A55M-VS User Manual Version 1.1 Published May 2013 Copyright©2013 ASRock INC. All rights reserved.
Copyright Notice: No part of this manual may be reproduced, transcribed, transmitted, or translated in any language, in any form or by any means, except duplication of documentation by the purchaser for backup purpose, without written consent of ASRock Inc. Products and corporate names appearing in this manual may or may not be registered trademarks or copyrights of their respective companies, and are used only for identification or explanation and to the owners’ benefit, without intent to infringe.
Contents 1. Introduction.................................................................. 5 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Package Contents...................................................................... Specifications.............................................................................. Motherboard Layout ................................................................. I/O Panel . ................................................................................. 5 6 11 12 2. Installation.
3. UEFI SETUP UTILITY.......................................................... 35 3.1 Introduction................................................................................. 35 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.1.1 UEFI Menu Bar................................................................. 3.1.2 Navigation Keys................................................................ Main Screen.............................................................
1. Introduction Thank you for purchasing ASRock A55M-VS motherboard, a reliable motherboard produced under ASRock’s consistently stringent quality control. It delivers excellent performance with robust design conforming to ASRock’s commitment to quality and endurance. In this manual, chapter 1 and 2 contain introduction of the motherboard and stepby-step guide to the hardware installation. Chapter 3 and 4 contain the configuration guide to BIOS setup and information of the Support CD.
1.2 Specifications Platform - Micro ATX Form Factor: 8.8-in x 6.8-in, 22.4 cm x 17.3 cm - Solid Capacitor for CPU power - Support for Socket FM1 100W processors - Supports AMD’s Cool ‘n’ QuietTM Technology - UMI-Link GEN2 - AMD A55 FCH (Hudson-D2) - Dual Channel DDR3 Memory Technology (see CAUTION 1) - 2 x DDR3 DIMM slots - Support DDR3 2400+(OC)/1866/1600/1333/ 1066/800 non-ECC, un-buffered memory (see CAUTION 2) - Max. capacity of system memory: 16GB (see CAUTION 3) - 1 x PCI Express 2.
- 1 x CIR header - 1 x Print port header - 1 x COM port header - CPU/Chassis/Power FAN connector - 24 pin ATX power connector - 4 pin 12V power connector - Front panel audio connector - 2 x USB 2.0 headers (support 4 USB 2.0 ports) - 32Mb AMI UEFI Legal BIOS with GUI support - Supports “Plug and Play” - ACPI 1.1 Compliance Wake Up Events - Supports jumperfree - SMBIOS 2.3.
WARNING Please realize that there is a certain risk involved with overclocking, including adjusting the setting in the BIOS, applying Untied Overclocking Technology, or using the third-party overclocking tools. Overclocking may affect your system stability, or even cause damage to the components and devices of your system. It should be done at your own risk and expense. We are not responsible for possible damage caused by overclocking. CAUTION! 1. This motherboard supports Dual Channel Memory Technology.
7. If you desire a faster, less restricted way of charging your Apple devices, such as iPhone/iPod/iPad Touch, ASRock has prepared a wonderful solution for you - ASRock APP Charger. Simply installing the APP Charger driver, it makes your iPhone charged much quickly from your computer and up to 40% faster than before.
13. EuP, stands for Energy Using Product, was a provision regulated by European Union to define the power consumption for the completed system. According to EuP, the total AC power of the completed system shall be under 1.00W in off mode condition. To meet EuP standard, an EuP ready motherboard and an EuP ready power supply are required. According to Intel’s suggestion, the EuP ready power supply must meet the standard of 5v standby power efficiency is higher than 50% under 100 mA current consumption.
1.
1.4 I/O Panel 1 * 2 3 ** 4 5 PS/2 Mouse Port (Green) LAN RJ-45 Port Line In (Light Blue) Front Speaker (Lime) Microphone (Pink) 6 7 8 9 USB 2.0 Ports (USB01) USB 2.0 Ports (USB23) VGA Port PS/2 Keyboard Port (Purple) * There are two LED next to the LAN port. Please refer to the table below for the LAN port LED indications.
2. Installation This is a Micro ATX form factor (8.8-in x 6.8-in, 22.4 cm x 17.3 cm) motherboard. Before you install the motherboard, study the configuration of your chassis to ensure that the motherboard fits into it. Pre-installation Precautions Take note of the following precautions before you install motherboard components or change any motherboard settings. Before you install or remove any component, ensure that the power is switched off or the power cord is detached from the power supply.
