How to Build a Working PC

If you are looking into getting into PC gaming or if you need a computer to do your schoolwork on, work from home, etc., then building a PC on your own is the way to go. Building your own PC is a more rewarding feeling than buying a computer that has already been built. In addition, it is much cheaper to build your own PC than to buy a pre-built one, as many retailers will mark their computers to be more expensive than they really are. The process of building a PC may seem like a daunting concept to take part in, but this instructional guide will make sure that you will be able to build your PC as efficiently as possible and in as little time as possible.

Before you begin, please make sure that you have gathered all of the materials below to ensure that the building will be efficient and will not cause any damage to your equipment.

Here are the supplies / tools that you will need to build a computer:

• Central Processing Unit (CPU) of your choice
• Motherboard
• Computer case
• Thermal paste
• 16 GB of RAM
• Graphics Card of your choice
• Power supply
• Hard Drive
• Phillips head screwdriver

OPTIONAL PARTS

• SSD
• LED strips
• Anti-static mat

Before you begin building your computer, make sure that all of the parts are compatible with each other. I would recommend using PCPartPicker to double check whether all of the supplies that you are intending on purchasing are compatible with each other. Any computer parts that are incompatible with each other may cause damage to your other computer parts.

CAUTION: Make sure to build your computer in an environment that is clear of any carpets. Building your computer on carpet could cause static to build up, and by touching any of the computer parts, you are at risk of damaging your computer parts permanently.

Take out the motherboard and the CPU from their boxes. The motherboard and CPU are the bread and butter of the computer, since they are the main controllers of the computer. Without the motherboard and CPU, the computer will not run at all. Take the CPU and place it into the motherboard, with the circle on the CPU matching the triangle on the motherboard.

Note: AMD and Intel CPUs have different indications for which way is the correct way to orient the CPU. Intel CPUs will have a triangle on the top cover of the CPU, while AMD CPUs have a circle. Make sure to not bend or touch the pins under the CPU as it will cause the CPU to not work properly, therefore destroying your computer.

Place a pea-sized dot of thermal paste on top of the CPU. Too much thermal paste on the CPU could seep into the motherboard pins, which will destroy the motherboard and the CPU. If your CPU cooler already has thermal paste included on the cooler, then you do not need to place a pea-sized dot on the CPU.

After you have put thermal paste on your CPU, take your CPU cooler and place it on top of the CPU. I would recommend referring to the instruction manual that came with your CPU cooler. If your cooler came with your CPU, like mine did, refer to the instructions that came with the CPU. Make sure to not overtighten the screws on the CPU cooler to avoid stripping the screws and destroying the screw overall. Use the cable on the CPU cooler and plug it into the CPU Fan pins on your motherboard.

Once the CPU cooler has been installed, it is now time to put the motherboard into the PC case. Before you put it in, make sure to place the I/O shield into the designated side on the PC case and make sure to take off the side panels from both sides of the computer case, as this will make it easier to access different sections of the computer case. The I/O shield is provided with the motherboard, along with other cables that will be needed later on. The I/O shield is meant to protect the motherboard from unnecessary dust and it protects the inside of the computer case from things getting inside the computer, such as dust. When putting in the motherboard into the case, make sure to line up the ports on the motherboard with the holes in the I/O shield. If done correctly, the motherboard should be sitting comfortably in the computer case on top of the standoffs. If standoffs were not already installed in the computer case, install them based on the instructions that is provided by the computer case provider.

For the hard drive, there are designated bays inside of the computer case where the hard drives are held. This is may be different in different computer cases as each manufacturer develops and designs their cases differently. The hard drive is the storage for all of your information in your computer and it is the place where you will install the operating system later on. For the graphics card, there will be a slot available in the middle of the motherboard that is designated for the graphics card. Make sure to line up the pins with the port on the motherboard to ensure that you will not bend the pins on the graphics card and make the graphics card unusable. Once you have lined up the pins with the motherboard, press down on both sides of the graphics card. It will make a clicking noise to let you know that the graphics card is locked in and will not fall out when you stand the case back up.

Installing the power supply is very simple, you will need to grab the screws that comes with your computer case and that are designated to use with installing the power supply. The location of the power supply is different in every computer case, so make sure that you know where the power supply should be installed. Once you have located the location, place the power supply into the case, with the screw holes up against the computer case. Use the screws to secure the power supply in place so that it does not move around when you are moving your PC to its location. The orientation of the power supply does not matter, as it is preference whether you would like the fans in the power supply to face up or face down.

After everything has been installed, it is now time to connect the cables from the computer case and the power supply. For connecting the cables from the computer case, you will need to refer to the motherboard manual as there are different cables that need to be connected in specific locations. Once you have connected the cables, you may zip-tie that cables together to reduce the mess inside of the case. If you would like, you could first route the cables through the holes in the computer case and connect them to their specific locations, then zip-tying the cables together in the back of the case. For the power supply cables, you will need to use the motherboard power cable, the CPU power cable, the GPU power cable, and the Hard Drive power cables. These cables can found in your power supply box if they are not already installed on the power supply. Refer to the power supply manual to see which cables are which.

Once you have everything connected, you are almost done with building the computer. You will now need to grab the computer case panels that had been taken off earlier and place them back on the computer case, closing up the computer case. You will then need to grab the power supply cable from the power supply box, plug it into the wall, plug it into the power supply, flick the switch on the power supply to the "On" position, and you are done!

All you have to do now is install the operating system, plug in your peripherals, like your mouse, keyboard, and monitor, and you are all set to enjoy the magic that computers can bring.