What Is Mother Board?
A motherboard (also called mainboard, main circuit board, system board, baseboard, planar board, logic board, or mobo) is the main printed circuit board (PCB) in general-purpose computers and other expandable systems. It holds and allows communication between many of the crucial electronic components of a system, such as the central processing unit (CPU) and memory, and provides connectors for other peripherals. Unlike a backplane, a motherboard usually contains significant sub-systems, such as the central processor, the chipset's input/output and memory controllers, interface connectors, and other components integrated for general use.
How does a motherboard work?
The official motherboard definition is that it’s the main printed circuit board within a computer, which means it’s the primary piece of circuitry that all of the other pieces plug into to create a cohesive whole.
The motherboard is the backbone that ties the computer’s components together at one spot and allows them to talk to each other. Without it, none of the computer pieces, such as the CPU, GPU, or hard drive, could interact. Total motherboard functionality is necessary for a computer to work well. If your motherboard is on the fritz, expect some big problems.
Common motherboard parts:
While you don’t need to peek inside your computer to look at the motherboard on a regular basis, it’s smart to familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of this essential tool. The motherboard will look like a piece of flat cardboard or plastic with lots of metal designs and wires on and around it.
Parts of a motherboard include power and data connectors, capacitors, heat sinks, and fans. You may also see screw holes for adding new parts or for anchoring it into a device. Look for expansion slots that may be present for adding on other components later as well.
The pieces that plug into it, either with wires or directly, are often called motherboard components. These include:
Optical drives, such as DVD and CD-ROM
Video cards and GPUs
Sound cards
Hard drives (SSD or HDD)
Processors (CPU)
Memory sticks (RAM)
In short, if a computer uses it to function, it’s probably connected to the motherboard so that it can coordinate tasks with other computer parts. Without the motherboard, nothing happens as it should.
How can I tell if my motherboard is dead?
As with all tech things, motherboards eventually die or become unusable. There are many symptoms of a failing motherboard and some include:
Peripherals that fail or take a long time to start up
Computer powering off unexpectedly
Computer not turning on at all
Burning or chemical smell coming from your computer
These behaviors can be symptomatic of other, more common PC problems, too. It's best to troubleshoot each solution one-by-one before assuming it is your motherboard. Even if you think you've ruled everything out, which can be a lengthy process, you should see if your motherboard BIOS may be an issue. Flashing the BIOS could solve the problem and save you the expensive replacement ahead.
Pro tip: A loose connection or failing power supply is more common than a failing motherboard. They are certainly a more affordable fix as well, so try these first before assuming the worst.
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