Install a Motherboard Into a Laptop
If your laptop has stopped working entirely or various parts stop operating properly on an intermittent basis, you may have a dead motherboard. Opening up a laptop to replace the motherboard is a much more difficult task than opening a desktop because of the limited space, but it can be done at home by the average computer user.
Instructions
1. Turn off the laptop and then flip it over so that the bottom is facing upward. Press down on the battery release catch and slide it over to the left so that you can pull out the battery. Set the battery aside and turn the laptop back over. Open the lid so that the screen is in the upright position and you can access the keyboard.
2. Push a Phillips head screwdriver or some other flat object, underneath the right side of the plastic piece above the keyboard and underneath the laptop screen. Push the screwdriver gently up and down to pop the piece loose and then pull it off. Disconnect the cable that is connected from the plastic piece to the motherboard.
3. Remove the screws that hold the keyboard into place and pull the keyboard out. Disconnect the cable running from the keyboard to the motherboard. Check to see if the hinges that allow the lid to open and close are blocking the motherboard from being removed. Remove the screws holding the hinges in place if they are over the motherboard and pull them out.
4. Remove all of the screws holding down the motherboard and disconnect all of the cables connected to it--such as from the inverter board, the wireless Ethernet card and the hard drive. Grab both sides of the motherboard and slowly pull it out.
5. Place the new motherboard into the laptop and make sure that all of the drive ports line up correctly. Re-connect all of the cables and then put all of the screws and the hinges back into place. Put the keyboard back in place and re-connect the screws. Pop the plastic top piece back into place. Put the battery back into the laptop and power it on to ensure everything is working correctly.
Tags: back into, into place, plastic piece, Remove screws, back into place, Disconnect cable, Install Motherboard