Building a PC - Sqa Exemplar

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DH2W 35 Computer Networking: Building a Network PC - Assessment Exemplar

Contents

1. Introduction

2. How to generate evidence

3. Assessment Exemplars

2




1 Introduction

This pack must be used in conjunction with a copy of the Unit specification which

details the standard of performance expected of the candidate. A copy of the Unit

specification can be obtained from SQA.

This pack supplements the assessment guidelines and support notes of the unitspecification. It aims to provide an example of assessment that is valid, reliable and

practicable. The assessment task(s) detailed in this pack correspond to the assessment

guidelines outlined in the Unit specification.

The example provided is intended for guidance only. It may be used in a variety of

ways including, for example:

♦ To exemplify the standard of performance expected of candidates achieving the

Unit, i.e. as a benchmark

♦ To help you develop your own assessment for the Unit

♦ To help you develop valid and practicable assessments for other Units within the

subject area of the group award to which it contributes

♦ To give you new ideas

♦ As a staff development tool.

It is important that you make sure that the Assessment Exemplar is used in a context

appropriate to the delivery of the Unit and to the group award of which it forms a part.

It is also very important that you note that using this Assessment Exemplar does not

automatically guarantee successful external moderation. It is still your responsibility

to make sure that all the appropriate internal quality assurance procedures are

satisfactorily completed. For example, a valid, effective and approved internalmoderation system must be in use at your centre.

Recommended Reading

Before using this material you might find it useful to look at some of our other

publications, in particular:

♦ Guide to Assessment and Quality Assurance for Colleges of Further Education

♦ (December 2001, A0841/2)

♦ Guidance on Special Assessment Arrangements (December 2001, A0645/3)

♦ Quality Assurance Principles, Elements and Criteria, (December 1998, A0798)

Details of these and other SQA publications are available in SQA Information, our

publications catalogue which is updated and printed twice a year (tel: 0141-242

2168). SQA Information lists all published HN exemplar assessments. You could also

visit our website at www.sqa.org.uk .

A free copy of this pack is available to all SQA approved centres at the time of initial

distribution. Additional copies can be obtained, price £15.00 from SQA Sales,

Scottish Qualifications Authority, 24 Douglas Street, Glasgow, G2 7NQ (telephone:

0141-242 2168 or fax: 0141-242 2123).

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http://www.sqa.org.uk/

http://www.sqa.org.uk/




Other related Units

It is expected that the candidate will be studying this unit concurrently with or upon

completion of DH35 44 Computing: Planning .

PrerequisitesAccess to this unit is at the discretion of the centre, however candidates should have a

good working knowledge of PCs and be capable of installing and configuring a

network client operating system such as Windows 9x Windows 2000 Professional and

Windows XP. This might be evidenced by the possession of DH2Y 34 Computer

Hardware: Installation and Maintenance , DH33 34 Computer Operating Systems ,DH2T 34Computer Architecture 1 and/or DH2V 35 Computer Architecture.

Open Learning

If this unit is delivered by open learning or distance learning methods, additional

planning and resources may be required for candidate support, assessment and qualityassurance. For further information, please see Assessment and Quality Assurance

for Open and Distance Learning (SQA, February 2001 – publication code A1030).

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2 How to generate evidence

Introduction

The Scottish Qualifications Authority’s system of assessment measures the evidence of a

candidate’s attainment of knowledge, understanding and skills against defined criteria. Theassessment process must allow for evidence of each candidate’s performance to be generated

and collected. This evidence must then be judged against the standards set out in the Unit

specification. To achieve the Unit the candidate must successfully meet the standards and

there must be evidence to prove this.

The Unit specification defines the criteria you need to use to judge whether or not the

candidate has met the standards. All units have the following:

Outcomes

These tell you what the candidate actually has to do.

Knowledge and/or skills

This section details the essential knowledge and skills which the candidate must attain in

order to achieve each Outcome, combination of Outcomes or for the Unit as a whole.

Evidence requirements

Evidence requirements can be written for each Outcome, for a combination of Outcomes, or

for the Unit as a whole. There is no standard format for writing evidence requirements.

Provided that they state clearly and unambiguously the type, standard and amount of evidence

which candidates have to produce in order to be judged competent, the evidence requirements

can be written in the format which will be most easily understood by users of the Unit.

NOTE: The national standard of achievement expected, which was previously specified as performance criteria, is now stated in the evidence requirements.

Where it is not possible to cover all the items listed under knowledge and/or skills

through holistic assessment, sampling can be used as a method of gaining additional

evidence. Sampling may also sometimes be an appropriate method of assessing very

knowledge-based units. This type of assessment must always be carried out in

supervised conditions.

Where sampling is used, the evidence requirements must clearly state:

♦ The standard of evidence required for each knowledge and/or skills item so that

satisfactory performance can be judged whichever items are sampled on any one

occasion

♦ The proportion of knowledge and/or skills which can be sampled

♦ Whether any item(s) must be included in each assessment, ie if it is crucial to the

achievement of the Outcome(s) or to an embedded core skill

♦ The fact that a different sample should be chosen on each assessment occasion to

prevent candidates being able to foresee what they will be asked

♦ The conditions of assessment

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Assessment Guidelines

This section should give guidance on how best to conduct the assessment to generate the

evidence required, eg recommending the use of a particular assessment instrument. It should

include guidance on how to integrate the assessment of the whole Outcome or, if appropriate,

how to link assessment holistically with other outcomes in the Unit. Like evidence

requirements, assessment guidelines can be written for each Outcome, a combination of

Outcomes, or for the Unit as a whole.

It is important to realise that it is up to the assessor to judge when and if the candidate has

satisfactorily met the standards. This decision should be based on the quality and correct

quantity of evidence collected, set against the standards in the Unit.

The assessment instrument in this pack should not create any unnecessary barriers to

achievement for open/distance learning delivery or candidates with special needs. However,

you may need to adapt it so that you can assess candidates with special needs or candidates

who are undertaking the Unit on an open/distance learning basis. Obviously, whilst taking

into account the needs of the candidate concerned, the methods of assessment you choosemust still be valid, reliable and practicable. If you have any questions or problems, or if you

are in any doubt as to whether or not the alternative assessment you have chosen is still valid,

please contact the Helpdesk at the Scottish Qualifications Authority on tel: 0141 242 2214.

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Assessment exemplars

Assessment Tasks

The table below summarises how each exemplar assessment task relates to coverage of the

Outcomes detailed in the Unit specification. It also indicates the evidence which should be

retained for external moderation.

