Supero X7DB8-X User manual

SUPER
®
X7DB8-X
X7DBE-X
USER’S MANUAL
Revision 1.0a

The information in this User’s Manual has been carefully reviewed and is believed to be accurate.
The vendor assumes no responsibility for any inaccuracies that may be contained in this document,
makes no commitment to update or to keep current the information in this manual, or to notify any
person or organization of the updates.
Please Note: For the most up-to-date version of this manual, please see our web
site at www.supermicro.com.
SUPERMICRO COMPUTER reserves the right to make changes to the product described in this
manual at any time and without notice. This product, including software, if any, and documenta-
tion may not, in whole or in part, be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated or reduced to any
medium or machine without prior written consent.
IN NO EVENT WILL SUPERMICRO COMPUTER BE LIABLE FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL,
INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE USE OR INABILITY TO
USE THIS PRODUCT OR DOCUMENTATION, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF
SUCH DAMAGES. IN PARTICULAR, THE VENDOR SHALL NOT HAVE LIABILITY FOR ANY
HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, OR DATA STORED OR USED WITH THE PRODUCT, INCLUDING THE
COSTS OF REPAIRING, REPLACING, INTEGRATING, INSTALLING OR RECOVERING SUCH
HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, OR DATA.
Any disputes arising between manufacturer and customer shall be governed by the laws of Santa
Clara County in the State of California, USA. The State of California, County of Santa Clara shall
be the exclusive venue for the resolution of any such disputes. Supermicro's total liability for all
claims will not exceed the price paid for the hardware product.
Unless you request and receive written permission from SUPER MICRO COMPUTER, you may not
copy any part of this document.
Information in this document is subject to change without notice. Other products and companies
referred to herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies or mark
holders.
Copyright © 2006 by SUPER MICRO COMPUTER INC.
All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America
Manual Revision: Rev. 1.0a
Release Date: Oct. 5, 2006

Preface
About This Manual
This manual is written for system integrators, PC technicians and
knowledgeable PC users. It provides information for the installation and use of
the X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X motherboard. The X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X
supports dual Intel Xeon 64-bit dual core processors at a front side bus speed of
1333/1066/667 MHz. With dual Xeon 64-bit dual core processors, the 5000P chipset,
and eight DDR2 FBD 667/533 memory modules built-in, the X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X
offers substantial functionality and performance enhancements to the motherboards
based on the dual core NetBurst microarchitecture while remaining compatible with
the 32-bit based software. Key features include the Intel Hyper-Threading Technol-
ogy, Virtualization Technology, Hyper Pipelined Technology, Execution Trace Cache,
Thermal Monitor 1/2 (TM1/TM2), Enhanced Intel SpeedStep technology, Advanced
Dynamic Execution, Advanced Transfer Cache, Streaming SIMD Extensions 3
(SSE3) and Extended Memory 64 Technology (EM64T). These features allow the
motherboard to operate at much higher speeds with better power management in
much safer environments than the traditional motherboards. The X7DB8-X/X7DBE-
X is ideal for high performance dual processor (DP) enterprise server/workstation
environments. This product is intended to be professionally installed.
Manual Organization
Chapter 1 describes the features, specifications and performance of the mainboard
and provides detailed information about the chipset.
Chapter 2 provides hardware installation instructions. Read this chapter when
installing the processor, memory modules and other hardware components into
the system. If you encounter any problems, see Chapter 3, which describes
troubleshooting procedures for the video, the memory and the system setup stored
in CMOS.
Chapter 4 includes an introduction to BIOS and provides detailed information on
running the CMOS Setup utility.
Appendix A and Appendix B provide BIOS POST Messages and POST Codes.
Appendix C, Appendix D and Appendix E list HostRAID Setup Guidelines and
Other Software Driver and Program Installation Instructions.
Conventions Used in the Manual:
Special attention should be given to the following symbols for proper installation and
to prevent damage done to the components or injury to yourself:
Danger/Caution: Instructions to be strictly followed to prevent
catastrophic system failure or to avoid bodily injury.
Warning: Important information given to ensure proper system installation
or to prevent damage to the components.
(*Note): Note: Additional Information given to differentiate various models or
to ensure correct system setup.
iii
Preface

