| A | B |
|---|
| basic input/output services (BIOS) | set of programs encoded in ROM that handle startup operations and low level control of hardware such as disk drives, keyboard & monitor |
| beep codes | series of audible tones produced by the motherboard during POST signalling whether POST has completed successfully or if a system hardware is not working properly (consult your motherboard manual for beep code meanings) |
| bootable disk | disk that contains a functional operating system (can be a floppy disk, USB thumb drive, or optical disc) |
| bootstrap loader | segment of code in a system's BIOS that scans for an operating syustem for a valid boot sector then hands over control to the boot sector then removes itself from memory |
| chassis intrusion detection | feature offered in some chassis that trips a switch when the chassis is opened |
| chipset | electronic chips designed to work together to handle all low level funtinos of a PC, usually consisting of 1-3 chips embedded into the motherboard |
| CMOS setup program | program enabling you to acces and update CMOS |
| complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) | flash type non-volatile RAM containinginformation about the most basic parts of your PC such as hard drives, floppes, and amount of DRAM |
| device driver | program used by the operating system to control communication between the computer and the peripherals (keyboard, mouse, etc) |
| Device Manager | utility that enables techs to examine and configure all the hardware and drivers in a Windows PC |
| DriveLock | CMOS program enabling you to control the ATA security mode feature set |
| Extensible Firmware Interface (EFI) | firmware created by Intel & HP that replaced traditional 16-bit BIOS and added several new enhancements |
| firmware | embedded programs or code stored on a ROM chip, usually OS independent (such as BIOS) so that it can function in a wide variety of circumstances without direct support from the OS. |
| flash ROM | ROM technology that can be electrically reprogrammed while still in the PC and can be upgraded without opening the computer on most systems today |
| installation disc | Usually a CD ROM or DVD that holds all the necessary device drivers |
| nonvolatile | memory that retains data even if power is removed |
| Northbridge | chip that conencts a CPU to memory, the PCI bus, Level 2 cache, and AGP activities through the frontside bus. Newer CPUs have an integrated Northbridge |
| option ROM | alternative way of telling the system how to talk to a piece of hardware by storing BIOS for the card within a chip on the card itself |
| POST card | when an inoperative device disrupts the POST forcing the machine into an endless loop, the PC acts dead (no beeps/black screen) then you need a POST card (simple card that snaps into an expansion slot) monitors the POST to identify which piece of hardware is causing the trouble. |
| power good | when a computer is turned on, the power supply circuitry tests for proper voltage then sends a signal down a special wire called the "power good" wire to awaken the CPU |
| power-on self test (POST) | basic diagnostic routine completed by a system at the beginning of the boot process to make sure a display adapter and the system's memory are installed, then searches for an operating system giving up control to the machine OS |
| Registry | complex binary file used to store configuration data about a its system. Use applets found in the Control Panel or REGEDIT.EXE or REGEDT32.EXE to edit the Registry |
| read-ionly memory (ROM) | generic term for nonvolatile memory (can retain information even without power) and can be read from but not written to. Code and data stored in ROM cannot be accidentally erased so is perfect for BIOS data or scientific constants |
| scan code | unique code corresponding to each key on the keyboard, sent from the keyboard controller to the CPU |
| services | programs stored on the ROM chip that are like an 8 bit wide spreadsheet |
| Southbridge | Part of a motherboard chipset that handles all the inputs and outputs to the many devices in the PC |
| system BIOS | primary set of BIOS stored on an EPROM or Flash chip on the motherboard that defines the BIOS for all the hardware attached to the motherboard, such as keyboard controller, floppy drive, basic video, and RAM |
| system disk | any device with a functional operating system |
| system ROM | ROM chip that stores the system BIOS |
| Unified Extensible Firmware Inteface (UEFI) | group of companies that established the UEFI standard that replaced the original EFI standard |
