ASROCK Z97M OC Formula User manual

Version 1.1
Published October 2014
Copyright©2014 ASRock INC. All rights reserved.
Copyright Notice:
No part of this documentation may be reproduced, transcribed, transmitted, or
translated in any language, in any form or by any means, except duplication of
documentation by the purchaser for backup purpose, without written consent of
ASRock Inc.
Products and corporate names appearing in this documentation may or may not
be registered trademarks or copyrights of their respective companies, and are used
only for identication or explanation and to the owners’ benet, without intent to
infringe.
Disclaimer:
Specications and information contained in this documentation are furnished for
informational use only and subject to change without notice, and should not be
constructed as a commitment by ASRock. ASRock assumes no responsibility for
any errors or omissions that may appear in this documentation.
With respect to the contents of this documentation, ASRock does not provide
warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to
the implied warranties or conditions of merchantability or tness for a particular
purpose.
In no event shall ASRock, its directors, ocers, employees, or agents be liable for
any indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages (including damages for
loss of prots, loss of business, loss of data, interruption of business and the like),
even if ASRock has been advised of the possibility of such damages arising from any
defect or error in the documentation or product.
is 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.
CALIFORNIA, USA ONLY
e Lithium battery adopted on this motherboard contains Perchlorate, a toxic substance
controlled in Perchlorate Best Management Practices (BMP) regulations passed by the
California Legislature. When you discard the Lithium battery in California, USA, please
follow the related regulations in advance.
“Perchlorate Material-special handling may apply, see www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/
perchlorate”
ASRock Website: http://www.asrock.com

e terms HDMI™ and HDMI High-Denition Multimedia Interface, and the HDMI
logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of HDMI Licensing LLC in the United
States and other countries.
Manufactured under license under U.S. Patent Nos: 5,956,674; 5,974,380; 6,487,535;
7,003,467 & other U.S. and worldwide patents issued & pending. DTS, the Symbol, &
DTS and the Symbol together is a registered trademark & DTS Connect, DTS Interactive,
DTS Neo:PC are trademarks of DTS, Inc. Product includes soware.
© DTS, Inc., All Rights Reserved.

Contents
Chapter 1 Introduction 1
1.1 Package Contents 1
1.2 Specications 2
1.3 Motherboard Layout 7
1.4 I/O Panel 9
Chapter 2 Installation 11
2.1 Installing the CPU 12
2.2 Installing the CPU Fan and Heatsink 15
2.3 Installing Memory Modules (DIMM) 16
2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI Express Slots) 18
2.5 Jumpers Setup 19
2.6 Onboard Headers and Connectors 20
2.7 SLITM and Quad SLITM Operation Guide 25
2.7.1 Installing Two SLITM-Ready Graphics Cards 25
2.7.2 Driver Installation and Setup 27
2.8 CrossFireXTM and Quad CrossFireXTM Operation Guide 28
2.8.1 Installing Two CrossFireXTM-Ready Graphics Cards 28
2.8.2 Driver Installation and Setup 30
2.9 M.2_SSD (NGFF) Module Installation Guide 31
Chapter 3 Software and Utilities Operation 34
3.1 Installing Drivers 34
3.2 Formula Drive 35

3.2.1 Installing Formula Drive 35
3.2.2 Using Formula Drive 35
3.3 Killer Network Manager 41
3.3.1 Installing Killer Network Manager 41
3.3.2 Using Killer Network Manager 41
3.4 Intel® Rapid Start Technology 44
3.4.1 System Requirements 44
3.4.2 Setup Guide 45
3.5 Intel® Smart Connect Technology 49
3.5.1 System Requirements 49
3.5.2 Setup Guide 50
3.6 ASRock APP Shop 54
3.6.1 UI Overview 54
3.6.2 Apps 55
3.6.3 BIOS & Drivers 58
3.6.4 Setting 59
3.7 Start8 60
3.7.1 Installing Start8 60
3.7.2 Conguring Start8 60
3.8 Rapid OC 63
3.9 Timing Congurator 65
Chapter 4 UEFI SETUP UTILITY 66
4.1 Introduction 66
4.1.1 UEFI Menu Bar 66

