American Megatrends EZ-Flex User manual

American Megatrends, Inc.
Series 28
EZ-Flex
Base Board
User's Guide
MAN-528
6/18/92

© Copyright 1992 American Megatrends, Inc.
All rights reserved.
American Megatrends, Inc.
6145-F Northbelt Parkway
Norcross, GA 30071
This publication contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of
this publication may be reproduced, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, translated
into any language or computer language, or transmitted in any form whatsoever without the
prior written consent of the publisher, American Megatrends, Inc.
Limited Warranty
Buyer agrees if this product proves to be defective, that American Megatrends, Inc. is only
obligated to replace or refund the purchase price of this product at American Megatrend's
discretion according to the terms and conditions on the EZ-Flex motherboard warranty
card. American Megatrends shall not be liable in tort or contract for any loss or damage,
direct, incidental or consequential. Please see the Warranty Registration Card shipped with
this product for full warranty details.
Limitations of Liability
In no event shall American Megatrends be held liable for any loss, expenses, or damages
of any kind whatsoever, whether direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential, arising from
the design or use of this product or the support materials provided with the product.
Trademarks
American Megatrends acknowledges the following trademarks:
Intel is a registered trademarks of Intel Corporation.
MS-DOS, Xenix, and Microsoft are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
IBM, AT, VGA, OS/2, and EGA are registered trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation. XT and CGA are trademarks of
International Business Machines Corporation.
Fujitsu is a registered trademark of Fujitsu America, Inc.
Hitachi is a registered trademark of Hitachi America, Ltd.
FasMath is a trademark of Cyrix Corporation.
Motorola is a registered trademark of Motorola Corporation.
Oki is a registered trademark of Oki America, Inc.
NEC is a registered trademark of NEC Corporation.
Samsung is a registered tradeamrk of Samsung Electronics Corporation.
Siemens is a trademark of Siemens Corporation.
Mitsubishi is a registered trademark of Mitsubishi Electronics of America.
Unix is a registered trademark of American Telephone and Telegraph Company Bell Laboratories.
Weitek is a trademark of Weitek, Inc.
QEMM is a trademark of Quarterdeck Office Systems.
Toshiba is a registered trademark of Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba.
Chips and Technologies, NEAT, and CHIPSet are registered trademarks of Chips and Technologies Incorporated.
Sony is a registered trademark of Sony Corporation.
Revision History
August 1991 Initial printing
June 1992 reprinted. Minor errors corrected.

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
iii
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction................................................................................................... 1
BIOS Features.................................................................................. 3
CMOS RAM...................................................................................... 3
I/O Features...................................................................................... 4
Expansion Slots ................................................................ 5
Simple Memory Expansion................................................ 5
Page Mode and Bank Interleave....................................... 6
Chapter 2 EZ-Flex Architecture ..................................................................................... 7
Base Board....................................................................... 7
CPU Card ......................................................................... 7
Chapter 3 EZ-Flex Base Board Specifications ............................................................. 9
Chapter 4 Installation.................................................................................................... 13
Assembly Steps............................................................................... 15
EZ-Flex Base Board Layout............................................................. 15
Step 1 Set Switches......................................................................... 17
Step 2 Install SIMMs........................................................................ 17
SIMM Sockets ................................................................................. 19
Step 3 Install Base Board ................................................................ 20
Step 4 Connect the Power Supply ................................................... 21
Step 5 Connect the Keyboard.......................................................... 25
Connecting a PS/2 Keyboard to P005.............................. 26
Step 6 Connect the Mouse .............................................................. 27
Step 7 Connect the Cables.............................................................. 27
P006 and P007 Serial Port Connectors............................ 32
P004 Parallel Port Connector........................................... 33
Step 8 Install Adapter Cards............................................................ 35
Step 9 Install Floppy Disk Drives ..................................................... 44
P002 Floppy Disk Connector............................................ 45
Step 10 Perform Initial Test and Configuration................................. 46
Error Messages................................................................ 47
POST Phases.................................................................................. 49
BIOS Error Reporting....................................................................... 49
POST Errors.................................................................................... 50
AMI BIOS Displayed Error Messages .............................................. 51
POST Memory Test......................................................................................... 54
ISA NMI Messages .......................................................... 55
EISA NMI Error Messages............................................................... 56

