VIA Technologies VIA P4XB-SA User manual

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VIA Mainboard
User’s Manual
VIA P4XB-SA &
VIA P4XB-RA
Version 1.0 - November 28, 2001

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Copyright
Copyright by VIA Technologies Inc. (“VIA”). No part of this manual may
be reproduced or transmitted in any form without express written
authorization from VIA.
Trademarks
All trademarks are the property of their respective holders.
Data protection
All data should be backed-up prior to the installation of any drive unit or
storage peripheral. VIA will not be responsible for any loss of data resulting
from the use, disuse or misuse of this or any other VIA product.
NoWarranty
VIA has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of the content of this
manual. However, it is possible that it may contain technical inaccuracies
or typographical or other errors. VIA will assume no liability for any
inaccuracy found in this publication, nor for damages, direct, indirect,
incidental, consequential or otherwise, that may result from such an
inaccuracy, including without limitation loss of data or profits.
VIA provides this manual “as is”, and does not issue a warranty of any
kind, express or implied, including without limitation implied warranties of
merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.
The information provided in this manual is subject to change without
notice. VIA reserves the right to alter product designs, layouts or drivers
without notification.

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FCC-BRadioFrequencyInterferenceStatement
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a class
B digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC rules. These limits are designed
to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equip-
ment is operated in a commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses
and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accor-
dance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to
cause harmful interference, in which case the user will be required to correct
the interference at his own expense.
Notice 1
The changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party respon-
sible for compliance could void the user’s authority to operate the equipment.
Notice 2
Shielded interface cables and A.C. power cord, if any, must be used in order to
comply with the emission limits.

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TRADEMARKS
All trademarks used in this manual are the property of their respective owners.
Intel and Pentium are registered trademarks of Intel Corporation.
PS/2 and OS/2 are registered trademarks of IBM Corporation.
Windows 95/98/2000 and Windows NT are registered trademarks of Microsoft.
Netware is a registered trademark of Novell.
Award is a registered trademark of Award Software Inc.
NOTE
1. Always read the safety instructions carefully.
2. Keep this User’s Manual for future reference.
3. Keep this equipment away from humidity.
4. Lay this equipment on a reliable flat surface before setting it up.
5. The openings on the enclosure are for air convection and protect the
equipmentfromoverheating. DONOTCOVERTHEOPENINGS.
6. Make sure the voltage of the power source and adjust properly 110/220V
before connecting the equipment to the power inlet.
7. Place the power cord such a way that people cannot step on it. Do not
place anything over the power cord.
8. AlwaysUnplugthe Power Cordbefore inserting any add-oncard or module.
9. All cautions and warnings on the equipment should be noted.
10. Never pour any liquid into the opening. Doing so could cause damage or
electrical shock.
11. If any of the following situations arises, get the equipment checked by a
service personnel:
!The power cord or plug is damaged
!Liquid has penetrated into the equipment
!The equipment has been exposed to moisture
!The equipment does not work well or does not work according to the
User’s Manual.
!The equipment has dropped or damaged
!The equipment has been visably damaged
12. DO NOT LEAVE THIS EQUIPMENT IN AN ENVIRONMENT
UNCONDITIONED,STORAGETEMPERATUREABOVE600C(1400F),IT
MAYDAMAGETHEEQUIPMENT.

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Box Contents
•1 x VIA Mainboard
•1 x User’s manual
•1 x Floppy ribbon cable
•1 x ATA-66/100 Hard drive ribbon cable (2 are included
with the VIA P4XB-RA)
•1 x 2 Port USB Module
•1 x Driver Utilities CD
•1 x User’s Manual for Promise FastTrak 100-Lite
RAID Controller (with VIA P4XB-RA only)

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Contents
Chapter 1. Specifications....................1-1
Specifications ................................................................1-2
Layout............................................................................1-4
Connectors Guide..........................................................1-5
Chapter 2. Installation........................2-1
CPU Installation............................................................. 2-2
CPU Installation......................................................................... 2-2
CPU Core Speed....................................................................... 2-3
CPU Fan Installation ................................................................. 2-3
Memory Installation ......................................................2-5
DDR Module Installation ........................................................... 2-6
Power Supply.................................................................2-7
ATX 20-Pin Power Connector: JWR1 ...................................... 2-7
ATX 12V Power Connector: JPW1 .......................................... 2-7
Back Panel .....................................................................2-8
Mouse Connector: JKBMS1 ..................................................... 2-8
Keyboard Connector: JKBMS1................................................. 2-8
USB Connectors........................................................................ 2-9
Parallel Port Connector: LPT1 .................................................. 2-9
Serial Port Connectors: COM A & COM B ........................... 2-10
Joystick (MIDI) Connector ..................................................... 2-10
Audio Port Connectors ............................................................ 2-10
Connectors .................................................................. 2-11
Floppy Disk Drive Connector: FDD1 .......................................2-11
IrDA Infrared Module Connector: IR1 ....................................2-11
Hard Disk Connectors: IDE1 & IDE2 .................................... 2-12
CD-In Connector: J3 ............................................................... 2-13
Aux Line-In Connector: J4 ...................................................... 2-13

