VIA Technologies K8T890 User manual

TRADEMARK
All products and company names are trademarks or registered
trademarks of their respective holders.
These specifications are subject to change without notice.
Manual Revision 1.1
August 22, 2005
VIAVIA
VIAVIA
VIA K8T890K8T890
K8T890K8T890
K8T890 mainboard for AMD Socketmainboard for AMD Socket
mainboard for AMD Socketmainboard for AMD Socket
mainboard for AMD Socket
754 based Athlon 64 processor754 based Athlon 64 processor
754 based Athlon 64 processor754 based Athlon 64 processor
754 based Athlon 64 processor
User’User’
User’User’
User’ss
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ManualManual
ManualManual
Manual
60000028HEA11

ii
DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES:
THERE ARE NO WARRANTIES WHICH EXTEND BEYOND THE
DESCRIPTION ON THE FACE OF THE MANUFACTURER LIMITED
WARRANTY. THE MANUFACTURER EXPRESSLY EXCLUDES ALL
OTHER WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING ITS
PRODUCTS; INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR
NONINFRINGEMENT. THIS DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES SHALL
APPLY TO THE EXTENT ALLOWED UNDER LOCAL LAWS IN THE
COUNTRY PURCHASED IN WHICH LOCAL LAWS DO NOT ALLOW OR
LIMIT THE EXCLUSION OF THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES.

iii
80 Port Frequently Asked Questions
Below is a list of some basic POST Codes, possible problems and solutions. For
more detailed information about POST Codes, refer to Appendix C in this manual.
POST CODE Problem Solution
FFh or CFh 1.BIOS chip inserted
incorrectly
2. Incorrect BIOS update
version
3. Mainboard problem
4. Add-on card inserted
incorrectly.
1. Reinsert the BIOS
chip
2. Download the correct
BIOS version update
from the manufacturer's
Web site.
3. Replace mainboard
4. Remove and replace the
add-on card
C1h - C5h 1. Memory module
inserted incorrectly
2. Memory compatibility
problem
3. Memory module
damaged
1. Reinsert memory
module
2. Replace memory
with correct type
3. Replace memory
module
2Dh 1. Error occured in VGA
BIOS
2. VGA card inserted
incorrectly
1. Replace VGA card
2. Reinsert the VGA
card
26h Overclock error Clear CMOS or press the insert
key to power on the system
07h - 12h 1. Init keyboard
controller error
2. RTC error
1. Ensure that the keyboard and
mouse are connected
correctly.
2. Replace the RTC battery.
Initial Keyboard

iv
Table of Contents
Section 1 Introduction
Package Contents ...................................................... 1- 1
Mainboard Features ................................................... 1- 2
System Block Diagram ............................................... 1- 5
Section 2 Specification
Mainboard Specification ............................................ 2- 1
Section 3 Installation
Mainboard Layout ..................................................... 3- 1
Easy Installation Procedure ....................................... 3- 2
CPU Insertion ............................................................. 3- 2
Jumper Settings .......................................................... 3- 4
System Memory Configuration .................................. 3- 5
Expansion Slots .......................................................... 3- 6
Device Connectors..................................................... 3- 7
Power-On/Off (Remote) .............................................. 3- 13
External Modem Ring-in Power ON and
Keyboard Power ON Function (KBPO) ..................... 3-13
ACPI S3 (Suspend To RAM) Function ...................... 3-14
Section 4 BIOS Setup
Main Menu ................................................................ 4- 1
Standard CMOS Setup ............................................... 4-2
Advanced BIOS Features .......................................... 4- 3
Advanced Chipset Features ...................................... 4- 5
Integrated Peripherals ................................................ 4-10
Power Management Setup ......................................... 4- 14
PNP/PCI Configuration .............................................. 4-17
PC Health Status ........................................................ 4-18
Page

v
Power BIOS Features ................................................. 4-19
Defaults Menu ........................................................... 4-22
Supervisor/User Password Setting ............................ 4-23
Exit Selecting .............................................................. 4- 24
Section 5 RAID Configuration
Introduction ............................................................... 5- 1
VIA RAID Features ..................................................... 5- 3
Enable RAID Function ............................................... 5- 4
Section 6 Driver Installation
Easy Driver Installation .............................................. 6- 1
Realtek Sound Manager Quick User guide ................ 6-2
Appendix Appendix A
Update Your System BIOS ......................................... A- 1
Appendix B
VIA RAID BIOS Utility ................................................ B- 1
Appendix C
POST Codes .............................................................. C- 1

vi
Page Left Blank

Introduction
Page 1-1
Section 1
INTRODUCTION
1-1 Package Contents
Contents
A. Mainboard
B. User’s manual
C. Floppy drive cable
D. HDD drive cable
E. CD (drivers and utilities)
F. I/O Shield
G .S-ATA data and power cable
Optional Items
H.Extra USB2.0 port cable
B
A
C
D
USER’S
MANUAL
E
F
G
If you need the optional item, please
contact your dealer for assistance.
H

