V. Appendix

Peripherals

Peripherals are components on the outside of the computer such as a moni- tor, printer, keyboard, or mouse. Peripherals are attached to the computer via I/O ports. Peripheral devices allow your computer to perform an almost limitless variety of specialized tasks.

POST (Power On Self Test)

When you turn on the computer, it will first run through the POST, a series of software-controlled diagnostic tests. The POST checks system memory, the motherboard circuitry, the display, the keyboard, the diskette drive, CPU, and other I/O devices.

PS/2 Port

PS/2 ports are based on IBM’s Micro Channel Architecture. This type of architecture transfers data through a 16-bit or 32-bit bus. A PS/2 mouse and/ or keyboard may be used on ATX motherboards.

RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks)

RAID can be set up to provide mirroring (for fault tolerance), parity (for data guarding), or striping (for data distribution over several drives for increased performance). A RAID card is required to setup a RAID system.

RAM (Random Access Memory)

There are several different types of RAM such as DRAM (Dynamic RAM), EDO DRAM (Extended Data Out DRAM), SDRAM (Synchronous DRAM).

ROM (Read Only Memory)

ROM is nonvolatile memory used to store permanent programs (called firm- ware) used in certain computer components. Flash ROM (or EEPROM) can be reprogrammed with new programs (or BIOS).

SCSI (Small Computer System Interface)

High speed parallel interface defined by the X3T9.2 committee of the Ameri- can National Standards Institute (ANSI) for connecting many peripheral devices.

UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply)

A battery system that can provide power to an electronic device or computer when power fails in the building. A passive UPS only provides power. An active UPS provides power conditioning that offers protection against transient power conditions and short-term power outages.

Appendix

Glossary

V.

 

 

 

AP3000 Hardware Reference Guide

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