Outcome Suggested Task Suggested Evidence to be retained

1

2

3

4

20 multiple-choice questions

testing knowledge and/or skills.

15 extended-response questions

to test candidates' understanding

of safety and ESD issues

A series of short assignmentstesting a candidate’s

investigative, design and

practical abilities.

Will consist of a short report on

Peer to Peer networking for the

chosen operating system,

designing a suitable network

solution. Implementing the

network will involve a practical

group activity

Candidate responses to multiple choice

test.

Candidate responses to multiple

extended response questions

Logbook(s) completed by candidate.

Logbook(s) completed by candidate.

Conditions of Assessment

Outcome 1 – 20 Multiple Choice Test

Candidates must answer at least 60% of the questions correctly in order to obtain

a pass.

Testing must take place in a closed-book environment where candidates have no

access to books, handouts, notes or other learning material. Testing can be done

in either a machine-based or paper-based format and must be invigilated by a

tutor or mentor. There must be no communication between candidates and

communication with the invigilator must be restricted to matters relating to the

administration of the test.

NOTE: If a candidate requires to be reassessed, a different selection of questions must be used. At least half the questions in the reassessment must be different from those used in the original test

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Outcome 2 – 15 Extended Response Questions

Candidates must answer ALL questions correctly. Assessment must be

undertaken in supervised conditions and is closed book. A candidate should

complete this assessment within two hours. Candidates may not bring to the

assessment event any notes, textbooks, handouts or other material.

In the event of the need for re-assessment, candidates need not be re-assessed on

questions they have previously completed successfully

Outcome 3 – 2 Short Reports

Assessment is open book under supervised conditions. Candidates who have

access to a suitable workplace can base their assessment work on suitable

installation and fault-finding situations drawn from their place of work.

Practical activity logs should be based on a pro-forma given to candidates, but

must as a minimum be properly titled with the candidate’s name and date, andsigned by the assessor confirming that each task is the candidate’s own work.

Each Log should record :

A brief outline of the task presented

Outline notes of all work carried out

Note of problems (if any) encountered and their solutions

Testing carried out

Any relevant sketch diagrams, (e.g. component locations, connector orientations,

jumper settings).

Assessors should assure themselves of the authenticity of each candidate’s

submission.

Outcome 4 – 2 Short Reports

Assessment is open book under supervised conditions. Candidates who have

access to a suitable workplace can base their assessment work on suitable

installation and fault-finding situations drawn from their place of work.

Although it is expected that students will be working in groups, ideally in pairs,

each student should submit a single short report, completed on an individual basis

and a completed practical activity log.Practical activity logs should be based on a pro-forma given to candidates, but

must as a minimum be properly titled with the candidate’s name and date, and

signed by the assessor confirming that each task is the candidate’s own work.

Each Log should record :

A brief outline of the task presented

Outline notes of all work carried out

Note of problems (if any) encountered and their solutions

Testing carried outAny relevant sketch diagrams, (e.g. component locations, connector orientations,

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jumper settings).

Assessors should assure themselves of the authenticity of each candidate’s

submission.

ANY REFERENCE MATERIAL SUCH AS BOOKS, MAGAZINES, USER

GUIDES, or WEB BASED MATERIAL MAY BE REFERRED TO AT ANYTIME DURING THE ASSESSMENT.

Microsoft and Windows XP are the proprietary trademarks of the Microsoft

Corporation and are included in the sample answers insofar as they are intended to be

representative of the answer of a typical student who be allowed to use them in

completing an assessment.

The use of a Microsoft operating system is not mandated for this unit and any other

appropriate operating system would be acceptable.

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Assessment Task 1

Outcomes(s)

Covered 1

Assessment Task Instructions

10

Describe the

Major Sub-

systems of aModern

Personal

Computer




COMPUTER NETWORKING: BUILDING A NETWORK PC

DH2W 35

ASSESSMENT 1

Instructions to Candidates

This assessment is closed book

This test covers Outcome 1

All Questions must be attempted

Some Questions require multiple answers

You may start and stop only when directed to do so by the invigilator

You may not leave the examination room before 30 minutes of the examinationtime has elapsed

You may not enter the examination room if more than 30 minutes of the

examination time has elapsed

You have 1 hour (60 minutes) to complete the examination paper

No reference material is permitted

Question 1

What type of expansion slot would you expect to find in a modern computer? Choosethe two best answers

A. MCA

B. AGP

C. EISA

D. VESA

E. PCI

Question 2

Which of the following statements is true of Socket 7?

A. It works with Slot 1 to increase the CPU internal clock speed

B. It uses a ZIF lever to remove DIMMs

C. It is a socket into which a type of pin-grid array CPU can be inserted

D. It is a type of expansion bus socket.

Question 3

What type of memory structure was developed to minimise the delay of accessing

RAM on the motherboard?

A. Processor-resident pipeline

B. L1 and L2 cacheC. CMOS memory

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B. There is no need to adjust the jumpers the BIOS will auto-detect the drive

parameters

C. Configure the drive at the end of the cable so it has a logical unit number (LUN)

of 2 and the drive in the middle of the cable has a LUN of 1

D. Configure one drive as the master and the other as a slave

Question 9

What improvements did the ATX form factor make over the AT form factor? Choose

the two best answers .

A. Improved cooling

B. It uses only faster RAMBUS memory

C. It supports better power management

D. It enabled the use of low-profile cases

E. It removed the need for ISA slots

Question 10

You work as a hardware technician for a third-party hardware maintenance company.

You have been called to a client to assist with the installation of new file server. You

have installed a SCSI host bus adapter (HBA) and connected two hard drives and a

CD-ROM to the bus. You know need to terminate the bus. Assuming that the HBA

is at one end of the bus how should the bus be terminated?

A. On the HBA and at the far end of the bus

B. On the HBA only

C. On the device at the far end of the bus

D. Termination is not required for modern SCSI devices

Question 11

What is the primary purpose of the computer Power Supply Unit (PSU)

A. To convert Direct Current (DC) to Alternating Current (AC)

B. To convert Alternating Current (AC) to Direct Current (DC)

C. To Eliminate spikes in the electricity supply

D. Eliminate brownouts in the electricity supply

Question 12

What is the result of installing the LED connectors on the motherboard incorrectly?A. The motherboard will short out

B. The LEDs will work anyway

C. The LEDs will not work correctly

D. The computer will beep constantly when performing its POST diagnostics

Question 13

What is the standard resolution for a VGA monitor?

