Dell INSPIRON 530 DCMF User manual

www.dell.com | support.dell.com
Dell™ Inspiron™ 530 Owner’s Manual
Model DCMF
book.book Page 1 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

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.
If you purchased a Dell™ n Series computer, any references in this document to
Microsoft
®
Windows
®
operating systems are not applicable.
Abbreviations and Acronyms
For a complete list of abbreviations and acronyms, see the "Glossary" on page 183.
____________________
Information in this document is subject to change without notice.
© 2007 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, Yours Is Here, and Inspiron are trademarks of Dell
Inc.; Bluetooth is a registered trademark owned by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. and is used by Dell under
license; Microsoft, Windows, and Windows Vista are either trademarks or registered trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries; Intel, Pentium, and Celeron are
registered trademarks, SpeedStep and Core are trademarks of Intel Corporation.
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.
Model DCMF
November 2007 P/N KP338 Rev. A04
book.book Page 2 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

Contents 3
Contents
Finding Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1 Setting Up and Using Your Computer . . . 15
Front View of the Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Back View of the Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Back Panel Connectors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Installing Your Computer in an Enclosure. . . . . . . . 21
Setting Up a Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Printer Cable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Connecting a USB Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Playing CDs and DVDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Adjusting the Volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Adjusting the Picture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Copying CDs and DVDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
How to Copy a CD or DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Using Blank CDs and DVDs. . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Helpful Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Using a Media Card Reader (Optional) . . . . . . . . . 30
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4Contents
Connecting Two Monitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Connecting Two Monitors With
VGA Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Connecting One Monitor With a
VGA Connector and
One Monitor With a DVI Connector. . . . . . . . . 33
Connecting a TV. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Changing the Display Settings . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Power Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Power Management Options in
Microsoft®Windows®XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Standby Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Hibernate Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Power Options Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Power Management Options in
Windows Vista™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Standby Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Hibernate Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Power Plan Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Enabling SpeedStep™ Technology . . . . . . . . . . . 40
About RAID Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
RAID Level 1 Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Configuring Your Hard Drives for RAID . . . . . . . 42
Configuring for RAID Using the Intel(R)
Option ROM Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Configuring for RAID Using the Intel(R)
Matrix Storage Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Transferring Information to a New Computer . . . . . . 47
Microsoft®Windows®XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
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Contents 5
Setting Up a Home and Office Network. . . . . . . . . 52
Connecting to a Network Adapter . . . . . . . . . 52
Setting Up a Network in the
Microsoft®Windows®XP
Operating System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Setting Up a Network in the
Windows Vista™ Operating System . . . . . . . . 53
Connecting to the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Setting Up Your Internet Connection . . . . . . . . 54
2 Solving Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Troubleshooting Tips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Battery Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Drive Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
CD and DVD drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Hard drive problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
E-Mail, Modem, and Internet Problems . . . . . . . . . 60
Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Keyboard Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Lockups and Software Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
The computer does not start up . . . . . . . . . . 64
The computer stops responding . . . . . . . . . . 64
A program stops responding . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
A program crashes repeatedly . . . . . . . . . . . 64
A program is designed for an earlier
Microsoft®Windows®operating system . . . . . 65
A solid blue screen appears . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Other software problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
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6Contents
Media Card Reader Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Memory Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Mouse Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Network Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Power Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Printer Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Scanner Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Sound and Speaker Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
No sound from speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
No sound from headphones . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Video and Monitor Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
If the screen is blank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
If the screen is difficult to read . . . . . . . . . . . 77
3 Troubleshooting Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Power Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Beep Codes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Dell Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
When to Use the Dell Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . 84
Starting the Dell Diagnostics From
Your Hard Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Starting the Dell Diagnostics From the
Drivers and Utilities Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Dell Diagnostics Main Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
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Contents 7
Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
What is a Driver? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Identifying Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Reinstalling Drivers and Utilities . . . . . . . . . . 89
Troubleshooting Software and Hardware Problems
in the Microsoft Windows®XP and
Windows Vista™ Operating System. . . . . . . . . . . 91
Restoring Your Operating System . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Using Microsoft® Windows® System Restore . . . 92
Click the System Restore tab and ensure that
Turn off System Restore is unchecked.. . . . . . . 94
Using Dell PC Restore and
Dell Factory Image Restore. . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Using the Operating System CD . . . . . . . . . . 97
4 Removing and Installing Parts . . . . . . . . 99
Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Recommended Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Turning Off Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Before Working Inside Your Computer . . . . . . . 100
Removing the Computer Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Inside View of Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
System Board Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Power Supply DC Connector Pin Assignments . . . . . 106
Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Memory Installation Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . 110
Installing Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Removing Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
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8Contents
Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
PCI and PCI Express Cards . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Bezel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Removing the Bezel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Replacing the Bezel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Drives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Recommended Drive Cable Connections. . . . . 124
Connecting Drive Cables . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Drive Interface Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Connecting and Disconnecting
Drive Cables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Hard Drives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Floppy Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Media Card Reader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
CD/DVD Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Replacing the Battery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Replacing the Power Supply . . . . . . . . . . . 146
I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Removing the I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Installing the I/O Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Processor Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Removing the
Processor Fan/Heat Sink Assembly . . . . . . . 150
Installing the
Processor Fan/Heat Sink Assembly . . . . . . . 151
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Contents 9
Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Removing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Installing the Processor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Chassis Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Removing the Chassis Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Replacing the Chassis Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
System Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Removing the System Board . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Installing the System Board . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Replacing the Computer Cover . . . . . . . . . . . 160
A Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
System Setup. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Entering System Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
System Setup Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Boot Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Clearing Forgotten Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Clearing CMOS Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Flashing the BIOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Cleaning Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Computer, Keyboard, and Monitor . . . . . . . . . 176
Mouse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Floppy Drive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
CDs and DVDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
book.book Page 9 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

