Auto], [CL2.0],
[CL=2.5], [CL=3.0]. [CL=2.0] increases the system performance the most while
[CL=3.0] provides the most stable performance.
DRAM Bank Interleaving
This field selects 2-bank or 4-bank interleave for the installed SDRAM. Disable
the function if 16MB SDRAM is installed. Settings: [Disabled], [2-Way], [4-Way].
Bank Intrlving Intrlck
This setting controls the bank interleaving interlock times. Options: [At least not],
[All present are].
Node Memory Interleaving
Interleave memory blocks across Processor Nodes. BIOS will AUTO detect the
capability of Memory System. Options: [Disabled], [AUTO].
Node Interleaving Interlock
This setting controls the node interlock times. Options: [At least not], [All present
are].
S/W Memory Hole Remapping
This field enables software to remap the physical memory to the address higher
than 00E0. (This item only activities in 64-bit OS) Setting options: [Disabled],
[Enabled].
H/W memory hole Remapping
This field enables hardware to remap the physical memory to the address
higher than 00E0. (This item only activities in 64-bit OS.) Setting options:
[Disabled], [Enabled].
H/W memory hole interlock
This setting controls the hardware memory hole interlock times. Options: [At
least not], [All present are].
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MTRR Mapping Mode
This setting controls the MTRR mapping mode. To install the WinXP64, this
setting should be set to [Continuous]. Setting options: [Continuous], [Discrete].
DRAM ECC Feature Control
If all memory in the system supports ECC, enabling this will initial scrub dram and
enable system requests to dram to be checked and/or corrected. Options:
[Enabled], [Disabled].
ECC MCE Enable
This setting enables/disables the ECC MCE function. Options: [Enabled],
[Disabled].
Chip-Kill Mode Enable
This item allows you to enable/disable Chip-Kill ECC on Nodes with all x4 ECC
capable dimms. Options: [Enabled], [Disabled].
ECC Redirection
Enable Scrubber to correct errors detected in DRAM during normal CPU re-
quests (foreground scrubbing). Options: [Enabled], [Disabled].
LDT & PCI Bus Control
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears:
Upstream / Downstream LDT Bus Width
These two item control the utilized widths of the HyperTransport link. Setting
options: [8 bit], [16 bit].
LDT Bus Frequency
This item specifies the maximum operating frequency of the link's transmitter
clock. Setting options: [Auto], [800 MHz], [600 MHz], [400 MHz], [200 MHz].
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BIOS Setup
PCI1/PCI2 Master 0 WS Write
When [Enabled], writes to the PCI bus are executed with zero wait state.
PCI1/PCI2 Post Write
You can enable or disable the ability of the chipset to use a buffer for posted
writes initiated on the PCI bus. Setting options: [Disabled], [Enabled].
PCI Delay Transaction
The chipset has an embedded 32-bit posted write buffer to support delay
transactions cycles. Select [Enabled] to support compliance with PCI specifica-
tion version 2.1.
Init Display First
This item specifies which VGA card is your primary graphics adapter. Settings: [PCI
Slot], [AGP].
AGP Aperture Size
This setting controls just how much system RAM can be allocated to AGP for video
purposes. The aperture is a portion of the PCI memory address range dedicated to
graphics memory address space. Host cycles that hit the aperture range are for-
warded to the AGP without any translation.
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Integrated Peripherals
VIA OnChip IDE Device
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears.
Serial ATA Controller
This allows you to enable or disable onchip Serial ATA controller. Settings:
[Disabled] and [Enabled].
IDE DMA Transfer Access
Setting to [Enabled] will open DMA bus master and execute DMA action in DOS,
which will make the data transferring faster. Settings: [Disabled], [Enabled].
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BIOS Setup
Primary/Secondary IDE Channel
The chipset contains a PCI IDE interface with support for two IDE channels.
Select [Enabled] to activate the first and/or second IDE interface. Select [Disabled]
to deactivate an interface, if you install a primary and/or secondary add-in IDE
interface.
IDE Prefetch Mode
The onboard IDE drive interfaces support IDE prefetching, for faster drive
accesses. When you install a primary and/or secondary add-in IDE interface,
set this option to [Disabled] if the interface does not support prefetching.
Primary/Secondary Master/Slave PIO
The four IDE PIO (Programmed Input/Output) fields let you set a PIO mode (0-4)
for each of the four IDE devices that the onboard IDE interface supports. Modes
0 through 4 provide successively increased performance. In [Auto] mode, the
system automatically determines the best mode for each device. The settings
are: [Auto], [Mode 0], [Mode 1], [Mode 2], [Mode 3], [Mode 4].