A. 480 horizontal x 640 vertical

B. 800 horizontal x 600 verticalC. 640 horizontal x 480 vertical

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D. 600 horizontal x 400 vertical

Question 14

In laser printer technology, what happens during the transfer stage?

A. Residual toner is removed to the waste receptacleB. The toner is attracted to the paper from drum using the secondary coroner

C. All residual charge is removed from the drum

D. The image is permanently fixed to the paper

Question 15

Which peripheral port type was designed to transfer data at high speeds to printers

only?

A. DVD

B. USB

C. IEEE 1394

D. IEEE 1284

Question 16

Which type of ROM memory chip has a small window that allows the chips to be

erases using ultra violet light?

A. PROM

B. EPROM

C. EEPROM

D. APROM

Question 17

Which bus signal line allows a device to send data directly to a computer’s memory

bypassing the CPU?

A. I/O address

B. DMA address

C. Clock addressD. Interrupt request (IRQ) line

Question 18

Which type of mouse interface technology uses an interrupt (other than the ones the

PC is normally using)? Choose the two correct answers.

A. Bus

B. PS/2

C. Serial

D. Microsoft

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Question 19

Which motherboard form-factor places expansion slots on a special riser card in order

to fit into a low profile case?

A. AT

B. “Baby” AT

C. ATX

D. NLX

Question 20

Which type of memory found in desktop computers stores information as charges in

very small capacitors and needs a constant refresh signal to keep the information in

memory?

A. SRAM

B. DRAM

C. EDORAM

D. ROM

E. PROM

F. EPROM

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DH2W 35

MARKING GRID

Introduction

Conditions

Closed book. Time allowed: 1 hour

Question A B C D E F

1 X X

2 X

3 X

4 X X

5 X

6 X

7 X X

8 X

9 X X

10X

11 X

12 X

13 X

14 X

15 X

16 X

17 X

18 X X

19 X

20 X

16





DH2W 35 – OUTCOME 1

ASSESSMENT GRID

Introduction

Conditions

Closed book. Time allowed: 1 hour

Question A B C D E F

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

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Answers with Explanations

Q1: Answers b and e are correct. Most modern systems boards include PCI and AGP

slots. The MCA bus developed by IBM never caught on because it was not

backwards compatible with ISA. VL-buses were predominantly used prior to the

adoption of PCI and AGP and suffered from timing problems. EISA busses although

backwards compatible with ISA became primarily a network file server niche market.

ISA busses are occasionally still seen on fairly recent motherboards but have largely

been replaced by PCI slots on the most modern motherboards.

Q2: Answers c is correct. Socket 7 is a type of socket designed to take a flat, pin grid

array (PGA) CPU. They are much less common than they used to be but are

occasionally still seen. PGA CPU, including, Socket 7 uses ZIF or Zero Insertion

Force as a mechanism for inserting and removing the CPU package without the use of

force and for locking the CPU into place. It has nothing to do with SIMMs. Slot 1 is

an INTEL-designed architecture for mounting a CPU on a printed circuit board,

which is then plugged by means of an edge connector into a slot on the motherboardand has nothing to do with increasing or decreasing the CPU clock speed.

Q3: Answers b is correct. Cache is an intermediate area of high-speed SRAM that is

positioned between the CPU and the RAM. When the CPU requests a piece of data

from RAM, the request is intercepted by the cache controller, which searches the

cache first. Only if the data is not in cache is a request made to the RAM. A

combination of optimising algorithms, and judicial sizing of the cache means that

very high hit-rates for the cache are achievable.

The L1 cache is integrated on the CPU die. As processor speeds increased additional

high-speed memory was required ands this became known as L2 cache. Typically,

though not invariably L2 cache was not located on the

CPU die. The new 64-bit processors from INTEL and AMD use a further level of

caching known as L3 cache. CMOS is used to store configuration settings for the PC.

Duplex memory and a processor-resident pipelines do not exist.

Q4: Answers A and D are correct. The North Bridge sits between the Processor bus

and the PCI bus and handles the medium-fast devices including SDRAM and AGP

slot. The USB ports and the IDE drives are attached to the South Bridge and the

COM ports are attached to the Super I/O chip.

Q5: Answer A is correct. This is a classic symptom of the ribbon cable beingconnected the wrong way around. Floppy disk drives do not require additional

drivers. You cannot connect the floppy ribbon cable to the IDE connector as they are

different sizes. This is not a symptom of the CMOS being incorrectly configured.

Q6: Answer C is correct. IPQ 9 is used for vectoring to IRQ 2. IRQ 15 is the

Secondary hard disk controller. IRQ 3 is required by COM 2 and COM 4.

Q7: Answers A and C are correct. A significant technical enhancement for the 800

series of chipsets was the adoption of Intel's new Accelerated Hub Architecture,

which removed the PCI bus as the main component-interconnect. This allowed areas

such as the IDE channel to have a direct connection to the chipset without having to pass through the PCI bus.

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The integration of the I/O controller also meant that the North Bridge/South Bridge

controller division could be dispensed with, which is key to Intel’s plans to end

support for the legacy ISA architecture.

Q8: Answer D is correct. The controller for a hard drive is on the circuit board

attached to the drive. Thus something is deeded to arbitrate between the drives whenthey are using the same IDE channel. Setting the jumpers on the drives so that one

drive is a master drive, and the other drive is a slave drive does this. Logical Unit

numbers (LUNs) are associated with SCSI devices. The BIOS can only correctly

auto-detect the drives if the jumpers have already been correctly set.

Q9: Answer A and C are correct. The ATX introduced greatly improved power

management, including a new fool proof keyed 20-pin Molex connector, and a 3.3v

supply in addition to the +/-5V and +/-12V connections, which obviated the need for

an on-board voltage regulator

Another feature of the ATX design was the integration of the I/O Port Connectors andPS/2 Mouse connector directly on to the motherboard in the form of a double-height,

external I/O connector panel. This meant ribbon cables were no longer required to

connect pin-headers on the motherboard to the ports on the back of the case. The

reduction the number of ribbon cables and general clutter greatly improved air flow

around the case and hence cooling. Although some ATX form-factor motherboards

support RAMBUS many do not. In general low-profile cases are used with LPX or

NLX motherboards that support riser cards, which allow expansion cards to be

inserted horizontally rather than vertically, thus reducing the height of the case. A

key factor in the disappearance of the ISA slot was that the ISA bus is too slow for

modern devices and the introduction by Intel of the AHA architecture chip set.

