Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
Mini-ATX is not an official standard; instead, it is simply referenced as a slightly smaller
version of ATX. In fact, all references to Mini-ATX were removed from the ATX 2.1
and later specifications. Two smaller official versions of ATX exist, called microATX and
FlexATX. They are discussed in the following sections.
Although the case holes are similar to the Baby-AT case, cases for Baby-AT and ATX are
generally incompatible. The ATX power supply design is identical in physical size to the
standard Slimline power supply used with Baby-AT systems; however, they also use dif-
ferent connectors and supply different voltages.
The best way to tell whether your system has an ATX-family motherboard design without
removing the lid is to look at the back of the system. Two distinguishing features identify
ATX.Oneisthattheexpansionboardsplugdirectlyintothemotherboard.Thereisusually
no riser card as with LPX and NLX (except for certain Slimline systems, such as rack-
mounted servers), so the slots are usually perpendicular to the plane of the motherboard.
Also,ATXboardshaveauniquedouble-highconnectorareaforallthebuilt-inconnectors
