Contents
For technical support, contact your place of purchase which will have the most current information about your specific product or configuration. For general product information see the Intel® Desktop Board site.

• Technical FAQ
• Marketing FAQ

• What processor does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support?
• What features does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW include?
• What happens if I plug in an unsupported Intel processor into the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
• What does Universal mean?
• How do I install and secure a processor on the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
• What new features are incorporated into the Intel® 815EG chipset?
• How many expansion slots does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW have?
• Does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support STR (Suspend to RAM)?

• What memory configurations are supported on the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
• What kind of problems might occur in an SDRAM-based system that uses non-compliant DIMMs?
• I get a repeating beep error code and my Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW does not boot or show any video. What does this mean?
• Are there specific requirements for using 133 MHz SDRAM memory?
• What is PC133 and when can it be used?

• Do I need a special power supply to support Instantly Available PC (Suspend-to-RAM)? How much standby current does the power supply need to support it?

• How should the configuration jumper be set on Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
• How should the PS/2 and USB Wake Configuration Jumpers be set?
• How should the PS/2 Wake Configuration jumper be set?
• How should the USB Wake Configuration jumpers be set?
• Why can't I find processor speed settings in my BIOS configuration mode?

• How can the integrated video be disabled?
• How can I make a PCI add-in video adapter the primary display adapter?

• How can the on-board audio be disabled?
• If audio is disabled, does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW consume fewer interrupts?

• Does Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support Ultra ATA/100/66 hard drives?
• What is Intel® Application Accelerator?
• Should I use Intel® Storage Drivers or Intel Application Accelerator?
• Should I upgrade from ISD to IAA?
• What is the performance difference (IAA and ISD)?
• Will IAA improve my SCSI performance?
• Is IAA compatible with Intel® Active Monitor (IAM)?
• Can I mix Ultra ATA devices with other devices on the same IDE channel?
• What IDE cable should I use to support both Ultra ATA/100 and previous IDE transfer protocols?
• What type of battery is used in Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
• Why doesn't my Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW system power up?
• Why are the drivers on Intel's public Web site earlier revisions of those available on some vendor public Web sites?
• Does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support two serial ports?
• Why isn't my IDE device displayed during power-up POST?
• Can I use a second floppy on my Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?

Marketing Questions

• What is Flip Chip Pin Grid Array (FC-PGA)?

• Does Intel qualify memory for use on Intel® Desktop Boards?

• What is Instantly Available PC?
• What is a wake device?

• What audio solution is available on Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
• What is AC97 and what does it do?
• Is the SoundMAX* audio solution SoundBlaster* Live!* compatible?
• How can I get more than the integrated 2-channel audio?

Technical FAQ

General Questions:

• What processor does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support?
  The Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW supports the Intel® Pentium® III processors with 100/133-MHz system bus and Intel Celeron® processors with 66/100-MHz system bus in the Flip-Chip Pin-Grid Array (FC-PGA and FC-PGA2). Refer to the Processor Support Table for details.

• What features does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW include?
  Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW supports:
  • Intel Pentium III processors with 100/133-MHz bus speeds and Intel Celeron processors with 66/100-MHz system bus in the Flip Chip Pin Grid Array (FC-PGA and FC-PGA2)
  • Four PCI slots
  • Two USB ports out the back panel
  • Instantly Available PC (Suspend-to-RAM)
  • Intel® Rapid BIOS Boot
  • Integrated AC'97 with the AD1885 audio codec

• What happens if I plug in an unsupported Intel processor into the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
  If you plug in an unsupported Intel processor the below message will appear:'The installed processor is not compatible with this Intel® Desktop Board.
  Please power down the system NOW
  System halted.
  For specific processors supported see the Processor Support Table for details.

• What does Universal mean?
  "Universal" refers to Intel® Desktop Boards with enhanced support for Intel Pentium III and Intel Celeron processors in the FC-PGA2 370-pin package.

• How do I install and secure a processor on the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
  The processor connects to the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW through the 370-pin FC-PGA and FC-PGA2 socket connector. This Zero Insertion Force (ZIF) connector does not require any additional hardware to integrate the processor. Refer to processor integration documentation for instructions for proper installation of the Intel® processor and thermal solution.

• What new features are incorporated into the Intel® 815EG chipset?
  The Intel 815EG chipset contains two components: the Intel 82815EG Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH) and the 82801BA I/O Controller Hub 2 (ICH2). The GMCH integrates a processor system bus of 66, 100, 133 MHz, and a system bus controller, with integrated 2D/3D graphics accelerator, along with a 100/133 MHz SDRAM controller. The ICH2 integrates an Ultra ATA 66/100 controller, two USB host controllers with an LPC interface controller, FWH interface controller, PCI interface controller, AC'97 digital link, integrated LAN controller, and a hub interface for communication with the GMCH.