10 Contents
Dell Technical Support Policy (U.S. Only) . . . . . . . 178
Definition of "Dell-Installed"
Software and Peripherals. . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Definition of "Third-Party"
Software and Peripherals. . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
FCC Notice (U.S. Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
FCC Class B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Contacting Dell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
book.book Page 10 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

Finding Information 11
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
• Warranty information
• Terms and Conditions (U.S. only)
• Safety instructions
• Regulatory information
• Ergonomics information
• End User License Agreement
Dell™ Product Information Guide
• How to set up my computer Setup Diagram
book.book Page 11 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

12 Finding Information
• Service Tag and Express Service Code
• Microsoft Windows License Label
Service Tag and Microsoft
®
Windows
®
License
These labels are located on your computer.
•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.
• Solutions — Troubleshooting hints
and tips, articles from technicians, and
online courses, 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
• Reference — Computer
documentation, details on my
computer configuration, product
specifications, and white papers
• Downloads — Certified drivers,
patches, and software updates
Dell Support Website — support.dell.com
NOTE: Select your region to view the
appropriate support site.
NOTE: Corporate, government, and
education customers can also use the
customized Dell Premier Support website at
premier.support.dell.com.
What Are You Looking For? Find it Here
book.book Page 12 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

Finding Information 13
• 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, 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.
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 desktop model.
• How to use your Windows
®
operating
system
• How to work with programs and files
• How to personalize my desktop
Windows Help and Support
1 To access Windows Help and Support:
• In Windows XP, click
Start and click
Help and Support
.
• In Windows Vista™, click the Windows
Vista Start button
and click Help
and Support
.
2 Type a word or phrase that describes your
problem, and then click the arrow icon.
3 Click the topic that describes your
problem.
4 Follow the instructions on the screen.
What Are You Looking For? Find it Here
book.book Page 13 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

14 Finding Information
book.book Page 14 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

Setting Up and Using Your Computer 15
Setting Up and Using Your Computer
Front View of the Computer
1
2
4
5
7
3
6
8
9
10
11
12
14
13
book.book Page 15 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

16 Setting Up and Using Your Computer
1 Service Tag (located on
top of the chassis
towards the rear)
Use the Service Tag to identify your computer
when you access the Dell Support website or call
technical support.
2 CD/DVD drive Use the CD/DVD drive for playing a CD/DVD.
3 CD/DVD drive panel This panel covers the CD/DVD drive.
(Shown in open position)
4 CD/DVD eject button Press to eject a disk from the CD or DVD drive.
5 optional CD/DVD drive
bay
Can contain an optional CD/DVD drive.
6 optional CD/DVD eject
button
Press to eject a disk from the optional CD or
DVD drive.
7 FlexBay drive Can contain an optional floppy drive or optional
Media Card Reader.
8 USB 2.0 connectors (4) Use the front USB connectors for devices that you
connect occasionally, such as joysticks or cameras,
or for bootable USB devices (see "System Setup
Options" on page 170 for more information on
booting to a USB device).
It is recommended that you use the back USB
connectors for devices that typically remain
connected, such as printers and keyboards.
9 IEEE 1394 connector
(optional)
Attach high-speed serial multimedia devices, such
as digital video cameras.
10 headphone connector Use the headphone connector to attach
headphones and most kinds of speakers.
11 microphone connector Use the microphone connector to attach a personal
computer microphone for voice or musical input
into a sound or telephony program.
On computers with a sound card, the microphone
connector is on the card.
12 front panel door grip Slide up the front panel door grip to cover the
FlexBay drive, four Universal Serial Bus (USB)
connectors, one headphone connector, and one
microphone connector.
book.book Page 16 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

