Gigabyte GA-7A8DRL User manual

USER’S MANUAL
GA-7A8DRL
AMD Socket 940 Dual Processor Motherboard
AMDOpteron™Socket940DualProcessorMotherboard
Rev.1001
12ME-7A8DRL-1001

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard Table of Content
Item Checklist .........................................................................................4
WARNING!...............................................................................................4
Chapter 1 Introduction.............................................................................5
Summary of Features..................................................................................5
GA-7A8DRL Motherboard Layout ...............................................................7
GA-7A8DRL Motherboard Layout (With ZCR) ............................................8
Chapter 2 Hardware Installation Process..............................................10
Step 1: Installing Processor and CPU Cooling Fan.................................. 11
Step1-1:InstallingCPU....................................................................................................11
Step1-2:InstallingCoolingFan ........................................................................................ 13
Step 2: Install memory modules................................................................15
Step 3: Install expansion cards .................................................................18
Step 4: Connect ribbon cables, cabinet wires, and power supply ...........19
Step4-1:I/OBackPanelIntroduction ................................................................................ 19
Step4-2:ConnectorsIntroduction ..................................................................................... 21
Step4-3:JumperSettingIntroduction ................................................................................ 32
Chapter 3 BIOS Setup ..........................................................................36
Main...........................................................................................................38
Advanced ...................................................................................................42
ChipsetConfiguration....................................................................................................... 45
I/ODeviceConfiguration ................................................................................................. 46
PCIConfiguration............................................................................................................ 47
HardwareMonitor ........................................................................................................... 48
ConsoleRedirection ........................................................................................................ 50
Security ......................................................................................................52
Boot............................................................................................................54
Exit .............................................................................................................55

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Table of Content
Chapter 4 Technical Reference ............................................................57
Block Diagram...........................................................................................57
Chapter 5Application Driver Installation ...............................................58
A.IntelNetworkDriverInstallation.................................................................................... 58
B.Adaptec8130HostRaidDriverInstallation.................................................................... 59
C.AdaptecStorageManagerSoftwareInstallation............................................................ 60
D.DirectX9.0DriverInstallation ....................................................................................... 62
Chapter 6Appendix..............................................................................63

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
Computermotherboards andexpansion cards containvery delicateIntegrated Circuit(IC) chips.To
protectthemagainstdamagefromstaticelectricity,youshouldfollowsomeprecautionswheneveryou
workonyour computer.
1. Unplugyourcomputerwhenworkingontheinside.
2. Useagroundedwriststrapbeforehandlingcomputercomponents.Ifyoudonothave
one,touchbothofyourhandstoasafelygroundedobjectortoametalobject,suchas
the powersupply case.
3. Holdcomponentsbytheedgesandtrynot touchtheICchips,leadsorconnectors,or
othercomponents.
4. Placecomponentsonagroundedantistaticpadoronthebagthatcamewiththe
componentswheneverthecomponentsareseparatedfromthesystem.
5. EnsurethattheATXpowersupplyis switchedoffbeforeyoupluginorremove theATX
powerconnectoronthemotherboard.
Ifthemotherboardhasmountingholes,buttheydon’tlineupwiththeholesonthebaseandthereare
noslotstoattachthespacers,donotbecomealarmedyoucanstillattachthespacerstothemounting
holes.Justcutthebottomportionofthespacers(thespacermaybealittlehardtocutoff,sobecareful
ofyourhands).Inthiswayyoucanstillattachthemotherboardtothebasewithoutworryingaboutshort
circuits.Sometimesyoumayneedtousetheplasticspringstoisolatethescrewfromthemotherboard
PCBsurface,becausethecircuitwiremaybenearbythehole.Becareful,don’tletthescrewcontact
anyprintedcircuitwriteorpartsonthePCBthatarenearthefixinghole,otherwiseitmaydamagethe
boardorcauseboardmalfunctioning.
Installing the motherboard to the chassis…
WARNING!
;The GA-7A8DRLmotherboard ;GC-MADS4 Card
;PATA Cable x 2 ;FDD Cable x 1
;CDformotherboarddriver&utility ;I/O shield x 1
;GA-7A8DRLuser’smanual ;SCSI cable x 1
;QuickReference Guide x1
Item Checklist

