Upgrading and Repairing PCs

Hardware and Software Resources

When you are planning to build a system, it is important to consider how all your selected components will work together and how the software you run must support them. It is not enough to be sure that you have sufficient slots on the motherboard for all your expansion cards and enough bays in the case for all your drives. You must also consider the resources required for all the components.

For example, if you are planning to use USB 2.0 devices, you need to know whether your new motherboard has USB 2.0 ports built in or whether you will need to add a card to achieve USB 2.0 compatibility. With the many changes in processor speed and voltage, you need to verify that the processor and motherboard combination you prefer will work correctly.

Essentially, you should completely configure the system before you begin ordering any parts. Planning a system to this level of detail can be a lot of work, which is one reason the vast majority of PCs are prebuilt.

Tip In most cases, you can download or view online the manuals for the motherboard, processor, and other major components before you purchase them. Check the component vendors' Web sites for these manuals and technical notes and read them carefully. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader, available free from www.adobe.com, to view most online manuals.

Another consideration is the operating system and other software you will need. Prebuilt systems nearly always arrive with the operating system installed, but when you build your own, you must be prepared with a copy of your selected operating system—including a system disk so you can boot the system the first time. Because nearly any operating system in use today is distributed on CD-ROM, you must get your computer to recognize the CD-ROM drive before you can install an operating system. To make this process simpler, you should create a bootable CD. Note that the OEM versions of Windows 98 and later are bootable, but the retail upgrade versions of Windows 98 and Windows Me aren't. You can boot from both OEM and upgrade versions of Windows 2000 and Windows XP.

The operating system you select for your new computer is another important decision. You must be certain that the OS supports all the hardware you've selected, which can occasionally be a difficult task. For example, you will need Windows 98 or later to properly support USB devices in your system.

Note Although Windows 98 has been a long-time favorite of system builders, Microsoft plans to stop making it available for system builder licenses as of November 30, 2003. After this date, Windows 98 OEM versions will become increasingly scarce. Microsoft plans to provide online operating system and driver updates through Windows Update for Windows 98 until mid-2005 and online support until mid-2006. You might prefer to use a newer version of Windows or a non-Windows operating system such as Linux if you want support for a longer period of time.

Windows 98 and later come on bootable CD-ROMs if you get what is called the OEM version of the operating system. The so-called retail or upgrade editions often are restricted, aren't bootable in their Windows 9x/Me versions, and might also search for preexisting files or operating systems before they will load. For this reason, you should keep the CD-ROM of your previous operating system so you can use it for verification during installation of a new version. Because Microsoft doesn't allow OEM versions of its operating systems to be sold separately, be sure you get an OEM edition of whatever operating system you will be running when you buy your hardware. The terms of the Microsoft dealer (or system builder) agreement allow dealers to sell the OS only with hardware. At one time you needed to buy a complete PC, a motherboard, or a hard disk to get an OEM version of the operating system, but you can now buy any hardware—even a device as inexpensive as a case fan or mouse—and qualify to buy the OEM version. No matter what, be sure you get the original OEM version on CD-ROM.

Tip If you don't have the OEM version of your OS, or the system you are assembling does not support booting from CD (called El Torito support after the Phoenix-created standard), you must create a boot floppy with CD-ROM drivers. Windows 98 and later include a disk with a set of universal CD-ROM drivers that work for most systems; for Windows 95 and older operating systems, you must either borrow a Windows 98 or later startup disk or create your own bootable floppy with the correct drivers.

I'll cover this in more detail when we get to the OS load section of the building process.

Drivers for specific hardware components such as your motherboard chipset, might also be a problem. It is a good idea to gather all the latest driver revisions for your hardware, as well as BIOS flashes, firmware updates, and other software components, and have them available when you begin the assembly process.