Need help with motherboard front panel pin layout.

[some guy named dave]

Hello.



I recently purchased a new case, power supply and heatsink for a relatives computer as a start to upgrading it, and I'll be buying the rest of the parts next month. However, after trying to re-install the old Dell Vostro g45m03 motherboard, I got stuck. I'm trying to connect the case front panel connector to the motherboard. However, the 9 pin panel on the motherboard is only labeled "FRONT PANEL" - the pins aren't labeled or color coded.

So I began searching online for a motherboard manual, however it seems that dell doesn't release information like this. The connector from the old case is a single piece that includes the power switch, hdd led, power led and maybe others(?). But with the new case, the connectors are seperated into "POWER SW", "RESET SW", "POW LED+", "POW LED-", and "HDD LED" rather than 1 big connector.


I referred to this link to try and figure out the pin layout
http://www.intel.com/support/motherboards/desktop/sb/CS-009016.htm
However, it doesn't seem accurate. The machine just resets itself over and over again. How can I determine the proper layout? If I guess with trial and error, do I risk frying anything? (motherboard/psu/ram/cpu?)


There's 2 related threads on this site I've found with similar issues, though I don't think I understand the stuff in the topics or if it can help me here.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/269113-30-help-motherboard-front-panel-headers-universal
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/269043-30-dell-mobo-front-panel-connectors-scout


Any help would be greatly appreciated. It's important this machine is operational as my relative uses it for online banking and paying bills.

 

[i7Baby]

Trouble with Dell (and HP) is that they keep a lot of detailed info like this to themselves. In these cases you have to figure it out yourself.

Use the connector from the old case as a base. Trace wires so you know where they go. The you can label the dell motherboard pinouts and make your connections from the new case accordingly.

 

[geofelt]

pc's like dell often have a front panel harness with a single multipurpose plug to speed up assembly.

Look closely at the front panel header on the motherboard.
There may be text to identify the pins.
If not, start with the pwr switch.

Insert it into likely pairs of pins until the motherboard starts up.
PWR_SW is not polarity sensitive. No harm will come if you pick the wrong pairs.
No others are really that important.

The led pins for hdd and pwr are polarity sensitive. If you have them reversed, the led simply will not light.

 

[some guy named dave]

pc's like dell often have a front panel harness with a single multipurpose plug to speed up assembly.

Look closely at the front panel header on the motherboard.
There may be text to identify the pins.
If not, start with the pwr switch.

Insert it into likely pairs of pins until the motherboard starts up.
PWR_SW is not polarity sensitive. No harm will come if you pick the wrong pairs.
No others are really that important.

The led pins for hdd and pwr are polarity sensitive. If you have them reversed, the led simply will not light.

I just put the PWR_SW into pins 6-8 and also 5-6. I then plugged it in and switched the PSU on and it didn't auto start, so that's a good sign. So I hit the power button in the front of the machine and it powered on, however when I hit the power button in front again, it didn't turn itself off.

I then connected the monitor to see if anything was working but no display came up. The video card doesn't use a power connector, it uses the motherboard for power so that shouldn't be the problem.


What should I try now?

edit- also, I noticed the psu fan spins at first, stops then spins again while the cpu and case fans continue spinning after being powered up.
I've verified the following connectors are plugged in:
20+4 pin main
cpu power
sysfan 1 (case)

 

[geofelt]

To use the power button to turn off, you need to press and hold the button for about 5 seconds.
It sounds like you have that ok.
I don't ever use the reset button.
The led's are nice and worthwhile to figure out.
No damage will come if connected to the wrong places.
You do get an interesting result if you happen to plug a led pair into the reset pins.

The start/stop might be the motherboard trying to find an appropriate ram setting.

 

[Psicogod]

Hi there, i have the same problem as dave as.
Any help would be appreciated.
Plus is it safe to use the intel motherboard pin layout to connect the case front panel?

 

[schuck6566]

Hi there, i have the same problem as dave as.
Any help would be appreciated.
Plus is it safe to use the intel motherboard pin layout to connect the case front panel?

http://prntscr.com/a7k138 <--- Here's a diagram of the panel and pins with each set of funtions as they're supposed to work.It's how the Vostro 220 board I'm using is wired up in a third party case and it seems to be working.I KNOW the power switch is right and 1 of the led's. lol. U also may have to use jumpers on usb 1 & 2 or wire and audio cablr may or may not report an error.(Dell grounds a pin the rest dont) http://www.ihatedell.net/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=14822 <--- Has instructions for getting around/dealing with the grounding issue. [url=http://www.ihatedell.net/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=14822]http://[/url]