5
Introduction
FormFactor 30.4cm x 26.9cmATX size form factor, 6 layers PCB.
Motherboard GA-7A8DRLMotherboard
CPU SupportDualOpteronprocessors(SledgeHammer)
TheHyperTransportlinkoftheAMDOpteronprocessoriscapable
ofoperatingat400,800,1200,and1600MT/s.
Chipset AMD-8131NorthBridgeHyperTransportPCI-Xchipsetprovides
twoindependent,high-performancePCI-Xbusbridges,interated
withahigh-speedHyperTransporttechnologytunnel.
AMD-8111HyperTransportI/OHubreplacesthetraditional
southbridge.Thiscomponentintegratesstorage,connectivity,audio,
I/Oexpansionandsystemmanagementfunctionsintoasingle
device.
Memory Supports 4 * DDR socket slots for Primary CPU
Supports4 * DDRsocket slotsfor SecondaryCPU
CPU1supports memory capacityup to8GB
CPU2supports memorycapacity up to 16GB
SupportsregisteredECCandDDR200/266/333/400
I/OControl ITE IT8712FSuperI/O
SATARAID AdaptecAIC-8130controller
(via SO-DIMM SupportsRAID0,1
daughter card) Supports4SATAConnectors
ExpansionSlots Supports 2 x PCI 32Bit/ 33Mhz Slots
Supports 2 x PCI-X 64Bit/100MHz Slots
Supports 2 x PCI-X 64Bit/66MHz Slots
Supports 1 x PCI-X 64Bit/66MHz Slot by SO-DIMM(SCSI card)
On-BoardPeripherals 1Floppy portsupports 2FDD with360K,720K,1.2M, 1.44M
and 2.88M bytes.
1Parallel portsupportsNormal/EPP/ECP mode
1 Serial ports (COMA)
1VGAconnector
2 USB ports (USB1.1)
Chapter 1 Introduction
Summary of Features

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
0Pleasesetthe CPUhostfrequencyinaccordance withyourprocessor’s specifications.
Wedon’trecommendyoutoset thesystembusfrequencyovertheCPU’sspecification
becausethesespecificbusfrequenciesarenotthestandardspecificationsforCPU,
chipsetandmostoftheperipherals.Whetheryoursystemcanrununder thesespecific
busfrequenciesproperlywilldepend onyourhardwareconfigurations,includingCPU,
Chipsets,SDRAM,Cards….etc.
HardwareMonitor WinbondW83791D
CPU/SystemFan Revolutiondetect
CPU/Systemtemperaturedetect
SystemVoltageDetect
PowerManagementSupport
PowerManagermentFeatures Wake-on-LAN (WOL), USB, PCI, mouse
SupportsACPIS1/S4/S5 functions
On-Board VGA BuildinATIRage XLwith8M SDRAMon board
On-Board LAN Intel82545GM
Intel82541GI
PS/2Connector PS/2KeyboardinterfaceandPS/2Mouseinterface
BIOS Phoenix BIOS on 4Mb flash RAM
AdditionalFeatures SMBusSupport
IOAPIC Support
SerialIRQSupport
AC Recovery