Q10: Answer A is correct. The bus needs to be terminated at either end. This is true

whether the HBA is at one end of the bus as in this case or in the middle of the bus in

which case it is the device at either end that is terminated and not the HBA.

Q11: The correct answer is B. The PSU takes in an AC power supply and converts it

to ± 12v DC, 5.5v DC and 3.3v DC. Quality PSUs have limited capabilities to

smooth out spikes but that is not their primary function

Q12: The correct answer is C. The motherboard will not short out. AT motherboards

shorted out if the power connectors were connected the wrong way around. Constant

bleeping at POST almost invariably means a memory problem.

Q13: The correct answer is C. A standard VGA monitor has a resolution of 640

pixels horizontally and 480 pixels vertically.

Q14: The correct answer is B. Residual toner is removed to the waste receptacle

during the cleaning phase. The toner is attracted to the paper from drum using the

secondary coroner during the transfer phase. All residual charge is removed from the

drum during the conditioning phase. The image is permanently fixed to the paper

during the fusing stage

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.

Assessment Task 2

Outcomes(s)

Covered

2


21

Identify Risks and Use

Safe Working Practices

The followin a e details instructions to





DH2W 35

ASSESSMENT 2


This test is closed book


All Questions must be attempted

Each answer requires and answer consisting of four (4) or five (5) sentences

You may start and stop only when directed to do so by the invigilator

You may not leave the examination room before 30 minutes of the examinationtime has elapsed

You may not enter the examination room if more than 30 minutes of the

examination time has elapsed

You have 2 hours (120 minutes) to complete the examination paper

No reference material is permitted

Question 1

What are the four categories of fire extinguisher and what types of fire would youfight with them?

Question 2

Carbon Dioxide Extinguishers can be used to extinguish class B and C fires. Why are

they not suitable for fighting class A fires?

Question 3

What is the purpose of Portable Appliance testing and how often should it be done?

Question 4

The legislation relating to Portable Appliance Testing (PAT) specifies that testing

must be done by someone who is "competent to do so". What does this mean?

Question 5

What is the purpose of a fuse and how would you calculate a fuse rating?

Question 6

What is the purpose of a residual current device (RCD) and how does it work?

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Question 7

What are the essential differences between LSZH cables and PVC cables?

Question 8

Where would you expect to deploy LSZH data cables in preference to cables withPVC sheathing?

Question 9

What is an ESD wrist strap and how is it used to protect ESD-sensitive devices from

damage?

Question 10

Under what circumstances can wearing and ESD wristband be dangerous?

Question 11

What are the types of climatic conditions that favour the build-up of static electricity?

Question 12

Give two examples of items of electrical equipment than involve greater of damage

risk when in use and hence are a potential source of an electric shock.

Question 13

Outline the principles of safe working practice when working with electrical

equipment as defined by the Health and Safety executive.

Question 14

Explain the purpose of the earth wire in a plug.

Question 15

Which two items commonly associated with a PC should you never attempt to open

and repair without special training?

23




Answers with Explanations

Question 1

There are four classifications of fire and an extinguisher A, B, C and D

Class A extinguishers are used to deal with fires involving materials such as paper,wood, cardboard, and most plastics.

Class B extinguishers are for fires involving flammable or combustible liquids such as

petrol, kerosene, grease and oil.

Class C means the extinguishing agent does not conduct electricity, which is why

class C extinguishers are used on electrical fires. Water should never be used on a

electrical because of the risk of electric shock.

Class D extinguishers are used on fires involving involve combustible metals, such as

magnesium, titanium, potassium and sodium and are therefore commonly found in

chemical laboratoriesSome extinguishers have a multi-purpose rating such as ABC, the exception are class

D extinguishers which may be used only on class D fires.

Only class B, C or D extinguishers can be used to fight a fire involving a computer or

a computer monitor.

Question 2

Carbon Dioxide is a non-inflammable gas. Carbon dioxide extinguishers do not work

by displacing the oxygen feeding a fire in order to extinguish it. This may not work

very well on class A fires because they may not be able to displace enough oxygen to

put the fire out properly so that it subsequently re-ignites.

Question 3

The purpose of PAT is too regularly test portable electrical equipment such as

computer base units, printers, and monitors are safe to use. The legislation does not

define how often "regular" is. Good practice presumes regular testing is done once a

year and no less than three years apart.

Question 4

The IEE Code of Practice states that states that the tester must be,

"Competent to undertake the inspection, and where appropriate, testing of

electrical equipment and appliances with due regard to their own safety

and others."

A number of organisations undertake to train PAT testers to meet the IEE Code

of Practice, and the City and Guilds 2377 Code of Practice.

Question 5

The purpose of a fuse is to protect the mains-cable, not as commonly supposed the

device itself. Sometimes, when an electrical device develops a fault a surge may

occur in the cable. The purpose of the fuse is to blow and break the circuit when thesurge becomes large enough to compromise the integrity of the mains-cable.

24




To calculate a fuse rating two pieces of information are required the mains-voltage,

240 volts in the UK, and the power consumption of the device in watts. The

maximum wattage is then divided by the mains-voltage.

Question 6

An RCD is a safety device designed to immediately switch of the electricity when

electricity "leaking to earth" is detected at level harmful to the person using electrical

equipment.

It works by continuously monitoring the current flow in both the Active (supply) and

Neutral (return) conductors of an electrical circuit. An RCD operates if too much of

the current in the active conductor is not returning through the neutral conductor. An

RCD will disconnect within 10 - 50 milliseconds of detecting the harmful leakage,

which would typically be about 30 milliamps.

Question 7

LSZH cables, sometimes referred to as LS0H cables are designed to emit no toxic

fumes and little or no smoke when exposed to flame. In addition, LSZH cable does

not emit corrosive acids when burned. By contrast PVC cable contain chlorine, which

emits toxic fumes when burned. If these cables are sprayed with water when burning

corrosive acids will be formed.

Question 8

Given the characteristics of LSZH cabling it is used anywhere where toxic fumes and

smoke from burning cable could endanger life, for example, in tunnels, enclosed-

rooms, aircraft and minimum ventilation areas. In many countries local building

codes require LSZH cabling in the plenum space as well, which is typically between astructural ceiling and a suspended ceiling or under a raised floor.

Question 9

An ESD wrist strap is an elasticated wristband that has a metal pad worn next to the

skin. It also contains a large resistor in order to protect the wearer from an electric

shock. A cable from the strap runs to a ground connector, which may fit into a plug

that connects to earth in the mains or to a specially fitted earth circuit.