• How many expansion slots does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW have?
  The Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW has four dedicated PCI connectors. All PCI slots support bus-mastering devices.

• Does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support STR (Suspend to RAM)?
  The Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW supports STR but the Operating System, add-in cards and their drivers and the applications being used must also support STR. Operating Systems, add-in cards and applications that do not support STR can cause problems when coming out of different sleep states.

• What memory configurations are supported on the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
  The Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW has slots for two 168-pin unbuffered Dual Inline Memory Modules (DIMMs). The Desktop Board D815EGEW can support a minimum system memory configuration of 32 MB and a maximum system memory configuration of 512 MB. A minimum of 64 MB of system memory is recommended. The Desktop Board D815EGEW supports DIMM sizes of 32 MB, 64 MB or 128 MB with 64-Mbit device technology and 256-MB DIMMs built with 128-Mbit or 256-Mbit device technology.

• What kind of problems might occur in an SDRAM-based system that uses non-compliant DIMMs?
  The most extreme example is memory failure, when the system hangs while booting. This can happen when the system is unable to communicate properly with the memory. In less extreme cases, the memory may generate intermittent errors or fail during stress.

• I get a repeating beep error code and my Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW does not boot or show any video. What does this mean?
  This beep code may indicate a problem during detection of SDRAM memory devices. Check to ensure that system memory is properly installed and that the DIMMs are on the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW tested-memory list.

• Are there specific requirements for using 133 MHz SDRAM memory?
  Yes. All of the following conditions must be met for the memory to operate at 133 MHz speed:
  • An Intel Pentium III processor with 133 MHz system bus speed must be used
  • All memory must be 133 MHz speed.
  • All memory must have properly programmed Serial Presence Detect (SPD) data
  • No more than four rows of 133 MHz SDRAM should be used. Four rows would be two double-sided DIMMs, or one double-sided DIMM and two single sided DIMMs.
  If a 66 or 100 MHz system bus frequency processor is used then the memory will run at 100 MHz. If memory speeds of 100 and 133 MHz are mixed, then all memory will operate at 100 MHz. If more than four rows of memory is used then all memory will operate at 100 MHz

• What is PC133 and when can it be used?
  PC133 is a specification for SDRAM that is similar to PC100 except the memory is capable of running at 133 MHz rather than 100 MHz. It will provide higher performance when using a processor with a 133-MHz system bus. If PC133 SDRAM memory is integrated in a system featuring a processor running at 100-MHz system bus the memory will only operate at 100 MHz.

• Do I need a special power supply to support Instantly Available PC (Suspend-to-RAM)? How much standby current does the power supply need to support it?
  A special power supply is not needed to support Instantly Available PC. However, the power supply must provide enough +5V standby current to support the needs of all wake-capable devices in the system. The more wake-capable devices in the system, the greater the standby current required from the power supply.
  Intel recommends starting with a power supply capable of providing at least 1.5 A of standby current. To be sure, calculate the amount of standby current required by the various components that can wake the system from the STR state. In your calculations, include the components on the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW, add-in cards and USB and PS/2 devices if the Wake Configuration Jumper is set. Make sure the power supply provides at least that amount of standby current.
  Refer to the Technical Product Specification for information on how much standby current the on-board components of the Desktop Board D815EGEW require.

• How should the configuration jumper be set on Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
  A single configuration jumper on the desktop board is used to access BIOS configuration mode. All configuration options are made available through the BIOS configuration screens. Refer to the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW Technical Product Specification, for more information on configuration jumper settings.

• How should the PS/2 and USB Wake Configuration Jumpers be set?
  Wake Configuration Jumpers need to be set if you have set the ACPI state in BIOS to S3 or 'Instantly Available under the OS' and you wish to wake the system using a USB or PS/2 device. Refer to the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW Technical Product Specification for more information on configuration jumper settings.

• How should the PS/2 Wake Configuration jumper be set?
  A single 3-pin configuration jumper is used to configure the system to respond to ACPI S1 or S3. To enable the PS/2 ports to wake the system from all ACPI states, jumper pin 2 to pin 3 on jumper block J2B1 and set the BIOS for ACPI S3.
  
  To enable the PS/2 ports to wake the system from an ACPI BIOS S1 state, jumper pin 1 to pin 2 on jumper block J2B1 and set the BIOS for ACPI S1.
  
  NOTE: Removal of jumper from jumper block J2B1 will disable the PS/2 ports. Refer to the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW Technical Product Specification for more information on configuration jumper settings.

• How should the USB Wake Configuration jumpers be set?
  A single 3-pin configuration jumper is used to configure the system to respond to ACPI S1 or S3. To enable USB port 0 and USB port 1 to wake the system from all ACPI states, jumper pin 2 to pin 3 on jumper block J2B2 and set the BIOS for ACPI S3.
  