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Modem-In Connector: J5 ......................................................... 2-13
Fan Power Connectors: CFAN2/SFAN1 ................................ 2-14
Case Connectors: JFP1/JFP2 .................................................. 2-15
Front Panel Audio Connector: JAUD...................................... 2-16
Wake On Ring Connector: JMDM1 ........................................ 2-17
Power Saving Switch Connector: JGS1................................... 2-17
USB Front Connector: USB3/USB4 ....................................... 2-18
Jumpers .......................................................................2-19
Clear CMOS Jumper: J7 ......................................................... 2-19
Onboard Audio Codec Jumper: JP1 ........................................ 2-20
Slots .............................................................................2-21
AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) Slot ................................... 2-21
PCI Slots.................................................................................. 2-21
CNR (Communication Network Riser) ................................... 2-21
PCI Interrupt Request Routing ................................................ 2-22
Chapter 3. BIOS Setup .......................3-1
Entering Setup...............................................................3-2
Control Keys ..................................................................3-2
Getting Help ..................................................................3-3
The Main Menu..............................................................3-4
Standard CMOS Features .............................................3-6
Advanced BIOS Features...............................................3-8
Advanced Chipset Features......................................... 3-11
Integrated Peripherals................................................3-16
Power Management Setup ..........................................3-22
PNP/PCI Configurations .............................................3-26
PC Health Status .........................................................3-28
Frequency/Voltage Control .........................................3-29
Load High Performance Defaults ...............................3-31

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Load Optimized Defaults.............................................3-32
Set Supervisor/User Password....................................3-33
Save & Exit Setup........................................................3-35
Exit Without Saving.....................................................3-36
Chapter 4. Driver Setup......................4-1
VIA Apollo P4X266A Chipset Drivers........................... 4-2
C-Media CMI8738 Audio Driver (P4XB-RA only) ........ 4-7
Realtek ALC201A Audio Driver (P4XB-SA only) ..........4-9

Specifications
1-1
Chapter 1. Specifications
Specifications
1
The VIA P4XB-RA and P4XB-SA mainboards
are based around the VIA Apollo P4X266A chipset,
which brings support for high-performance DDR266
SDRAM to the Intel®Pentium® 4 platform. VIA’s ad-
vanced V-Link controller brings optimal system effi-
ciency by effectively doubling bandwidth between the
chipset’s north and south bridges. Designed for the
latest 478-pin Pentium®4 processors, these ATX sized
mainboards are the perfect choice for Pentium 4 based
high- performance PCs, servers and workstations.
This chapter includes the following sections:
Mainboard Specifications 1-2
Mainboard Layout 1-4
Components Guide 1-5

Chapter 1
1-2
CPU
•Supports Intel®Pentium®4 processors in the 478 pin package.
•Supports1.5GHz,1.6GHz,1.7GHz,1.8GHz,1.9GHz,2GHzandupwards.
Chipset
•VIAApollo P4X266A chipset(VT8753&VT8233)
- Supports Intel®Pentium®4 processors with 400MHz (100MHz QDR) CPU
Front Side Bus (FSB).
- AGP v2.0 compliant with 8x transfer mode.
- High Bandwidth V-Link Client controller.
- Integrated Faster Ethernet LPC.
- Integrated Hardware Sound Blaster/Direct Sound AC’97 audio.
- Ultra DMA 33/66/100 master mode PCI EIDE controller.
- ACPI 1.0B and PCI Bus Power Management 1.1 compliant.
Main Memory
•3 x 184-pin DDR DIMM slots.
•Supportsupto 3GB of DDR266SDRAM(PC2100/PC1600).
•Supports 2.5v DDR266 SDRAM.
Slots
•1 x AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) 4X slot.
•5 x PCI 2.2 32-bit PCI bus slots (supports 3.3v/5v PCI bus interface).
•1 x CNR (Communication Network Riser) slot.
OnboardIDE
•Integrated IDE controller provides IDE HDD/CD-ROM with PIO, Bus Mas-
ter and Ultra DMA 33/66/100 operation modes.
•Can connect up to four IDE devices.
•IDERAID0,1 supported by Promise PDC20265R controller (VIA P4XB-RA
only).
Specifications

