Dell bpcwcsn_5 - OptiPlex - 740 User manual

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Dell™ OptiPlex™ 740
User’s Guide
Models DCSM, DCNE, DCCY

Notes, Notices, and Cautions
NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of
your computer.
NOTICE: A NOTICE indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data
and tells you how to avoid the problem.
CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury,
or death.
____________________
Information in this document is subject to change without notice.
© 2007–2008 Dell Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly
forbidden.
Trademarks used in this text: Dell, the DELL logo, OptiPlex, Inspiron, Dimension, Latitude, Dell
Precision, DellNet, TravelLite, Dell OpenManage, PowerVault, Axim, PowerEdge, PowerConnect,
and PowerApp are trademarks of Dell Inc.; AMD, AMD Athlon, AMD Phenom, and combinations
thereof, and Cool ’n’ Quiet are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc; Microsoft and Windows
are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation; IBM is a registered trademark of International
Business Machines Corporation; Bluetooth is a trademark owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and is used
by Dell Inc. under license. ENERGY STAR is a registered trademark of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency. As an ENERGY STAR partner, Dell Inc. has determined that this product meets
the ENERGY STAR guidelines for energy efficiency.
Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming
the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and
trade names other than its own.
Models: DCSM, DCNE, and DCCY
March 2008 RP699 Rev. A03

Contents 3
Contents
1 Finding Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2 Before You Begin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Recommended Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Turning Off Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Before Working Inside Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3 Mini Tower Computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
About Your Mini Tower Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Front View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Back View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Back-Panel Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Inside Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
System Board Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Mini Tower Computer (Model #DCSM) Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Removing the I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Replacing the I/O Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Removing the Computer Cover. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
PCI, PCI Express Cards, and PS/2 Serial Port Adapters. . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
PCI Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
PCI Express Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
PS/2 Serial Port Adapters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Drives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
General Installation Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Hard Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Drive-Panel Inserts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Floppy Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Media Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

4Contents
Optical Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Processor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Removing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Installing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Replacing the Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
DC Power Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
4 Desktop Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
About Your Desktop Computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Front View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Back View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Back-Panel Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Inside Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
System Board Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Desktop Computer (Model # DCNE) Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Removing the I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Replacing the I/O Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Drives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
General Installation Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Optical Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Floppy Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Media Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Hard Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
PCI, PCI Express Cards, and PS/2 Serial Port Adapters. . . . . . . . . . . . 135
PCI Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
PCI Express and DVI Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
PS/2 Serial Port Adapters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Replacing the Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
DC Power Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Removing the Computer Cover. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Contents 5
Processor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Removing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Installing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
5 Small Form Factor Computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
About Your Small Form Factor Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Front View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Back View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Back-Panel Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Inside Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
System Board Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Small Form Factor Computer (Model # DCCY) Specifications . . . . . . . . 193
I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Removing the I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Replacing the I/O Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Removing the Computer Cover. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Drives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
General Installation Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Hard Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Optical Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Floppy Drive and Media Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
PCI, PCI Express Cards, and PS/2 Serial Port Adapters. . . . . . . . . . . . 223
PCI Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
PCI Express and DVI Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
PS/2 Serial Port Adapters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Replacing the Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
DC Power Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Processor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Removing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Installing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

6Contents
6 Advanced Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
LegacySelect Technology Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Manageability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Alert Standard Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Dell OpenManage™ IT Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Dell OpenManage Client Instrumentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Security. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Chassis Intrusion Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Option Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Padlock Ring and Security Cable Slot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Password Protection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
System Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Administrator Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Disabling a Forgotten Password and Setting a New Password . . . . . 255
Trusted Platform Module (TPM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Enabling the TPM Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
System Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Entering System Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
System Setup Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Booting to a USB Device. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
Memory Key. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
Floppy Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
Jumper Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Mini Tower, Desktop, and Small Form Factor Computers . . . . . . . . 265
Clearing Forgotten Passwords. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Clearing CMOS Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
HyperTransport™ and Dual-Core Technology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Power Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
About RAID Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Verifying That RAID Is Working. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
RAID Level 0 Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
RAID Level 1 Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270