Primary/Secondary Master/Slave UDMA
Ultra DMA 33/66/100/133 implementation is possible only if your IDE hard drive
supports it and the operating environment includes a DMA driver (Windows ME,
XP or a third-party IDE bus master driver). If your hard drive and your system
software both support Ultra DMA/33, Ultra DMA/66, Ultra DMA/100 and Ultra
DMA/133, select [Auto] to enable BIOS support. Settings: [Auto], [Disabled].
IDE HDD Block Mode
Block mode is also called block transfer, multiple commands, or multiple sector
read/write. If your IDE hard drive supports block mode (most new drives do),
select [Enabled] for automatic detection of the optimal number of block read/
write per sector the drive can support. Setting options: [Disabled], [Enabled].
VIA OnChip PCI Device
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears.
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AC97 Audio
[Auto] allows the motherboard’s BIOS to detect whether you’re using any audio
device. If so, the onboard audio controller will be enabled. If not, the onboard
audio controller will be disabled. If you want to use different controller cards to
connect audio connectors, set the field to [Disabled]. Setting options: [Disabled],
[Auto].
USB Controller
Select [Enabled] if your system integrates a Universal Serial Bus (USB) control-
ler and you have USB peripherals. Settings: [All Enabled], [All Disabled], [1&2
USB Port], [2&3 USB Port], [1&3 USB Port], [1 USB Port], [2 USB Port], [3 USB
Port].
USB 2.0
Set to [Enabled] if you need to use any USB 2.0 device in the operating system
that does not support or have any USB 2.0 driver installed, such as DOS and
SCO Unix. Setting options: [Disabled], [Enabled].
USB Emulation
This setting controls the USB Port 64/60 Emulation function. Available setting
options are:
[OFF]
[ON]
No USB legacy support.
Supports USB keyboard/mouse and USB storage. When set
to [ON], there will be an additional bootable USB device list in
the “Boot Device” related settings under the Advanced BIOS
Features menu. Users can then select the USB device they
want to boot from.
[KB/MS]
Supports USB keyboard/mouse under DOS.
USB Keyboard/Mouse Support
Select [Enabled] if you need to use a USB-interfaced keyboard or mouse in the
operating system. Setting options: [Enabled], [Disabled].
Onboard Broadcom NIC
This item enables or disables the initialization of the onboard Broadcome NIC (network
interface card). Setting options: [Enabled], [Disabled].
Onboard LAN Boot ROM
This item enables or disables the initialization of the onboard LAN Boot ROMs during
bootup. Selecting [Disabled] will speed up the boot process. Setting options: [Disabled],
[Enabled].
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BIOS Setup
SuperIO Device
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears.
Onboard FDC Controller
Select [Enabled] if your system has a floppy disk controller (FDD) installed on
the system board and you wish to use it. If you install add-on FDC or the system
has no floppy drive, select [Disabled] in this field. Setting options: [Enabled],
[Disabled].
Onboard Serial Port 1/2
These items specify the base I/O port address and IRQ for the onboard Serial
Port A (COM A)/Serial Port B (COM B). Selecting [Auto] allows BIOS to automati-
cally determine the correct base I/O port address. Settings: [Disabled], [3F8/
IRQ4], [2F8/IRQ3], [3E8/IRQ4], [2E8/IRQ3], [Auto].
Onboard Parallel Port
This specifies the I/O port address and IRQ of the onboard parallel port. Settings:
[378/IRQ7], [278/IRQ5], [3BC/IRQ7], [Disabled].
Parallel Port Mode
This item selects the operating mode for the parallel port: [Normal], [SPP], [EPP],
[ECP],or [ECP+EPP].
[SPP]
Standard Parallel Port
[EPP]
Enhanced Parallel Port
[ECP]
Extended Capability Port
[ECP+EPP]
[Normal]
Extended Capability Port + Enhanced Parallel Port
Standard Parallel Port + Bi-Directional Mode.
EPP Mode Select
This item selects the EPP mode. Settings: [EPP1.9], [EPP1.7].
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ECP Mode Use DMA
The ECP mode has to use the DMA channel, so choose the onboard parallel port
with the ECP feature. After selecting it, the following message will appear: “ECP
Mode Use DMA.” At this time, the user can choose between DMA channel [3] or
[1].
Power Status LED
This item sets how the system uses Power LED on the case to indicate the suspend/
sleep state. Settings are:
[Single]
[Dual]
The Power LED blinks to indicate the suspend/sleep state.
The Power LED changes its color to indicate the suspend/
sleep state.
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BIOS Setup
Power Management Setup
Suspend Mode
If system activity is not detected for the length of time specified in this field, all
devices except CPU will be shut off. Settings: [Disable], [1 Min], [2 Min], [4 Min], [6
Min], [8 Min], [10 Min], [20 Min], [30 Min], [40 Min], [1 Hour].
