Computer Shopper - UK (2019-12)

ISSUE 382|COMPUTER SHOPPER|DECEMBER 2019 9393

needabit of bruteforce to getiti n. Starting
from inside thecase, line up the shield with
the hole and then giveafirm push on the
sides so thatyoudon’t bend the metal.
Youshould hearaclick when the shield goes
in, but it’sworth pushing all around the
edgesto makesureit’sina ll the way. 1

FITTHEMOTHERBOARD

STANDOFFS

Your motherboardcan’t just be dropped into
the case. Instead, it sits on standoffs, which

keep the motherboard

raised so that its solder

joints don’ttouch the metal

case andcause ashort.

Theytakearetaining screw

to hold your motherboard

firmly in place.

Modern cases will

oftenhavepre-fitted

standoffs, soyoucan skip

this part if that’sthe case.

If youhaveanolder case or

acheaper one,you’ll need

to fix the standoffs into

place.Look in the bagof

accessories thatcame with

your case; you’relookingfortall screws

that haveahex head.

To work out whereyou should put the

standoffs, gently loweryour motherboard

into position and makeanoteofwhere

the screw holes are. These arethe places

wherethe standoffs needto be fitted, so

remove the motherboardand placeit

back on the anti-static bag.

Now, youcan screw the standoffs into

place.To do this, useyour fingersto screw

the standoffs into the places thatyounoted

earlier.Just tightenthem by hand until they

feel secure. 2

does,carefully line up the CPU’spins with
the socket’s holes and then gently lowerthe
CPU into place. It should drop down, but a
gentle push ontoptomakesurethat it’s
seated doesn’t go amiss.
Nowpull down the processor handle and
click it into place. Thisrequiresafair amount
of pressure: if itfeels as thoughyouhaveto
use toomuch force, then stop and check
that the CPU iscorrectly inserted. 3

INSTALLANM.2SSD

An M.2 SSD isagreat waytosaveonspace
in your PC, usingasingle memory stick-like
devic ethat plugs into aslotdirectly onyour
computer.Thereare twotypes of M.2 SSDs:
SATA or thefaster NVMe.Youneed to install
the SSD in the righttype of M.2 slot.
If your motherboardhas asingle M.2 slot,
it will usually supportSATA and NVMedrives;

amotherboardwith twoslots willoften

haveone (typically,the one on therear of

the board) that only supports NVMedrives.

If your motherboarddoes havetwo

slots, tryto use therear one if possible,

as that givesyouthe optionto add a

second M.2 driveinthe futurewithout

havingto dismantleyour PC.

M.2 SSDscome in differentlengths, so

motherboards haveadjustableretaining

standoffs. Line upyour SSD with the M.2

slotand note down which hole in the

motherboardthe screw hole in the SSD

lines up with.Depending onyour board,you

caneither unscrew the standoff from a

differenthole, screw it back in the right

place, oryoucan find the standoffs in the

motherboard’sbag of accessories.

With the standoff in the rightposition,

line up the M.2 SSD ataslightangle with the

M.2 slotand push it gently into placeuntil the

connector disappears into the slot. Ifyoulet

go of the SSD,itwill stick up ataslightangle.

Gently push the endof the SSD down and

then putaretaining screw into the standoff,

carefully tightening the screw by hand.

TOPTIP

The rear I/O shield can

be fiddlytof it, so make

sure thatit’s clippedin all

the wayby pressing hard around

the

edges until it’s level.

TOPTIP

Processors and their

sockets are very

delicate, and bending

apin i s typicallyfatal. To avoid

problems, be gentle, and carefully

line up yourCPUwith the socket.

If you feel anyresistance, star

tover

againto avoid anydamage.

2 3

2

BUILDYOURDREAMPCFROMSCRATCH