4.1.2 Navigation Keys 67
4.2 Main Screen 68
4.3 OC Tweaker Screen 69
4.4 Advanced Screen 78
4.4.1 CPU Conguration 79
4.4.2 Chipset Conguration 81
4.4.3 Storage Conguration 84
4.4.4 Intel® Rapid Start Technology 86
4.4.5 Intel® Smart Connect Technology 87
4.4.6 Intel® Thunderbolt 88
4.4.7 Super IO Conguration 89
4.4.8 ACPI Conguration 90
4.4.9 USB Conguration 92
4.4.10 Trusted Computing 94
4.5 Tools 95
4.6 Hardware Health Event Monitoring Screen 98
4.7 Boot Screen 99
4.8 Security Screen 102
4.9 Exit Screen 103

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Z97M OC Formula
Chapter 1 Introduction
ank you for purchasing ASRock Z97M OC Formula motherboard, a reliable
motherboard produced under ASRock’s consistently stringent quality control.
It delivers excellent performance with robust design conforming to ASRock’s
commitment to quality and endurance.
In this documentation, Chapter 1 and 2 contains the introduction of the
motherboard and step-by-step installation guides. Chapter 3 contains the operation
guide of the soware and utilities. Chapter 4 contains the conguration guide of
the BIOS setup.
1.1 Package Contents
•ASRock Z97M OC Formula Motherboard (Micro ATX Form Factor)
•ASRock Z97M OC Formula Quick Installation Guide
•ASRock Z97M OC Formula Support CD
•2 x Serial ATA (SATA) Data Cables (Optional)
•1 x ASRock Flexible SLI Bridge Connector Cable
•1 x I/O Shield
•1 x Screw for M.2_SSD (NGFF) Socket 3
Because the motherboard specications and the BIOS soware might be updated, the
content of this documentation will be subject to change without notice. In case any modi-
cations of this documentation occur, the updated version will be available on ASRock’s
website without further notice. If you require technical support related to this mother-
board, please visit our website for specic information about the model you are using. You
may nd the latest VGA cards and CPU support list on ASRock’s website as well. ASRock
website http://www.asrock.com.

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1.2 Specications
Platform •Micro ATX Form Factor
•High Density Glass Fabric PCB
CPU •Supports 4th Gen & 5th Generation Intel® CoreTM Processors
(Socket 1150)
•Digi Power design
•8 Power Phase design
•Supports Intel® Turbo Boost 2.0 Technology
•Supports Intel® K-Series unlocked CPUs
•Supports ASRock BCLK Full-range Overclocking
Chipset •Intel® Z97
Memory •Dual Channel DDR3 Memory Technology
•4 x DDR3 DIMM Slots
•Supports DDR3 3000+(OC)/2933(OC)/2800(OC)/2400(OC)/
2133(OC)/1866(OC)/1600/1333/1066 non-ECC, un-buered
memory
•Max. capacity of system memory: 32GB
•Supports Intel® Extreme Memory Prole (XMP) 1.3 / 1.2
Expansion
Slot
•2 x PCI Express 3.0 x16 Slots (PCIE1/PCIE3: single at x16
(PCIE1); dual at x8 (PCIE1) / x8 (PCIE3))
•1 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 Slot (PCIE4: x4 mode)
•1 x PCI Express 2.0 x1 Slot
•Supports AMD Quad CrossFireXTM and CrossFireXTM
•Supports NVIDIA® Quad SLITM and SLITM