Preface
iv
Table of Contents, Continued
Chapter 6 AMI BIOS....................................................................................................... 57
BIOS Features................................................................................. 57
Section 1 Running AMI Setup.......................................................................... 59
Starting Setup.................................................................................. 59
Setup Key Use................................................................................. 60
Main Menu Setup Options................................................................ 61
Auto Configuration With BIOS Defaults ........................................... 61
Auto Configuration With Power-On Defaults.................................... 61
Write to CMOS and Exit................................................................... 62
Do Not Write to CMOS RAM and Exit.............................................. 62
Section 2 Standard CMOS Setup .................................................................... 63
Standard CMOS Setup Options ....................................... 64
Date And Day Configuration............................................. 64
Hard Disk Configuration................................................... 65
Standard CMOS Setup Options....................................................... 68
Floppy.............................................................................. 68
Monitor............................................................................. 68
Keyboard ......................................................................... 68
Section 3 Advanced CMOS Setup................................................................... 69
Advanced CMOS Setup Screen....................................................... 70
Typematic Rate Programming, Rate, and Delay .............. 71
Memory Test Tick Sound ................................................ 72
Wait for F1 If Any Error.................................................... 74
System Boot Up Num Lock ............................................. 74
Floppy Drive Seek At Boot .............................................. 74
System Boot Up Sequence ............................................. 74
System Boot Up CPU Speed ........................................... 74
Password Check Option................................................... 75
C000 16K, Cache and Shadow through DC00
16K, Cache and Shadow.................................. 75
Internal Cache Memory ................................................... 77
External Cache Memory .................................................. 77
Section 4 AMI BIOS Password Support........................................................... 79
Section 5 Hard Disk Utility............................................................................... 81
When to Use AMI Hard Disk Utilities................................................ 82
Hard Disk Format Utility................................................................... 83
Auto Interleave Utility....................................................................... 86
Hard Disk Utility Error Messages ..................................................... 91
Appendix A EISA Configuration Worksheets .............................................................. 93
Appendix B 50 MHz Heat Dissipation...........................................................................109
Index...............................................................................................................................111

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
v
Preface
To the OEM
The AMI EZ-Flex system is a state of the art combination of a Base Board
and CPU Cards that includes the AMI Hi-Flex EISA BIOS. It is assumed
that you have licensed the rights to the AMI documentation for the AMI
EZ-Flex.
This manual was written for the OEM to assist in the proper installation,
use, and operation of the EZ-Flex products. This manual is not meant to
be read by the computer owner who purchases a computer with the EZ-
Flex Base Board. It is assumed that you, the computer manufacturer, will
use this manual as a sourcebook of information, and that parts of this
manual will be included in the computer owner's manual.
Technical Support
If an AMI EZ-Flex Base Board or CPU Card fails to operate as described
or you need more information, call AMI technical support at 404-246-
8600.
Acknowledgments
This manual was written by Paul Narushoff, who gratefully
acknowledges the assistance of Terry Lauer and Sukha Ghosh.
What You Should Have Received
When you received the AMI EZ-Flex System, you should have received:
• an EZ-Flex Base Board and an EZ-Flex CPU Card,
• an EISA Configuration Utility (ECU) and the AMI ECU User's Guide,
• the AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide and an AMI EZ-Flex CPU
Card User's Guide,
• two serial port cables (10-pin berg to 9-pin male DB connector).
• one parallel port cable (26-pin berg to 25-pin female DB connector).

Preface
vi
AMI BBS
The AMI BBS permits OEMs, VARs, and system integrators who
are AMI customers to access technical information about AMI
motherboard and BIOS products. AMI Product Engineering
Change Notices, Tech Tips, Technical Notes, and even complete
AMI technical manuals are available on the AMI BBS.
Data Transmission Rates
The AMI BBS automatically handles modems with data
transmission rates from 1,200 to 14,400 bps.
If using an HST modem, call 404-246-8780.
If using a non-HST modem, call 404-246-8782.
BBS Phone Numbers
The following table lists the characteristics of the AMI BBS phone
numbers. The AMI BBS requires no parity, 8 data bits, and 1 stop
bit.
Phone Number Characteristics
404-246-8780 Supports HST and v.42bis.
404-246-8781 Supports HST and v.42bis.
404-246-8782 Dual standard. Can handle 2400 or 9600 bps. Supports
v.32bis and v.42bis. Can handle up to 14,400 baud.
404-246-8783 Supports v.32bis and v.42bis.