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Introduction
GA-7A8DRL Motherboard Layout
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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard Layout (With ZCR)
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Introduction
A. CPU1 1. GLAN2
B. CPU2 2. GLAN1
C. AMD8131 3. VGA1
D. AMD8111 4. LPT1
E. Intel845GM 5. COMA1
F. Intel82541GI 6. USB3
G. BIOS 7. KB_MS(Keyboard/Mouse)
H. EM638325TS-6 8. ATX2(SSIpowerconnector)
I. PWR_FAN2 (Power Fan) 9. ATX1(SSI power connector)
J. PWR_FAN1 (Power Fan) 10. CPU1DIMM0~3
K. ITE8712 11. CPU2DIMM0~3
L. CPU_FAN1 (CPU Fan) 12. PCI_6
M. CPU_FAN2 (CPU Fan) 13. PCI_5
N. SYS_FAN1(SystemFan) 14. PCI-X_4
O. WOL 15. PCI-X_3
P. WOM 16. PCI-X_2
Q. FrontPanel1 17. PCI-X_1
R. USB1 (Front USB) 18. ATI_RageXL
S. IDE2 19. AdaptecAIC-8130
T. IDE1 20 ZCR_CON (ZCR Connector)
U. GSMI(IPMI) 21. SATA0
V. FDD1 (Floppy Connector) 22. SATA1
W. COMB 23. SATA2
X. IPMB1 24. SATA3
Y. IPMB2
Z. BAT1 (Battery)

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
Tosetupyourcomputer,youmustcompletethefollowingsteps:
Step1-InstalltheCentralProcessingUnit(CPU)
Step2-Installmemorymodules
Step3-Installexpansioncards
Step4-Connect ribbon cables,cabinetwires,and power supply
Step5-SetupBIOSsoftware
Step6-Installsupportingsoftwaretools
Chapter 2 Hardware Installation Process
Step 1
Step 4
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
Step 4
Step 4
Step 1
Step 2

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Hardware Installation Process
Step1-1: Installing CPU
Step 1: Installing Processor and CPU Cooling Fan
Beforeinstallingtheprocessorandcoolingfan,adheretothefollowingcautions:
1. Theprocessorwilloverheatwithout theheatsinkand/orfan, resultinginpermanent
irreparabledamage.
2. Neverforcetheprocessorinto thesocket.
3. Applythermal greaseontheprocessorbefore placingcoolingfan.
4. Pleasemake surethe CPUtype issupported bythe motherboard.
5. If youdo notmatch the CPUsocket Pin 1and CPUcut edge well,it will causeimproper
installation. Pleasechangetheinsertorientation.PleaseuseAMDapprovedcooling
fan.
Step1. Rise the leverbaronthe socket.
Step2. Aligningthepinsoftheprocessor with thesocket,inserttheprocessorintothesocket.
Step3 Closethe levercompletely.
Figure1.Anglingtherodto65-degreemaybefeela
kindoftight,andthencontinuepulltherodto90-
degreewhena noise“cough”made.
Figure2.Pulltherodtothe90-degreedirectly.
Angling the
rod to 650
Socket
ActuationLever

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
Figure 3. A1 pin location on the Socket and
Processor.Move the socket lever to the locked
positionwhileholdingpressureonthecenterofthe
processor.
Step4. Whentheprocessorinstallationiscompleted,applythermalgreasetotheprocessor(as
showninFigure4)priortoinstallingthe heatsink. AMDrecommendsusingahighthermal
conductivitygreaseforthethermalinterfacematerialratherthanaphasechangematerial.
Phasechangematerialsdevelopstrongadhesiveforcesbetweentheheatsinkand
processor.
Removing the heatsink under such conditions can cause the processor to be
removed from the socket without moving the socket lever to the unlocked
position and then damage the processor pins or socket contacts.
** Werecommendyoutoapplythethermaltapetoprovidebetterheatconductionbetweenyour
CPUandheatsink.(TheCPUcoolingfanmightsticktotheCPUduetothehardeningofthe
thermalpaste.Duringthisconditionifyoutrytoremovethecoolingfan,youmightpullthe
processoroutoftheCPUsocketalonewiththecoolingfan,andmightdamagetheprocessor.
Toavoidthisfromhappening,wesuggestyoutoeitherusethermaltapeinsteadofthermal
paste,or removethecoolingfanwithextremecaution.)
iFigure 4.Application of Thermal Grease to the
processor.