2.1 CPU Installation o Step 1. Unlock the socket by lifting the lever up to a 90 angle. Step 2. Position the CPU directly above the socket such that the CPU corner with the golden triangle matches the socket corner with a small triangle. Step 3. Carefully insert the CPU into the socket until it fits in place. The CPU fits only in one correct orientation. DO NOT force the CPU into the socket to avoid bending of the pins. Step 4.
2.3 Installation of Memory Modules (DIMM) This motherboard provides two 240-pin DDR3 (Double Data Rate 3) DIMM slots, and supports Dual Channel Memory Technology. For dual channel configuration, you always need to install two identical (the same brand, speed, size and chiptype) memory modules in the DDR3 DIMM slots to activate Dual Channel Memory Technology. Otherwise, it will operate at single channel mode. 1. 2.
2.4 Expansion Slots (PCI and PCI Express Slots) There is 1 PCI slot and 1 PCI Express slot on this motherboard. PCI Slot: PCI slot is used to install expansion cards that have the 32-bit PCI interface. PCIE Slot: PCIE1 (PCIE x16 slot; Black) is used for PCI Express x16 lane width graphics cards. Installing an expansion card Step 1. Step 2. Step 3. Step 4. Step 5. Step 6.
2.5 AMD Dual Graphics Operation Guide This motherboard supports AMD Dual Graphics feature. AMD Dual Graphics brings multi-GPU performance capabilities by enabling an AMD A55 FCH (Hudson-D2) integrated graphics processor and a discrete graphics processor to operate simultaneously with combined output to a single display for blisteringly-fast frame rates. Currently, AMD Dual Graphics Technology is only supported with Windows® 7 OS, and is not available with Windows® VistaTM / XP OS.
Step 7. You can also click “AMD VISION Engine Control Center” on your Windows® taskbar to enter AMD VISION Engine Control Center. AMD VISION Engine Control Center Step 8. In AMD VISION Engine Control Center, please choose “Performance”. Click “AMD CrossFireTM”. Step 9. Click “Enable CrossFireTM” and click “Apply“ to save your change. Step 10. Reboot your system. Then you can freely enjoy the benefit of Dual Graphics feature.
2.6 Multi Monitor Feature This motherboard supports multi monitor upgrade. With the internal VGA output support and external add-on PCI Express VGA cards, you can easily enjoy the benefits of surround display feature. Please refer to the following steps to set up a surround display environment: 1. Install the PCI Express VGA cards on PCIE1 slot. Please refer to page 16 for proper expansion card installation procedures for details. 2. Connect D-Sub monitor cable to VGA port on the I/O panel.
E. Right-click the display icon and select “Attached”, if necessary. F. Set the “Screen Resolution” and “Color Quality” as appropriate for the second monitor. Click “Apply” or “OK” to apply these new values. G. Repeat steps C through E for the diaplay icon identified by the number one to three.
2.7 ASRock Smart Remote Installation Guide ASRock Smart Remote is only used for ASRock motherboard with CIR header. Please refer to below procedures for the quick installation and usage of ASRock Smart Remote. Step1. Find the CIR header located next to the USB 2.0 header on ASRock motherboard. USB 2.0 header (9-pin, black) CIR header (4-pin, gray) Step2. Connect the front USB cable to the USB 2.0 header (as below, pin 1-5) and the CIR header.
3 CIR sensors in different angles 1. 2. 3. Only one of the front USB port can support CIR function. When the CIR function is enabled, the other port will remain USB function. Multi-Angle CIR Receiver is used for front USB only. Please do not use the rear USB bracket to connect it on the rear panel. Multi-Angle CIR Receiver can receive the multi-direction infrared signals (top, down and front), which is compatible with most of the chassis on the market.
2.8 Jumpers Setup The illustration shows how jumpers are setup. When the jumper cap is placed on pins, the jumper is “Short”. If no jumper cap is placed on pins, the jumper is “Open”. The illustration shows a 3-pin jumper whose pin1 and pin2 are “Short” when jumper cap is placed on these 2 pins. Jumper Setting Clear CMOS Jumper Description (CLRCMOS1) (see p.11, No. 26) Default Clear CMOS Note: CLRCMOS1 allows you to clear the data in CMOS.
2.9 Onboard Headers and Connectors Onboard headers and connectors are NOT jumpers. Do NOT place jumper caps over these headers and connectors. Placing jumper caps over the headers and connectors will cause permanent damage of the motherboard! Serial ATA2 Connectors (SATA_1: see p.11, No. 12) (SATA_2: see p.11, No. 13) (SATA_3: see p.11, No. 11) (SATA_4: see p.11, No. 10) SATA_4 SATA_3 SATA_1 These four Serial ATA2 (SATA2) connectors support SATA data cables for internal storage devices.
