Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055

Roll No: 55 MP LAB

Experiment No. 1

AIM: Study of PC Motherboard technology (South Bridge and North Bridge), various
connection and ports used in computer communication
LO NO: LO1
LO: Demonstrate various components and peripheral of computer system.
THEORY:

Motherboard:

The Motherboard is one of the basic and fundamental components of any computer system. It
connects all the other components through different pathways or connections and it acts as a
nervous system of the computer. It can be also called system board or main board. The other
board is a printed circuit board. It provides connectivity between the hardware components of a
computer, like the processor (CPU), memory (RAM), hard drive, and video card. There are
multiple types of motherboards, designed to fit different types and sizes of computers. Each type
of motherboard is designed to work with specific types of processors and memory, so they don’t
work with every processor and type of memory.

Figure 1 Motherboard

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

Features of Motherboard:
• The motherboard serves as a single platform to connect all of the parts of a computer
together.
• Motherboards, cases, and power supplies must be compatible to work properly together.
• It can be considered as the back bone of a computer.
• It connects the CPU, memory, hard drives, optical drives, video card, sound card, and other
ports and expansion cards directly or via cables.
• There are different types of motherboard that are available: ATX, BTX, etc.

Classifications of CPU:

The computer CPU (short for Central Processing Unit) is a vital component that handles all
the instructions and calculations that are sent to it from other computer's components and
peripherals. The speed at which software programs operate is also very dependent upon
how powerful the CPU is, so it is important to have the right type for what you expect it to
handle. The two leading CPU manufacturers are Intel and AMD, each with their own types
of CPUs.

Types of CPU:

Single Core CPUs:

Single core CPUs are the oldest type of computer CPU available and initially this was the
only type of CPU that could be used in computers. Single core CPUs can only start one
operation at a time, so they were not very good at multi-tasking.

Dual Core CPUs:

A dual core CPU is a single CPU that has two cores and thus functions like two CPUs in
one. Unlike single core CPUS where the processor had to switch back and forth between
different sets of data streams if more than one operation was running, dual core CPUs can
handle multitasking much more efficiently. To make the most of a dual core CPU, both the
operating system and the programs running on it must have special code called SMT
(simultaneous multi-threading technology) written into it.

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

Quad Core CPUs:

Quad Core CPUs are a further refinement of the multi-core CPU design and features four
cores on a single CPU. Just as dual core CPUs could split the workload between two cores, quad
cores allow for even greater multitasking. This doesn't mean that a single operation will be four
times faster however, and unless the programs and applications running on it has SMT code, the
speed increase will not be so noticeable. These types of CPUs are useful for people that need to
run a lot of different programs at the same time as well as gamers, as there are games like the
Supreme Commander series that are optimized for multi-core CPUs.

Figure 2: Components of Motherboard

Components of Motherboard:
1. Northbridge
2. Southbridge
3. AGP slot
4. RAM/DRAM slot
5. PCI slot
6. CPU socket
7. Connecting Ports for I/O devices(peripherals)

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

Figure 3: Schematic Diagram of Motherboard

8. IDE connector
9. CPU fan/heat sink
10. CMOS battery
11. Power supply connector

North Bridge and South Bridge

The North bridge and South bridge chips comprise what is known as a chipset on modern
computers. The chipset is responsible for facilitating communication between the computer
processing unit (CPU) and the various components on the mother board, acting as traffic cops
and controllers.

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

North Bridge:
A north bridge or host bridge is one of the two chips in the core logic chipset architecture on
a PC motherboard. The north bridge is connected directly to the CPU via the front-side bus
(FSB) and is thus responsible for tasks that require the highest performance. Since the North
bridge is working constantly, it can become very hot and, in many cases, it has its own heatsink.
Other names for the chip include the Memory Controller Hub (MCH) and the Integrated Memory
Controller (IMC). The North bridge chip is used to connect all the major components of the
motherboard with each other. It is used to connect the CPU to the memory, cache, PCI express
bus etc. The north bridge typically handles communications among the CPU, in some cases
RAM, and PCI Express (or AGP), Video cards, and the south bridge. The north bridge plays an
important part in how far a computer can be over clocked, as its frequency is commonly used as
a baseline for the CPU to establish its own operating frequency. This chip typically gets hotter as
processor speed becomes faster, requiring more cooling. There is a limit to CPU over clocking,
as digital circuits are limited by physical factors such as rise, fall, delay and storage times of the
transistors, propagation delay. North bridge that dictates which type of CPU and RAM can be
used on them other board.

Figure 4 : North
Bridge

South Bridge:
The south bridge is one of the two chips in the core logic chipset on a personal computer (PC)
motherboard, the other being the northbridge. The south bridge typically implements the slower
capabilities of them other board in a north bridge/south bridge chipset computer architecture.