Introduction
Page 1-2
1-2 Mainboard Features
Brief Introduction
AthlonTM 64 Processor
The AMD AthlonTM 64 processor family is designed to support performance
desktop. It provides a high performance HyperTransportTM link to I/O, as well
as a single 64-bit high-performance DDR memory controller.
For more information about all the new features AthlonTM 64 Processor deliver, check out
the AMD website at http://www.amd.com
Chipset
The board is designed with VIA chipset, K8T890 as North Bridge and VT8237R
as South Bridge, providing a feature rich and scalable platform.
For more information about the new features VIA Chipset, check out the AMD website at
http://www.via.com
PCI-Express (PCI-E)
Next generation peripheral interface to succeed to current PCI bus for the next
decade. With smaller slot size and 250MB/sec(PCI-E*1) or 4GB/sec(PCI-E*16)
maximum transfer, PCI-Express overcomes PCI bus bottleneck.
Hardware Monitoring
Hardware monitoring enables you to monitor various aspects of the system opera-
tion and status. This includes CPU temperature, voltage and fan speed in RPMs.
10/100 LAN
This mainboard is mounted with a ethernet LAN PHY. It allows the mainboard to
connect to a local area network by means of a network hub.
Serial ATA
Support Serial ATA, an evolutionary replacement for Parallel ATA IDE storage
interface. Increases the peak data transfer speed up to 150MB/sec and allows
future enhancements to the computing platform.
S-ATA RAID
RAID function available on chipset S-ATA ports.

Introduction
Page 1-3
USB2.0
A popular USB standard for plugging in peripherals with up to 480Mbps transfer
speed while maintaining backward compatibility with older USB1.1 device.
6ch
Mainboard is equipped with 6 channel of audio to support Dolby Digital 5.1
audio for DVD-playback. The onboard audio jacks can be configured for normal
2 channel mode or 6 channel mode.
AMD Cool'n'QuietTM Technology
AMD's Cool'n'QuietTM Technology lowers CPU operating voltage when the
system is in idle mode. This helps to reduce heat dissipation and in effect lowers
the fan speed to noise from your PC. To enable Cool'n'QuietTM the BIOS must
support this feature.

Introduction
Page 1-4
Special Features
&Magic Health
Reports your system hardware status for every boot-up to help detect faults
early. Monitor hardware status including CPU temperature, CPU/Memory/
Chipset voltage, fan RPM speed for chassis fan, CPU fan supply fan.
&EZ-Boot
Simply press “ESC” to select your bootable device. No more hassle to search the
BIOS menu, change and re-start.
&PowerBIOS
Supporting a full range of overclocking setting via BIOS. Various adjustable
feature include FSB/Chipset/Memory voltage tweaking.
&80 Port
An onboard LED-display trouble-shooting device, facilitating user to detect
boot-up problems.
&QuickSPDIF
On board SPDIF-out connector for quick connection to multi-channel speakers.
Not only removes cable cluttering but also delivers loss-free digital audio to let
you enjoy DVD movies and games with crystal clear sound.
BIOS Features:
H/W Features:

Introduction
Page 1-5
1-3 System Block Diagram

Introduction
Page 1-6
The following table of VGA cards have been tested compatible with
this mainboard.
4X AGP Card
nVidia Geforce 2 ELSA MX-400 32MB
nVidia Geforce 4
ELSA MX-460 64MB DDR GLADIAC 517VIVO
ASUS Ti-4400 128MB V8440
APT MVGA-NVG25 BAUTi-4600 128MB
ATI ATI Radeon 8500DDR 64MB
8X AGP Card
nVidia Geforce FX
Albatron GeForce FX5200EP 128MB DDR
Ennyah EF550 G FX5500128MB DDR TV+DVI
Ennyah EF570 Geforce FX5700 128MB DDR TV+DVI
ELSA Gladiac FX736EX Geforce FX5700/Ultra128MB DDR TV+DVI
ASUS Geforce FX5600/V9560XT/TD/N/128M/A
ASUS Geforce FX5700/Ultra V9570/TD/N/128M/A
nVidia Geforce 4
Geforce4 MX 440 64MB/TV-Out
EM4000L GF4 MX4000L 128M DDR TV
Ennyah GF4 MX440B-8X 64MB DDR TV
ATi AGP8X not recommended to use on AGX slot.

Specification
Page 2-1
Section 2
SPECIFICATION
Mainboard Specification
Processor
Support Socket-754 based AMD Athlon-64/Sempron 1.6GTs Hyper
Transport processors with up to 3700+
Chipset
VIA K8T890 + VT8237R Chipset
Main Memory
Two 184-pin DDR SDRAM DIMM sockets
Support single or double sided 2.5v DDR-266/333/400 DIMMs architecture
in 128/256/512Mb technologies
Supports up to 2GB memory size
Expansion Slots
One PCI-E x16 connectors compliant with PCI Express 1.0a
Two PCI-E x1 connectors compliant with PCI Express 1.0a
One 1.5v AGX (Advanced Graphics Xtender) connector compliant with
AGP-4X/8X
Two PCI connectors compliant with PCI v2.3
One CNR (Communication & Networking Riser) slot for V.92 analog
Modem in Secondary mode
USB
Eight USB connectors compliant with USB2.0 from embedded USB
controller (4 connectors at rear panel)
P-ATA IDE
Two IDE ports (up to 4 IDE devices) with UDMA-33, ATA-66/100/133
support from embedded IDE controller