iv
Preface
About This Manual ...................................................................................................... iii
Manual Organization ................................................................................................... iii
Conventions Used in the Manual.................................................................................. iii
Chapter 1: Introduction
1-1 Overview ......................................................................................................... 1-1
Checklist ................................................................................................... 1-1
Contacting Supermicro ............................................................................. 1-2
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X Image ......................................................... 1-3
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X Layout ......................................................... 1-4
Quick Reference ...................................................................................... 1-5
Motherboard Features................................................................................ 1-6
Intel 5000P Chipset: System Block Diagram ........................................... 1-8
1-2 Chipset Overview ........................................................................................... 1-9
1-3 Special Features ........................................................................................... 1-10
Recovery from AC Power Loss .............................................................. 1-10
1-4 PC Health Monitoring .................................................................................... 1-10
1-5 ACPI Features .............................................................................................. 1-11
1-6 Power Supply ............................................................................................... 1-12
1-7 Super I/O ........................................................................................................ 1-13
Chapter 2: Installation
2-1 Static-Sensitive Devices ................................................................................. 2-1
Precautions................................................................................................ 2-1
Unpacking ................................................................................................ 2-1
2-2 Processor and Heatsink Installation ............................................................... 2-2
2-3 Installing DIMMs ............................................................................................. 2-6
2-4 Control Panel Connectors and IO Ports ......................................................... 2-8
A. Back Panel Connectors/IO Ports.............................................................. 2-8
B. Front Control Panel................................................................................... 2-9
C. Front Control Panel Pin Definitions ........................................................ 2-10
NMI Button ............................................................................................. 2-10
Power LED ............................................................................................. 2-10
HDD LED .............................................................................................. 2-11
NIC1/NIC2 LEDs ................................................................................... 2-11
Overheat/Fan Fail LED ......................................................................... 2-12
Power Fail LED ........................................................................................ 2-12
Table of Contents
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual

Table of Contents
v
Reset Button ......................................................................................... 2-13
Power Button .......................................................................................... 2-13
2-5 Connecting Cables ......................................................................................... 2-14
ATX Power Connector .......................................................................... 2-14
Processor Power Connector ................................................................. 2-14
Universal Serial Bus................................................................................ 2-15
Chassis Intrusion .................................................................................... 2-15
Fan Headers .......................................................................................... 2-16
Keylock..................................................................................................... 2-16
ATX PS/2 Keyboard and Mouse Ports..................................................... 2-17
Serial Ports ............................................................................................. 2-17
Wake-On-Ring.......................................................................................... 2-18
Wake-On-LAN .......................................................................................... 2-18
GLAN (Ethernet Ports) ............................................................................. 2-19
Speaker/Power LED Header .................................................................. 2-19
Power Fault .............................................................................................. 2-20
Alarm Reset.............................................................................................. 2-20
Overheat LED/Fan Fail ............................................................................ 2-21
SMB Connector ........................................................................................ 2-21
SMB Power Connector............................................................................. 2-22
VGA Connector ........................................................................................ 2-22
SGPIO Headers ....................................................................................... 2-23
2-6 Jumper Settings .............................................................................................. 2-24
Explanation of Jumpers ......................................................................... 2-24
GLAN Enable/Disable ............................................................................ 2-24
Clear CMOS ............................................................................................. 2-25
Watch Dog................................................................................................ 2-25
SCSI Controller Enabled/Disabled ........................................................... 2-26
SCSI Termination Enabled/Dsiabled ........................................................ 2-26
3rd PWR Supply PWR Fault.................................................................... 2-27
VGA Enable/Disable................................................................................. 2-27
I2C Bus to PCI-X-PCI-E Slots .................................................................. 2-28
2-7 Onboard Indicators .......................................................................................... 2-29
GLAN LEDs.............................................................................................. 2-29
Onboard SCSI Activity LED ..................................................................... 2-30
Onboard Standby PWR LED ................................................................... 2-30
2-8 Floppy, SIMLP IPMI, Hard Disk Drive and SCSI Connections ....................... 2-31
Floppy Connector .................................................................................... 2-31
IDE Connectors ....................................................................................... 2-32