Setting Up and Using Your Computer 17
Back View of the Computer
13 power button,
power light
Press the power button to turn on the computer.
The light in the center of this button indicates
power state. See "Controls and Lights" on page 166
for more information.
NOTICE: To avoid losing data, do not use the
power button to turn off the computer. Instead,
perform an operating system shutdown.
14 drive activity light The drive activity light is on when the computer
reads data from or writes data to the hard drive.
The light might also be on when a device such as a
CD player is operating.
1
2
3
4
6
5
7
book.book Page 17 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

18 Setting Up and Using Your Computer
CAUTION: Ensure that none of the system air vents are blocked. Blocking them
can cause serious thermal problems.
Back Panel Connectors
1 power connector Insert the power cable.
2 voltage selector switch For selecting voltage rating.
3 power supply LED Indicates power availability for power supply.
4 back panel connectors Plug USB, audio, and other devices into the
appropriate connector. See "Back Panel Connectors"
on page 18 for more information.
5 card slots Access connectors for any installed PCI and PCI
Express cards.
6 padlock rings Padlock rings are for attaching a commercially
available theft-deterrent device. The padlock rings
allow you to secure the computer cover to the
chassis with a padlock to prevent unauthorized
access to the inside of the computer. To use the
padlock rings, insert a commercially available
padlock through the rings, and then lock the
padlock.
7 security cable slot Security cable slot lets you attach a commercially
available antitheft device to the computer. For more
information, see the instructions included with the
device.
12
8
7
34
5
6
1011 9
book.book Page 18 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

Setting Up and Using Your Computer 19
1 network activity
light
Flashes a yellow light when the computer is transmitting
or receiving network data. A high volume of network traffic
may make this light appear to be in a steady "on" state.
2 network adapter
connector
To attach your computer to a network or broadband
device, connect one end of a network cable to either a
network port or your network or broadband device.
Connect the other end of the network cable to the network
adapter connector on the back panel of your computer.
A click indicates that the network cable has been securely
attached.
NOTE: Do not plug a telephone cable into the network
connector.
On computers with a network connector card, use the
connector on the card.
It is recommended that you use Category 5 wiring and
connectors for your network. If you must use Category 3
wiring, force the network speed to 10 Mbps to ensure
reliable operation.
3 link integrity light
• Green — A good connection exists between a 10/100-Mbps
network and the computer.
• Off — The computer is not detecting a physical
connection to the network.
4 center/subwoofer
connector
Use the orange connector to attach a speaker to a Low
Frequency Effects (LFE) audio channel. LFE audio
channel is found in digital surround sound audio schemes
that carries only low frequency information of 80 Hz and
below. The LFE channel drives a subwoofer to provide
extremely low bass extension. Systems not using
subwoofers can shunt the LFE information to the main
speakers in the surround sound set-up.
5 line-in connector Use the blue line-in connector to attach a record/playback
device such as a cassette player, CD player, or VCR.
On computers with a sound card, use the connector on
the card.
book.book Page 19 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM

20 Setting Up and Using Your Computer
6 front L/R line-out
connector
Use the green line-out connector (available on computers
with integrated sound) to attach headphones and most
speakers with integrated amplifiers.
On computers with a sound card, use the connector on
the card.
7 microphone Use the pink connector to attach a personal computer
microphone for voice or musical input into a sound or
telephony program.
On computers with a sound card, the microphone
connector is on the card.
8 side L/R surround
connector
Use the gray connector to provide enhanced surround
audio for computers with 7.1 speakers.
On computers with a sound card, the microphone
connector is on the card.
9 rear L/R surround
connector
Use the black surround connector to attach multichannel-
capable speakers.
10 USB 2.0
connectors (4)
Use the back USB connectors for devices that typically
remain connected, such as printers and keyboards.
It is recommended that you use the front USB connectors
for devices that you connect occasionally, such as joysticks
or cameras.
11 VGA video
connector
Connect the monitor’s VGA cable to the VGA connector
on the computer.
On computers with a video card, use the connector on the
card.
book.book Page 20 Monday, December 10, 2007 3:12 PM