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
1
Chapter 1
Introduction
Overview
AMI EZ-Flex takes a modular approach to CPU selection.
Using EZ-Flex, a system is never outdated and the user is
always assured of an upgrade path.
Traditional systems place all system parts, including the
CPU, math coprocessor, and ROM BIOS, on the
motherboard, which makes it difficult to change the basic
system configuration.
AMI's EZ-Flex is modular. Many components remain on
the motherboard (called a Base Board in an EZ-Flex
environment). The Base Board is the main element in an
EZ-Flex system.
The AMI EZ-Flex system places the CPU, BIOS ROM,
optional coprocessor, cache memory, and several other
system elements on a separate CPU Card.
An EZ-Flex system consists of a Base Board and an EZ-
Flex CPU Card. The EZ-Flex CPU Card and Base Board
connect via a proprietary connector. EZ-Flex CPU Cards
with Intel 80486DX and 80486SX, and Intel and AMD
80386DX microprocessors are available. Future Intel
processors can easily be supported in the EZ-Flex
architecture.

Chapter 1 Introduction
2
Overview, Continued
EISA Standards
The AMI EZ-Flex is fully compatible with both EISA and
ISA specifications and can run on either 80386, 80486SX,
or 80486-based systems, and needs no major architectural
changes to run on more advanced Intel microprocessors as
they become available.
Convenient, Reliable, Compatible
The AMI EZ-Flex system provides an easy-to-expand
foundation based on a few integrated circuits using state of
the art surface mount technology (on the CPU Cards),
which reduces cost, minimizes potential handling damage
and reduces the overall size.
The Result
The EZ-Flex architecture is an integrated EISA system that
is also ISA or AT® compatible. Using the AMI EZ-Flex
system, an OEM can construct computer systems that can
use one of many different microprocessors.

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
3
BIOS Features
EISA BIOS
The AMI EZ-Flex includes the AMI Hi-Flex EISA BIOS,
specifically tailored for the Intel 82350 chip set. The BIOS
ROM reside on the EZ-Flex CPU Cards.
The AMI EZ-Flex BIOS supports system, video, and option
ROM shadowing with 16 KB granularity. Like all AMI
BIOS products, the BIOS Setup utility resides in ROM and
configures all basic components AMI also supplies hard
disk utilities in ROM.
Shadowing
The AMI BIOS Setup provides shadowing for system BIOS
ROM, video ROM, and option ROMs. Shadow RAM
provides significant improvement in system performance
and VGA/EGA video throughput. This memory is
configured via Setup in the system BIOS.
CMOS RAM
The AMI EZ-Flex BIOS Setup configuration settings are
saved in the 64 bytes of CMOS RAM on the EZ-Flex Base
Board. CMOS RAM and the clock and calendar are
powered by a built-in battery in the RTC/CMOS chip itself.
An additional 4 KB of CMOS RAM is available on the
Base Board for EISA configuration data. EISA Extended
CMOS RAM is powered by the same battery used for the
RTC (real time clock).

Chapter 1 Introduction
4
I/O Features
Built-in I/O
The EZ-Flex system contains built-in input/output
controllers to save both money and system setup time. The
controllers can be configured by the AMI EISA BIOS
Setup. The controllers include:
• two serial ports, which are software-configurable for
COM 1, COM2, COM3, or COM4, or can be disabled by
the EISA Configuration Utility (ECU). Additional serial
ports can be configured using adapter cards in
expansion slots. The interrupts can also be configured by
the ECU. The serial port connectors are 10-pin dual-
inline bergs.
• a parallel printer port, software configurable to LPT1 or
LPT2, or disabled by the ECU. Interrupts are configured
by the ECU. The parallel port connector is a 26-pin dual-
inline berg connector.
• a floppy drive controller that supports up to two low or
high density and 3½ or 5¼ inch drives. An Intel 82077AA
diskette controller and standard 34-pin floppy connectors
are provided.
• Mouse support. The IBM® PS/2-type mouse is
supported. A five-pin berg is provided to attach to a
standard AT-type mouse cable. A five-pin to six-pin
miniDIN adapter is needed to attach the PS/2 mouse.
• AT® and PS/2®-compatible keyboards are supported. A
five-pin DIN plug for AT-compatible keyboards and a
five-pin berg for PS/2-compatible keyboards are
provided.

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
5
I/O Features, Continued
Expansion Slots
The EZ-Flex Base Board contains seven expansion slots for
additional system expansion. These slots can be used for
video graphics, SCSI Host Adapters, or other adapter cards.
Memory Features
Simple Memory Expansion
The EZ-Flex Base Board provides easy memory expansion
using industry-standard fast page mode 70 ns RAS access
time 30-pin SIMMs (Single Inline Memory Modules).
The SIMMs on the EZ-Flex Base Board must all be the
same type. 256 KB x 9, 1 MB x 9, 4 MB x 9, or 16 MB x 9
SIMMs can be used. A minimum of four SIMMs must be
installed.