vi
SIMLP IPMI Slot...................................................................................... 2-32
Ultra 320 SCSI Connectors..................................................................... 2-33
Chapter 3: Troubleshooting
3-1 Troubleshooting Procedures ........................................................................... 3-1
Before Power On....................................................................................... 3-1
No Power................................................................................................... 3-1
No Video .................................................................................................. 3-1
Memory Errors........................................................................................... 3-1
Losing the System’s Setup Configuration ................................................ 3-1
3-2 Technical Support Procedures ....................................................................... 3-2
3-3 Frequently Asked Questions .......................................................................... 3-3
3-4 Returning Merchandise for Service ................................................................. 3-4
Chapter 4: BIOS
4-1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 4-1
4-2 Running Setup ................................................................................................. 4-2
4-3 Main BIOS Setup ............................................................................................. 4-2
4-4 Advanced Setup ............................................................................................... 4-7
4-5 Security Setup ............................................................................................... 4-24
4-6 Boot Setup ...................................................................................................... 4-25
4-7 Exit.................................................................................................................. 4-26
Appendices:
Appendix A: BIOS POST Messages ..........................................................................A-1
Appendix B: BIOS POST Codes................................................................................B-1
Appendix C: The Intel HostRAID Setup Guidelines...................................................C-1
Appendix D: The Adaptec HostRAID Setup Guidelines.............................................D-1
Appendix E: Installing Other Software Programs and Drivers...................................E-1
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual

Chapter 1: Introduction
1-1
Chapter 1
Introduction
1-1 Overview
Checklist
Congratulations on purchasing your computer motherboard from an acknowledged
leader in the industry. Supermicro boards are designed with the utmost attention
to detail to provide you with the highest standards in quality and performance.
Check that the following items have all been included with your motherboard. If
anything listed here is damaged or missing, contact your retailer. All are included
in the Retail Box.
One (1) Supermicro Mainboard
One (1) ribbon cable for IDE devices (CBL-0036L-002)
One (1) floppy ribbon cable (CBL-0022L)
One (1) 2-Port USB cable (CBL-0083)
Four (4) SATA cables (CBL-0044L)
One (1) COM port cable (CBL-010L)
One (1) SCSI cable (CBL-034L-U320) (*X7DB8-X only)
One (1) i/O Backplane Shield (CSE-PT07L)
One (1) Supermicro CD containing drivers and utilities (CDR-X7)
One (1) Motherboard User's/BIOS Manual
One (1) Ultra 320 SCSI User's Manual (*X7DB8-X only)

1-2
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual
Contacting Supermicro
Headquarters
Address: SuperMicro Computer, Inc.
980 Rock Ave.
San Jose, CA 95131 U.S.A.
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected] (General Information)
[email protected] (Technical Support)
Web Site: www.supermicro.com
Europe
Address: SuperMicro Computer B.V.
Het Sterrenbeeld 28, 5215 ML
's-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected] (General Information)
[email protected] (Technical Support)
[email protected] (Customer Support)
Asia-Pacific
Address: SuperMicro, Taiwan
D5, 4F, No. 16 Chien-Ba Road
Chung-Ho 235, Taipei Hsien, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Web Site: www.supermicro.com.tw
Technical Support:
Email: [email protected]
Tel: [phone], ext.132 or 139

Chapter 1: Introduction
1-3
Figure 1-1. X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X Image
(*Note: The drawings and pictures shown in this manual were based on
the latest PCB Revision available at the time of publishing of the manual. The
motherboard you’ve received may or may not look exactly the same as the
graphics shown in the manual.)