PWRON After PWR-Fail
This item specifies whether your system will reboot after a power failure or interrupt
occurs. Available settings are:
[Off]
[On]
Leaves the computer in the power off state.
Leaves the computer in the power on state.
[Former-sts] Restores the system to the status before power failure or
interrupt occurred.
AMD K8 Cool ’n’ Quiet Cntrl
This feature is specifically designed for AMD Athlon processors. It provides a CPU
temperature detecting function to prevent your CPU from overheating due to heavy
workload. Setting options: [Disabled], [Auto].
MSI Reminds You...
To ensure the stability of Cool 'n' Quiet function, it is always recom-
mended to have the memory modules plugged in DIMM1 first.
Hammer Fid Control
This item lets you adjust the CPU ratio. Setting to [Startup] enables the CPU running at
the fastest speed which is detected by system. Setting options are: [Startup], [x4]~
[x11].
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Hammer Vid Control
This item lets you adjust the CPU VID. Setting to [Startup] enables the CPU running at
the default VID which is detected by system. Setting options are: [Startup], [0.825V],
[0.850V], [0.875V],~, [1.550V].
IRQ/Event Activity Detect
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears.
LPT & COM, HDD & FDD, PCI Master
These fields specify whether the system will be awakened from power saving
modes when activity or input signal of the specified hardware peripheral or
component is detected.
PowerOn by PCI Card
When it is set to [Enabled], the feature allows your system to be powered on by
the PCI card. Setting options: [Enabled], [Disabled].
Modem Ring Resume
When it is set to [Enabled], the feature allows your system to support COM port
Modem to resume. Setting options: [Enabled], [Disabled].
RTC Alarm Resume
When it is set to [Enabled], your can set the date and time at which the RTC
(real-time clock) alarm awakens the system from Suspend mode.
Date (of Month)
The field specifies the date for RTC Alarm Resume. Settings: [0] ~ [31].
Resume Time (hh:mm:ss)
The field specifies the time for RTC Alarm Resume. Format is [hour] [minute]
[second].
MSI Reminds You...
If you have changed this setting, you must let the system boot up until
it enters the operating system, before this function will work.
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BIOS Setup
IRQs Activity Monitoring
Press <Enter> and the following sub-menu appears.
Primary INTR
Setting [ON] will cause the system to wake up from power saving modes if
activity is detected from any enabled IRQ channels. Setting options: [ON],
[OFF].
IRQ3~IRQ15
IRQ3~IRQ15 enable or disable the monitoring of the specified IRQ lines. If set
to [Enabled], the activity of the specified IRQ line will prevent the system
from entering power saving modes or awaken it from power saving modes.
MSI Reminds You...
IRQ (Interrupt Request) lines are system resources allocated to I/O
devices. When an I/O device needs to gain attention of the operating
system, it signals this by causing an IRQ to occur. After receiving the
signal, when the operating system is ready, the system will interrupt
itself and perform the service required by the I/O device.
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PC Health Status
This section shows the status of your CPU, fan, overall system status, etc. Monitor
function is available only if there is hardware monitoring mechanism onboard.
Shutdown Temperature
If the CPU temperature reaches the limit preset in this setting, the system will shotdown
automatically. Setting options: [Disabled], [85C/185F], [90C/194F], [95C/203F].
Case Open Warning
The field enables or disables the feature of recording the chassis intrusion status
and issuing a warning message if the case is once opened. To clear the warning
message, set the field to [Reset]. The setting of the field will automatically return to
[Enabled] later. Setting options: [Enabled], [Reset], [Disabled].
Current CPU1/CPU2/System Temperature, CPU Fan1/CPU Fan2/SYS Fan
Speed, Vcore, VIN0/1/2, VCC (V), VBAT(V), 5VSB(V)
These items display the current status of all of the monitored hardware devices/
components such as CPU voltages, temperatures and all fans’ speeds.
Smart CPU Fan1/CPU Fan2/SYS Fan Temperature
There are 3 pairs of Temperature/FAN Speed control: CPU1 Temperature with CPU
Fan1, CPU2 Temperature with CPU Fan2, System Temperature with SYS Fan.
W83627THF provides the Smart Fan system which can control the fan speed auto-
matically depending on the current temperature to keep it with in a specific range.
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BIOS Setup
CPU Fan1/CPU Fan2/SYS Fan Tolerance Value
You can select a fan tolerance value here for the specific range for the Smart CPU
Fan1/CPU Fan2/SYS Fan Temperature items. If the current temperatures of the 3
fans reach to the maximum threshold (the temperatures set in the Smart CPU Fan1/
CPU Fan2/SYS Fan Temperature plus the tolerance values you set here), the
fans will speed up for cooling down. On the contrary if the current temperatures
reach to the minimum threshold (the set temperatures minus the tolerance values),
the fans will slow down to keep the temperatures stable.
