A motherboard is the physical arrangement in a computer that contains the computer's basic circuitry and components. It holds together many of the crucial components of a computer, including the central processing unit (CPU), memory and connectors for input and output devices. The base of a motherboard consists of a very firm sheet of non-conductive material, typically some sort of rigid plastic. Thin layers of copper or aluminum foil, are printed onto this sheet. These are very narrow and form the circuits between the various components. In addition to circuits, a motherboard contains a number of sockets and slots to connect the other components. External devices such as keyboard, mouse, and monitor cannot communicate with the system unit without the system board.
