The expansion slots support adapter cards. Some cards control internal devices, such as hard drives, and most communicate with external devices, such as monitors, printers, network equip-ment, and so on. Table 1-7 focuses on the most common adapter cards. Note that many mother-boards include ports that replace some of the adapter cards in this list.
Adapter cards have two connections: One connects to the expansion slot, and the other connects to devices. This usually involves a port or plug. Table 1-7 lists the standard ports.
20 CompTIA A+ Quick Reference
Table 1-7 Adapter Cards
| Adapter | Expansion Buses | Ports and Plugs | Details and Descriptions |
| NIC | PCI, PCIx, PCIe, | RJ-45 | Connects the PC to a net- |
| or USB | work. | ||
| Wireless NIC | PCI, PCIe, mini- | 2.4GHz / 5GHz | Connects a PC to a wireless |
| PCI, mini-PCIe or | radio and antenna | network. | |
| USB | |||
| Video adapter | PCIe, AGP, or PCI | VGA, DVI, | Translates data into a video |
| HDMI, | signal for the monitor. | ||
| DisplayPort, | |||
| Component | |||
| Video, S-video | |||
| USB | PCI, PCIe | USB | Provides additional connec- |
| tions to USB devices. It often | |||
| provides both internal and | |||
| external USB ports. | |||
| IEEE 1394 | PCI or PCIe | FireWire | 1394a comparable in perfor- |
| (FireWire) | mance to USB 2.0; 1394b | ||
| is twice as fast as 1394a; | |||
| commonly used to transfer | |||
| video or other data-intensive | |||
| applications. Also used for | |||
| external hard disk and scan- | |||
| ner interface. | |||
| Sound/audio | PCI or PCIe, USB | 3.5mm for micro- | Translates data into audio |
| adapter | phone, line-in, | signal for speakers. | |
| speakers; 8-pin | |||
| DIN or mini-DIN | |||
| for MIDI ports |
Video capture PCI or PCIe, USB S-video, com-
or TV tuner posite, coax, IR
blaster
TV tuner cards need to sup-port digital video (Clear QAM cable and ATSC broad-cast TV) to be compatible with current standards.
| SCSI adapter | ISA, PCI, or PCIe | Internal SCSI | Is an additional bus link, like |
| header and often | a transfer station. It forwards | ||
| an external SCSI | data to and from the PC to | ||
| port | SCSI HDDs and devices. | ||
| RAID adapter | PCI or PCIe | Multiple hard | Enables data to be spread |
| drive connections | across multiple hard disks in | ||
| SATA, PATA, or | various patterns (stripe, mir- | ||
| SCSI | ror, or span). | ||
| Chapter 1: Hardware 21 | |||
| Adapter | Expansion Buses | Ports and Plugs | Details and Descriptions |
| eSATA | PCIe or PCI | eSATA | Connects external SATA |
| drives to the PC. | |||
| Modem | PCI or USB | RJ-11 | Converts digital signals from |
| the PC into analog tones used | |||
| by telephone network and | |||
| vice versa. | |||
| IEEE 1284 | ISA, PCI | DB25F | Connects parallel devices, |
| (parallel port | mainly printers, to the PC. | ||
| or LPT port) | The distinctive cable has | ||
| a 25-pin D plug on the | |||
| computer end and a 36-pin | |||
| Centronics port on the other. | |||
| Moves data along multiple | |||
| channels simultaneously | |||
| (parallel). | |||
| Serial port | ISA, PCI | DB9M or | Connects peripheral parallel |
| (RS-232 or | DB25M | devices to the PC. Not com- | |
| COM port) | monly used today. Moves | ||
| data along one channel, bit | |||
| by bit (serial). | |||
Figure 1-9 illustrates some typical adapter cards.
Dial-up (analog) modem
Audio
| SCSI | 1394a | |
| (FireWire 400) | ||
Video (PCIe x16)
Figure 1-9 Typical PCIe (video) and PCI (all others) adapter cards.
22 CompTIA A+ Quick Reference
To install an adapter card into a desktop computer, follow these steps:
1. You must make sure there is an unused expansion slot of the correct type for the card.
2. Check the documentation to determine if the driver software is installed before or after the card is installed. If you need to install it first, install it before shutting down the computer.
3. Turn off the computer and disconnect it from AC power.
4. Remove the side cover to access the expansion slots.
5. Remove the blank bracket blocking the slot.
6. Insert the card straight down into the slot, making sure the connectors at the bottom of the card fit snugly into the slot.
7. Connect any power leads required by the card (typical on IEEE-1394 and some PCIe video cards).
8. Reattach the card bracket using the same mechanism (usually a screw) used to secure the blank bracket.
9. Connect device cables to the card.
10. Reconnect the computer to AC power and turn it on.
11. After the card is detected and you are prompted for drivers, insert the driver disc, and follow the prompts to complete installation.
12. Card settings are typically configured by the setup program. However, if prompted, make additional settings.
Integrated Ports
Desktop and laptop computers include many integrated ports which help to minimize the need to add expansion cards and reduce system cost. On a desktop computer, most of these ports are located in a port cluster on the rear of the system. Laptop computers have similar ports, but locate them on two, three, or even all four sides of a system.
Figure 1-10 illustrates a typical port cluster from a recent system.
In addition to the port cluster, you can add additional USB and other types of ports to some sys-tems through the user of cables connecting to internal port headers.