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Frequency/Voltage Control
Use this menu to specify your settings for frequency/voltage control.
Spread Spectrum
When the motherboard’s clock generator pulses, the extreme values (spikes) of the
pulses creates EMI (Electromagnetic Interference). The Spread Spectrum function
reduces the EMI generated by modulating the pulses so that the spikes of the pulses
are reduced to flatter curves. If you do not have any EMI problem, leave the setting at
[Disabled] for optimal system stability and performance. But if you are plagued by
EMI, activate the Spread Spectrum for EMI reduction. Remember to disable Spread
Spectrum if you are overclocking because even a slight jitter can introduce a tempo-
rary boost in clockspeed which may just cause your overclocked processor to lock
up. Options: [Disabled], [Enabled].
CPU Host/AGP/PCI Clock
This item specifies the clock frequency of CPU host bus (FSB), AGP, and PCI bus. It
provides a method for end-users to overclock the processor. When set to [Default],
the BIOS adopts the actual CPU/AGP/PCI bus clock values.
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BIOS Setup
Load Fail-Safe/Optimized Defaults
The two options on the main menu allow users to restore all of the BIOS settings to
the default Fail-Safe or Optimized values. The Optimized Defaults are the default
values set by the mainboard manufacturer specifically for optimal performance of the
mainboard. The Fail-Safe Defaults are the default values set by the BIOS vendor for
stable system performance.
When you select Load Fail-Safe Defaults, a message as below appears:
Pressing [Y] loads the BIOS default values for the most stable, minimal system
performance.
When you select Load Optimized Defaults, a message as below appears:
Pressing [Y] loads the default factory settings for optimal system performance.
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Set Supervisor/User Password
When you select this function, a message as below will appear on the screen:
Type the password, up to eight characters in length, and press <Enter>. The pass-
word typed now will replace any previously set password from CMOS memory. You
will be prompted to confirm the password. Retype the password and press <Enter>.
You may also press <Esc> to abort the selection and not enter a password.
To clear a set password, just press <Enter> when you are prompted to enter the
password. A message will show up confirming the password will be disabled. Once
the password is disabled, the system will boot and you can enter Setup without
entering any password.
When a password has been set, you will be prompted to enter it every time you try
to enter Setup. This prevents an unauthorized person from changing any part of your
system configuration.
Additionally, when a password is enabled, you can also have BIOS to request a
password each time the system is booted. This would prevent unauthorized use of
your computer. The setting to determine when the password prompt is required is the
Security Option of the Advanced BIOS Feature menu. If the Security Option is
set to [System], the password is required both at boot and at entry to Setup. If set to
[Setup], password prompt only occurs when you try to enter Setup.
MSI Reminds You...
About Supervisor Password & User Password:
Supervisor password: Can enter and change the settings of the
setup menu.
User password:
Can only enter but do not have the right to
change the settings of the setup menu.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
Appendix A: VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
The Southbridge VT8237 provides a hybrid solution that combines two independent
SATA ports for support of up to two Serial ATA (Serial ATA RAID) drives.
Serial ATA (SATA) is the latest generation of the ATA interface. SATA hard drives
deliver blistering transfer speeds of up to 150MB/sec. Serial ATA uses long, thin
cables, making it easier to connect your drive and improving the airflow inside your
PC.
The key features of VT8237 SATA RAID are:
1. Support two SATA + four PATA hard disk drives.
2. Only SATA supports RAID.
3. Supports ATA 133 high performance hard disk drive.
4. Dual independent ATA channels and maximum connection of four hard disk
drives allowed.
5. Supports Ultra DMA mode 6/5/4/3/2/1/0, DMA mode 2/1/0, and PIO mode 4/3/
2/1/0.
6. Supports RAID 0 and RAID 1.
7. 4 KB to 64 KB striping block size support.
8. Bootable disk or disk array support.
9. Windows-based RAID configure and management software tool.
(Compatible with BIOS)
10. Supports hot-swap failed disk drive in RAID 1 array.
11. ATA SMART function support.
12. Microsoft Windows 98, Me, NT4.0, 2000, XP operating systems support.
13. Event log for easy troubleshooting.
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Introduction
This section gives a brief introduction on the RAID-related background knowledge
and a brief introduction on VIA SATA RAID Host Controller. For users wishing to install
their VIA SATA RAID driver and RAID software, proceed to Driver and RAID Soft-
ware Installation section.