When working inside a computer the wrist strap should be earthed by connecting it to

an electrical outlet or to an anti-static mat that is connected to a mains outlet.

Question 10

There are three circumstances in which the use of an ESD wristband can be lethal:

when working on a computer chassis that is connected to the mains-supply, when

working on a monitor, and when working on a laser printer.

The PSU in a PC converts the 240 v mains-supply down to 12 v or less. The

capacitors that are used in this process store a large quantity of electricity, which, if

discharged, through a human being could be fatal.

A monitor converts the mains-voltage from 240 volts to 2000 volts to charge the

cathode ray tube. A shock from this would almost certainly be fatal.Finally, a laser printer also uses a charge of over 2000 volts to attract the toner. This is

25




a static charge, and concentrating it to the ESD wrist strap uses the wearer as the earth

and this is, therefore, potentially dangerous.

Unless working on a computer that is disconnected from the mains, any repair activity

using an ESD strap is too dangerous.

Question 11

Static electricity can build up in environments where humidity is very low. The

problem is most likely to occur during the winter months when it is cold and the

humidity is low or in extremely dry climates where the humidity is low all year

around.

Question 12

Flexible leads, particularly those connected to portable equipment that is moved a

great deal, can become frayed and the plugs and sockets are also vulnerable to

damage. Extension leads, an all too common feature around PCs and in workshops,

are similarly liable to damage

Question 13

Ensure that people working with electrical equipment have been properly trained and

are competent to do the job and have a thorough knowledge of the hazards of working

with electrical equipment

Suspect or faulty equipment is taken out of use, labelled 'DO NOT USE' and kept

secure until examined by a competent engineer

Whenever possible, equipment and mains-supply sockets must be switched off before

equipment is plugged or unplugged.

Switch off and unplug equipment before cleaning it servicing it

Question 14

If the live wire becomes loose and touches the chassis of the PC, it becomes live. If

you then touch the metal, the currents will flow through you and give you an electric

shock. The earth wire prevents this by completing the circuit as soon as the live wire

touches the metal. A large current flows to earth and blows the fuse.

Question 15

You should never open a PSU or a monitor unless specially trained to do so. They

both contain very large capacitors capable of storing a potentially lethal charge long

after being switched off. In fact a PSU should never be repaired. They are relatively

inexpensive and should be replaced with a new one.

26




27




.

Assessment Task 3

Outcomes(s)

Covered

3


28

Design and Build a PC

Configuring Hardware

Components and Peripherals

as Required





DH2W 35

ASSESSMENT 3


This test is open book


You are required to prepare two short reports as directed. Your reports should

consist of a Title Page, a Contents Page, Terms of Reference, Findings and

Recommendations. You should sign and date you report at the end of your

recommendations.

You are required to keep a logbook detailing your practical work on the proforma supplied by your tutor.

(A) You are a technician working for your college Computer Support Unit. Your

Head of Department has asked you to investigate the compatibility of

motherboards with CPUs, and PSUs. You are to submit your findings in the

form of a short formal report.

(B) You have been engaged by a small charity to advise them on purchasing some

PCs, which will subsequently be connected to form a small peer-to-peer

network. The organisation want to use Microsoft XP Professional as the

operating system and to use Microsoft Office 2000, together with SAGE Instant

Accounts accounting software on selected machines. You are to submit your

findings in the form of a short formal report.

(C) You are required to build and test a PC as directed by your instructor, detailing

your work in the pro forma logbook provided

29




Report into the Compatibility of

Motherboards, CPUs and PSUs

Presented by

X.X. Xxxxxxxxxx

Thursday 6 th June 2005

30




1. Terms of Reference

A survey of the computer hardware marketplace revealed that was a large number of

competing systems. On the 18th May 2005, Mr XXXX XXXX, the head of the

college Computer Services Unit commissioned a report to investigate the

compatibility of motherboards with CPUs and PSUs

31




2. Procedure

The general principles of motherboards, CPUs and PSUs was obtained from a variety

of sources including Upgrading and Repairing PCs by Scott Mueller, ISBN

0789725428, Computer published by the IEEE, PC Magazine and PC World.

Specific Product Information was obtained from vendor’s Web sites and critical

reviews.

Information about compatibility with the Microsoft Products deployed by the college

was obtained by referring to the Microsoft Hardware Compatibility List (HCL) at the

Microsoft Web site.

32




3. Findings

3.1. Motherboards

A survey of motherboards indicates that there are 4 basic types, AT, ATX, LPX and

NLX. AT and ATX motherboards are found in standard desktop and tower cases

where as LPX and NLX are found in slim line cases. ATX and NLX motherboards

were designed to address a number of issues associated with the AT and LPX

motherboards. For example, power was supplied to the older motherboards via two

nearly identical six-pin plugs, which could easily be connected the wrong way around.

This had the effect of destroying the motherboard when it was powered up. In

addition, connectors such as the serial ports and LPT ports were mounted on blanking

plates at the rear of the motherboard and connected via ribbon cables to pin-headers

on the motherboard. This tended to obstruct the flow of air around an AT system

leading to problems associated with overheating. The expansion slots were located in

front of the processor. Before heat sinks and fans became necessary long expansion

cards could extend over the CPU. With the advent of heat sinks and fans the

processor assembly prevented the use of long expansion cards in up to three of the

expansion slots. The location of memory in the form of DIMM and SIMM modules

was also inconvenient.

The ATX form-factor motherboard addressed these issues by moving the expansion

slots so that they were beside the CPU socket. In addition, the serial ports and LTP

port were built onto the motherboard obviating the need for some of the ribbon cables

inside the case, and hence improving the flow of air around the case.

A foolproof 20-pin, keyed, Molex power supply-connector and a built-in voltage

regulator and soft power to the motherboard were also useful improvements

introduced by the ATX and NLX form-factors.

33




3.2. CPUs

There are two principal manufacturers of CPUs AMD and Intel. Processor sockets

may be slotted or Pin-Grid-Arrays. Processors were originally in PGA format but in

an effort to speed up the transfer of data from the Level 2 cache, to the L1 cache andthe processor processors were mounted on small expansion cards that plugged

into a slot on the motherboard. As technology improved, particularly with the

introduction of high-speed front-side busses, modern processors are built using the

PGA form factor.

AMD and Intel slotted processors looked very similar, however the electrical and

signalling characteristics of the slots were very different and Intel and AMD devices

were not interchangeable. Modern PGA processors have differing numbers of pins.