1-4
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual
Figure 1-2. X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X Motherboard Layout
1. Jumpers not indicated are for test purposes only.
2. See Chapter 2 for detailed information on jumpers, I/O ports and
JF1 front panel connections.
3. " " indicates the location of Pin 1.
4. SCSI is for the X7DB8-X only.
5. When LE1 is on, make sure to disconnect the power supply before removing
or installing components.
6. For the ZCR card to function properly, be sure to install it in the green slot.
(Green Slot is available for the X7DB8-X only.)
7. Slot 1 supports up to 100 MHz.
(not drawn to scale)
GL AN1
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Chapter 1: Introduction
1-5
Quick Reference ( X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X)
Jumper Description Default Setting
J27, J28 I2C Bus to PCI-X/PCI-E Slots Open (Disabled)
J3P 3rd PWR Failure Detect Off (Disabled)
JBT1 CMOS Clear See Chapter 2
JPA1 SCSI Controller Enable Pins 1-2 (Enabled)(*Note)
JPA2, JPA3 SCSI CHA(JPA2),CHB(JPA3)Term.En Off (Enabled) (*Note)
JPG1 VGA Enable Pins 1-2 (Enabled)
JPL1/ JPL2 GLAN1/GLAN2 Enable Pins 1-2 (Enabled)
JWD Watch Dog Pins 1-2 (Reset)
Connector Description
ATX PWR (JPW1) Primary 24-Pin ATX PWR Connector
Aux. PWR/CPU PWR +12V 4-pin PWR (JWP2)/+12V 8-pin PWR(JPW3)
Alarm Reset (JAR) Alarm Reset Off (Normal)
Chassis Intrusion (JL1) Chassis Intrusion Header
COM1/COM2 (JCOM1/2) COM1/COM2 Serial Port Connectors
DA1/DA2 SCSI Activity LED Indicators (See Chapter 2)
DIMM#1A-DIMM#4B Memory FBD DDRII Slots
FAN 1-8 Fans 1-8 (CPU Fans/Chassis Fans)
Floppy (J22) Floppy Disk Drive Connector
FP CTRL (JF1) Front Control Panel Connector
GLAN 1/2 (JLAN1/2) G-bit Ethernet Ports
IDE1 IDE1 Hard Drive (JIDE1)
Keylock (JK1) Keylock Header
OH LED (JOH1) Overheat LED
PSF (JP3) Power Supply Failure (See Chapter 2)
PWR LED (LE1) PWR LED Indicator (*Note 6 on Pg.1-4)
PWR LED/SPKR (JD1) PWR LED(pins1-3)/SpeakerHeader (pins 4-7)
PWR SMB (J17) Power System Management (I2C) Header
SATA0-SATA5 (JS1-JS6) SATA 0-5 Connectors
SCSI Chan. A/B(JA1/JA2)SCSI Channel A/B Connectors (*Note)
SGPIO 1/2 (J29,J30) Serial General Purpose Input/Output Headers
SMB (J18) System Management Bus Header
Slot 1 PCI-X 100 MHz (ZCR) Slot (*Note)
Slot 2/Slot 3/Slot 6 PCI-X 133 MHz Slots
Slot 4/Slot 5 PCI-X 100 MHz Slots
Slot 7 (J16) SIM Low Profile IPMI (J16) Slot
USB 0/1,USB 2/3, USB4 Back Panel USB 0/1, Front Panel USB 2/3, FP USB4
VGA (J15) VGA Connector
WOL (JWOL) Wake-on-LAN Header
WOR (JWOR) Wake-on-Ring Header
(*Note: X7DB8-X only)

1-6
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual
Motherboard Features
CPU
• Dual Intel®64-bit Xeon LGA 771 dual core processors at a front side bus
speed of 1.333 GHz/1.066 GHz/667 MHz with a system clock speed of
333/267 MHz
Memory
• Eight 240-pin DIMM sockets with support up to 16 (32) GB DDR2 Fully Buff-
ered (FBD) ECC 667/533 Memory (*See Section 2-3 in Chapter 2 for DIMM
Slot Population.)
Chipset
• Intel 5000P chipset, including: the 5000P Memory Control Hub (MCH), the
Enterprise South Bridge 2 (ESB2), and the PXH I/O subsystem (x2).
Expansion Slots
• Three PCI-X 133 MHz slots (*Slots 2/3/6)
• Three PCI-X 100 MHz slots (*two PCI-X-100 MHz slots: Slots 4/5, one PCI-X-
100 MHz w/ZCR slot: Slot 1) (*ZCR is available for the X7DB8-X only.)
BIOS
• 8 Mb Phoenix®Flash ROM
• DMI 2.3, PCI 2.2, ACPI 1.0, Plug and Play (PnP)
PC Health Monitoring
• Onboard voltage monitors for CPU cores, chipset voltage, +3.3V, +5V, +12V,
−12V and +5V standby
• Fan status monitor with firmware control
• CPU/chassis temperature monitors
• Platform Environment Control Interface (PECI) ready
• CPU fan auto-off in sleep mode
• CPU slow-down on temperature overheat
• CPU thermal trip support for processor protection, power LED
• Power-up mode control for recovery from AC power loss
• Auto-switching voltage regulator for CPU cores
• System overheat/Fan Fail LED Indicator and control
• Chassis intrusion detection
• System resource alert via Supero Doctor III

