The requirements and recommendations for PC design in this guide will form the basis for requirements for the 1997 version of the "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo program for hardware. This book supersedes requirements defined in the Hardware Design Guide for Microsoft Windows 95 and Hardware Design Guide Supplement for PC 95. For information about when the requirements in this book take effect, please contact whqlinfo@microsoft.com.
Previous design requirements have provided guidelines for desktop and mobile PC systems. For PC 97, this guide includes requirements for basic (desktop and mobile) systems, workstations, and entertainment PCs. In this new version of hardware requirements for the "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo, the following guidelines are defined:
Important The system requirements defined in PC 97 Hardware Design Guide provide guidelines for designing PC systems that best run Windows 95 and Windows NT. These design requirements are not related to the basic system requirements for running the Windows family of operating systems. For information about the basic system requirements for running Windows 95 and Windows NT, see:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/mix/
This guide is divided into four parts, plus an appendix and an index.
You should read Part 1 and Part 2 for an introduction to the design issues for PC 97 and to review summaries of the design requirements for each system type. Part 3 and Part 4 present bus-class and device-class requirements that you should study to learn the actual design details in a particular area.
Part 1, Basic Design Issues. This section introduces the design issues for PC 97, including an overview of the system configuration and power management issues addressed by the OnNow design initiative and the Advanced Configuration and Power Interface specification.
| Part 1 | Description | |
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| Chapter 1, "PC 97 Design Issues" | A summary of issues and design initiatives for PC 97 hardware design | |
| Chapter 2, "OnNow and WDM for PC 97" | A summary of design issues related to the OnNow design initiative and Win32® Driver Model | |
Part 2, System Types. This section presents requirements for several system types.
| Part 2 | Description | |
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| Chapter 3, "Basic PC 97" | Requirements for a basic PC system (desktop or mobile) | |
| Chapter 4, "Workstation PC 97" | Requirements for network workstations | |
| Chapter 5, "Entertainment PC 97" | Requirements for entertainment PCs | |
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Part 3, Bus and I/O Controller Design. This section presents requirements for each bus type and I/O host controllers supported under Windows 95 and Windows NT.
| Part 3 | Description | |
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| Chapter 6, "USB" | Requirements for universal serial bus controllers and peripherals | |
| Chapter 7, "IEEE 1394" | Requirements for IEEE 1394 controllers and peripherals | |
| Chapter 8, "PCI" | Requirements for PCI controllers and peripherals | |
| Chapter 9, "ISA" | Requirements for ISA bus and devices | |
| Chapter 10, "ATA and ATAPI" | Requirements for IDE (ATA) host controllers and IDE/ATAPI peripherals | |
| Chapter 11, "SCSI" | Requirements for SCSI host controllers and peripherals | |
| Chapter 12, "PC Cards" | Requirements for PC Card 16 and CardBus | |
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Part 4, Device Design. This section defines design requirements for each particular device type, whether the device is provided as an integral part of a PC system or designed as an add-on device.
| Part 4 | Description | |
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| Chapter 13, "Serial, Parallel, and Wireless Support" | Requirements for legacy ports and for wireless capabilities | |
| Chapter 14, "Input Components" | Requirements for keyboard, mouse, and game devices | |
| Chapter 15, "Graphics Adapters" | Requirements for graphics adapters, including TV output capabilities and hardware acceleration | |
| Chapter 16, "Video Components" | Requirements for video components and monitors, including DVD playback | |
| Chapter 17, "Audio Components" | Requirements for basic and advanced audio capabilities | |
| Chapter 18, "Storage and Related Peripherals" | Requirements for hard disk, CD-ROM, DVD, and other peripheral storage devices | |
| Chapter 19, "Modems" | Requirements for voice, fax, and data modems | |
| Chapter 20, "Network Communications" | Requirements for network adapters, ISDN, cable modem, and other network devices | |
| Chapter 21, "Printers" | Requirements for printers | |
| Chapter 22, "Scanners and Digital Cameras" | Requirements for digital image input devices | |
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Appendix. The appendixes include supplementary information for PC 97 design.
| Appendix | Description | |
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| Glossary | Definitions of key technical terms used in this guide | |
| Appendix A, "Icons" | Summary of suggested icons for cables and connectors | |
| Appendix B, "Device Identifiers" | List of Plug and Play CompatibleIDs for device IDs | |
| Appendix C, "Accessibility" | Information about accessibility issues for hardware design | |
| Appendix D, "Legacy I/O Assignments" | Lists of assignments for ISA interrupts, DMA, and I/O addresses | |
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PC 97 Hardware Design Guide includes a compact disc that contains the full text of this guide in MediaViewer format so that you can search and view topics online.
As revisions and new information become available for PC 97 requirements, you can update your CD version of PC 97 Hardware Design Guide by using your modem or Internet connection. For information about how to update the CD version of PC 97 Hardware Design Guide, see the Help that accompanies the CD.
Updates to PC 97 Hardware Design Guide will also be provided on a quarterly basis together with technical clarifications and answers to frequently asked questions on the Hardware Development web site:
http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/desguid/
Hardware features are described as Required, Recommended, or Optional in this guide. For the "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo program, these terms are used to mean the following:
Notice that for "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo testing, if a recommended feature is implemented, it must meet the standards for that feature as defined in this guide.
Some recommended features might become requirements under the logo program in the future.