For example socket 370 has 370-pins. Intel uses Socket 423 and 478 for its Pentium 4

chips and Socket 603 for its Xeon chips. AMD use sSocket 462 for its Athlon and

Duron chips and Socket 754 for it new 64-bit processor.

PGA is a generic term and there are several identifiable versions of the PGA form

factor including FC-PGA Flip Chip-Plastic Grid Array (FC-PGA), which is

physically but not electrically compatible with Socket 370. However the physical

changes put the core closer to the surface, allowing better cooling as the processor

core comes in closer contact to the heatsink. Another variant is the SPGA or

Staggered Pin Grid Array, which is so-called because in which the pins are staggered

on the underside of the chip rather than in standard rows and columns.

Particular CPUs will often only work with particular motherboard chipsets.

3.3. PSUs

A survey of PSUs indicates that there are 4 basic types, AT, ATX, LPX and NLX.

ATX and NLX are more modern that AT and LPX power supplies and support a

number of features common to ATX and NLX motherboards. These include a 20-pin

Molex power connector and soft power to the motherboard.

The PSU is an important component. A poorly built PSU will cause the system to

perform erratically and may even catch fire. The power supply should have a

sufficiently high power rating to support all of the components in the system. A good

starting point for a modern system is a rating of at least 300 Watts.

34




3.4. Software Compatibility

3.4.1 PSU

Reference to the Microsoft HCL indicates no significant compatibility problems with

power supplies

3.4.2 Motherboards

Reference to the Microsoft HCL indicates that there are a number of excellent ATX

standard motherboards that are full Windows XP compliant. For example the ABIT

IS-10, which is a micro ATX form factor main board based on the 865G chipset,

supporting the Intel Pentium 4 CPU and the ABIT VA-10 described by Microsoft as

“the ultimate multimedia and cost effective platform for AMD CPUs”

Offerings from ACHATES include the SY-7VBA133U (VIA 694T ATA100) a

66/100/133MHz FSB socket 370-based ATX motherboard and the SY-P4IS2 (845

AGPset) P4 Socket 478-based ATX motherboard.

Other major vendors offering Windows XP compatible motherboards include

ASRock, ASUSTek, BIOSTAR and CHAINTECH

3.4.3 CPUs

There are a number of excellent CPUs that are fully Windows XP Compliant.

Compatible processors include the Duron, Athlon, Opteron, Sempron and Athlon MP

from AMD and from Intel the Celeron, Xeon and P4.

35




4. Conclusions

Only high-quality PSUs with an adequate power rating for installed devices should be

used and it should match the form factor of the motherboard and case

CPUs need to be matched to the chip set and socket or slot type of the motherboard.

If used with Microsoft Operating Systems, the Microsoft Hardware Compatibility List

should be consulted to ensure that the hardware is compatible with the operating

system of choice.

36




5. Recommendations

Before purchasing a motherboard, CPU and PSU make sure that they are of good

quality and that the form factor of the motherboard is compatible with the form factor

of the case and of the power supply.

Make sure that the processor is electrically and physically compatible with the

processor socket and slot

Make sure that all of the hardware is compatible with the operating system of choice.

In the case of Microsoft operating systems by checking the relevant Hardware

Compatibility List at the Microsoft Web site.

X.X. Xxxxxxxx

Thursday, 6th June 2005

37




Report Into the Purchase of PCs For

A Small Charity

Presented by

X.X. Xxxxxxxxxx


38





A small charity was given a donation of money to purchase a small number of

computer systems to create a small peer-to-peer network. On the 18th May 2005, Mr

XXXX XXXX, Treasurer of the charity commissioned a report into the most

appropriate type of system for the charity needs. Connection to other networks,

including the Internet is not an option at this time.

39




2. Procedure

Specific Product Information was obtained from vendor’s Web sites and critical

reviews.

Information about compatibility with the Microsoft Products deployed by the college

was obtained by referring to the Microsoft Hardware Compatibility List (HCL) at the

Microsoft Web site.

40




3. Findings

3.1. Types of System

There are two types of system available to the charity: proprietary systems

manufactured by companies such as Compaq and DELL and IBM PC clone systems.

The advantage of purchasing a proprietary system is that it can be delivered tailored

by the manufacturer to meet the specification laid down by the charity, with the

operating system and application software pre-loaded and with a variety of warranties

ranging on-site fix to return-to-base. The major disadvantage with proprietary system

is that they frequently have non-standard components, notably the motherboard and

therefore have a very limited upgrade path.

The advantage of an IBM clone is that it is built around a standard form-factor

motherboard, for example ATX and, as a result, has a better upgrade path. Although

most PC clone hardware has a return-to-base warranty, on site fix is often not an

option. Furthermore, the purchaser is usually required to install and configure any

software.

The proprietary system-option is often slightly more expensive to purchase but by the

time the software has been purchased for the clone there is often little overall

difference in price of the two types of system.

Processing Power

3.2.1 The Operating System

The charity wishes to use Microsoft Windows XP professional, together with

Microsoft Office and the SAGE Instant Accounts accounting package. As a

minimum Microsoft recommend that Windows XP requires: a minimum of a Pentium

Class processor or equivalent running at 233 MHz, 64MB of RAM, a 2GB hard disk

partition with 640MB of free space. They also recommend a minimum of a 12 x CD-

41




Reader a VGA class video adapter a keyboard and pointing device such as a mouse or

roller-ball. A more realistic specification might be a 1.5 - 2GHz processor, 512MB of

RAM, with the disk size determined not only by the requirements of the operating

system, but including the disc space required by the applications and the amount of

user data the charity expects to store on each PC. In addition a VGA adapter does not

offer much in the way of either resolution or number of colours and a SVGA adapter

would be more appropriate. Since an increasing amount of software is being

distributed on DVD a DVD reader/writer might be a better choice than a CD-Reader.

3.2.1 The Microsoft Office 2000/XP Suite

The specification noted above is also perfectly adequate for running the Microsoft

Office Suite.

3.2.2 The SAGE Instant Account package for Small Businesses

The minimum specification for the accounting package is a 400MHz Pentium Class-

processor 128MB or RAM and 150MB of disk space for the application files. There

is also a requirement for an SVGA adapter card capable of supporting 256 colours at

800 x 600 pixels. Although SAGE will run with a 400MHz processor and 128MB of

RAM and 150MB of disk space, SAGE recommend that this be increased to a 2GHz

processor, 512MB of RAM, 500MB of disk space and an SVGA monitor capable of supporting 24-bit True-Colour at 1024x768 pixels.

