Dell Precision 490 Desktop: instruction

Dell Precision™ Workstation 490

Quick Reference Guide

Model DCTA

www.dell.com | support.dell.com

Notes, Notices, and Cautions

NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of your computer.

NOTICE: A NOTICE indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data and tells you how to avoid

the problem.

CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury, or death.

Abbreviations and Acronyms

For a complete list of abbreviations and acronyms, see the Glossary in your

User’s Guide

.

®

®

If you purchased a Dell™ n Series computer, any references in this document to Microsoft

Windows

operating systems are not applicable.

____________________

Information in this document is subject to change without notice.

© 2006 Dell Inc. All rights reserved.

Reproduction in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly forbidden.

Trademarks used in this text: Dell, the DELL logo and Dell Precision are trademarks of Dell Inc.; Intel, Xeon, and Pentium are registered

trademarks of Intel Corporation; Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.

Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products.

Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and trade names other than its own.

Model DCTA

January 2006 P/N MD504 Rev. A00

Contents

Finding Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Setting Up Your Computer (Tower Orientation)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Setting Up Your Computer (Desktop Orientation)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

About Your Computer

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Front View (Tower Orientation)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Back View (Tower Orientation)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Back Panel Connectors

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Front View (Desktop Orientation)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Back View (Desktop Orientation)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Inside View

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Inside View – Hard Drive Bay Rotated Out

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

System Board Components

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Cable Colors

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Locating Your User’s Guide

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Removing the Computer Cover

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Caring for Your Computer

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Solving Problems

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Troubleshooting Tips

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Resolving Software and Hardware Incompatibilities

. . . . . . . . . . . 32

®

®

Using Microsoft

Windows

XP System Restore . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Using the Last Known Good Configuration

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Dell Diagnostics

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Before You Start Testing

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Beep Codes

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Error Messages

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Diagnostic Lights

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Diagnostic Light Codes Before POST

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Diagnostic Light Codes During POST

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Frequently Asked Questions

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Contents 3

4 Contents

Finding Information

NOTE: Some features or media may be optional and may not ship with your computer. Some features or media may

not be available in certain countries.

NOTE: Additional information may ship with your computer.

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• A diagnostic program for my computer

Drivers and Utilities CD (also known as Resource CD)

• Drivers for my computer

Documentation and

• My computer documentation

drivers are already

• My device documentation

installed on your

computer. You can use

• Desktop System Software (DSS)

the CD to reinstall drivers,

run the Dell Diagnostics,

or access your

documentation. Readme

files may be included on

your CD to provide last-

minute updates about

technical changes to your computer or advanced technical-

reference material for technicians or experienced users.

NOTE: Drivers and documentation updates can be found

at support.dell.com.

• How to set up my computer

Quick Reference Guide

• How to care for my computer

• Basic troubleshooting information

• How to run the Dell Diagnostics

• Error codes and diagnostic lights

• How to remove and install parts

• How to open my computer cover

NOTE: This document is available as a PDF at

support.dell.com.

Quick Reference Guide 5

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• Warranty information

Dell™ Product Information Guide

• Terms and Conditions (U.S. only)

• Safety instructions

• Regulatory information

• Ergonomics information

• End User License Agreement

• How to remove and replace parts

User’s Guide

• Specifications

®

®

Microsoft

Windows

XP Help and Support Center

• How to configure system settings

1

Click the Start button and click

Help and Support

• How to troubleshoot and solve problems

2

Click User’s and system guides and click

User’s Guide

The User’s Guide is also available on the Drivers and

Utilities CD.

®

®

• Service Tag and Express Service Code

Service Tag and Microsoft

Windows

License

• Microsoft Windows License Label

These labels are located on your computer.

• Use the Service Tag to

identify your computer

when you use

support.dell.com

or

contact technical

support.

• Enter the Express

Service Code to direct your call when contacting

technical support.

6 Quick Reference Guide

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• Solutions — Troubleshooting hints and tips, articles

Dell Support Website — support.dell.com

from technicians, and online courses, frequently

NOTE: Select your region or business segment to view the

asked questions

appropriate support site.

• Community — Online discussion with other

NOTE: Corporate, government, and education customers

Dell customers

can also use the customized Dell Premier support website at

• Upgrades — Upgrade information for components,

premier.support.dell.com. The website may not be available

such as memory, the hard drive, and the

in all regions.

operating system

• Customer Care — Contact information, service call

and order status, warranty, and repair information

• Service and support — Service call status and

support history, service contract, online discussions

with technical support

• Reference — Computer documentation, details on

my computer configuration, product specifications,

and white papers

• Downloads — Certified drivers, patches, and

software updates

• Desktop System Software (DSS)— If you reinstall

the operating system for your computer, you should

reinstall the DSS utility prior to installing any of the

drivers. DSS provides critical updates for your

operating system and support for Dell™ 3.5-inch

USB floppy drives, optical drives, and USB devices.

DSS is necessary for correct operation of your Dell

computer. The software automatically detects your

computer and operating system and installs the

updates appropriate for your configuration.

• How to use Windows XP

Windows Help and Support Center

• How to work with programs and files

1

Click the

Start

button and click

Help and Support

.

• Documentation for devices (such as modem)

2

Type a word or phrase that describes your problem

and click the arrow icon.

3

Click the topic that describes your problem.

4

Follow the instructions on the screen.

Quick Reference Guide 7

What Are You Looking For? Find It Here

• How to reinstall my operating system

Operating System CD

The operating system is

already installed on your

computer. To reinstall

your operating system, use

the Operating System CD.