Contents 7
Configuring Your Hard Drives for RAID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Using the NVIDIA MediaShield ROM Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Using NVIDIA MediaShield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Enabling Cool ’n’ Quiet™ Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
7 Chassis Intrusion Switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Removing the Chassis Intrusion Switch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Mini Tower Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Desktop Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Small Form Factor Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Replacing the Chassis Intrusion Switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Resetting the Chassis Intrusion Detector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
8 Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Replacing the Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
9 Replacing the System Board. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Removing the System Board: Mini Tower, Desktop, and Small
Form Factor Computers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Replacing the System Board: Mini Tower, Desktop, and Small
Form Factor Computers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
10 Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
DDR2 Memory Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
Addressing Memory With 4-GB or Greater Configurations (32-bit Operating
Systems Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Removing Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
Installing Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

8Contents
11 Replacing the Computer Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297
12 Cleaning Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Computer, Keyboard, and Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Cleaning a Non-Optical Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Cleaning an Optical Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
Floppy Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
CDs and DVDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
13 Reinstalling Drivers and the Operating System . . . . . . . . 301
Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
What Is a Driver? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
Identifying Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Restoring Your Operating System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
Windows Vista . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
Windows XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
Creating a Restore Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
Restoring the Computer to an Earlier Operating State . . . . . . . . . . 306
Undoing the Last System Restore. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
Reinstalling Microsoft®Windows Vista®and Windows®XP . . . . . . . . 307
Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
14 Solving Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
Troubleshooting Tips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
Battery Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
Card Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
Drive Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
CD and DVD drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
Hard drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314

Contents 9
E-Mail, Modem, and Internet Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Keyboard Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
Fan Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316
Lockups and Software Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316
The computer does not start up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316
The computer stops responding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316
A program stops responding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
A program crashes repeatedly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
A solid blue screen appears . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
Other software problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317
Media Card Reader Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Memory Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Mouse Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Network Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320
Power Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
Printer Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Restoring Default Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Serial or Parallel Device Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Sound and Speaker Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
No sound from speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
No sound from headphones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Video and Monitor Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
If the screen is blank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
If the screen is difficult to read . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
15 Troubleshooting Tools and Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
Dell Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
When to Use the Dell Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
System Lights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Diagnostic Lights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
Beep Codes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332

10 Contents
Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333
Resolving Software and Hardware Incompatibilities . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
Microsoft®Windows®XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
16 Microsoft®Windows®XP and Windows Vista®
Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Transferring Information to a New Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Microsoft Windows Vista®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Microsoft®Windows®XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
User Accounts and Fast User Switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342
Adding User Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342
Fast User Switching. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Setting Up a Home and Office Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Connecting to a Network Adapter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
Network Setup Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
17 Getting Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
Obtaining Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
Online Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
AutoTech Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Automated Order-Status Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Support Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Problems With Your Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Product Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Returning Items for Warranty Repair or Credit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Before You Call. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Contacting Dell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351

Contents 11
18 Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
19 FCC Regulatory Model (U.S. Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357

12 Contents

Finding Information 13
1
Finding Information
NOTE: Some features or media may be optional and may not ship with your computer. Some features or
media may not be available in certain countries.
NOTE: Additional information may ship with your computer.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here
• A diagnostic program for my computer
• Drivers for my computer
• My device documentation
• Desktop System Software (DSS)
Drivers and Utilities Media
NOTE: The Drivers and Utilities media may be optional and
may not ship with your computer.
Documentation and drivers are already installed on your
computer. You can use the Drivers and Utilities media to
reinstall drivers (see "Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities" on
page 302) or to run the Dell Diagnostics (see "Dell
Diagnostics" on page 327).
Readme files may be
included on your media to
provide last-minute
updates about technical
changes to your computer
or advanced technical-
reference material for
technicians or experienced
users.
NOTE: Drivers and documentation updates can be found at
support.dell.com.