Infrared Module Header (5-pin IR1) This header supports an optional wireless transmitting (see p.11 No. 16) and receiving infrared module. Consumer Infrared Module Header (4-pin CIR1) (see p.11 No. 19) This header can be used to connect the remote controller receiver. Front Panel Audio Header (9-pin HD_AUDIO1) (see p.11 No. 25) This is an interface for the front panel audio cable that allows convenient connection and control of audio devices.
PWRBTN (Power Switch): Connect to the power switch on the chassis front panel. You may con- figure the way to turn off your system using the power switch. RESET (Reset Switch): Connect to the reset switch on the chassis front panel. Press the reset switch to restart the computer if the computer freezes and fails to perform a normal restart. PLED (System Power LED): Connect to the power status indicator on the chassis front panel. The LED is on when the system is operating.
ATX Power Connector (24-pin ATXPWR1) 12 24 1 13 Please connect an ATX power supply to this connector. (see p.11 No. 7) Though this motherboard provides 24-pin ATX power connector, it can still work if you adopt a traditional 20-pin ATX power supply. To use the 20-pin ATX power supply, please plug your power supply along with Pin 1 and Pin 13.
2.10 Serial ATA (SATA) / Serial ATAII (SATAII) Hard Disks Installation This motherboard adopts AMD A55 FCH (Hudson-D2) chipset that supports Serial ATA (SATA) / Serial ATAII (SATAII) hard disks and RAID (RAID 0, RAID 1 and RAID 10) functions. You may install SATA / SATAII hard disks on this motherboard for internal storage devices. This section will guide you to install the SATA / SATAII hard disks. STEP 1: Install the SATA / SATAII hard disks into the drive bays of your chassis.
2.12 SATA / SATAII HDD Hot Plug Feature and Operation Guide This motherboard supports Hot Plug feature for SATA / SATAII HDD in RAID / AHCI mode. Please read below operation guide of Hot Plug feature carefully. Before you process the SATA / SATAII HDD Hot Plug, please check below cable accessories from the motherboard gift box pack. A. 7-pin SATA data cable B. SATA power cable with SATA 15-pin power connector interface A. SATA data cable (Red) SATA 7-pin connector B.
How to Hot Plug a SATA / SATAII HDD: Points of attention, before you process the Hot Plug: Please do follow below instruction sequence to process the Hot Plug, improper procedure will cause the SATA / SATAII HDD damage and data loss. Step 1 Please connect SATA power cable 1x4-pin end Step 2 (White) to the power supply 1x4-pin cable. Connect SATA data cable to the motherboard’s SATAII connector.
2.13 Driver Installation Guide To install the drivers to your system, please insert the support CD to your optical drive first. Then, the drivers compatible to your system can be auto-detected and listed on the support CD driver page. Please follow the order from up to bottom side to install those required drivers. Therefore, the drivers you install can work properly. 2.
STEP 3: Use “RAID Installation Guide” to set RAID configuration. Before you start to configure RAID function, you need to check the RAID installation guide in the Support CD for proper configuration. Please refer to the BIOS RAID installation guide part of the document in the following path in the Support CD: .. \ RAID Installation Guide STEP 4: Install Windows® XP / XP 64-bit OS on your system. After step 1, 2, 3, you can start to install Windows® XP / XP 64-bit OS on your system.
When you see “Where do you want to install Windows?” page, please insert the USB flash to your system, and click the “Load Driver” button to load the RAID drivers. After that, you can continue the OS installation. 2.
2.15.2 Installing Windows® 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit Without RAID Functions If you want to install Windows® 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit on your SATA / SATAII HDDs without RAID functions, please follow below steps. Using SATA / SATAII HDDs with NCQ and Hot Plug functions (AHCI mode) STEP 1: Set up UEFI. A. Enter UEFI SETUP UTILITY Advanced screen Storage Configuration. B. Set the “SATA Mode” option to [AHCI].
3. UEFI SETUP UTILITY 3.1 Introduction This section explains how to use the UEFI SETUP UTILITY to configure your system. The UEFI chip on the motherboard stores the UEFI SETUP UTILITY. You may run the UEFI SETUP UTILITY when you start up the computer. Please press or during the Power-On-Self-Test (POST) to enter the UEFI SETUP UTILITY, otherwise, POST will continue with its test routines.
3.1.2 Navigation Keys Please check the following table for the function description of each navigation key.
3.3 OC Tweaker Screen In the OC Tweaker screen, you can set up overclocking features. EZ OC Mode You can use this option to load EZ overclocking setting. Please note that overclocing may cause damage to your components and motherboard. It should be done at your own risk and expense. CPU Configuration Overclock Mode Use this to select Overclock Mode. Configuration options: [Auto] and [Manual]. The default value is [Auto]. Spread Spectrum This item should always be [Auto] for better system stability.