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Hardware Installation Process
Step1-2: Installing Cooling Fan
Step1. Attachthcoolingfancliptotheprocessorscoket.Aligntheheatsinkassemblywiththesupport
framematingwiththebackerplatestandoffsasshowninFigure5&6.
Step2. Coonecttheprocessorfancabletotheprocessorfanconnector.
Note:**WerecommendyoutobuythekindofcoolingfanwhichisshowninFigure8.Thistypeofcooling
fanwillprovidethebestperformanceforheatreleasing.
Figure5&6AlignmentofHeatsinkAssemblywithStandoffs
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Figure7 ConnectingCPU FAN connector

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
Figure8.Recommendedcoolingfan
Figure9.Air Flowdirection

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Hardware Installation Process
Step 2: Install memory modules
Beforeinstallingtheprocessorandheatsink,adheretothefollowingwarning:
PleasenotethattheDIMMmodulecanonlyfitinonedirectionduetotheonenotches. Wrong
orientationwillcauseimproperinstallation.Pleasechangetheinsertorientation.
Themotherboardhas8dualinlinememorymodule(DIMM)sockets.TheBIOSwillautomaticallydetects
memory type and size. To install the memory module, just push it vertically into the DIMM socket .
Memory size can vary between sockets.
Notch
CPU2 DIMM0
CPU2 DIMM1
CPU2 DIMM1
CPU2 DIMM3
CPU DIMM1
CPU DIMM0
CPU DIMM2 CPU DIMM3
CPU1 DIMM0
CPU1 DIMM1 CPU1 DIMM2
CPU1 DIMM3

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
Installation Step:
1. UnlockaDIMM socketbypressing theretainingclips outwards.
2. AlingaDIMMon thesocketsuchthat thenotchontheDIMM exactlymatchthenotches inthe
socket.
3. FirmlyinserttheDIMMintothesocketuntiltheretainingclipssnapbackinplace.
4. Theprocessorsupports64-bitmodeand128-bitmodeconfigurationoftheDIMMs.In64bitmode,
onlyDIMM0and2canbepopulated.Possiblecombinationsof DIMMsin64bitmodearelistedin
Table1.In128bitmode,minimumoftwoDIMMsisrequiredtocreatethe128bitbus;therefore,
DIMMscanonly bepopulatedin evennumberedpairs inslot0& 1,and2& 3.Eachlogical DIMM
mustbe madeoftwoidentical DIMMs havingthesame devicesizeon eachandthe sameDIMM
size.Regardlessofmode,DIMMmustbepopulatedinorderstartingatthefarestslotfromthe
processor.Table2 &3showsthepossible combination ofDIMMsfor128mode. Notallpossbile
combinationsarelistedinthetables.
5. InstalledDIMMsmustbethesamespeedandmustallberegistered.Foralistofsuuported
memrory,pleaserefertothetablelistabove.
6. Reverse the installation steps when you wish to remove the DIMM module.
Total Memory Sizes With Registered DDR DIMM
Devices used on DIMM 1 DIMMx64/x72 2 DIMMsx64/x72 3 DIMMsx64/x72 4 DIMMsx64/x72
64 Mbit (4Mx4x4 banks) 256 MBytes 512 MBytes 768 MBytes 1 GBytes
64 Mbit (2Mx8x4 banks) 128 MBytes 256 MBytes 384 MBytes 512 MBytes
64 Mbit (1Mx16x4 banks) 64 MBytes 128 MBytes 192 MBytes 256 MBytes
128 Mbit(8Mx4x4 banks) 512 MBytes 1 GBytes 1.5 GBytes 2 GBytes
128 Mbit(4Mx8x4 banks) 256 MBytes 512 MBytes 768 MBytes 1 GBytes
128 Mbit(2Mx16x4 banks) 128 MBytes 256 MBytes 384 MBytes 512 MBytes
256 Mbit(16Mx4x4 banks) 1 GBytes 2 GBytes 3 GBytes 4 GBytes
256 Mbit(8Mx8x4 banks) 512 MBytes 1 GBytes 1.5 GBytes 2 GBytes
256 Mbit(4Mx16x4 banks) 256 MBytes 512 MBytes 768 MBytes 1 GBytes
512 Mbit(32Mx4x4 banks) 2 GBytes 4 GBytes 4 GBytes 4 GBytes
512 Mbit(16Mx8x4 banks) 1 GBytes 2 GBytes 3 GBytes 4 GBytes
512 Mbit(8Mx16x4 banks) 512 MBytes 1 GBytes 1.5 GBytes 2 GBytes
Locked Retaining Clip