14 Finding Information
• How to set up my computer
• Basic troubleshooting information
• How to run the Dell Diagnostics
• Error codes and diagnostic lights
• Tools and utilities
• Additional information about setting up my computer
• How to troubleshoot and solve problems
• How to remove and install parts
Quick Reference Guide
NOTE: This document may be optional and may not ship with
your computer.
NOTE: This document is available as a PDF at
support.dell.com.
• Warranty information
• Terms and Conditions (U.S. only)
• Safety instructions
• Regulatory information
• Ergonomics information
• End User License Agreement
Dell™ Product Information Guide
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

Finding Information 15
• Service Tag and Express Service Code
• Microsoft Windows License Label
Service Tag and Microsoft
®
Windows
®
License
NOTE: Your computer’s Service Tag and Microsoft®
Windows®License labels are located on your computer.
Your computer’s Service Tag contains both a Service Tag
number and an Express Service Code.
• Use the Service Tag to identify your computer when you
use support.dell.com or contact support.
• Enter the Express Service Code to direct your call when
contacting support.
Use the product key on the Microsoft Windows License
Label if you need to reinstall your operating system.
• Use the product key on the License Label if you need to
reinstall your operating system.
NOTE: As an increased security measure, the newly
designed Microsoft Windows license label incorporates a
missing portion or "hole" to discourage removal of the label.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

16 Finding Information
• Solutions — Troubleshooting hints and tips, articles
from technicians, online courses, and frequently asked
questions
• Community — Online discussion with other Dell
customers
• Upgrades — Upgrade information for components, such
as memory, the hard drive, and the operating system
• Customer Care — Contact information, service call and
order status, warranty, and repair information
• Service and support — Service call status and support
history, service contract, online discussions with
technical support
• Dell Technical Update Service — Proactive e-mail
notification of software and hardware updates for your
computer
• Reference — Computer documentation, details on my
computer configuration, product specifications, and
white papers
• Downloads — Certified drivers, patches, and software
updates
• Desktop System Software (DSS)— If you reinstall the
operating system for your computer, you should also
reinstall the DSS utility. DSS provides critical updates
for your operating system and support for Dell™
3.5-inch USB floppy drives, AMD™ processors, optical
drives, and USB devices. DSS is necessary for correct
operation of your Dell computer. The software
automatically detects your computer and operating
system and installs the updates appropriate for your
configuration.
Dell Support Website — support.dell.com
NOTE: Select your region or business segment to view the
appropriate support site.
To download Desktop System Software:
1 Go to support.dell.com and click Drivers and Downloads .
2 Click Select Model .
3 Select your product model and click Confirm , or enter a
service tag and click
Go .
4 Click System Utilities .
5 Click Desktop System Software under Dell - Utility , and
click Download Now .
6 Click Run to run the driver, or Save to save the driver to
your computer.
NOTE: The support.dell.com user interface may vary
depending on your selections.
NOTE: DSS may or may not be available for your computer
model.
COMMENT
• Software upgrades and troubleshooting hints —
Frequently asked questions, hot topics, and general
health of your computing environment
Dell Support 3
Dell Support 3 is an automated upgrade and notification
system installed on your computer. This support provides
real-time health scans of your computing environment,
software updates, and relevant self-support information.
Access Dell Support 3 from the
icon in the taskbar.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

Finding Information 17
• How to find information about my computer and its
components
• How to connect to the Internet
• How to add user accounts for different people
• How to transfer files and settings from another
computer
Windows Welcome Center
The Windows Welcome Center automatically appears
when you use the computer for the first time. You can
choose to have it appear every time you start your
computer by placing a check in the Run at startup
checkbox. Another method of accessing the Welcome
Center is to click the Windows Vista Start button , and
then click Welcome Center.
COMMENT
• How to use Microsoft Windows XP or Windows Vista
®
• How to work with programs and files
• How to personalize my desktop
Windows Help and Support
Microsoft Windows XP:
1 Click the Start button and click Help and Support .
2 Either select one of the topics listed, or type a word or
phrase that describes your problem into the
Search box,
click the arrow icon, and then click the topic that
describes your problem.
3 Follow the instructions on the screen.
Microsoft Windows Vista:
1 Click the Windows Vista Start button , and then click
Help and Support .
2 In Search Help , type a word or phrase that describes your
problem, and then press <Enter> or click the magnifying
glass.
3 Click the topic that describes your problem.
4 Follow the instructions on the screen.
• Remote help with troubleshooting my computer
DellConnect™ Service and Support
Dell associates can diagnose and repair your computer
remotely over a broadband connection. To learn more and
get started with DellConnect, go to support.dell.com and
click Revolutionary remote help—DellConnect.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