See your User’s Guide for

instructions. After you

reinstall your operating

system, use the Drivers and

Utilities CD (Resource CD)

to reinstall drivers for the

devices that came with your computer. Your operating

system product key label is located on your computer.

NOTE: The color of your CD varies based on the operating

system you ordered.

NOTE: The Operating System CD may be optional and may

not ship with your computer.

• How to use Linux

Dell Supported Linux Sites

• E-mail discussions with users of Dell Precision™

• Linux.dell.com

products and the Linux operating system

• Lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-precision

• Additional information regarding Linux

and my Dell Precision computer

8 Quick Reference Guide

Setting Up Your Computer (Tower Orientation)

CAUTION: Before you begin any of the procedures in this section, follow the safety instructions

in the Product Information Guide.

You must complete all steps to properly set up your computer.

Connect the keyboard and the mouse.

1

Connect the modem or the network cable.

2

NOTICE: Do not connect a modem cable to the

network adapter. Voltage from telephone

communications can damage the network adapter.

NOTE: If your computer has a network card installed,

connect the network cable to the card.

Quick Reference Guide 9

For single- and dual-monitor capable cards with a single connector

VGA adapter:

VGA

Use the VGA adapter when you have a single monitor

graphics card and you want to connect your computer

to a VGA monitor.

Dual VGA Y cable adapter:

Dual DVI Y cable adapter:

VGA

DVI

VGA

DVI

Use the appropriate Y cable when your graphics card

Use the appropriate Y cable when your graphics card has a

has a single connector and you want to connect your

single connector and you want to connect your computer

computer to one or two VGA monitors.

to one or two DVI monitors.

The dual-monitor cable is color-coded; the blue connector is for the primary monitor, and the black

connector is for the second monitor. To enable dual-monitor support, both monitors must be attached

to the computer when you start your computer.

16 Quick Reference Guide

For dual-monitor capable cards with one DVI connector and one VGA connector

One DVI connector and one VGA connector:

Two VGA connectors with one VGA adapter:

DVI

VGA

VGA

VGA

Use the appropriate connector(s) when you want

Use the VGA adapter when you want to connect your

to connect your computer to one or two monitors.

computer to two VGA monitors.

For dual-monitor capable cards with two DVI connectors

Two DVI connectors:

Two DVI connectors

Two DVI connectors

with one VGA adapter:

with two VGA adapters:

DVI

DVI

DVI

VGA

VGA

VGA

Use the DVI connector(s)

Use the VGA adapter to connect

Use two VGA adapters to connect

to connect your computer

a VGA monitor to one of the DVI

two VGA monitors to the DVI

to one or two DVI monitors.

connectors on your computer.

connectors on your computer.

Quick Reference Guide 17

Connect the speakers.

4

NOTE: If your computer has a sound card installed, connect the speakers to the card.

Connect the power cables

and turn on the computer

5

and monitor.

Install additional software or devices.

6

Before you install any devices or software that did not come with your computer, read the documentation

that came with the software or device or contact the vendor to verify that the software or device is

compatible with your computer and operating system.

You have now completed the setup for your desktop computer.

18 Quick Reference Guide

About Your Computer

Front View (Tower Orientation)

1 upper 5.25-inch drive bay Holds a CD/DVD drive.

2 lower 5.25-inch drive bay You can use this bay for an optional CD/DVD drive.

3 FlexBay You can use this bay for an optional third hard drive (SATA or SAS), a floppy

drive or Media Card Reader.

4 hard-drive activity light The hard drive light is on when the computer reads data from or writes data to

the hard drive. The light might also be on when a device such as your CD player

is operating.

5 IEEE 1394 connector

Use the optional IEEE 1394 connector for high-speed data devices such as

(optional)

digital video cameras and external storage devices.

Quick Reference Guide 19

2

3

13

4

12

11

5

10

6

9

8

7

6 USB 2.0 connectors (2) Use the front USB connectors for devices that you connect occasionally, such as

flash memory keys or cameras, or for bootable USB devices (see

"System Setup"

in your User’s Guide for more information on booting to a USB device).

It is recommended that you use the back USB connectors for devices that

typically remain connected, such as printers and keyboards.

7 Dell™ rotatable badge To rotate the Dell badge for tower-to-desktop conversion; remove the

front

panel

, turn it over, and rotate the plastic handle behind the badge.

8 power button Press to turn on the computer.

NOTICE: To avoid losing data, do not use the power button to turn off the computer.

Instead, perform an operating system shutdown.

NOTE: The power button can also be used to wake the system or to place it into

a power-saving state. See "Power Management" in your User’s Guide for

more information.

9 power light The power light illuminates and blinks or remains solid to indicate different

states:

• No light — The computer is turned off.

• Steady green — The computer is in a normal operating state.

• Blinking green — The computer is in a power-saving state.

• Blinking or solid amber — See "Power Problems" in your

User’s Guide

.

To exit from a power-saving state, press the power button or use the keyboard or

the mouse if it is configured as a wake device in the Windows Device Manager.

For more information about sleep states and exiting from a power-saving state,

see your User’s Guide.

See "Diagnostic Lights" on page 38 for a description of light codes that can help

you troubleshoot problems with your computer.

10 headphone connector Use the headphone connector to attach headphones.

11 microphone connector Use the microphone connector to attach a personal computer microphone for

voice or musical input into a sound or telephony program.

12 network link light The network link light is on when a good connection exists between a 10-Mbps,

100-Mbps, or 1000-Mbps (or 1-Gbps) network and the computer.

13 diagnostic lights (4) Use these lights to help you troubleshoot a computer problem based on the

diagnostic code. For more information, see "Diagnostic Lights" on page 38.

20 Quick Reference Guide