In addition, a copy of Internet Explorer v 6 must be installed on the computer.

Hardware Compatibility

The hardware selected must be, for trouble-free operation totally compatible with the

software. The suitability of the hardware for Windows XP can checked against the

Windows XP Professional hardware Compatibility List on the Microsoft Web site.

Although some proprietary systems are billed a "Windows XP compatible", and when

they are delivered Windows XP will be up and running, the drivers for certain

hardware components are not in the XP drivers CAB file. This means that should it

ever become necessary to re-install Windows XP, the drivers for these devices must

be obtained from the hardware vendor's Web site. A typical example is the Intel

PRO/100 VR Fast Ethernet NIC found in some IBM Thinkpad Systems.

SAGE specifically state on the Web-site that a Pentium class processor is preferred.

42




4. Conclusions

The advantages of a proprietary system are that they can be delivered "ready to go"

and frequently come with an on-site fix warranty. The disadvantages are that they

may be slightly more expensive and have a poor upgrade capability. In addition some

of the components while they are "XP-compatible" the drivers for some of the

hardware devices may not be in the XP driver CAB file.

The advantages of a clone are that they are built around standard components such as

an ATX motherboard and will almost certainly have a better upgrade path. They are

likely to be cheaper than a proprietary system. The disadvantages are that the

purchaser is often required to install and configure the software and the warranty will

probably not be as good.

Given the recommended hardware requirements for the accounting package a Pentium

class processor of 2.5 - 3GHz would not only meet current requirements but would

have some future proofing to meet potential additional processing power required by

upgrades to the operating system and the application software. Although the

Operating system, Office Suite and the accounting package will fit into 3GB of disk

space, this makes no allowance for user data. Given the relative cheapness of modern

hard disks, a disk of 100GB should be considered. In addition a high quality video

adapter supporting 24-bit True Colour at 1024x768 pixels and a DVD reader/writer

would be appropriate.

Any purchase of hardware should be checked to ensure full compatibility with the

operating system and the application software by consulting the software vendor's

Web sites.

43




5. Recommendations

The charity should purchase hardware to meet the following specification:

2.5 - 3GHz Pentium class processor

512MB RAM

100GB Hard disk drive

1.44MB Floppy disk drive

SVGA video adapter capable of supporting 24-bit True colour at 1024 x 768

100Mb/s Fast Ethernet Network Interface card

DVD reader/writer

Minimum of 4 USB ports

Keyboard and pointing device

Given the nature of a small charity and the likely lack of in-house expertise, a

proprietary system might be appropriate if sufficiently future-proofed when

purchased.

All hardware to be checked for compatibility with the operating system and

application software.

In addition a good virus checker such as Norton or AVG should be installed and kept

up-to-date in case a virus is introduced to the network on the inevitable floppy disk

"brought in from home".

X.X. Xxxxxxxx

Thursday, 6th June 2005

44






PRO FORMA LOGBOOK

Attach additional notes, sketches or printouts as necessary

Candidates Name: Class:

Assessor’s Name Date:

Assessors Signature on

completion:

Task and Planning Title

Outline of task to be undertaken

Outline the procedure you plan to adopt

Record the details of any work carried out including testing

Outline the nature of any problems encountered & their solution

This task was relatively straightforward and presented no major problems

45






PRO FORMA LOGBOOK





completion:

Task and Planning Title To build a PC


Install the motherboard

Install a processor and heat sink

Install the memory

Install a floppy drive

Install a hard disk

Install a CD-Reader/Writer

Test the machine


Open the case and on a correctly grounded workbench

Connect the anti-static wrist strap to the PC chassis

Install the brass spacers and then mount the motherboard in the case

Install the motherboard

Connect the PSU to the motherboard

Install the processor and heat sink

Install a 128 MB DIMM

Install a 40 GB HDD

Install A FDD

Install A CD-Reader/Writer

Attach the EIDE and FDD cables and the necessary power connectors

Connect the LED cables to the correct pin-headers on the motherboard

Disconnect the wrist strap

Close the case

Connect the PC to the mains and test it

46





I put the case on a properly grounded workbench and removed the cover by

removing the four screws on the back of the PC and pulling the case backwards

and upwards. Next I connected my anti-static wrist strap to a bare-metal part of the PC

chassis.

I screwed the brass spacers into the base plate of the case to correspond with the

mounting holes in the motherboard. At one end of the motherboard there was a

hole that did not correspond to a hole in the base plate. In here I put a plastic

stub-spacer to prevent the possibility of the motherboard coming into contact

with the case by accident. I then put the motherboard into the case and screwed

it firmly into place.

I aligned the processor up with the PGA-ZIFF socket aligning the corners of the

processor that did not have pins with the corners of the socket where there wereno pin holes a dropped it into position. I closed the ZIFF socket by pushing the

lever at the side of the socket down and locking it into place. I put a measured

amount of thermal conduction paste on the underside of the heat sink and fan

and placed this on top of the processor and locked it into place using the lugs on

the ZIFF socket provided for this purpose. I made sure that the power supply

for the fan was in the CPU FAN pin-header. It is important to use this pin-

header for this purpose because when the machine powers up the BIOS will

look for a load on this circuit. If it doesn’t find it, it will assume the fan is not

connected and shut the PC down after a few seconds.

Next I installed the memory. This was a DIMM module, which I inserted into

the socket as shown below.

Next I set the jumpers on the hard drive to CSEL (cable select) and mounted in

the drive bay in the case using the four screws provided with the drive. I then

installed the floppy drive in its drive bay and the CD-Reader/Writer into its

drive bay after ensuring it was configured as a master drive. Then connected

the EIDE cable to the hard drive. Since the hard drive and the motherboard

support ULTRA-ATA I used an 80 conductor cable making sure the blue end of

the cable was plugged into the blue IDE pin-head connector (IDE 1) on the

47




motherboard and the opposite end, the black end into the drive, making sure that

the red-stripe on the cable was correctly aligned with pin 1. See below for

typical jumper settings.

As the CD-ROM device was a standard device I used a standard IDE cable to

connect it to IDE 2. Finally I connected the FDD to the motherboard using an

FDD cable. I then connected the power connectors to the drive units.

I then connected the 20-pin molex connector from the power supply to the

motherboard and as the motherboard was an ATX motherboard I connected the

soft-power connector to the motherboard.

Finally, I connected the connectors the LEDs and reset-button.

After showing what I had done to the instructor I closed the case. The instructor

then tested the PC using MICROSCOPE 2000 PC diagnostic software.