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Z97M OC Formula
Graphics •Intel® HD Graphics Built-in Visuals and the VGA outputs can
be supported only with processors which are GPU integrated.
•Supports Intel® HD Graphics Built-in Visuals : Intel® Quick
Sync Video with AVC, MVC (S3D) and MPEG-2 Full
HW Encode1, Intel® InTruTM 3D, Intel® Clear Video HD
Technology, Intel® InsiderTM, Intel® HD Graphics 4400/4600
•Pixel Shader 5.0, DirectX 11.1
•Max. shared memory 1792MB
•ree graphics output options: D-Sub, DVI-D and HDMI
•Supports Triple Monitor
•Supports HDMI with max. resolution up to 4K x 2K
(4096x2304) @ 24Hz
•Supports DVI-D with max. resolution up to 1920x1200 @
60Hz
•Supports D-Sub with max. resolution up to 1920x1200 @
60Hz
•Supports Auto Lip Sync, Deep Color (12bpc), xvYCC and
HBR (High Bit Rate Audio) with HDMI Port
(Compliant HDMI monitor is required)
•Supports HDCP with DVI-D and HDMI Ports
•Supports Full HD 1080p Blu-ray (BD) playback with DVI-D
and HDMI Ports
Audio •7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection (Realtek ALC1150
Audio Codec)
•Premium Blu-ray Audio support
•Supports Surge Protection (ASRock Full Spike Protection)
•Supports Purity SoundTM 2
- Nichicon Fine Gold Series Audio Caps
- 115dB SNR DAC with Dierential Amplier
- TI® NE5532 Premium Headset Amplier (Supports up to
600 Ohm headsets)
- Direct Drive Technology
- EMI Shielding Cover
- PCB Isolate Shielding
•Supports DTS Connect

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LAN •PCIE x1 Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 Mb/s
•Qualcomm® Atheros® KillerTM E2200 Series
•Supports Qualcomm® Atheros® Security Wake On Internet
Technology
•Supports Wake-On-LAN
•Supports Lightning/ESD Protection (ASRock Full Spike
Protection)
•Supports Energy Ecient Ethernet 802.3az
•Supports PXE
Rear Panel
I/O
•1 x PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
•1 x D-Sub Port
•1 x DVI-D Port
•1 x HDMI Port
•1 x Optical SPDIF Out Port
•1 x eSATA Connector
•4 x USB 2.0 Ports (Supports ESD Protection (ASRock Full
Spike Protection))
•4 x USB 3.0 Ports (Supports ESD Protection (ASRock Full
Spike Protection))
•1 x RJ-45 LAN Port with LED (ACT/LINK LED and SPEED
LED)
•HD Audio Jacks: Rear Speaker / Central / Bass / Line in /
Front Speaker / Microphone
Storage •6 x SATA3 6.0 Gb/s Connectors, support RAID (RAID 0,
RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 10, Intel Rapid Storage Technology
13 and Intel Smart Response Technology), NCQ, AHCI and
Hot Plug (SATA3_1 connector is shared with the eSATA port)
•1 x SATA Express Connector (shared with SATA3_4,
SATA3_5 and M.2 Socket)
*Support to be announced
•1 x eSATA Connector, supports RAID (RAID 0, RAID 1,
RAID 5, RAID 10, Intel Rapid Storage Technology 13 and
Intel Smart Response Technology), NCQ, AHCI and Hot Plug
•1 x M.2_SSD (NGFF) Socket 3, supports M.2 SATA3 6.0 Gb/s
module and M.2 PCI Express module up to Gen2 x2 (10 Gb/s)

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Z97M OC Formula
Connector •1 x COM Port Header
•1 x Chassis Intrusion Header
•1 x TPM Header
•1 x Power LED header
•2 x CPU Fan Connectors (1 x 4-pin, 1 x 3-pin)
•2 x Chassis Fan Connectors (1 x 4-pin, 1 x 3-pin)
•1 x Power Fan Connector (3-pin)
•1 x 24 pin ATX Power Connector
•1 x 8 pin 12V Power Connector (Hi-Density Power
Connector)
•1 x PCIe Power Connector
•1 x Front Panel Audio Connector
•1 x underbolt AIC Connector
•2 x USB 2.0 Headers (Support 4 USB 2.0 ports) (Supports ESD
Protection (ASRock Full Spike Protection))
•1 x USB 3.0 Header (Supports 2 USB 3.0 ports) (Supports ESD
Protection (ASRock Full Spike Protection))
BIOS
Feature
•64Mb AMI UEFI Legal BIOS with multilingual GUI support
•ACPI 1.1 Compliant wake up events
•SMBIOS 2.3.1 support
•CPU, DRAM, PCH 1.05V, PCH 1.5V Voltage multi-adjust-
ment
Hardware •CPU/Chassis temperature sensing
•CPU/Chassis/Power Fan Tachometer
•CPU/Chassis Quiet Fan (Auto adjust chassis fan speed by
CPU temperature)
•CPU/Chassis Fan multi-speed control
•CASE OPEN detection
•Voltage monitoring: +12V, +5V, +3.3V, CPU Vcore
OS •Microso® Windows® 10 64-bit / 8.1 32-bit / 8.1 64-bit / 8 32-
bit / 8 64-bit / 7 32-bit / 7 64-bit
Certica-
tions
•FCC, CE, WHQL
•ErP/EuP ready (ErP/EuP ready power supply is required)