RAIDBasics
RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) is a method of combining two or more
hard disk drives into one logical unit. The advantage of an Array is to provide better
performance or data fault tolerance. Fault tolerance is achieved through data redun-
dant operation, where if one drives fails, a mirrored copy of the data can be found on
another drive. This can prevent data loss if the operating system fails or hangs. The
individual disk drives in an array are called “members”. The configuration information
of each member is recorded in the “reserved sector” that identifies the drive as a
member. All disk members in a formed disk array are recognized as a single physical
drive to the operating system.
Hard disk drives can be combined together through a few different methods. The
different methods are referred to as different RAID levels. Different RAID levels
represent different performance levels, security levels and implementation costs.
The RAID levels which the VIA VT8237 SATA RAID Host Controller supports are RAID
0 and RAID 1. The table below briefly introduced these RAID levels.
RAID Level No. of Drives
Capacity
Benefits
RAID 0
(Striping)
RAID 1
2
Number drives * 2 Highest performance without
data protection
2
Smallest size
Data protection
(Mirroring)
RAID 0 (Striping)
RAID 0 reads and writes sectors of data interleaved between multiple drives. If any
disk member fails, it affects the entire array. The disk array data capacity is equal to
the number of drive members times the capacity of the smallest member. The striping
block size can be set from 4KB to 64KB. RAID 0 does not support fault tolerance.
RAID 1 (Mirroring)
RAID 1 writes duplicate data onto a pair of drives and reads both sets of data in
parallel. If one of the mirrored drives suffers a mechanical failure or does not respond,
the remaining drive will continue to function. Due to redundancy, the drive capacity of
the array is the capacity of the smallest drive. Under a RAID 1 setup, an extra drive
called the .spare drive. can be attached. Such a drive will be activated to replace a
failed drive that is part of a mirrored array. Due to the fault tolerance, if any RAID 1
drive fails, data access will not be affected as long as there are other working drives
in the array.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
BIOS Configuration
When the system powers on during the POST (Power-On Self Test) process, press
<Tab> key to enter the BIOS configuration.
The Serial ATA RAID volume may be configured using the VIA Tech. RAID BIOS.
Always use the arrow keys to navigate the main menu, use up and down arrow key
to select the each item and press <Enter> to call out the list of creation steps. The
main interface of BIOS configuration utility is as below:
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Create Disk Array
Use the up and down arrow keys to select the Create Array command and press
<Enter>.
MSI Reminds You...
The “Channel”, “Drive Name”, “Mode” and “Size (GB)” in the following
example might be different from your system.
Select Array Mode and press <Enter>, a list of array modes will appear. Highlight
the target array mode that you want to create, and press <Enter> to confirm the
selection. If RAID 1 or RAID 0/1 is selected, an option list will popup and enable the
users to select Create only or Create and duplicate. Create only will allow BIOS
to only create an array. The data on the mirroring drive may be different from the
source drive. Create and duplicate lets BIOS copy the data from the source to the
mirroring drive.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
After array mode is selected, there are two methods to create a disk array. One
method is “Auto Setup” and the other one is “Select Disk Drives”. Auto Setup
allows BIOS to select the disk drives and create arrays automatically, but it does not
duplicate the mirroring drives even if the user selected Create and duplicate for
RAID 1. It is recommended all disk drives are new ones when wanting to create an
array. Select Disk Drives lets the user select the array drives by their requirements.
When using Select Disk Drives, the channel column will be activated. Highlight the
target drives that you want to use and press <Enter> to select them. After all drives
have been selected, press <Esc> to go back to the creation steps menu.
If user selects a RAID 0 array in step 2, the block size of the array can also be
selected. Use the arrow key to highlight Block Size and press <Enter>, then select
a block size from the popup menu. The block size can be 4KB to 64KB.
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MSI Reminds You...
Even though 64KB is the recommended setting for most users, you
should choose the block size value which is best suited to your specific
RAID usage model.
4KB: For specialized usage models requiring 4KB blocks
8KB: For specialized usage models requiring 8KB blocks
16KB: Best for sequential transfers
32KB: Good for sequential transfers
64KB: Optimal setting
Use the arrow key to highlight Start Create Process and press <Enter>. A warning
message will appear. Press Y to finish the creation, or press N to cancel the creation.
Important note: All existing content in the hard drive will be destroyed after array
creation.
Delete Disk Array
A RAID can be deleted after it has been created. To delete a RAID, use the following
steps:
1. Select Delete Array in the main menu and press <Enter>. The channel column
will be activated.
2. Select the member of an array that is to be deleted and press <Enter>. A warning
message will show up, press Y to delete or press N to cancel.
Deleting a disk array will destroy all the data on the disk array except RAID 1 arrays.
