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Case Preparations

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BE MINDFUL OF EXPOSED EDGES WITHIN YOUR CASE! Many manufacturers cut production costs by leaving raw metal edges exposed within their cases - these edges are extremely sharp and can cut you up like a sausage. I say this from first (lacerated) hand experience.

When you open the case for the first time, you will probably find a bag of screws and other oddities, as well as a few other (usually useless) things. You will most likely need to unscrew the side panel(s) to set them free. Look for these screws on the back of the case along both left and right edges. Keep these screws nearby so you can re-attach the panels later on.

Check to see if an installation guide or pamphlet was included with your case. If one was included, I suggest you follow that the best you can (some are pretty dodgy) because every case is different and I cannot possibly detail the installation process for all of them. For example, some cases have removable motherboard trays which usually make quick and efficient work of installing the mobo. If your case has such a tray, make use of it if you so desire.

Now look in your bag of screws and oddities for something we like to call "stand-offs". They are usually either heptagonal brass things with a threaded end or funky looking metal clips; hopefully you have the former. Collect all of them and put them to the side. Peruse the surface of your motherboard tray (the large flat surface that sites vertically in your case) for marked holes. There should be holes marked "mATX" or "ATX" or possibly a few other things as well. These marking tell you which holes your motherboard attaches to. Each marking represents a certain form factor, referred to as an Micro-ATX or ATX form factors. You almost certainly have an ATX style motherboard and, as such, you should use the holes marked ATX. But don’t attach the stand-offs just yet.

A little background: The stand-offs keep the circuitry of the motherboard from making contact with the grounded surface of the case. Any contact between the two would create a short in the motherboard, possibly causing damage or, at the very least, preventing your system from functioning. In other words, this is a very important step.

The best way to make sure you are doing it properly is to hold your motherboard over the motherboard tray and line up the holes that you need to use. Keep in mind, the arrangement of holes is different from motherboard to motherboard, so you won’t use all of the holes on your mobo tray. Once you have figured out which ones to use, install the stand-offs into them. If there is any step you need to double and triple check for correctness, this is it, so do so. Put the motherboard aside for now as we need to muck around with it before committing to the case.

More PSUs

If you haven't purchased a power supply separately, then you will find a power supply. It looks like a large rectangular metallic box with a mess of wires coming out of it sitting freely in your case. Attaching a power supply is a very simple process - it requires four standard screws (the "standard" case screws are the ones that you have the most of in your li’l bag o’ goodies - these are the same screws that are used to fasten the side panels). It should be reasonably obvious where the P/S unit goes because there are openings on the back of the case for the fan and power connectors. Also, if you live in an area with 220V power outlets, make sure you flip the voltage rating switch on the back of power supply to accommodate for this. If you live in North America, then you will make sure this is set to 110V.

Now rest the case on the floor with the right side (when you are looking at it from the front) resting on the floor. This will provide easy access for the rest of the procedures you will undertake.

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