Specification
Page 2-2
S-ATA RAID
Two S-ATA ports from VT8237R with up to 150MBps bandwidth with
RAID 0,1, Smart RAID (by VIA)
LAN
10/100Mbps Fast Ethernet with onboard VIA VT6103L LAN PHY
Audio
Selectable 2, 6 channel audio from onboard RealTek ALC655 AC'97 v2.3
compliant CODEC
- Support Aux-In, CD-In
- Coaxial S/PDIF-out available on rear panel
- Support Auto Jack Sensing for fool-proof audio device installation
- Rear panel audio jacks configuration:
I/O
Onboard Winbond W83687THF LPC I/O controller
Legacy peripheral interface for FDD, Parallel, Serial, and IrDA (v1.0
compliant)
Support Hardware Monitoring for fan speed monitoring, CPU/System
temperature
BIOS
Flash EEPROM with Award Plug&Play BIOS
Support ACPI S3 (Suspend To RAM) mode in ACPI compliant O/S
Support EZ Boot for fast bootable device selection
Support Magic Health for system hardware status report during system
boot-up
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Specification
Page 2-3
Peripheral Interfaces
))
))
)At Rear Panel
PS/2 keyboard and mouse ports
One Parallel (printer) port
One S/PDIF-Out Coaxial jack
One Serial port
One RJ45 LAN connector
Four USB2.0 ports
Three Audio jacks
))
))
)Onboard connector and pin-header
One floppy drive connector
Two ATA-100/133 IDE connector
Four extra USB2.0 ports
One CD-IN and AUX-IN connector
One IR connector
Two S-ATA connectors
Two Fan connectors
Front Panel Controller
Supports Reset & Soft-Off switches
Supports HDD & Power LEDs
Supports PC speaker
Supports Front Panel Audio connector
Special Features
Support KBPO function – Keyboard power on, turn on the computer
from keyboard
Support Wake-On-LAN by PME
Support USB resume in S3
Onboard 80 Port LED display for system debugging

Specification
Page 2-4
Supports “Cool’n’ Quiet” power saving technology
Power BIOS for excellent over clocking features:
- Support Asynchronous FSB/DIMM timing mode
- Support BIOS adjustable CPU clock and voltage, chipset voltage, DIMM
frequency and voltage settings.
Form Factor
305mm x 220 mm ATX size

Installation
Page 3-1
Mainboard Layout
Section 3
INSTALLATION

Installation
Page 3-2
Easy Installation Procedure
The following must be completed before powering on your new system:
3-1. CPU Installation
3-2. Jumper Settings
3-3. System Memory
3-4. Expansion Slots
3-5. Device Connectors
3-1 CPU Installation
<Figure 1> <Figure 2>
Step 4
Open the socket by raising the actuation
lever.
Step 1
Place the back plate into the two holes
around the CPU area behind the mainboard.
Step 2
Place the retention mechanism on the
mainboard as shown.
Step 3
Screw in the two pan head screws.
<Figure 3> <Figure 4>

Installation
Page 3-3
Step 5
Align pin 1 on the CPU with pin 1 on
the CPU socket and gently insert the
CPU. The CPU is keyed to prevent
incorrect insertion. Do not force the
processor into the socket. If it does not
go in easily, check for mis-orientation
and reinsert the CPU.
Make sure the processor is fully
inserted into the socket.
<Figure 5> <Figure 6>
Step 6
Close the socket by lowering and
locking the actuation lever.
Apply thermal compound to the top of
the CPU.
<Figure 7>
Step 7
Insert the heatsink as shown above.
Press the clips in the direction of the
arrows shown in Figure 7 to secure the
assembly to the CPU socket.
Step 9
Plug the CPU fan power into the
mainboard’s CPU fan connector.
The installation is complete.
<Figure 8>
Note:
Thermal compound and qualified
heatsink recommended by AMD are a
must to avoid CPU overheat damage.

Installation
Page 3-4
3-2 Jumper Settings
JCMOS:
Settings:
1-2: Normal (Default)
2-3: Clear CMOS
Clear CMOS data Jumper
If the CMOS data becomes corrupted or
you forgot the supervisor or user
password, clear the CMOS data to
reconfigure the system back to the
default values stored in the ROM BIOS.
To CMOS Clear data, please follow the steps below.
1. Turn off the system.
2. Change the jumper from “1-2” to “2-3” position for
a few seconds.
3. Replace the jumper back to the “1-2” position.
4. Turn on the system and hold down the <Del> key
to enter BIOS setup.
1
JUSB:
Settings:
1-2: Connect (S3 enabled)
2-3: Disconnect (No S3)
USB S3 Wake up Jumper
This jumper disconnects 5V standby
voltage to USB devices. This means USB
devices will not be able to wake-up the
system from S3 (Suspend to RAM) power
saving mode.
1