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Hardware Installation Process
Table 1. Vaild DIMM Configuration for 64 bit Mode
DIMM 0 (MB) DIMM 2 (MB)
X 256
256 256
X 512
512 512
X 1024
1024 1024
X 2048
2048 2048
X 4096
4096 4096
Note: X = Do not populate
Table 2. Vaild DIMM Configuration for 128 bit Mode
Logical DIMM 0 Ligical DIMM1
DIMM 0 (MB) DIMM 1 (MB) DIMM 2 (MB) DIMM 3 (MB)
X X 256 256
256 256 256 256
X X 512 512
512 512 512 512
X X 1024 1024
1024 1024 1024 1024
X X 2048 2048
2048 2048 2048 2048
X X 4096 4096
4096 4096 4096 4096
Note:X=Do Notpopulate

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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
Step 3: Install expansion cards
1. Readtherelatedexpansioncard’sinstructiondocumentbeforeinstalltheexpansioncardinto
thecomputer.
2. Removeyourcomputer’schassiscover,screwsandslot bracketfromthecomputer.
3. Presstheexpansioncardfirmlyintoexpansionslotinmotherboard.
4. Besurethemetalcontactsonthecardareindeedseatedintheslot.
5. Replacethescrewtosecuretheslotbracketoftheexpansioncard.
6. Replaceyourcomputer’schassiscover.
7. Poweronthe computer,if necessary,setupBIOS utilityof expansioncardfrom BIOS.
8. Installrelateddriverfromtheoperatingsystem.

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Hardware Installation Process




Step 4: Connect ribbon cables, cabinet wires, and power
supply
Step4-1:I/O Back Panel Introduction



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GA-7A8DRL Motherboard
 PS/2 Keyboard and PS/2 Mouse Connector
To install a PS/2 port keyboard and mouse, plug the mouse to the upper port (green) and the keyboard
to the lower port (purple).
USB Port
Before you connect your device(s) into USB connector(s), please make sure your device(s) such
as USB keyboard, mouse, scanner, zip, speaker...etc. have a standard USB interface.
Also make sure your OS supports USB controller. If your OS does not support USB controller,
please contact OS vendor for possible patch or driver updated. For more information please
contact your OS or device(s) vendors.
// Parallel Port / Serial Port / VGA Port
This connector supports 1 standard COM port and 1 Parallel port. Device like printer can be
connectedtoParallelport;mouseand modemetccanbeconnectedtoSerialport.
/LAN Port
The provided Internet connection is Gigabit Ethernet, providing data transfer speeds of 10/
100/1000Mbps.
LAN LED Description
Color Condition Description
Green ON LAN Link / noAccess
Green BLINK LAN Access
- OFF Idle
Green ON 100Mbpsconnection
- OFF 10Mbpsconnection
Yellow ON 1Gbpsconnection
Yellow BLINK Portidentificationwith1Gbpsconnection
Green ON 100Mbpsconnection
Green BLINK Portidentificationwith10or100Mbps
connection
- OFF 10Mbpsconnection
Name
LAN
Link/Activity
10/100LAN
Speed
GbE LAN
Speed