When a RAID is deleted, the data on these two hard disk drives will be reserved and
become two normal disk drives.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
Create and Delete Spare Hard Drive
If a RAID 1 array is created and there are drives that do not belong to other arrays,
the one that has a capacity which is equal to or greater than the array capacity can
be selected as a spare drive for the RAID 1 array. Select Create/Delete Spare
and press <Enter>, the channel column will then be activated. Select the drive that
you want to use as a spare drive and press <Enter>, the selected drive will be
marked as Spare. The spare drive cannot be accessed in an OS.
To delete a spare drive, highlight Create/Delete Spare and press <Enter>. The
spare drive will be highlighted, press <Enter> to delete the spare drive.
View Serial Number of Hard Drive
Highlight Serial Number View and press <Enter>. Use arrow key to select a drive,
the selected drive’s serial number can be viewed in the last column. The serial
number is assigned by the disk drive manufacturer.
Press the F1 key to show the array status on the lower screen. If there are no disk
arrays then nothing will be displayed on the screen.
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Duplicate Critical RAID 1 Array
When booting up the system, BIOS will detect if the RAID 1 array has any inconsis-
tencies between user data and backup data. If BIOS detects any inconsistencies, the
status of the disk array will be marked as critical, and BIOS will prompt the user to
duplicate the RAID 1 in order to ensure the backup data consistency with the user
data.
If user selects Continue to boot, it will enable duplicating the array after booting
into OS.
Rebuild Broken RAID 1 Array
When booting up the system, BIOS will detect if any member disk drives of RAID has
failed or is absent. If BIOS detects any disk drive failures or missing disk drives, the
status of the array will be marked as broken.
If BIOS detects a broken RAID 1 array but there is a spare hard drive available for
rebuilding the broken array, the spare hard drive will automatically become the mirror-
ing drive. BIOS will show a main interface just like a duplicated RAID 1. Selecting
Continue to boot enables the user to duplicate the array after booting into operat-
ing system.
If BIOS detects a broken RAID 1 array but there is no spare hard drive available for
rebuilding the array, BIOS will provide several operations to solve such problem.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
1. Power off and Check the Failed Drive:
This item turns off the computer and replaces the failed hard drive with a good one.
If your computer does not support APM, you must turn off your computer manually.
After replacing the hard drive, boot into BIOS and select Choose replacement
drive and rebuild to rebuild the broken array.
2. Destroy the Mirroring Relationship:
This item cancels the data mirroring relationship of the broken array. For broken RAID
1 arrays, the data on the surviving disk will remain after the destroy operation.
However, Destroy the Mirroring Relationship is not recommend because the
data on the remaining disk will be lost when the hard drive is used to create another
RAID 1 array.
3. Choose Replacement Drive and Rebuild:
This item enables users to select an already-connected hard drive to rebuild the
broken array. After choosing a hard drive, the channel column will be activated.
Highlight the target hard drive and press <Enter>, a warning message will appear.
Press Y to use that hard drive to rebuild, or press N to cancel. Please note selecting
option Y will destroy all the data on the selected hard drive.
4. Continue to boot:
This item enables BIOS to skip the problem and continue booting into OS.
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Installing RAID Software & Drivers
Install Driver in Windows OS
†
New Windows XP Installation
The following details the installation of the drivers while installing Windows XP.
1. Start the installation:
Boot from the CD-ROM. Press F6 when the message "Press F6 if you need
to install third party SCSI or RAID driver" appears.
2. When the Windows Setup window is generated, press S to specify an
Additional Device(s).
3. Insert the floppy diskette which included the VIA IDE RAID Driver into
drive A: and press <Enter>.
MSI Reminds You...
Please follow the instruction below to make a VIA Serial ATA RAID
driver for yourself.
1. Insert the MSI CD into the CD-ROM drive.
2. Ignore the Setup screen and use “Explorer” to browse the
CD.
3. Copy all the contents (including the sub-folders) in the
\\IDE\VIA\Driver to a fomatted floppy disk.
4. The driver disk for VIA Serial ATA driver is done.
4. Choose VIA Serial ATA RAID Controller(Windows XP) from the list that
appears on Windows XP Setup screen, press the <Enter> key.
5. Press <Enter> to continue with installation or if you need to specify any
additional devices to be installed, do so at this time. Once all devices are
specified, press <Enter> to continue with installation.
6. From the Windows XP Setup screen, press the <Enter> key. Setup will now
load all device files and then continue the Windows XP installation.
†
†
Existing Windows XP Driver Installation
1. Insert the MSI CD into the CD-ROM drive.
2. The CD will auto-run and the setup screen will appear.
3. Under the Driver tab, click on VIA SATA/ IDE Drivers.
4. The drivers will be automatically installed.
Confirming Windows XP Driver Installation
1. From Windows XP, open the Control Panel from My Computer followed
by the System icon.