Specifications
1-3
OnboardPeripherals
•1 floppy port supports 2 x FDDs with 360K, 720K, 1.2M, 1.44M and
2.88Mbytes.
•2 x serial ports (COM A + COM B).
•1 x parallel port supports SPP/EPP/ECP mode.
•2 x USB 1.1 ports (plus 2 pin-headers for up to 4 additional connections).
•1x IrDA connector for SIR/CIR/ASKIR/HPSIR.
•1xGame(MIDI)port
Audio
•H/W C-Media CMI8738 / PCI-6ch supports 2/4/6 channel speaker (VIA
P4XB-RAonly).
•S/W Realtek ALC201A AC'97 Codec.
BIOS
•Award Plug & Play BIOS.
•Desktop Management Interface (DMI) function which records your
mainboard specifications.
Dimension
•ATX Form Factor.
•30.5cmx22.5cm.
Mounting
•6 mounting holes.

Chapter 1
1-4
Layout
VIA P4XB-RA & VIA P4XB-SA Mainboards

Specifications
1-5
Connectors Guide
Component Function Reference
JWR1 ATX 20-pin power connector See p. 2-7
JPW1 ATX 12V power connector See p. 2-7
JKBMS1 Mouse connector See p. 2-8
JKBMS1 Keyboard connector See p. 2-8
USB Connectors Connecting to USB devices See p. 2-9
COM A & COM B Serial port connector See p. 2-10
LPT1 Parallel port connector See p. 2-9
FDD1 Floppy disk drive connector See p. 2-11
IR1 IrDA infrared module connector See p. 2-11
IDE1~ IDE2 Hard disk connectors See p. 2-12
J3 CD-in connector See p. 2-13
J4 Aux line-in connector See p. 2-13
J5 Modem-in connector See p. 2-13
CFAN2/SFAN1 Fan power connectors See p. 2-14
JFP1/JFP2 Case connector See p. 2-15
JAUD Front panel audio connector See p. 2-16
JMDM1 Wake on ring connector See p. 2-17
JGS1 Power saving switch connector See p. 2-17
USB3/USB4 Connecting to USB devices See p. 2-18
J7 Clear CMOS jumper See p. 2-19
JP1 Onboard audio codec jumper See p. 2-20
AGP Slot Connecting to AGP cards See p. 2-21
PCI Slots Connecting to expansion cards See p. 2-21
CNR Slot Connecting to expansion cards See p. 2-21

Installation
2-1
This chapter provides you with information
about hardware setup procedures. While installing
the mainboard, carefully hold the components and
closely follow the installation procedures. Some
components may be damaged if they are installed
incorrectly.
It is recommended to use a grounded wrist
strap before handling computer components. Static
electricity can damage some components.
This chapter contains the following sections:
CPU Installation 2-2
Memory Installation 2-5
Power Supply 2-7
BackPanel 2-8
Connectors 2-11
Jumpers 2-19
Slots 2-21
Chapter 2. Installation
Installation
2

Chapter 2
2-2
CPU Installation
The VIA P4XB-RA and P4XB-SA mainboards support the Intel®Pentium®4
processor in the 478 pin package (PGA478). When installing the CPU, ensure
the CPU has a large-size heatsink and a cooling fan attached on the top to
prevent overheating. If the heatsink and cooling fan are not included with the
CPU, contact your dealer to purchase and install them before turning on the
computer.
CPU Installation
Overheating will cause serious damage to the CPU
and system. Ensure the cooling fan and heatsink work
properly to protect the CPU from overheating.
WARNING!
1. Pull the lever sideways away
fromthe socket. Then raise the
lever up to a 90-degree angle.
2. Look for the dot/cut edge. The
dot/cut edge should point to-
wards the lever pivot. The
CPU will only fit in the correct
orientation.
3. Hold the CPU down firmly,
then close the lever shut to
complete the installation.