Chapter 1: Introduction
1-7
ACPI Features
• Slow blinking LED for suspend state indicator
• Main switch override mechanism
• ACPI/ACPM Power Management
• Keyboard Wakeup from Soft-off
Onboard I/O
• Adaptec 7902 dual channel Ultra 320 SCSI with ZCR option (*X7DB8-X only)
• Six SATA2 ports (supporting RAID0, 1, 10 and 5)
• One SIMLP IPMI socket
• Intel 82563 Gigabit Ethernet controller supporting two Giga-bit LAN ports
• EIDE Ultra DMA/100 bus master interfaces supporting one IDE slot
• Two SGPIO (Serial General Purpose Input/Output) headers
• One floppy port interface
• Two COM ports (1 header, 1 port)
• PS/2 mouse and PS/2 keyboard ports
• Up to five USB 2.0 (Universal Serial Bus) (2 ports, 3 Headers)
• ATI ES1000 with 16 MB Graphic Controller
• Super I/O: Winbond W83627HF w/Hardware Monitor support: W83793,
HECETA
Other
• Internal/external modem ring-on
• Wake-on-LAN (WOL)
• Wake-on-Ring (WOR)
• Console redirection
• Onboard Fan Speed Control by Thermal Management via BIOS
CD/Diskette Utilities
• BIOS flash upgrade utility and device drivers
Dimensions
• ATX Ext. 12" x 13.05" (304.8 mm x 331.5 mm)

1-8
X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual
Figure 1-9. Block Diagram of the 5000P Chipset
Note: This is a general block diagram. Please see the previous Motherboard Features
pages for details on the features of each motherboard.
MCH
PROCESSOR#2
ESB2
VGA
FBD CHNL0
FBD CHNL1
FBD CHNL2
FBD CHNL3
FBD DIMM
#2 #4 #6 #8
#1 #3 #5 #7
FBD DIMM
FBD DIMM
FBD DIMM
PCI-E X8
PCI-EX8
PCI 33MHz
RN 50
PCIE X8 PCIE X4
GILGAL
GB LAN
FWH
RJ45
RJ45
LPC
COM2
COM1
SIO
W83627
FDD
USB
EBUS CONN
EXP. BUS
IDE CONN
ATA 100
KB
MS
PORT
PORT
PORT PORT
PORT PORT
PORT
PORT
#0#2,3
#4,5
#6,7
#4 #3
#1,2
#0
VGA
CONN
KUMERAN
USB 2.0
VRM
ISL6307
VRM
ISL6307
PROCESSOR#1
1067/1333
MT/S
1067/1333
MT/S
HF
PCI-E X4
PCI-E X8
J14
#3
PCI-X Slot
SCSI
7902
J12
#1
J13
#2
PXH
PCI-X ZCR
PCI-X Slot
PCI-X100
PCI-X133
A
B
PCI-X 133
DDR
PXH
J4
#4
PCI-X Slot
J3
#5
PCI-X Slot
J5
#6
PCI-X Slot
A
B
spare, For SAS later
spare, For IPMI later
5000P
(PCI-E based)
#0-4
SATA
3.0 Gb/S
#0-5