2. Choose the Hardware tab, then click the Device Manager tab.
3. Click the "+" in front of the SCSI and RAID Controllers hardware type. The
driver VIA IDE RAID Host Controller should appear.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
Installation of VIA SATA RAID Utility
The VIA SATA RAID Utility is the software package that enables high-performance
RAID 0 arrays in the Windows* XP operating system. This version of VIA SATA RAID
Utility contains the following key features:
† Serial ATA RAID driver for Windows XP
† VIA SATA RAID utility
† RAID0 and RAID1 functions
Insert the MSI CD and click on the VIA Serial ATA to install the software.
MSI Reminds You...
Due to the different specification of the mainboard you purchased, the
screen of MSI CD shown here may be slightly different from the latest
software utility and shall be held for reference only.
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The InstallShield Wizard will begin automatically for installation. Click on the Next
button to proceed the installation in the welcoming window.
Put a check mark in the check box to install the feature you want. Then click Next
button to proceed the installation.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
Using VIA RAID Tool
Once the installation is complete, go to Start ---> Programs --->VIA --->raid_tool.
exe to enable VIA RAID Tool.
After the software is finished installation, it will automati-
cally started every time Windows is initiated. You may
double-click on the
icon shown in the system tray of
the tool bar to launch the VIA RAID Tool utility.
The main interface is divided into two windows and the toolbar above contain the
main functions. Click on these toolbar buttons to execute their specific functions.
The left windowpane displays the controller and disk drives and the right window-
pane displays the details of the controller or disk drives. The available features are
as following:
View by Controller
View by Devices
View Event log
Help Topics
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Click on
o r
button to determine the viewing type of left window pane.
There are two viewing types: By controllers and by device. Click on the object in the
left window pane to display the status of the object in the right windowpane. The
following screen shows the status of Array 0---RAID 0.
Click on the plus (+) symbol next to Array 0---RAID 0 to see the details of each disk.
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VIA VT8237R SATA RAID
You may also use the same
--RAID 1.
o
r
button to view the statuses of Array 0-
Click on the plus (+) symbol next to Array 0---RAID 1 to see the details of each disk.
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
Appendix B: Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Chan-
nel Audio Function
The mainboard is equipped with Realtek ALC850 chip, which provides support for 8-
channel audio output, including 2 Front, 2 Rear, 1 Center and 1 Subwoofer channel.
ALC850 allows the board to attach 2, 4, 6 or 8 speakers for better surround sound
effect. The section will tell you how to install and use 2-, 4-, 6- or 8-channel audio
function on the board.
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Installing the Audio Driver
You need to install the driver for Realtek ALC850 codec to function properly before
you can get access to 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- channel audio operations. Follow the procedures
described below to install the drivers for different operating systems.
Installation for Windows 98SE/ME/2000/XP
For Windows® 2000, you must install Windows® 2000 Service Pack2 or later before
installing the driver.
The following illustrations are based on Windows® XP environment and could look
slightly different if you install the drivers in different operating systems.
1. Insert the companion CD into the CD-ROM drive. The setup screen will
automatically appear.
2. Click Realtek Sound.
Click here
MSI Reminds You...
The AC97 Audio Configuration
software utility is under
continuous update to enhance audio applications. Hence, the program
screens shown here in this appendix may be slightly different from the
latest software utility and shall be held for reference only.
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
3. Click Next to install the AC’97 Audio software.
Click here
4. Click Finish to restart the system.
Select this
option
Click here
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Software Configuration
After installing the audio driver, you are able to use the 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- channel audio
feature now. Click the audio icon from the system tray at the lower-right corner
of the screen to activate the AC97 Audio Configuration. It is also available to
enable the audio driver by clicking the Sound Effect Manager from the Control
Panel.
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
Sound Effect
Here you can select a sound effect you like from the Environment list.
Edit
You may also edit the properties for an environment as you wish by clicking the “Edit”
button, then just scroll the bar in the bottom for each property to adjust.
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You may choose the provided sound effects, and the equalizer will adjust
automatically. If you like, you may also load an equalizer setting or make an new
equalizer setting to save as an new one by using the “Load EQ Setting” and “Save
Preset” button, click “Reset EQ Setting” button to use the default value, or click
“Delete EQ Setting” button to remove a preset EQ setting.
There are also other pre-set equalizer models for you to choose by clicking “Oth-
ers” under the Equalizer part.
Load EQ Setting
Reset EQ Setting
EQ Setting On/Off
Save Preset
Delete EQ
Setting
Here it provides the Karaoke function which will automatically remove human voice
(lyrics) and leave melody for you to sing the song. You may use the “up arrow” and
“down arrow” button to raise/lower the key, and press the lower button to remove
the human voice.