18 Finding Information
• How to reinstall my operating system Operating System Media
NOTE: The Operating System media may be optional and may
not ship with your computer.
The operating system is already installed on your computer.
To reinstall your operating system, use the Operating
System media. See "Reinstalling Microsoft®Windows
Vista®and Windows®XP" on page 307.
After you reinstall your
operating system, use the
optional Drivers and
Utilities media to reinstall
drivers for the devices that
came with your computer.
Your operating system
product key label is located
on your computer.
NOTE: The color of your media varies based on the operating
system you ordered.
What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

Before You Begin 19
2
Before You Begin
This chapter provides procedures for removing and installing the components in your computer.
Unless otherwise noted, each procedure assumes that the following conditions exist:
• You have performed the steps in "Turning Off Your Computer" on page 19 and "Before Working
Inside Your Computer" on page 20.
• You have read the safety information in your Dell™
Product Information Guide.
• A component can be replaced by performing the removal procedure in reverse order.
Recommended Tools
The procedures in this document may require the following tools:
• Small flat-blade screwdriver
• Phillips screwdriver
• Flash BIOS update program floppy disk, CD, USB key
Turning Off Your Computer
NOTICE: To avoid losing data, save and close any open files and exit any open programs before you turn off
your computer.
1 Shut down the operating system:
a Save and close any open files, and exit any open programs.
b Click the Start button, and then click Shut Down .
c In the Shut Down Windows window, select Shut down , and then click OK .
The computer turns off after the operating system shutdown process finishes.
2 Ensure that the computer and any attached devices are turned off.
If your computer and attached devices did not automatically turn off when you shut down your
operating system, turn them off now.
NOTICE: To turn off your computer without shutting down the operating system is not recommended,
because you may lose data. If, however, it is necessary to do so, it may be done by pressing down and
holding the power button for 6 seconds.

20 Before You Begin
Before Working Inside Your Computer
Use the following safety guidelines to help protect your computer from potential damage and to help
ensure your own personal safety.
CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the safety instructions in the Product
Information Guide .
CAUTION: Handle components and cards with care. Do not touch the components or contacts on a card. Hold a
card by its edges or by its metal mounting bracket. Hold a component such as a processor by its edges, not by its
pins.
NOTICE: Only a certified service technician should perform repairs on your computer. Damage due to servicing
that is not authorized by Dell is not covered by your warranty.
NOTICE: When you disconnect a cable, pull on its connector or on its strain-relief loop, not on the cable itself.
Some cables have a connector with locking tabs; if you are disconnecting this type of cable, press in on the locking
tabs before you disconnect the cable. As you pull connectors apart, keep them evenly aligned to avoid bending any
connector pins. Also, before you connect a cable, ensure that both connectors are correctly oriented and aligned.
NOTICE: To avoid damaging the computer, perform the following steps before you begin working inside the
computer.
1 Turn off your computer.
NOTICE: To disconnect a network cable, first unplug the cable from your computer and then unplug it from the
network wall jack.
2 Disconnect any telephone or telecommunication lines from the computer.
3 Disconnect your computer and all attached devices from their electrical outlets, and then press the
power button to ground the system board.
4 If applicable, remove the computer stand (for instructions, see the documentation that came with the
stand).
CAUTION: To guard against electrical shock, always unplug your computer from the electrical outlet before
removing the cover.
5 Remove the computer cover:
• Remove the mini tower computer cover (see "Removing the Computer Cover" on page 39).
• Remove the desktop computer cover (see "Removing the Computer Cover" on page 177).
• Remove the small form factor computer cover (see "Removing the Computer Cover" on
page 203).
NOTICE: Before touching anything inside your computer, ground yourself by touching an unpainted metal surface,
such as the metal at the back of the computer. While you work, periodically touch an unpainted metal surface to
dissipate any static electricity that could harm internal components.