Chapter 1: Introduction
1-9
1-2 Chipset Overview
Built upon the functionality and the capability of the 5000P chipset, the X7DB8-X/
X7DBE-X motherboard provides the performance and feature set required for dual
processor-based servers with configuration options optimized for communications,
presentation, storage, computation or database applications. The 5000P chipset
supports single or dual Xeon 64-bit dual core processor(s) with front side bus speeds
of up to 1.333 GHz. The chipset consists of the 5000P Memory Controller Hub
(MCH), the Enterprise South Bridge 2 (ESB2), and two PXH I/O subsystems.
The 5000P MCH chipset is designed for symmetric multiprocessing across two
independent front side bus interfaces. Each front side bus uses a 64-bit wide, 1.333
GHz data bus that transfers data at 10.7 GB/sec. The MCH chipset connects up to
eight Fully Buffered DIMM modules, providing a total memory of up to 32.0 GB. In
addition, the 5000P chipset offers a wide range of RAS features, including memory
interface ECC, x4/x8 Single Device Data Correction, CRC, parity protection, memory
mirroring and memory sparing.
The Xeon Dual Core Processor Features
Designed to be used with conjunction of the 5000P chipset, the Xeon dual core
Processor provides a feature set as follows:
The Xeon Dual Core Processors
*L1 Cache Size: Instruction Cache (32KB/16KB), Data Cache (32KB/24KB)
*L2 Cache Size: 4MB/2MB (per core)
*Data Bus Transfer Rate: 8.5 GB/s
*Package: FC-LGA6/FC-LGA4, 771 Lands

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X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual
1-3 Special Features
Recovery from AC Power Loss
BIOS provides a setting for you to determine how the system will respond when
AC power is lost and then restored to the system. You can choose for the system
to remain powered off (in which case you must hit the power switch to turn it back
on) or for it to automatically return to a power- on state. See the Power Lost Con-
trol setting in the Advanced BIOS Setup section to change this setting. (*Default:
Last State)
1-4 PC Health Monitoring
This section describes the PC health monitoring features of the X7DB8-X/X7DBE-
X. All have an onboard System Hardware Monitor chip that supports PC health
monitoring.
Onboard Voltage Monitors for CPU Core, HT Voltage, Memory
Voltage, Chipset Voltage, +1.8V, +3.3V, +5V, +12V, −12V, +3.3V
Standby, +5V Standby and VBATT.
An onboard voltage monitor will scan these voltages continuously. Once a
voltage becomes unstable, a warning is given or an error message is sent to
the screen. Users can adjust the voltage thresholds to define the sensitivity
of the voltage monitor.
Fan Status Monitor with Firmware Control
The PC health monitor can check the RPM status of the cooling fans. The onboard
CPU and chassis fans are controlled by Thermal Management via BIOS (under
Hardware Monitoring in the Advanced Setting).
Environmental Temperature Control
The thermal control sensor monitors the CPU temperature in real time and will turn
on the thermal control fan whenever the CPU temperature exceeds a user-defined
threshold. The overheat circuitry runs independently from the CPU. Once it detects
that the CPU temperature is too high, it will automatically turn on the thermal fan
control to prevent any overheat damage to the CPU. The onboard chassis thermal
circuitry can monitor the overall system temperature and alert users when the chas-
sis temperature is too high.

Chapter 1: Introduction
1-11
CPU Fan Auto-Off in Sleep Mode
The CPU fan activates when the power is turned on. It continues to operate when
the system enters Standby mode. When in sleep mode, the CPU will not run at
full power, thereby generating less heat.
CPU Overheat LED and Control
This feature is available when the user enables the CPU overheat warning function
in the BIOS. This allows the user to define an overheat temperature. When this tem-
perature is exceeded, both the overheat fan and the warning LED are triggered.
System Resource Alert
This feature is available when used with Supero Doctor III in the Windows OS
environment or used with Supero Doctor II in Linux. Supero Doctor is used to
notify the user of certain system events. For example, if the system is running
low on virtual memory and there is insufficient hard drive space for saving the
data, you can be alerted of the potential problem. You can also configure Supero
Doctor to provide you with warnings when the system temperature goes beyond
a pre-defined range.
1-5 ACPI Features
ACPI stands for Advanced Configuration and Power Interface. The ACPI specifi-
cation defines a flexible and abstract hardware interface that provides a standard
way to integrate power management features throughout a PC system, including its
hardware, operating system and application software. This enables the system to
automatically turn on and off peripherals such as CD-ROMs, network cards, hard
disk drives and printers. This also includes consumer devices connected to the PC
such as VCRs, TVs, telephones and stereos.
In addition to enabling operating system-directed power management, ACPI
provides a generic system event mechanism for Plug and Play and an operating
system-independent interface for configuration control. ACPI leverages the Plug
and Play BIOS data structures while providing a processor architecture-independent
implementation that is compatible with both Windows 2000 and Windows NT 5.0.
Slow Blinking LED for Suspend-State Indicator
When the CPU goes into a suspend state, the chassis power LED will start blinking
to indicate that the CPU is in suspend mode. When the user presses any key, the
CPU will wake-up and the LED will automatically stop blinking and remain on.