  To enable the USB ports to wake the system from an ACPI BIOS S1 state, jumper pin 1 to pin 2 on jumper block J2B2 and set the BIOS for ACPI S1.
  
  NOTE: Removal of jumper from jumper block J2B2 will disable the PS/2 ports. Refer to the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW Technical Product Specification for more information on configuration jumper settings.

• Why can't I find processor speed settings in my BIOS configuration mode?
  The processor speed option previously available in configuration mode is not displayed with newer Intel® processors and will not affect the processor speed. Newer Intel processors boot with the ratio preset and are tested during manufacturing.

• How can the integrated video be disabled?
  The embedded onboard AGP video cannot be disabled. If an add-in PCI video solution is to be used, the primary output can be selected in the BIOS setup program.

• How can I make a PCI add-in video adapter the primary display adapter?
  If an add-in PCI video card is used, then the onboard AGP video solution is still active. The AGP and PCI video solutions will be available for multiple monitor support. When both PCI and AGP video solutions are available, the primary output can be selected in the BIOS. In the BIOS setup program, The Primary Video Adapter feature in the Advanced, Video Configuration menu can be changed from AGP (the default) to PCI.

• How can the on-board audio be disabled?
  The on-board audio can be disabled using the BIOS Setup Utility. Select the advanced menu, then the Peripheral Configuration screen. The menu offers options to enable or disable the audio if it is present on the desktop board. Refer to the D815EGEW Technical Product Specification (TPS) for more details.

• If audio is disabled, does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW consume fewer interrupts?
  Analog Devices AD1885 audio solution uses a maximum of two shareable PCI interrupts. Enabling or disabling the audio does not affect resource availability as the enabled resources use fully shareable PCI interrupts.

• Does Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support Ultra ATA/100/66 hard drives?
  Yes. One of the features of the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW is its' ability to support all Ultra ATA transfer rates (i.e., 66 MB/sec and 100 MB/sec). To realize a true throughput performance difference, a hard drive may need to implement higher spindle speeds, such as 7200 RPM, and a large onboard buffer size to take advantage of the increased bandwidth available on the IDE channel.

• What is Intel® Application Accelerator?
  Intel® Application Accelerator (IAA) is designed to take advantage of devices supporting ATA DMA/Ultra DMA technologies, improve system performance, and includes:
  • Faster Boot Time via Accelerated Operating System Load Time
  • Accelerated Disk I/O for Games, Graphics Applications, Disk Utilities, and Media Authoring Applications
  • Performance-enhancing data caching for Intel® Pentium® 4 processor-based systems
  • Support for 137GB and larger hard drives

• Should I use Intel® Storage Drivers or Intel Application Accelerator?
  Use either the Intel® Ultra ATA Storage Driver (ISD) or the Intel Application Accelerator (IAA) to automatically enable fast Ultra ATA transfers for a variety of ATA/ATAPI mass storage devices. IAA offers a performance advantage for those using Intel Pentium 4 processor-based systems while also offering support for next generation storage technology.

• Should I upgrade from ISD to IAA?
  IAA offers a performance-enhancing data caching for Intel Pentium 4 processor-based systems and support for next generation storage technology. Use either the Intel Ultra ATA Storage Driver or the Intel Application Accelerator (IAA) to automatically enable fast Ultra ATA transfers for a variety of ATA/ATAPI mass storage devices.

• What is the performance difference (IAA and ISD)?
  IAA offers performance-enhancing data caching for Intel Pentium 4 processor-based systems. Users of IAA on Intel Pentium 4 processor-based systems may see I/O performance improvements over the Intel Storage Driver.

• Will IAA improve my SCSI performance?
  IAA enables fast Ultra ATA transfers for a variety of ATA/ATAPI mass storage devices. SCSI, USB, and other non-ATA devices will see no benefit from IAA.

• Is IAA compatible with Intel® Active Monitor (IAM)?
  Yes. Intel Active Monitor revision 1.14 or greater is required.

• Can I mix Ultra ATA devices with other devices on the same IDE channel?
  Yes. However, for better performance we recommend that the Ultra ATA capable devices be attached to their own IDE channel separate from other non-Ultra ATA capable drives.

• What IDE cable should I use to support both Ultra ATA/100 and previous IDE transfer protocols?
  A 40-pin, 80-conductor cable can be used with the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW which is fully backward compatible with all IDE transfer protocols. It will support Ultra ATA/100 when used with Ultra ATA/100 drives attached in a single or dual hard disk per-channel configuration.

• What type of battery is used in Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
  A standard coin cell (3 volt, CR2032 or equivalent) is used to supply power to the Real Time Clock (RTC) when power is not available from the power supply.