CPU Voltage It allows you to adjust the value of CPU voltage. However, for safety and system stability, it is not recommended to adjust the value of this item. GFX Engine Clock Use this to adjust graphics engine clock. The default value is [Auto]. DRAM Configuration DRAM Frequency If [Auto] is selected, the motherboard will detect the memory module(s) inserted and assigns appropriate frequency automatically.
Row Precharge Time (tRP) Use this item to change Row Precharge Time (tRP) Auto/Manual setting. The default is [Auto]. RAS# Active Time (tRAS) Use this item to change RAS# Active Time (tRAS) Auto/Manual setting. The default is [Auto]. Command Rate (CR) Use this item to change Command Rate (CR) Auto/Manual setting. Min: 1T. Max: 2T. The default is [Auto]. RAS# Cycle Time (tRC) Use this item to change RAS# Cycle Time (tRC) Auto/Manual setting. The default is [Auto].
Would you like to save current setting user defaults? In this option, you are allowed to load and save three user defaults according to your own requirements. 3.4 Advanced Screen In this section, you may set the configurations for the following items: CPU Configuration, Nouth Bridge Configuration, South Bridge Configuration, Storage Configuration, Super IO Configuration, ACPI Configuration, and USB Configuration. Setting wrong values in this section may cause the system to malfunction.
3.4.1 CPU Configuration Core C6 Mode Use this item to enable or disable Core C6 mode. The default value is [Enabled]. Cstate Pmin Mode Use this item to enable or disable Cstate Pmin mode. The default value is [Disabled]. Cool ‘n’ Quiet Use this item to enable or disable AMD’s Cool ‘n’ QuietTM technology. The default value is [Enabled]. Configuration options: [Enabled] and [Disabled].
3.4.2 North Bridge Configuration Primary Graphics Adapter This item will switch the PCI Bus scanning order while searching for video card. It allows you to select the type of Primary VGA in case of multiple video controllers. The default value of this feature is [PCI Express]. Configuration options: [Onboard], [PCI] and [PCI Express]. Share Memory This allows you to set the share memory feature. The default value is [Auto].
3.4.3 South Bridge Configuration Onboard HD Audio Select [Auto], [Enabled] or [Disabled] for the onboard HD Audio feature. If you select [Auto], the onboard HD Audio will be disabled when PCI Sound Card is plugged. Front Panel Select [Auto] or [Disabled] for the onboard HD Audio Front Panel. Onboard LAN This allows you to enable or disable the onboard LAN feature. Good Night LED Enable this option to turn off Power LED when the system is power on.
3.4.4 Storage Configuration SATA Controller Use this item to enable or disable the “SATA Controller” feature. SATA Mode Use this item to adjust SATA Mode. The default value of this option is [AHCI Mode]. Configuration options: [AHCI Mode], [RAID Mode] and [IDE Mode]. Hard Disk S.M.A.R.T. Use this item to enable or disable the S.M.A.R.T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) feature. Configuration options: [Disabled], [Auto], [Enabled].
3.4.5 Super IO Configuration Serial Port Use this item to enable or disable the onboard serial port. Serial Port Address Use this item to set the address for the onboard serial port. Configuration options: [3F8 / IRQ4] and [3E8 / IRQ4]. Infrared Port Use this item to enable or disable the onboard infrared port. Infrared Port Address Use this item to set the address for the onboard infrared port. Confi guration options: [2F8 / IRQ3] and [2E8 / IRQ3].
3.4.6 ACPI Configuration Suspend to RAM Use this item to select whether to auto-detect or disable the Suspend-toRAM feature. Select [Auto] will enable this feature if the OS supports it. Check Ready Bit Use this item to enable or disable the feature Check Ready Bit. Restore on AC/Power Loss This allows you to set the power state after an unexpected AC/power loss. If [Power Off] is selected, the AC/power remains off when the power recovers.
ACPI HPET table Use this item to enable or disable ACPI HPET Table. The default value is [Enabled]. Please set this option to [Enabled] if you plan to use this motherboard to submit Windows® VistaTM certification.
3.4.7 USB Configuration USB 2.0 Controller Use this item to enable or disable the use of USB 2.0 controller. Legacy USB Support Use this option to select legacy support for USB devices. There are four confi guration options: [Enabled], [Auto], [Disabled] and [UEFI Setup Only]. The default value is [Enabled]. Please refer to below descriptions for the details of these four options: [Enabled] - Enables support for legacy USB. [Auto] - Enables legacy support if USB devices are connected.
