STEP BY STEP USER GUIDE ON BUILDING A COMPUTER.

This guide is all about putting your components together. Ensure that you choose a clean workplace with a plenty of space to put the parts together.

Tools:

Phillips Screwdrivers.

Power supply

Motherboard

Hard drive

Ram

Cables

CPU

Fan

Antistatic wrist strap

Step1: Take off the top lid.

Step2: Take off the front panels to get inside the case.

Step3: Remove optical drive blanking plates

Step4: The power supply is a vital part of a PC, and it should usually be installed before everything else.

There are many cables coming out of the average power supply, and you need to know what they do.

Slide the power supply on to the shelf and push it backwards until it makes contact with the back of the case. Use four screws to attach the power supply securely top the case.

Step 5: Install the motherboard.

You need to see where the screw holes for the motherboard will go. Slide the motherboard into the case, making sure that all its screws holes are underneath. Push the motherboard towards the case until the screw holes line up. You will need to push it with a bit of gentle force. Screw the motherboard in place. Do not use too much pressure as the motherboard will break. Do not screw too tightly as the motherboard will start cracking.

Step 6: Installing the CPU

Lift the processor cage. Do not touch any of the pins inside the socket., as bending them will stop the processor from working.

Install the processor.You’ll also notice an arrow on the processor. This should line up with the corner of the socket that has its pins arranged diagonally. Close the drive cage and pull the retaining handle down. You will need a bit force.

Step 6: Install a hard drive

Slide the hard drive in to the bay. The screw holes in the side of the drive should line up with the holes in the drive bay. The disk should be screwed with four screws, two on the either side. Screw them tightly to prevent the drive wobbling.

Plug in the SATA power

The SATA power connects the hard drive and the power supply. Locate the correct connector from your power supply and plug it into the back of the hard drive.

Plug in SATA cable.

Plug in the SATA data cable gently into the rear of the hard drive. Next, find a spare SATA port on your motherboard and plug in the SATA

cable into the motherboard. The SATA cable connects the hard drive and the motherboard.

Step 7: Install an Optic Drive.

First you’ll need to remove the case’s panel. The optic drive needs to be slid into the case from the front. Slide the optic drive into the bay. Push the drive until the screw holes in its side match the screw holes inside the case. Now use the four screws two either side to hold the drive in place.

Plug in SATA power cable.

You’ll need to connect the optic drive to the power supply using the SATA power cable. Attach the cable and make sure it’s inserted all the way.

Plug in the SATA cable.

Now connect the SATA cable to the back of the optic drive as done previously with hard drive. Then connect the SATA cable to the motherboard.

STEP 8: Install the RAM.

Ram should always be installed in matching pairs of sticks.

Place the RAM in the proper slots by opening the latches and pushing the RAM in until the little handles can lock it into its position. When pushing, press both sides of the RAM module with equal force.

STEP 9: Install the case fan

Install an extra fan for cooling on side of the power supply. Use four screws to hold the fan in place. The fan has three pins, connect the fan to the motherboard.

Connect the CPU fan to the motherboard.

Step 10: Connecting internal cables

24 pin connector.

Connect the power supply to the motherboard. The 24 pin connector is the largest connector on the power supply.

There will be a number of different loose cables coming from the case that will need to connect to the motherboard.

Connections for power switch, reset switch, and LEDs are all grouped together and connected to the panel on the motherboard.

Connect Power cable (POWER SW)

Connect the power switch to the motherboard. You’ll find a two-pin connector on the front panel.

Connect Reset cable (RESET SW)

Again slide the reset cable over the two pins on the motherboard.

Connect the Power and HDD LEDs to the motherboard.

Connect USB, FireWire and HD Audio.

You’ll need to connect these cables to spare headers on your motherboard.

Step 11: Put the PC back together.

Keep the cables away from the fan.

Tidy the cables

Attach the front case and screw it to hold the case firmly in place.

Attach the side firmly.

Step 12: Plug in your computer.

Attach a keyboard and a mouse to the ports at the back of the PC.

Step 13: Connect the power supply to the monitor.

Connect the VGA cable to the monitor.

Now you can switch on you computer.