While some parts might not be much to look at, others can be more interesting.
One of the most interesting can be the PC case.
You might notice one end of a set of dangling cables.
Most of them will have small black connectors and some white text.
These are the system panel cables, a subset of the front panel cables.
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What Do the System Panel Cables Do?
The system panel cables provide connectivity for some functionality at the front of your gear case.
This is why they come with the case itself, not the motherboard.
Most computers come with the same combination of cables though they may be labeled slightly differently.
One of the cables should be labeled HDD LED, though it may also be called the activity LED.
This connects the LED that flashes to indicate drive activity.
Theres also the Power LED, potentially shortened to PLED.
This LED indicates if the computer is powered on or asleep etc.
Theres then PWR SW, potentially also labeled as Power SW or something similar.
This connects the power button on the front of your rig case.
This connects the restart button.
Some cases may omit the reset switch as its not really used all that often.
Some cases may also come with an integrated system speaker, though these are highly uncommon nowadays.
This will typically be labeled Speaker, though that might vary by manufacturer.
This is used to connect the system speaker to provide POST debugging tones.
Where and How Do the System Panel Cables Connect?
The system panel cables all run to the front panel of the case.
Here youll find the power button and activity indicator LEDs.
Youll also typically find USB and audio connectivity here, too.
However, those arent technically part of the system panel cable set.
These cables will almost always be hard-wired in and should not be removed.
The other end of the system panel cables connects to the motherboard.
However, some motherboards may place them elsewhere.
Youll probably want to consult your motherboards user manual to connect them.
On most motherboards, the pins are not labeled at all on the motherboard.
This is, however, reliably documented in the motherboard manual.
You technically dont need to connect any of the system panel cables if you dont want to.
Both the power and reset switches are orientation agnostic.
The LEDs and the system speaker, however, do need to be plugged in the right way around.
You should consult the manual to verify the exact orientation.
However, the red wire should be connected to the + and the black wire to the ground.
wise to connect these, as otherwise, you have useless ports on the front of your machine.
This often makes the lighting situation inside the case suboptimal.
Given that the connectors are already small and fiddly, this can cause actually connecting them quite a pain.
Some motherboards come with an adaptor called a Q-connector to make it easier.
The only issue with this is that it does add some height.
To some, this may be aesthetically displeasing.
These cables connect the front power button, reset button, and power and activity LEDs.
They must be connected to a small set of pins on the motherboard.