In this guide, these terms have the following meanings with regard to the "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo requirements:
The following conventional terms, symbols, abbreviations, and acronyms are used throughout this guide.
| Convention | Meaning | |
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| Windows 95 | Refers to the Microsoft Windows 95 operating system, including any add-on capabilities any later versions of the operating system. | |
| Windows NT | Refers to the Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0 operating system and also including any add-on capabilities and any later versions of the operating system. | |
| x86-based | Refers to computers based on 32-bit microprocessors that use the x86 instruction set, such as Intel 80486, Intel Pentium-class, or Pentium Pro-class microprocessors, or the equivalent. | |
| RISC-based | Refers to computers based on reduced instruction set (RISC) architecture, including computers with MIPS R4000 or Digital Alpha 21064 (EV4) or higher processors or based on IBM PowerPC Architecture. | |
| Note All requirements and recommendations for RISC-based PCs are for the Windows NT operating system only. | ||
| System device | Also, "system board devices." Refers to devices on the system board such as interrupt controllers, keyboard controller, real-time clock, direct memory access (DMA) page registers, DMA controllers, memory controllers, floppy disk controller (FDC), IDE ports, serial and parallel ports, PCI bridges, and so on. In today's PCs, these devices are typically integrated in the supporting chip set. | |
| Add-on device | Refers to devices that are traditionally added to the base PC system to add functionality, such as audio, networking, graphics, SCSI controller, dedicated tape backup, uninterruptible power supply (UPS), and so on. Add-on devices fall into two categories: devices built onto the system board, or devices on expansion cards added to the system through a system board connector such as ISA or PCI. | |
| PC 97 | The collection of requirements for PC system design, bus implementation, and device design that make up the requirements for the next generation of the "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo. | |
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| Acronym | Meaning | Acronym | Meaning |
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| ACK | An acknowledgment signal | IRQ | Interrupt request lines |
| ACPI | Advanced Configuration and Power Interface | ISA | Industry standard achitecture |
| API | Application programming interface | K | Kilobyte |
| APM | Advanced power management | LAN | Local area network |
| ASIC | Application-specific integrated circuit | MB | Megabyte |
| ATA | AT Attachment | MPEG | Motion picture experts group |
| ATAPI | AT Attachment Packet Interface | MIS | Management information system |
| BIOS | Basic input/output system | NDIS | Network Driver Interface Specification |
| CDFS | Compact disc file system | NMI | Nonmaskable interrupt |
| CPU | Central processing unit | NTFS | Windows NT file system |
| CSN | Card select number | OEM | Original equipment manufacturer |
| DDC | Display data channel | PCI | Peripheral component interconnect |
| DDK | Device driver kit | PCMCIA | Personal Computer Memory Card International Association |
| DIB | Device-independent bitmap | PIC | Programmable interrupt controller |
| LL | Dynamic-link library | POST | Power on self test |
| DMA | Direct memory access | RAMDAC | Random access memory digital-to-analog converter |
| DSP | Digital signal processor | RLE | Run-length encoding |
| ECP | Extended capabilities port | SDK | Software development kit |
| EISA | Extended Industry Standard Architecture | SCSI | Small computer system interface |
| FAT | File allocation table | SPI | SCSI-3 parallel interface |
| FDC | Floppy disk drive controller | TAPI | Telephony API |
| FIFO | First in, first out | UNC | Universal naming convention |
| GB | Gigabyte or gigabytes | UART | Universal asynchronous receiver-transmitter |
| HCT | Hardware compatibility tests | UPS | Uninterruptible power supply |
| HDC | Disk I/O controller | USB | Universal serial bus |
| IDE | Integrated device electronics | VESA | Video Electronics Standards Assoc. |
| I/O | Input/output | VM | Virtual machine |
| IHV | Independent hardware vendor | VxD | Device driver, where x is the device |
| IPL | Initial program load | WAN | Wide area network |
| IrDA | Infrared Data Association | ||
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The Windows Hardware Quality Labs (WHQL) provides compatibility testing services to test hardware and drivers for Windows 95 and Windows NT.
The WHQL administers testing for the "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo programs, which provide customer assurance that the hardware works with the Windows 95 and Windows NT family of products. Hardware developers whose products pass the WHQL testing program also receive a detailed test report, inclusion of tested hardware on the Windows Hardware Compatibility List (HCL), and free distribution of drivers in the Windows Driver Library (WDL).
If you have questions about the program, contact WHQL:
| Windows Hardware Quality Labs Microsoft Corporation One Microsoft Way Redmond, WA 98052-6399 USA | http://www.microsoft.com/hwtest/ E-mail:whqlinfo@microsoft.com Fax: (206) 703-3872 |
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The following table lists some of the information resources, services, and tools available from Microsoft to help build hardware that is compliant with the "Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo requirements. Each chapter in this guide contains additional information about resources for specific topics.Information Resources
| Information Resources | ||
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| Resource | Contact | |
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| PC 97 Hardware Design Guide | Internet: http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/pc97.htm | |
| Information for hardware manufactures | E-mail: ihv@microsoft.com Internet: http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/ | |
| Windows 95 and Windows NT Driver Development Kits (DDK) | Provided with the Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) Professional membership. To subscribe: Fax: (206) 936-7329, Attn: Developer Network E-mail: devnetwrk@microsoft.com | |
| Plug and Play specifications | http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/pnpspecs.htm | |
| Hardware testing | Testing tools for Plug and Play and the"Designed for Microsoft Windows" logo program for hardware are available from http://www.microsoft.com/hwtest/ | |
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The PC 97 team at Microsoft gratefully acknowledges the help we received from approximately 200 technical reviewers representing more than 80 members of the hardware industry. These reviewers contributed technical information, insights, and wisdom to developing PC 97 Hardware Design Guide. In particular, we want to acknowledge the comprehensive feedback and technical contributions provided by reviewers from Intel Corporation and Compaq Computer Corporation.
We also are grateful to the software engineers, testers, and program managers at Microsoft who contributed feedback and technical content to ensure that the information in PC 97 Hardware Design Guide is accurate and timely for both Microsoft Windows 95 and Microsoft Windows NT.