Raise the key
Remove the
human voice
Lower the key
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
Speaker Configuration
In this tab, you can easily configure your multi-channel audio function and speakers.
1. First you have to select the audio configuration below which is identical to
the audio jack on your mainboard. In this model it uses Realtek ALC850
codec which supports 8-channel S/PDIF, therefore you should choose 8CH-
S/PDIF (Optical & Coaxial).
2
1
3
2. Select a desired multi-channel operation here.
a. Headphone for the common headphone
b. 2CH Speaker for Stereo-Speaker Output
c. 4CH Speaker for 4-Speaker Output
d. 6CH Speaker for 5.1-Speaker Output
e. 8CH Speaker for 8-Speaker Output
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Select the speaker by clicking it to test its functionality. The one you select will
light up and make testing sound. If any speaker fails to make sound, then check
whether the cable is inserted firmly to the connector or replace the bad speak-
ers with good ones. Or you may click the “Auto Test” button to test the
sounds of each speaker automatically.
Center
Front Left
Front Right
Subwoofer
Side Right
Side Left
Rear Right
Rear Left
3. While you are testing the speakers in 8-Channel / 6-Channel Mode, if the
sound coming from the center speaker and subwoofer is swapped, you
should select Swap Center/Subwoofer Output to readjust these two
channels.
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
3D Audio Demo
In this tab you may adjust your 3D positional audio before playing 3D audio applica-
tions like gaming. You may also select different environment to choose the most
suitable environment you like.
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General
In this tab it provides some information about this AC97 Audio Configuration utility,
including Audio Driver Version, DirectX Version, Audio Controller & AC97 Codec. You
may also select the language of this utility by choosing from the Language list.
Also there is a selection Show icon in system tray. Switch it on and an icon
will show in the system tray. Right-click on the icon and the Audio Accessories
dialogue box will appear which provides several multimedia features for you to take
advantage of.
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
SPDIF
In this tab it provides options about SPDIF-Out for you to configure.
† No Output: With this option, there is no S/PDIF output signal while playing analog
and digital audio.
† Output digital only: With this option, only digital audio will be allowed to play via
SPDIF out while playing analog and digital audio.
† Output digital and analog: With this option, both digital and analog audio will be
allowed to play via SPDIF out while playing analog and digital audio.
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Microphone Effect
In this tab you may add special effects to the connected microphone.
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
Using 2-, 4-, 6- & 8- Channel Audio Function
Connecting the Speakers
When you have set the Multi-Channel Audio Function mode properly in the software
utility, connect your speakers to the correct phone jacks in accordance with the
setting in software utility.
n 2-Channel Mode for Stereo-Speaker Output
Refer to the following diagram and caption for the function of each phone jack
on the back panel when 2-Channel Mode is selected.
Back Panel
4
1
7
2
5
3
6
2-ChannelAnalogAudioOutput
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Line In
Line Out (Front channels)
MIC
Line Out (Rear channels, but not functioning in this mode)
Line Out (Center and Subwoofer channel, but not functioning in this mode)
Optical SPDIF jack
Coaxial SPDIF jack
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n 4-Channel Mode for 4-Speaker Output
4
1
7
2
5
3
6
Description:
Connect two speakers to back
panel’s Line Out connector and
two speakers to the real-chan-
nel Line Out connector.
4-ChannelAnalogAudioOutput
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Line In
Line Out (Front channels)
MIC
Line Out (Rear channels)
Line Out (Center and Subwoofer channel, but no functioning in this mode)
Optical SPDIF jack
Coaxial SPDIF jack
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Using 2-, 4-, 6- or 8- Cha nnel Audio Function
n 6-Channel Mode for 6-Speaker Output
4
1
2
5
3
6
7
Description:
Connect two speakers to back
panel’s Line Out connector, two
speakers to the rear-channel
and two speakers to the cen-
ter/subwoofer-channel Line Out
connectors.
6-ChannelAnalogAudioOutput
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Line In
Line Out (Front channels)
MIC
Line Out (Rear channels)
Line Out (Center and Subwoofer channel)
Optical SPDIF jack
Coaxial SPDIF jack
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n 8-Channel Mode for 8-Speaker Output
1
4
5
2
3
6
7
Description:
Connect two speakers to back
panel’s Line Out connector, two
speakers to the rear-channel,
two speakers to the center/
subwoofer-channel Line Out
connectors, and two speakers
to the side-channel Line Out
connectors.
8-ChannelAnalogAudioOutput
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Line Out (Side channels)
Line Out (Front channels)
MIC
Line Out (Rear channels)
Line Out (Center and Subwoofer channel)
Optical SPDIF jack
Coaxial SPDIF jack
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