• Why doesn't my Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW system power up?
  The Intel® Desktop Boards D815EGEW requires 3.3 volts from the power supply, as well as specific requirements for the power sequencing and limits. A momentary switch should be used for the power on/off switch and the sleep/resume switch. The power supply chosen must meet the ATX 2.03 or later specification.

• Why are the drivers on Intel's public Web site earlier revisions of those available on some vendor public Web sites?
  Intel performs internal testing on all drivers before posting them on the Intel developer desktop board Web site. In many cases, it is not practical to test all drivers on all desktop boards. For this reason, application vendors may release drivers that have not been tested by Intel. These drivers may be available on the vendor public site, but not on the Intel public site. This does not mean the drivers do not work; it simply indicates that Intel has not validated the drivers.

• Does the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW support two serial ports?
  No. A single serial port is available as part of the back panel I/O and is labeled Serial port A. Refer to the Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW Technical Product Specification for more details.

• Why isn't my IDE device displayed during power-up POST?
  All IDE devices must be ATA4 compliant. Cable length is limited to 18 inches. IDE devices not selected as auto-detect in the BIOS setup are not displayed as part of the Power On Self Test (POST).

• Can I use a second floppy on my Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
  No. The Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW uses a SMSC LPC47M102 SIO component to support the floppy-disk controller. This component and equivalent components can support a single standard-legacy type FDD, a 2.88 MB Super I/O type FDD, or a three-mode type FDD.

Marketing FAQ

General Questions:

• What is Flip Chip Pin Grid Array (FC-PGA)?
  FC-PGA was developed to improve the thermal dissipation of the heat generated by faster speed processors. The die has been flipped so that the heat is directed away from the desktop board. This feature, when combined with active heat sinks is an optimal cooling solution.

• Does Intel qualify memory for use on Intel® Desktop Boards?
  No. OEMs and system integrators are solely responsible for qualifying the memory they include in their systems. Intel performs only limited testing of selected memory modules to verify functionality of the desktop board's design. Intel offers a program for third parties to self-test their system's memory and to report passing results to Intel for inclusion on our Internet-based tested-memory list.

• What is Instantly Available PC?
  Instantly Available PC, also known as Suspend-to-RAM (STR), is a technology closely associated with the S3 state of the ACPI specification. STR allows a properly configured system to go into a low-power mode state, saving open applications, active files and information about the system's configuration to main memory. In this low-power state, memory remains powered to retain the system information, while most other components turn off to conserve energy. Fans are turned off to provide silent operation so the system appears "off."
  
  The PC can be left in the STR state and awakened periodically to perform such preprogrammed events as downloading e-mail or searching and filtering Web content. An incoming phone call can also wake the PC and trigger a desired response, similar to a telephone answering machine. When an incoming request arrives via a "wake device" or the user wishes to resume operation, the PC comes alive within a few seconds by reconfiguring itself based on the information previously saved to memory. No boot is required.
  
  Note: The BIOS is set for ACPI S1 by default; to enable ACPI S3 (Instantly Available) the option must be set in BIOS under the POWER tab. Also in order to wake from S3 with USB or PS/2 device, the Wake Configuration Jumper must be set.
  For more information see the Technical Product Specification (TPS)

• What is a wake device?
  A wake device is a mechanism that awakens the system from the ACPI sleep state. Typically, this mechanism is a network card or a fax/modem that is compliant with the PCI 2.2 specification. When the system goes into the ACPI state 3 (S3), these wake devices receive standby current from the power supply. Although these devices are in a low-power state they have sufficient current to remain awake to recognize incoming activity, such as a network request or a phone call. To wake from ACPI state 5 (S5), PCI slot 2 must be used. To wake from S3 with a USB or PS/2 device, the Wake Configuration Jumper must be set.
  For more information see the Technical Product Specification (TPS)

• What audio solution is available on Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW?
  The Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW offers SoundMAX* Integrated Digital Audio, which provides 3D audio and effects processing, multi-channel output option, a scalable multi-voice wave table with DLS Level 2 support and more. SoundMAX* utilizes the Analog Devices* AD1885 codec and the Intel AC'97 (Audio Codec 1997) audio controller in the ICH2.

• What is AC97 and what does it do?
  The AC'97 (Audio Codec 1997) specification defines a high-quality audio architecture that advances the migration to digital audio, while maintaining support for analog interconnects for backward compatibility.

• Is the SoundMAX* audio solution SoundBlaster* Live!* compatible?
  Yes. SoundMAX* supports SoundBlaster* Live!* Environmental Audio Extensions (EAX).

• How can I get more than the integrated 2-channel audio?
  In order to obtain more than 2-channel audio a third party PCI audio card must be used.

This applies to:

Intel® Desktop Board D815EGEW