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Please realize that there is a certain risk involved with overclocking, including adjusting
the setting in the BIOS, applying Untied Overclocking Technology, or using third-party
overclocking tools. Overclocking may aect your system’s stability, or even cause damage to
the components and devices of your system. It should be done at your own risk and expense.
We are not responsible for possible damage caused by overclocking.
* For detailed product information, please visit our website: http://www.asrock.com
Due to limitation, the actual memory size may be less than 4GB for the reservation for sys-
tem usage under Windows® 32-bit operating systems. Windows® 64-bit operating systems
do not have such limitations. You can use ASRock XFast RAM to utilize the memory that
Windows® cannot use.

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Z97M OC Formula
Intel
Z97
DDR3_A2 (64 bit, 240-pin module)
DDR3_A1 (64 bit, 240-pin module)
DDR3_B2 (64 bit, 240-pin module)
DDR3_B1 (64 bit, 240-pin module)
ATX12V1
CPU_FAN1
Super
I/O
ATXPWR1
1
USB3_4_5
CPU_FAN2
PCIE2
PCIE1
PCIE3
PLED1
1
HDLED RESET
PLED PWRBTN
PANEL1
1
1
USB6_7 USB4_5
1
COM1
1
CHA_FAN2
Z97M OC Formula
6
7
22 17
21
23
24
Purity
Sound 2
TM
1345
2
18
1920
25
1
HD_AUDIO1
CMOS
Battery
SATA3 _0
SATA3 _3
SATA3 _2
SATA3 _5
SATA3 _1
SATA3 _4
SATAE _1
9
11
13
14
10
12
CLRMOS1
1
T B1
1
CHA_FAN1
1
SPEAKER1
1
TPMS1
PCIE4
NUT1
NUT2NUT3NUT4
M2
PWR_FAN1
Killer
E2200
PCIE_PWR1
USB 2.0
T: USB0
B:USB1
Top:
Central/Bass
Center :
REAR SPK
Top:
LINE IN
Center :
FRONT
Bottom :
Optica l
SPDIF
Bottom :
MIC IN
Top:
RJ-45
USB 3.0
T: USB2
B: USB3
PS2
Keyboard
/Mous e
VGA1
DVI1
USB 3.0
T: USB0
B: USB1
HDMI1
USB 2.0
T: USB2
B: USB3
eSATA1
64Mb
BIOS
8
15
16
28
26
27
RoHS
1.3 Motherboard Layout

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No. Description
1 ATX 12V Power Connector (ATX12V1)
2 CPU Fan Connector (CPU_FAN2)
3 CPU Fan Connector (CPU_FAN1)
4 2 x 240-pin DDR3 DIMM Slots (DDR3_A1, DDR3_B1)
5 2 x 240-pin DDR3 DIMM Slots (DDR3_A2, DDR3_B2)
6 ATX Power Connector (ATXPWR1)
7 USB 3.0 Header (USB3_4_5)
8 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_0)
9 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_3)
10 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_1)
11 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_4)
12 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_2)
13 SATA3 Connector (SATA3_5)
14 SATA Express Connector (SATAE_1)
15 Clear CMOS Jumper (CLRMOS1)
16 underbolt AIC Connector (TB1)
17 Power LED Header (PLED1)
18 System Panel Header (PANEL1)
19 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN1)
20 Chassis Speaker Header (SPEAKER1)
21 TPM Header (TPMS1)
22 USB 2.0 Header (USB4_5)
23 USB 2.0 Header (USB6_7)
24 PCIe Power Connector (PCIE_PWR1)
25 COM Port Header (COM1)
26 Chassis Fan Connector (CHA_FAN2)
27 Power Fan Connector (PWR_FAN1)
28 Front Panel Audio Header (HD_AUDIO1)

