Motherboard

Most computer motherboards produced today are designed for IBM-compatible
computers, which currently account for around 90% of global PC sales[citation
needed]. A motherboard, like a backplane, provides the electrical connections by
which the other components of the system communicate, but unlike a backplane, it
also hosts the central processing unit, and other subsystems and devices.
Motherboards are also used in many other electronics devices such as mobile
phones,stop-watches,clocks,and other small electronic devices.
A typical desktop computer has its microprocessor, main memory, and other
essential components on the motherboard. Other components such as external
storage, controllers for video display and sound, and peripheral devices may be
attached to the motherboard as plug-in cards or via cables, although in modern
computers it is increasingly common to integrate some of these peripherals into
the motherboard itself.

An important component of a motherboard is the microprocessor's supporting
chipset, which provides the supporting interfaces between the CPU and the various
buses and external components. This chipset determines, to an extent, the
features and capabilities of the motherboard.
Modern motherboards include, at a minimum:

* sockets (or slots) in which one or more microprocessors are installed[3]

* slots into which the system's main memory is installed (typically in the
form of DIMM modules containing DRAM chips)

* a chipset which forms an interface between the CPU's front-side bus, main
memory, and peripheral buses

* non-volatile memory chips (usually Flash ROM in modern motherboards)
containing the system's firmware or BIOS

* a clock generator which produces the system clock signal to synchronize the
various components

* slots for expansion cards (these interface to the system via the buses
supported by the chipset)

* power connectors flickers, which receive electrical power from the computer
power supply and distribute it to the CPU, chipset, main memory, and expansion
cards.