3.5 Hardware Health Event Monitoring Screen In this section, it allows you to monitor the status of the hardware on your system, including the parameters of the CPU temperature, motherboard temperature, CPU fan speed, chassis fan speed, and the critical voltage. CPU Fan 1 Setting This allows you to set the CPU fan 1 speed. Confi guration options: [Full On] and [Automatic Mode]. The default is value [Full On]. Chassis Fan 1 Setting This allows you to set the chassis fan 1 speed.
3.6 Boot Screen In this section, it will display the available devices on your system for you to configure the boot settings and the boot priority. Setup Prompt Timeout This shows the number of seconds to wait for setup activation key. 65535(0xFFFF) means indefi nite waiting. Bootup Num-Lock If this item is set to [On], it will automatically activate the Numeric Lock function after boot-up.
3.7 Security Screen In this section, you may set or change the supervisor/user password for the system. For the user password, you may also clear it.
3.8 Exit Screen Save Changes and Exit When you select this option, it will pop-out the following message, “Save configuration changes and exit setup?” Select [OK] to save the changes and exit the UEFI SETUP UTILITY. Discard Changes and Exit When you select this option, it will pop-out the following message, “Discard changes and exit setup?” Select [OK] to exit the UEFI SETUP UTILITY without saving any changes.
4. Software Support 4.1 Install Operating System This motherboard supports various Microsoft® Windows® operating systems: 7 / 7 64-bit / VistaTM / VistaTM 64-bit / XP SP3 / XP 64-bit. Because motherboard settings and hardware options vary, use the setup procedures in this chapter for general reference only. Refer to your OS documentation for more information. 4.
Installing OS on a HDD Larger Than 2TB in AHCI Mode This motherboard is adopting UEFI BIOS that allows Windows® OS to be installed on a large size HDD (>2TB). Please follow below procedure to install the operating system. 1. Please make sure to use Windows® VistaTM 64-bit (with SP1 or above) or Windows® 7 64-bit. 2. Press or at system POST. Set AHCI Mode in UEFI Setup Utility > Advanced > Storage Configuration > SATA Mode. 3.
Installing OS on a HDD Larger Than 2TB in RAID Mode This motherboard is adopting UEFI BIOS that allows Windows® OS to be installed on a large size HDD (>2TB). Please follow below procedure to install the operating system. 1. Please make sure to use Windows® VistaTM 64-bit (with SP1 or above) or Windows® 7 64-bit. 2. Press or at system POST. Set RAID Mode in UEFI Setup Utility > Advanced > Storage Configuration > SATA Mode. 3. Choose onboard RAID 3TB+ unlocker > UEFI Mode For GPT partition.
7. And then key in drvcfg –s [Drv number] [Ctrl number] to enter Raid Utility. For example: key in drvcfg –s 4E B5. 8. Choose Logical Drive Main Menu to set up Raid Drive. 9. Choose Logical Drive Create Menu to create a Raid Drive. 10. Choose Usable Physical Drive List to select Raid HDD.
11. Press Space on keyboard to toggle checkbox. 12. Choose Ld Size setting, and key in the Raid size. 13. After set up Raid size, please click Start to Create. 14. Press to exit Utility. 15. During reboot, please press to enter Boot Manual. Choose UEFI: SCSI CD/DVD Drive. * This option only shows on Windows® 7 64-bit and VistaTM 64-bit OS.
16. Follow Windows® Installation Guide to install OS. If you install Windows® 7 64-bit / VistaTM 64-bit in a large hard disk (ex. Disk volume > 2TB), it may take more time to boot into Windows® or install driver/ utilities. If you encounter this problem, you will need to following instructions to fix this problem. Windows® VistaTM 64-bit: Microsoft ® does not provide hotfix for this problem. Below steps are Microsoft® suggested solution: A. Disable System Restore. a.
B. Disable “Volume Shadow Copy” service. a. Type “computer management” in the Start Menu, then press “Enter”. b. Go to “Services and Applications>Services”; Then double click “Volume Shadow Copy”. c. Set “Startup type” to “Disable” then Click “OK”.
C. Reboot your system. D. After reboot, please start to install motherboard drivers and utilities. Windows® 7 64-bit: A. Please request the hotfix KB2505454 thru this link: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2505454/ B. After installing Windows® 7 64-bit, install the hotfix kb2505454. (This may take long time; >30 mins.) C. Reboot your system. (It may take about 5 mins to boot.) D. The Windows® will install this hotfix then reboot by itself. E. Please start to install motherboard drivers and utilities. 17.