Chapter 1 Introduction
6
Memory Features, Continued
Page Mode and Bank Interleave
The EZ-Flex can use dynamic random access memory
(DRAM) accessed in page mode. Page mode DRAMs
permit near zero wait state operation since page mode
access time to the DRAMs is significantly faster than a
normal access.
All SIMM memory is paged.
If one bank of memory is present (one bank consists of four
SIMMs) memory is paged. If both banks of memory are
present (eight SIMMs), memory is paged interleaved.
The page size is 1 KB if memory is present in Bank 1 only.
It is 2 KB if memory is present in both banks.
Bank interleave is used when groups of SIMMs are
installed. This technique interleaves 2 banks of DRAM
SIMMs by alternating accesses between them, further
reducing the access time to the DRAMs and allowing
virtually zero wait state operation.

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
7
Chapter 2
EZ-Flex Architecture
Instead of a conventional motherboard, an AMI EZ-Flex
system has two elements: a Base Board and a CPU Card.
Base Board
The AMI EZ-Flex Base Board has all the features of a high-
performance EISA motherboard except a CPU. The Base
Board includes seven expansion slots (including six EISA
bus master slots). The Base Board has three power
connectors. A total of 128 MB of RAM can reside in the
eight SIMM slots.
CPU Card
The microprocessor, external math coprocessor, BIOS
ROM chips, memory cache, and other ICs are on the CPU
Card. The CPU Card plugs into a 160-pin connector on the
Base Board. The Base Board contains the bulk of the
standard EISA system architecture.
Cache Memory
All memory on the Base Board can be accessed by the EZ-
Flex memory caching subsystem, which uses either write-
through or write-back caching. See the appropriate AMI EZ-
Flex CPU Card User's Guide for details. Memory on EISA
Adapter Cards is not cached by the EZ-Flex external cache,
since memory on the bus cannot be easily handled by the
write-back cache algorithm.

Chapter 2 EZ-Flex Architecture
8
EZ-Flex Architecture, Continued
The Intel 82350 Chip Set
The AMI EZ-Flex Base Board uses the following chips:
one Intel 82357 - Integrated System Processor
one Intel 82358-33 EISA Bus Controller
two Intel 82352 - EISA bus buffer
Processor Configurations
The EZ-Flex CPU Card are available in a range of CPUs
and CPU speeds. See the following table.
Feature 80486DX/
80486DX-2 8046SX 80386DX
(Intel/AMD)
Clock Speeds 25, 33, and 50 MHz 16, 20, and 25 MHz 33 or 40 MHz
External Cache
Memory 128 KB None 64 KB or 256 KB
Type of Cache Write-back None Write-back
Cache Read wait
states 0 Not Applicable 0
Cache Write wait
states 1 Not Applicable 0
External Math
Coprocessor Weitek 4167 Weitek 4167 Intel 80487SX Intel 80387 Weitek WTL3167
Cyrix 83D87
and other 80387
clones
Additional Features Burst Mode Burst Mode

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
9
Chapter 3
EZ-Flex Base Board
Specifications
Board Size
The board is approximately 8.55 inches wide and 13 inches
long. It contains the standard mounting holes of the
standard XT and Baby AT format and can be mounted in
most Baby AT or XT chassis. The EZ-Flex is 100% AT-
compatible and works with all ISA and EISA adapter cards.
The following graphic displays the dimensions of the EZ-
Flex Base Board.

Chapter 3 EZ-Flex Base Board Specifications
10
Additional Filters
The Base Board has additional RF filters (left center edge)
that can be used if the system has trouble passing the FCC
Class B RF Emissions test. See locations LC001 - LC008
on the EZ-Flex Base Board.
EZ-Flex Base Board Specifications
The CPU Card Connector
The 160-pin connector used for the EZ-Flex CPU Cards has
four rows of forty pins each. There are guides on the CPU
Card connector, making it easy to install.
CPU
There is no CPU on the EZ-Flex Base Board. The CPU is
on an AMI EZ-Flex CPU Card. The EZ-Flex CPU Cards
are: EZ-Flex 80486 CPU Card, 80386 CPU Card, and
80486SX CPU Card. There is a separate AMI manual for
each EZ-Flex CPU Card.
Math Coprocessor
The optional math coprocessor also resides on the EZ-Flex
CPU Card. See the AMI CPU Card User's Guides for more
information about math coprocessors.
Cache Memory
AMI EZ-Flex CPU Cards can have 64 KB, 128 KB, 256
KB, or 512 KB of cache memory. See the AMI CPU Card
User's Guides for more information about cache memory.