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Z97M OC Formula
1.4 I/O Panel
No. Description No. Description
1 USB 2.0 Ports (USB01) 9 Front Speaker (Lime)**
2D-Sub Port 10 Microphone (Pink)
3 USB 3.0 Ports (USB3_01) 11 Optical SPDIF Out Port
4 USB 2.0 Ports (USB23) 12 USB 3.0 Ports (USB3_23)
5 LAN RJ-45 Port* 13 eSATA Connector***
6 Central / Bass (Orange) 14 HDMI Port
7 Rear Speaker (Black) 15 DVI-D Port
8 Line In (Light Blue) 16 PS/2 Mouse/Keyboard Port
10
11
12
13
14
1 2 3 754
6
9
8
1516

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* ere are two LEDs on each LAN port. Please refer to the table below for the LAN port LED indications.
Activity / Link LED Speed LED
Status Description Status Description
O No Link O 10Mbps connection
Blinking Data Activity Orange 100Mbps connection
On Link Green 1Gbps connection
** If you use a 2-channel speaker, please connect the speaker’s plug into “Front Speaker Jack”. See the table below
for connection details in accordance with the type of speaker you use.
Audio Output
Channels
Front Speaker
(No. 9)
Rear Speaker
(No. 7)
Central / Bass
(No. 6)
Line In
(No. 8)
2V -- -- --
4V V -- --
6V V V --
8VVVV
*** e eSATA connector supports SATA3 with cables within 1 meters.
To enable Multi-Streaming, you need to connect a front panel audio cable to the front
panel audio header. Aer restarting your computer, you will nd the “Mixer” tool on your
system. Please select “Mixer ToolBox” , click “Enable playback multi-streaming”, and
click “ok”. Choose “2CH”, “4CH”, “6CH”, or “8CH” and then you are allowed to select
“Realtek HDA Primary output” to use the Rear Speaker, Central/Bass, and Front Speaker,
or select “Realtek HDA Audio 2nd output” to use the front panel audio.
ACT/LINK LED
SPEED LED
LAN Port

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Z97M OC Formula
is is a Micro ATX form factor motherboard. Before you install the motherboard,
study the conguration of your chassis to ensure that the motherboard ts into it.
Pre-installation Precautions
Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components
or change any motherboard settings.
•Make sure to unplug the power cord before installing or removing the motherboard
components. Failure to do so may cause physical injuries to you and damages to
motherboard components.
•In order to avoid damage from static electricity to the motherboard’s components,
NEVER place your motherboard directly on a carpet. Also remember to use a grounded
wrist strap or touch a safety grounded object before you handle the components.
•Hold components by the edges and do not touch the ICs.
•Whenever you uninstall any components, place them on a grounded anti-static pad or
in the bag that comes with the components.
•When placing screws to secure the motherboard to the chassis, please do not over-
tighten the screws! Doing so may damage the motherboard.
Chapter 2 Installation

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2.1 Installing the CPU
1. Before you insert the 1150-Pin CPU into the socket, please check if the PnP cap is on the
socket, if the CPU surface is unclean, or if there are any bent pins in the socket. Do not
force to insert the CPU into the socket if above situation is found. Otherwise, the CPU
will be seriously damaged.
2. Unplug all power cables before installing the CPU.
2
1
A
B

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Z97M OC Formula
4
5
3

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Please save and replace the cover if the processor is removed. e cover must be placed if
you wish to return the motherboard for aer service.