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Reduce the Chances of Motherboard Flexing or Damage

I frequently find that motherboards on purchased PC systems are poorly installed. They are either mounted incorrectly, or not enough supports are used. Occasionally the result of this is unreliable operation. More commonly, the PC will work, but you will run the risk of damaging the board when you try to add or remove expansion cards, due to flexing.

If you suspect that this is the situation, try the following:

• Check and Correct Empty Mounting Holes and Flexing : With the PC off, gently apply pressure to various parts of the motherboard and see if it flexes. Check to see if there are any mounting holes that do not have either metal or plastic standoffs or spacers in them, between the motherboard and the system case. Each mounting hole should have a spacer in it, if possible. Some of the mounting holes in the motherboard may not have matching holes in the case for the spacer or standoff to go into. In this case, you should use plastic spacers and snip off the bottom part (the part that goes into the case) and use that. These spacers won't connect the motherboard to the case, but they will prevent flexing of the board by supporting it above the case.
• Check for Potential Shorts: Examine the motherboard to make sure that it is not likely to contact the case, wires, or other parts of the system and short them out. If there are potential shorts that are near the motherboard, either move them or insulate them with black electrical tape.

Next: System Resource (IRQ, DMA, I/O, COM) Conservation and Optimization

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