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
11
EZ-Flex Base Board Specifications,
Continued
Chip Set
The EZ-Flex uses Intel EISA chips and discrete logic.
Memory Architecture
Page/Interleave is used when BANK1 and BANK2 are
filled. Page mode is used when BANK1 is filled.
Maximum RAM
Up to 128 MB (using 16 MB x 9 SIMMs) can be installed
on the EZ-Flex Base Board.
Memory Speed
The AMI EZ-Flex Base Board requires SIMMs with a RAS
access time of 70 ns.
Wait States
Memory access for both read and write requires zero wait
states.
640K - 1024K Memory Area
This area can be used for Shadow RAM.
Memory Configurations
The EZ-Flex Base Board supports 1 MB, 2 MB, 4 MB, 8
MB, 16 MB, 32 MB, 64 MB, and 128 MB of Base Board
RAM.

Chapter 3 EZ-Flex Base Board Specifications
12
EZ-Flex Base Board Specifications,
Continued
Onboard I/O
The EZ-Flex Base Board contains two AT-compatible
serial ports, one AT-compatible parallel port, and one
floppy disk controller.
Dimensions
The AMI EZ-Flex Base Board is 8.55" wide by 12" long.
Expansion Slots
There are six EISA bus mastering expansion slots and one
non-bus master slot on the EZ-Flex Base Board.
Bus Speed
The AMI EZ-Flex Base Board bus operates at standard ISA
or EISA bus speeds.
Turbo Speed Mode
Speed is controlled by a turbo switch that can be mounted
on the front panel of the chassis and can also be controlled
through the keyboard via the BIOS <Ctrl> <Alt> <+> or <-
> keychords.
Software Compatibility
The EZ-Flex system is compatible with MS-DOS®, PC-
DOS®, OS/2®, Unix, Xenix®, and any other Intel
80386/80486-based operating system. It is also compatible
with all multiuser DOS operating systems.

AMI EZ-Flex Base Board User's Guide
13
Chapter 4
Installation
EZ-Flex installation is a simple procedure because many of
the hardware jumpers and switch setting found on many
motherboards have been removed. This chapter discusses
how to connect the various connectors found in a typical
computer chassis.
Unpacking
Step Action
1 Inspect the cardboard carton for obvious damage. If damaged, call
AMI Technical Services at 404-263-8181. Leave the EZ-Flex board
in its original packing until you are ready to install it.
2 Perform all unpacking and installation procedures on a ground
connected anti-static mat. The operator should wear an anti-static
wristband, grounded at the same point as the anti-static mat.
Or use a sheet of conductive aluminum foil grounded through a 1
megohm resistor instead of the anti-static mat. Similarly, a strip of
conductive aluminum foil wrapped around the wrist and grounded
through a 1 megohm resistor serves the same purpose.
3 Inside the carton, the EZ-Flex board is packed in an anti-static bag,
and sandwiched between sheets of sponge. Remove the sponge
and remove the anti-static bag. Place the EZ-Flex board on a
grounded anti-static surface component-side up. Save the original
packing material in case of reshipment.
4 Inspect the board for damage. Press down on all ICs mounted in
sockets to verify proper seating. Do not apply power if the board
has been damaged.
5 If the board is undamaged, it is ready to be installed.

Chapter 4 Installation
14
Troubleshooting
Technical Support Calls
Before you call AMI technical support (404-246-8600),
have the following information available:
• The serial number and revision number of the
board.
• The SIMM types and speed.
• The system BIOS reference number.
• A list of the adapter cards installed to the system.
• A clear description of the problem.
Warning
The AMI EZ-Flex main processor board contains sensitive
electronic components which can be easily damaged by static
electricity. Follow the instructions carefully to ensure correct
installation and to avoid static damage.
Notes
!Make sure that SW01 is always Off. It is used only
for manufacturing tests.
!The EZ-Flex Base Board has a resettable fuse. It
automatically resets after a certain time period. The
end user does not have to disassemble the system to
replace the fuse.
!The AMI EZ-Flex Base Board includes an AMI
Keyboard Controller.