Tiger-286 Motherboard CMOS Battery
- Thread starter TomH
- Start date
Motherboard manufacturers have been using the same CMOS batteries since, well forever. They are all shiney, round about the size of a nickel (models CR2025/CR2032) and very easy to spot on the MB.
However, if you go back early enough, there were variations before the standard became the standard. Some motherboard manufacturers, put their batteries in a covered box mounted on the MB or even as a seperate card. They didn't even all use the round button batteries: any battery was fair game as long as it would hold a charge for at least a year and were convienantly mountable and replacable. I've seen watch batteries, camera batteries and even AAA's.
So, in the end, if it isn't obvious, and I assume by your question that it is not, you'll just have to search the MB for the battery.
However, if you go back early enough, there were variations before the standard became the standard. Some motherboard manufacturers, put their batteries in a covered box mounted on the MB or even as a seperate card. They didn't even all use the round button batteries: any battery was fair game as long as it would hold a charge for at least a year and were convienantly mountable and replacable. I've seen watch batteries, camera batteries and even AAA's.
So, in the end, if it isn't obvious, and I assume by your question that it is not, you'll just have to search the MB for the battery.
Bozo
Storage? I am Storage!
A long shot would be to Google your motherboard/pc and see if you can find a diagram or instructions.
Bozo :joker:
Bozo :joker:
time
Storage? I am Storage!
"Old" seems a bit of an understatement; AFAIK, 80286 disappeared from desktops in 1991 or thereabouts. So your PC is at least 15 years old. 
To make it this far, it must have some kind of replaceable battery (not soldered on), but it could be awfully difficult to find a new one that's compatible.
What sort of software can you run on this antique, anyway - DOS?
To make it this far, it must have some kind of replaceable battery (not soldered on), but it could be awfully difficult to find a new one that's compatible.
What sort of software can you run on this antique, anyway - DOS?
Will Rickards
Storage Is My Life
Take a picture of the motherboard and post it.
Maybe we can locate the battery.
Maybe we can locate the battery.
ddrueding
Fixture
From my memory, I seem to recall boards of that age using black boxes attached to the board with Velcro. IIRC, it was a AA-sized Ni Cad in the black box.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Weren't you ~five years old back then?
ddrueding
Fixture
Actually, I was 11 in 1991. But we were poor, so I got a 286 when I was 14. I had a 386-33 until 1996, a Pentium 133 until 2000, when I bought a Celeron 300A. It's one of the reasons I go high-end now...because I can.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Well, anyway, my guess is the original poster is probably trying to keep a PC with a line-of-business application going. I can't think of any other reason to try to work on a 286.
So here is my advice for the O.P.: Buy something cheap and kinda-sorta-a-little-bit newer-ish.
Like a Pentium 2 or a K6-2.
Something old enough to still have ISA slots if you need them.
Whatever. We're talking about a computer that's worth about $25.
Put the ancient hard drive from your 286 in your "new" computer.
There's about a 90% chance that it'll just boot up and work. The other 10% is for things like the possibility you have a SCSI hard disk in the old 286, or the software you're using is written specifically for the hardware in the 286.
You still probably should invest in a modern hard disk. Clone or copy the one from the old PC while it still works, 'cause it isn't going to run forever, and 15+ years is kind of pushing on "forever" in computer-years.
So here is my advice for the O.P.: Buy something cheap and kinda-sorta-a-little-bit newer-ish.
Like a Pentium 2 or a K6-2.
Something old enough to still have ISA slots if you need them.
Whatever. We're talking about a computer that's worth about $25.
Put the ancient hard drive from your 286 in your "new" computer.
There's about a 90% chance that it'll just boot up and work. The other 10% is for things like the possibility you have a SCSI hard disk in the old 286, or the software you're using is written specifically for the hardware in the 286.
You still probably should invest in a modern hard disk. Clone or copy the one from the old PC while it still works, 'cause it isn't going to run forever, and 15+ years is kind of pushing on "forever" in computer-years.
Oh, I can think of at least one sentimental reason to fixup an old PC: He was a computer virgin, and this was his first... I'd love to be able to get a PDP-8/l up and running (My first).