: If your N1996-marked board came from an OEM PC (like HP, Acer, or Medion), the BIOS may be customized. In such cases, MSI does not provide support, and you may need to obtain updates from the PC manufacturer.
While there is no single "N1996" specification, many boards bearing this mark fall into three common legacy categories: Socket 478 (Early 2000s) Socket LGA 775 (Mid 2000s) Socket AM2 (AMD Era) MS-6533 MS-7255 K9NGM3 CPU Support Intel Pentium 4 / Celeron Core 2 Duo / Quad Athlon 64 X2 / Sempron Memory DDR1 (max 1GB-2GB) DDR2 (max 4GB) DDR2 (max 8GB) Graphics AGP 4x/8x slot PCI Express x16 PCI Express x16 Storage IDE (PATA) SATA + IDE SATA II + IDE Where to Download the Manual PDF : If your N1996-marked board came from an
MSI model numbers typically follow a format like MS-XXXX (e.g., MS-7529, MS-7309, MS-7267) or marketing names like G31M3 , K9N6SGM-V , or P4M890M . 2. Check the BIOS/UEFI Screen : DDR2 RAM (max 2GB per slot), PCI/PCIe/AGP
Look for a small white barcode sticker on the back of the motherboard or near the 24-pin power connector. It often contains the model name. MSI does not provide support
: DDR2 RAM (max 2GB per slot), PCI/PCIe/AGP slots, and 4-core processor support. Refer to this N1996 Overview (PDF) for general legacy details. AM2 Socket Models (AMD) Model L-A690
Intel Core 2 Duo, Pentium D, Pentium 4, Celeron D Chipset: Intel 945GC + ICH7