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X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual
Main Switch Override Mechanism
When an ATX power supply is used, the power button can function as a system
suspend button to make the system enter a SoftOff state. The monitor will be
suspended and the hard drive will spin down. Pressing the power button again
will cause the whole system to wake-up. During the SoftOff state, the ATX power
supply provides power to keep the required circuitry in the system alive. In case
the system malfunctions and you want to turn off the power, just press and hold
the power button for 4 seconds. This option can be set in the Power section of
the BIOS Setup routine.
External Modem Ring-On
Wake-up events can be triggered by a device such as the external modem ringing
when the system is in the SoftOff state. Note that external modem ring-on can only
be used with an ATX 2.01 (or above) compliant power supply.
Wake-On-LAN (WOL)
Wake-On-LAN is defined as the ability of a management application to remotely
power up a computer that is powered off. Remote PC setup, up-dates and asset
tracking can occur after hours and on weekends so that daily LAN traffic is kept to
a minimum and users are not interrupted. The motherboard has a 3-pin header
(WOL) to connect to the 3-pin header on a Network Interface Card (NIC) that has
WOL capability. In addition, an onboard LAN controller can also support WOL
without any connection to the WOL header. The 3-pin WOL header is to be used
with a LAN add-on card only.
*Note: Wake-On-LAN requires an ATX 2.01 (or above) compliant power supply.
1-6 Power Supply
As with all computer products, a stable power source is necessary for proper and
reliable operation. It is even more important for processors that have high CPU
clock rates.
The X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X can only accommodates 24-pin ATX power supplies. Al-
though most power supplies generally meet the specifications required by the CPU,
some are inadequate. In addition, the 12V 4-pin power supply - is also required to
ensure adequate power supply to the system. Also your power supply must supply
1.5A for the Ethernet ports.

Chapter 1: Introduction
1-13
NOTE: The + 12V 8-pin Aux. Power Connector is also required to support
Intel 64-bit CPUs. Failure to provide this extra power will result in CPU PWR
Failure. See Section 2-5 for details on connecting the power supply.
It is strongly recommended that you use a high quality power supply that meets ATX
power supply Specification 2.02 or above. It must also be SSI compliant (info at
http://www.ssiforum.org/). Additionally, in areas where noisy power transmission is
present, you may choose to install a line filter to shield the computer from noise. It
is recommended that you also install a power surge protector to help avoid problems
caused by power surges.
1-7 Super I/O
The disk drive adapter functions of the Super I/O chip include a floppy disk drive
controller that is compatible with industry standard 82077/765, a data separator,
write pre-compensation circuitry, decode logic, data rate selection, a clock genera-
tor, drive interface control logic and interrupt and DMA logic. The wide range of
functions integrated onto the Super I/O greatly reduces the number of components
required for interfacing with floppy disk drives. The Super I/O supports 360 K, 720
K, 1.2 M, 1.44 M or 2.88 M disk drives and data transfer rates of 250 Kb/s, 500 Kb/s
or 1 Mb/s.It also provides two high-speed, 16550 compatible serial communication
ports (UARTs). Each UART includes a 16-byte send/receive FIFO, a programmable
baud rate generator, complete modem control capability and a processor interrupt
system. Both UARTs provide legacy speed with baud rate of up to 115.2 Kbps
as well as an advanced speed with baud rates of 250 K, 500 K, or 1 Mb/s, which
support higher speed modems.
The Super I/O supports one PC-compatible printer port (SPP), Bi-directional Printer
Port (BPP) , Enhanced Parallel Port (EPP) or Extended Capabilities Port (ECP).
The Super I/O provides functions that comply with ACPI (Advanced Configuration
and Power Interface), which includes support of legacy and ACPI power manage-
ment through an SMI or SCI function pin. It also features auto power management
to reduce power consumption.

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X7DB8-X/X7DBE-X User's Manual
Notes