Installation
2-3
CPU Fan Installation
As processor technology pushes to faster speeds and higher performance,
thermal management becomes increasingly important. To dissipate heat, you
MUST attach the CPU cooling fan and heatsink on top of the CPU. Follow the
instructions below to install the Heatsink/Fan:
CPU Core Speed
If CPUClock = 100MHz
Core/Bus ratio = 14
then CPU core speed = Host Clock x Core/Bus ratio
= 100MHzx14
= 1.4GHz
Overclocking
This mainboard is designed to support overclocking. However,
please make sure your components are able to tolerate such abnor-
mal settings, before overclocking. Any attempt to operate beyond
product specifications is not recommended. We do not guarantee the
damages or risks caused by inadequate operation or operation be-
yond product specifications.
WARNING!
2. Position the heatsink onto the reten-
tion mechanism.
1. Locate the CPU and its retention
mechanism on the mainboard.
retention mechanism

Chapter 2
2-4
5. Connect the fan power cable from the mounted fan to the 3-pin fan power connector
on the mainboard.
3. Mount the fan on top of the heatsink. Press down the fan firmly until its four clips
become wedged in the holes of the retention mechanism.
4. Press the two levers down to secure the fan. Each lever can be pressed down in only
ONE direction.
fan power cable
levers

Installation
2-5
The VIA P4XB-RA and P4XB-SA mainboards provide 3 sockets for 184-pin, 2.
5V DDR DIMM with 6 memory banks. To operate properly, at least one DIMM
module must be installed.
Memory Installation
You can install PC1600/PC2100 DDR SDRAM modules on the DDR DIMM
slots (DDR 1~3).
DDR266 (Double Data Rate) SDRAM is similar to conventional SDRAM, but
doubles the rate of trans-
fer by transfering data
twice per cycle. This is
achieved by transfering
data on both the rising
and falling edges of the
clock. Conventional
SDRAM only uses the
rising edge of the clock
to transfer data.
Therefore, conventional
SDRAM is called SDR
(Single Data Rate)
SDRAM. DDR SDRAM
uses 2.5 volts as opposed
to 3.3 volts used in SDR
SDRAM, and requires
184-pin DIMM modules rather than 168-pin DIMM modules used by SDR
SDRAM. DDR266 SDRAM is also known as SDRAM-II, DDR DRAM and
DSDRAM (Double-Speed DRAM). Two types of DDR are available currently:
PC1600 & PC2100. PC1600 DDR SDRAM running at 100MHz will produce
about 1.6GB/s memory bandwidth. PC2100 running at 133MHz will produce 2.
1GB/s memory bandwidth. High memory bandwidth makes DDR an ideal solu-
tion for high performance PC, workstations and servers.
DDR DIMM Slots
(DDR 1~3)

Chapter 2
2-6
DDR Module Installation
You can install either single sided or double sided 184-pin DDR DIMM mod-
ules into DDR DIMM, depending on your requirements. Differing from SDR
DIMM, DDR DIMMs have only one notch on the center of the module. The
number of pins on either side of the breaks are also different. The memory
modules will only fit if placed in the correct orientation.
Youcan install DDR266 SDRAM modules inanyofthefollowing combinations:
Slot MemoryModule TotalMemory
Slot 1
(Bank 0 & Bank 1) 64MB, 128MB, 256MB, 512MB, 1GB 64MB~1GB
Slot 2
(Bank 2 & Bank 3) 64MB, 128MB, 256MB, 512MB, 1GB 64MB~1GB
Slot 3
(Bank 4 & Bank 5) 64MB, 128MB, 256MB, 512MB, 1GB 64MB~1GB
Maximum System M emory Supported 64MB~3GB
1. The DDR DIMM module has only one notch on the center.
2. Insert the DDR module vertically into the DDR DIMM slot. Make sure the
notch is correctly aligned.
3. The plastic clips at sides of the DIMM slot will automatically close shut.
Rear ViewRear View
Rear ViewRear View
Rear View
Front ViewFront View
Front ViewFront View
Front View
Volt

Installation
2-7
Power Supply
ATX 20-Pin Power Connector: JWR1
This connector is for the ATX power supply. To connect to the ATX power
supply, make sure the plugs of the power supply are inserted in the correct
orientation and the
pins are properly
aligned. Then, push
down the power
supply firmly into
the connector. The
power connector
supports an instant
power on function,
which means that
system will boot up
immediately when
the power supply
connector is in-
serted on the mainboard.
The VIA P4XB-RA and VIA P4XB-SA mainboards require an ATX power
supply for powering the system. Before inserting the power supply connector,
always make sure that all components are installed properly to ensure that no
damage will be caused.
ATX 12V Power Connector: JPW1
This 12V power connector is used to provide power to the CPU.
PIN SIGNAL
1 GND
2 GND
3 12V
4 12V
JPW1 Pin Definition
PIN SIGNAL
11 3.3V
12 -12V
13 GND
14 PS_ON
15 GND
16 GND
17 GND
18 -5V
19 5V
20 5V
PIN SIGNAL
1 3.3V
2 3.3V
3 GND
45V
5 GND
65V
7 GND
8 PW_OK
9 5V_SB
10 12V
JWR1 Pin Definition
JPW1
13
24
JWR1
10
1
20
11