The Expansion Cards and Ports (P1, P2)

There are many ports and expansion cards available, all of which are provided to help anyone upgrade their computer as easily as possible. The main two types of specialist ports are for networking interface cards and graphics cards. There are three main types of port which are incorporated onto modern motherboards, which are…

·         AGP (A legacy Graphics Card adapter)

·         PCI (Used on most expansion cards)

·         PCI-Express (Used mainly for modern Graphics Cards)

An example of a PCI Card (This one is a USB Expansion Card)

Expansion cards can be used to add a wide range of hardware devices to a computer. All of the following are hardware expansions which can be added using the expansion cards…

• Video cards
• Audio codec
• Sound cards
• Network cards
• TV tuner cards
• Video processing expansion cards
• Modems
• Radio tuner cards
• Security device cards
• Interface adapter cards, including parallel port cards, serial port cards, multi-I/O cards, USB port cards, and proprietary interface cards.

Inserting a new expansion card is simple, quick and effective. It can allow a user to do so much more with their computer. Here is a guide of how to install a new network card. To start, you will need the following equipment:

·         Non-magnetic Philips screw driver

·         The card you wish to install on the system (out of box and ready to insert)

·         A method of organising the replaced screws.

To install the card, follow these instructions:

1.   Make sure that the computer and you are earthed, as to not damage any of the equipment.

2.   Remove the outer casing of the chassis, by unscrewing the 2 screws on the back of the computer. Place the screws somewhere safe and the casing out of the way.

3.   Identify a spare port on the motherboard, ensuring it is the correct type for the card you wish to install (e.g. a PCI-Express port for a PCI-Express Card).

4.   Remove the metal bar which covers the spare port’s opening to the outside of the case. It should look something like this…



A spare port on a computer motherboard



5.   Gently push into place the card you are installing, ensuring not to force anything as this could result in damage of equipment.

6.   Place a screw (normally given with the card) through the outer chassis to hold secure the card in place. This will ensure the card does not come loose, and should look similar to this…

The screw which secures the expansion card

7.   Replace the outer casing of the chassis and screw the case to the main frame of the chassis.

8.   Turn the computer on and install the drivers for the device.

Done, the device should now be working.