Am using the Framework 13 Mainboard (AMD Ryzen 7640U , 32 GB RAM DDR5-5600, 1 TB M.2 SSD) to create a mini PC in the Cooler Master Case. I’ve mostly gotten things to work but am still having a few issues:
I’m not able to start the machine by pressing the power button on the Cooler Master Case lid. I need to open the case and push the power button manually using the framework screwdriver. Does anyone have any suggestions? It’s possible that the shape of the lid might be warped a bit, at least that’s what it looks like.
I am only able to connect a single monitor to the mainboard case. Have tried using the HDMI expansion card on one of the open ports, but to no avail. Not sure what to try next to get additional monitor(s) working.
My cable configuration: 100 W USB-C Wavlink power adapter plugged directly into the top right port, no dongles, USB-C to 4K HDMI cable plugged into the top left port for the primary monitor. Bluetooth keyboard and mouse.
Am using Ubuntu 24 LTS as the operating system. Could it be a driver issue?
What do you suggest to resolve these issues? Thanks in advance for your help.
I have a 7840U in a Cooler Master case and I have a similar issue with the power button. It seems like maybe the plastic piece on the other side of the physical button is ever so slightly off and not hitting the switch on the mainboard correctly. I am able to turn it on if I press the button in just the right way, but sometimes it takes me a dozen times or so to get it right. It’s very frustrating. I suspect that attaching a small shim over the switch might help, but I haven’t gotten into yet. The other thing that makes it more difficult is that there is no light to indicate that it’s turned on, so you have to wait about ten seconds every time you press the button to wait and see if the display turns on before you know whether it’s actually on.
I would love to see a Gen 2 of the case with a more robust power button and a power light. Personally, I’d pay more to get it.
I’m not sure about the monitor. I’m running one monitor via an HDMI expansion card. And I have seen it working with 24.04 LTS. I haven’t tried multiple monitors with it, though.
You guys are doing good to even mount the mainboard in the case. On mine the bosses were too big so I had to take a knife and shave them down… And I guess I shaved the one under the power button a little too low, so when I’d try to use the case button to turn on the board, the mainboard would just flex away instead of pressing the button.
So I stuck a scrap piece of plastic behind the mainboard under the power button to give it something to push against, and NOW it boots when I press the case button.
Unfortunately, power-on-after-power-fail doesn’t work, so I’m unable to use the AMD board as a server. I’m still using the 12th gen Intel, which has been working great for years.
Aw man, sorry to hear that. I actually also have the original 3D printed custom case from the framework schematic for my i5-1135G7 mainboard which is a home server. Somehow the power button on that one actually works.
Hopefully Framework can take it up with Cooler Master and improve the case further in the next iteration.
Yep, I have that one for my old mainboard (i5-1135G7) which is being used as the home server. That was 3D printed some time ago using an online 3D printing service. The power button works on that case.
However, on the cooler master case for my Ryzen 7640U mainboard, the power button on the case does not work. Hopefully that makes more sense.
Yeah, I’ve come to consider the Ryzen boards basically incompatible with the Coolermaster. My 12th gen Intel has been loving the Coolermaster right from day one. Zero troubles. And my AMD has never worked well, despite my spending a ton of time on it.
In your case, I’m guessing there’s an incompatibility between the AMD board and the CoolerMaster bosses that’s letting the mainboard flex under the button (there sure was on mine). Like I said, I found a correctly sized chunk of plastic to jam behind the mainboard under the button and now it works. You can feel the button clicking reliably through the CoolerMaster button.
Note there will still be lots of other problems… Like, I can’t get to the BIOS screen except by systemctl reboot --firmware-setup, the BIOS doesn’t like many of my USB keyboards, power-on-after-power-fail never works, …
Once you get it booted though, it’s totally reliable and a quick little beast! Just don’t ever let the power go out.
Thanks for the feedback, will try to get some plastic piece later and see if that works. Maybe I can craft / 3D print some type of plastic hat that will go on top of the power button and turn the device on.
Was able to get ethernet working by using a USB Dongle that plugged into my cheap USB hub.
As for the other stuff about multiple monitors, I have some thunderbolt docks I got from work for free. Not sure which one will work, but can try some of them and see how it goes. There’s also a possibility of using DisplayLink, but would like to avoid trading CPU cycles for more displays if possible.
I do have an open USB-C port (both bottom left and bottom right ports) on my mainboard for the extra monitor, unfortunately was a bit disappointed that the HDMI expansion card does not seem to work to connect an extra monitor.
Well, some good news, was able to connect two monitors (one 4K monitor and one 1440p monitor) using the following configuration:
Top Right Port: USB C Hub with 100 W USB-C Power Adapter, Keyboard 2.4 GHZ receiver, and USB-A to Ethernet Adapter. Plugged directly into the mainboard (i.e., no expansion card)
Top Left Port: USB-C to 4K HDMI Cable, connected to 4K monitor, can use either USB-C expansion card or plug directly into mainboard (main monitor)
Bottom Right Port: USB-C to 4K HDMI Cable, connected to 1440p monitor, plugged directly into mainboard (secondary monitor)
Will have to do some more experiments to see if I can connect 3+ monitors, but for now this is something good.
So today finally connected three monitors to the mainboard + case. Here are the exact specifications in case anyone wants to try and replicate the setup:
Mainboard: AMD Ryzen 7640U
RAM: 32 GB (2 x 16GB) DDR-5600 from Framework
SSD: Samsung 990 Evo Plus 2 TB
Port Connections:
Top Right Port: USB C Hub with 100 W USB-C Power Adapter, Keyboard 2.4 GHZ receiver, and USB-A to Ethernet Adapter. Plugged directly into the mainboard (i.e., no expansion card)
Top Left Port: USB-C to 4K HDMI Cable, connected to 4K monitor, can use either USB-C expansion card or plug directly into mainboard (main monitor)
Bottom Right Port: I switched this up to a Insignia USB-C to Dual 4K Adapter. Then connected the two extended displays to this port.
Key Components (In case anyone wants to replicate my setup):