Front switch connectors

[Guest]

Hello,
from the front panel...i see 4 things out of which 3 could be connected to the front panel in motherboard....i remains odd.. there isn't even slot to connect it!!

 

[moody89]

You'll need to check your motherboard manual for this information. It should tell you clearly in there. If you don't have it post your motherboard model number and manufacturer and it may be available online.

Since its a switch it won't matter which way around you connect it into the motherboard, as long as its in the right place. Things like a power LED however need to be connected the correct way around too.

 

[Paperdoc]

Read the manuals of both your case and the motherboard, and read the labels on the connectors on the ends of the cables. At minimum, most cases have cables and connections from the front panel for:
the on / off push button
the reset button
the HDD activity LED
a power-on indicator LED
possibly a case speaker

Some also will have cables with connectors for things like USB ports, Firewire ports, or audio I/O ports.

Most of these will connect to one pinout connector on the mobo, but very often the connectors on the cable ends really are just single-pin connectors so you can fit them onto the exact pins on the mobo no matter where they are. For the two pushbutton switches the polarity does not matter. For the two LED leads the polarity DOES matter, but if you connect one backwards, it simply will never light up and will not be damaged, so you can reverse the connection to fix it.

WARNING: if you have USB or Firewire front sockets that connect to the mobo by a cable with a "10 - 1" connector (2 rows of 5 holes, with one hole blanked off), BOTH connectors and cables look the same. BUT you must NOT connect a USB port to a Firewire mobo pinout, or the other way around, even though they fit. Doing that could damage your mobo or the external device permanently. So, READ the label carefully and make sure to connect to the right place on your mobo.

 

[jsc]

For the two LED leads the polarity DOES matter, but if you connect one backwards, it simply will never light up and will not be damaged, so you can reverse the connection to fix it.

The LED wiring is generally a colored wire and a white wire for each. The colored wire goes to the "+" labeled pin.

WARNING: if you have USB or Firewire front sockets or an RS-232 connector that connect to the mobo by a cable with a "10 - 1" connector (2 rows of 5 holes, with one hole blanked off), [strike]BOTH[/strike] all connectors and cables look the same. BUT you must NOT connect a USB port to a Firewire mobo pinout, or serial port, or the other way around, even though they fit. Doing that could damage your mobo or the external device permanently. So, READ the label carefully and make sure to connect to the right place on your mobo.

 

[Paperdoc]

jsc, thanks for the improvements.