Build Your Own

Home PC Computer System

Power Up

Once again check all your connections and seatings. I know you're eager to see your creation come alive, but taking a minute here very well may save you hours if things don't go as planned. Everything looking good? OK. Press the power button.

If smoke appears (it shouldn't, unless your power supply or cooling systems are insufficient), or if the computer doesn't do anything, unplug the power cord immediately and check through all the steps again to make sure you didn't miss anything. Give special attention to the cables and power connections. If the computer appears to come on but you hear beeps, listen carefully to the beeps. Turn the computer off, and refer to your motherboard manual for the meaning of the beeps (some boards have a built in diagnostic, usually a series of LEDs, which when properly plugged in will inform you of the nature of the problem. Instructions for installing this as well as the meaning of its display should be in the motherboard manual.) If the computer turns on but the only thing that comes on is your power supply turn off your computer. This may mean something is shorted, and leaving it on could damage the parts.

If it powers on fine, or once you've addressed the above problems, proceed ...

At this point, you will wish to set certain options in the Computer's BIOS (usually by pressing 'F1' or 'Del' a few seconds after boot.) These options will be explained in the motherboard manual. In general, the default options are OK, but you may wish to set the computer's hardware clock to the correct time and date, or you want to change the default boot order of the system. Most oftern this order is Floppy, CD-ROM, then Hard Disc.

If you want a further quick test, before you install an operating system, you may find a bootable CD-ROM such as Knoppix extremely usefull.

Breaking Through the BIOS Barrier: The Definitive BIOS Optimization Guide for PCs