There were no problems. There were no soundcards or video cards to install as these

together with a LAN adapter and 4 USB ports were built into the motherboard. This

particular motherboard used an Accelerator Hub chip-set rather than the North

Bridge/South Bridge chipset so it did not have any ISA sockets only a limited number

(three) PCI shots in addition to an additional AGP socket.

48




.

Assessment Task 4

Outcomes(s)

Covered

4


49

Research Design and

Configure a PC for Peer-to-

Peer Networking





DH2W 35

ASSESSMENT 4


This test is open book


You are required:

To investigate the peer-to-peer networking capabilities of Windows

XP, including the essential differences between XP Professional and XP

Home Edition.

Investigate the advantages and disadvantages between NetBeui and

TCP/IP as a peer-to-peer networking protocol.

Configure and connect a PC to a test network and test it connectivity to other

computers in the network.

50




Report Into the Differences between

NetBEUI and TCP/IP

Presented by

X.X. Xxxxxxxxxx


51





A small charity was given a donation of money to purchase a small number of

computer systems to create a small peer-to-peer network. On the 18th May 2005, Mr

XXXX XXXX, Treasurer of the charity commissioned a report into the most

appropriate type of Networking Protocol for use of The Charity's peer-to-peer

network.

52




3. Network Protocols

A protocol is a set of rules. A computer networking protocol is a set of rules for

communicating across computer networks.

This report will consider two computer networking protocol NetBEUI and TCP/IP

3.1. TCP/IP Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) is the de facto standard

for Internetworking. Unlike the ISO OSI model it has four layers, but they map more

or less onto the eight-layer OSI model as shown In Figure 1.

Figure 1 also shows that TCP/IP is a much larger suite of protocols than the name

suggests there are in fact fourteen separate protocols shown in the Figure and there are

more. TCP operates in Transport layer of the model while IP operates at the

Internetworking layer .

IP is a routed protocol , which means that IP packets are transmitted across network

paths discovered by routing protocols such as the Routing Information Protocol

(RIP) or Open Shortest path First (OSPF), which are included in the diagram under

the generic heading of "Routing protocols".

TCP is a connection oriented protocol that supports error correction and guaranteed

delivery, the other transport protocol in the Host-to-Host layer User Datagram

Protocol (UDP) is connectionless and does not support error correction. As a result,

UDP is faster but less reliable. UDP can be used where the error correction

capabilities of TCP are not required, for example if the application using the services

of TCP/IP has its own error correction capability.Other protocols in the suite include Domain name Service (DNS), used to convert

54




first is when using the multiple IP method. In this case, all of the network cards

should have TCP/IP for Internet connectivity and NetBEUI for file and printer

sharing.

The other occasion is if the LAN has the protection of a separate network and a

firewall or proxy but it becomes necessary to open ports in the firewall or add TCP or

UDP mapping services to a proxy server. Under these circumstances, there will be

direct connections to the LAN for at least some data from the Internet. For example

opening ports TCP or UDP ports 137, 138, and 139 will allow access to a LAN's

computers from the Internet when using TCP/IP for File and Printer sharing. Under

these circumstances, NetBUEI can be a good option for File and Printer sharing.

3.2. The Key Differences

The key differences between TCP/IP and NetBEUI are:

IP is routable and NetBEUI is not

TCP/IP is a suite of networking protocols whereas NetBEUI is really an

extended API.

NetBEUI is less complex than TCP/IP in an environment that may be short in

computer networking expertise.

56




4. Conclusions

Given that the charity's LAN is not connected to the Internet and is a single segment

peer-to-peer network NetBEUI would represent a simple and relatively non-technical

solution to their networking needs.

57






PRO FORMA LOGBOOK





completion:

Task and Planning Title





59






PRO FORMA LOGBOOK





completion:

Task and Planning Title: To configure a peer-to-peer PC


To install a Realtek RTL 8139B PCI Fast Ethernet Network Interface Card

(NIC) into a PC

Connect the PC to a Fast Ethernet switch that is part of the peer-to-peer

network

To configure TCP/IP onto the network 192.168.1.0/24

Test the installation by testing the loop-back address and pinging another PC

on the network


Switch of the PC and disconnect it from the mains

Open the case and on a correctly grounded workbench

Connect the anti-static wrist strap to the PC chassis

Remove the NIC from its antistatic bag

Insert the NIC into a vacant PCI slot and screw it into place.

Disconnect the anti-static strap

Close the case Attach the NIC to the hub

Reconnect the PC to the mains and restart

Configure the TCP/IP properties of the NIC

Test it


Having disconnected the PC from the mains I put the PC on a properly

grounded work bench and removed the casing by removing the four screws on

the back of the PC and pulling the case backwards and upwards. Next I connected my anti-static wrist strap to a bare-metal part of the PC

60




chassis.

I opened the anti-static bag containing the NIC and laid it on the bag on the

bench within easy reach.

I unscrewed and removed one of the blanking plates adjacent to a vacant PCI

slot. This I replaced with the NIC, which I gently but firmly pressed into the

slot to ensure that it was correctly seated. I then screwed it into place I disconnected my wrist strap and replaced the case.

I used a straight-through CAT 5 drop-lead with RJ-45 connectors at either end

to connect the NIC in the PC to the switch and powered up the PC.

The computer was running Windows XP Professional so after logging in as the

Administrator I clicked Start | Setting | Network Connections and selected

Properties from the drop-down menu. This brought up the Local Area

Connection Properties dialogue box as shown.

I highlighted Internet Protocol TCP/IP and clicked the Properties button to bring

up the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Properties dialogue box.

As the peer-to-peer network was not connected to any other subnets, and did not

have DHCP or DNS Servers I had to configure a static IP address and a subnet

mask but not a default gateway or a Preferred DNS Server as shown

61




To test the installation, when I first connected the NIC to the hub and powered

up the machine I checked the NIC to make sure that both the ACT and LINK

lights were lit. Next I ran ipconfig at the command prompt to make sure I had configured the

IP address correctly. See below

Next I performed a loop back test by attempting to ping the IP address 127.0.0.1

as shown below.

Finally I attempted to ping another PC with IP address 192.168.1.201 as shown

below.


This exercise was simple and straightforward. Once the NIC was installed in the PC,

62




Windows XP Professional installed the Realtek 8139B NIC automatically using a

driver in its CAB file.

Building a PC - Sqa Exemplar

Documents

Transcript of Building a PC - Sqa Exemplar