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

In systems with Intel chipsets, the southbridge is named I/O Controller Hub (ICH), while AMD
has named its southbridge Fusion Controller Hub (FCH) since the introduction of its Fusion
AMD Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) while moving the functions of the Northbridge onto
the CPU die, hence making it similar in function to the Platform hub controller. The south bridge
can usually be distinguished from then north bridge by not being directly connected to the CPU.
Rather, the north bridge ties the south bridge to the CPU. Through the use of controller
integrated channel circuitry, the north bridge can directly link signals from the I/O units to the
CPU for data control and access the south bridge can usually be distinguished from the north
bridge by not being directly connected to the CPU. Rather, the north bridge ties the south bridge
to the CPU.

Figure 5: South
Bridge

Other connections of computer

• Central Processing Unit (CPU)
A central processing unit (CPU), also called a central processor, main processor or just
processor, is the electronic circuitry with in a computer that executes instructions that
make up a computer program. The CPU performs basic arithmetic, logic, controlling, and
input/output(I/O) operations specified by the instructions in the program. This contrasts

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

with external components such as main memory and I/O circuitry, and specialized
processors such as graphics processing units (GPUs)

Figure 6: North Bridge and South Bridge Link

• Random Access Memory (RAM)

Random-access memory (RAM) is a form of computer memory that can be read and
changed in any order, typically used to store working data and machine code. A random-
access memory device allows data items to be read or written in almost the same amount
of time irrespective of the physical location of data inside the memory. In contrast, with
other direct-access data storage media such as hard disks, CD-RWs, DVD-RWs and the
older magnetic tapes and drum memory, the time required to read and write data items
varies significantly depending on their physical locations on the recording medium, due to
mechanical limitations such as media rotation speeds and arm movement.

• Read-Only Memory (ROM):

Read-Only Memory (ROM), is a type of electronic storage that comes built in to a device
during manufacturing. You’ll find ROM chips in computers and many other types of
electronic products; VCRs, game consoles, use ROM to complete their functions smoothly.

• Basic Input/Output System (BIOS):

BIOS is a “read only memory”, which consists of low-level software that controls the
system hardware and acts as an interface between the operating system and the hardware.

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

BIOS is essentially the link between the computer hardware and software in a system. The
BIOS is stored on a ROM chip because ROM retains information even when no power is
being supplied to the computer.

• Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor Random Access Memory (CMOS

RAM):
Motherboards also include a small separate block of memory made from CMOSRAM
chips which is kept alive by a battery (CMOS battery) even when the PC’s power is off.
This prevents reconfiguration when the PC is powered on. CMOS devices require very
little power to operate.

• CPU Clock and CPU Fan

The CPU clock synchronizes the operation of all parts of the PC and provides the basic
timing signal for the CPU. Using a quartz crystal, the CPU clock breathes life into the
microprocessor by feeding it a constant flow of pulses. CPU fan is used to cool the CPU
(central processing unit) heat sink. Effective cooling of a concentrated heat source such as
a large-scale integrated circuit requires a heat sink, which may be cooled by a fan. Use of a
fan alone will not prevent over heating of the small chip.

• Cache Memory
Cache Memory is a special very high-speed memory. It is used to speed up and
synchronizing with high-speed CPU. Cache memory is costlier than main memory or disk
memory but economical than CPU registers. Cache memory is an extremely fast memory
type that acts as a buffer between RAM and the CPU. It holds frequently requested data
and instructions so that they are immediately available to the CPU when needed.

• Power Supply Connector

Originally, the mother board was powered by one 20-pin connector. Nowan ATX power
supply connector is used which provides a number of peripheral power connectors and two
connectors for the motherboard: an8-pin(or4+4-pin) auxiliary connector providing
additional power to the CPU and a main 24-pin power supply connector.

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 Name: Singh Anurag Sunil XIE: 202003055
Roll No: 55 MP LAB

• Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE) Connector

IDE, an acronym for Integrated Drive Electronics, is a standard type of connection for
storage devices in a computer. Generally, IDE refers to the types of cables and ports used
to connect one hard drives and optical drives to each other and to the motherboard

• Other Ports
Ports are used by a motherboard to interface with electronics both inside and outside of the
computer. Integrated ports are those that are part of, or directly wired to, the mother board.
Internal integrated ports are used to connect devices inside the system unit.
1. Serial ports: A serial port is able to transmit a single stream of data at a time. A serial
port ends data bit by bit after sending a bit at a time.
2. Parallel ports: A parallel port is able to transmit multiple data streams at a time. A
parallel port sends data by sending multiple bits in parallel fashion.

CONCLUSION:
Motherboard consists of various components which are needed for proper functioning of system.
The North Bridge and the South Bridge refers to a specific pair of chips on the motherboard.
Motherboard also have various parts which performs their own functions.

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