I have managed to get three mini-ITX motherboards (GA-F2A88XN-WIFI) that I really love but have currently no use for. I am thinking about storing them until I can get an actual house, which can maybe last for about 4-8 years.
I have examined them and they have no LEDs, piezo speakers, nor moving parts (no buttons, fans). The part with the supposedly shortest shelf life, the capacitors, are all solid caps. The thing I am worried however, are the motherboard's chips. I have removed the CMOS battery prior, and I am unsure if having no power to the motherboard can cause some kind of BIOS corruption rendering the motherboard dead.
Aside from that, I really don't see anything that prevents modern motherboards from working if properly stored. Am I right, or should I expect these things to pop their capacitors, or just be plain dead if I boot them up 10 years from now?
I have examined them and they have no LEDs, piezo speakers, nor moving parts (no buttons, fans). The part with the supposedly shortest shelf life, the capacitors, are all solid caps. The thing I am worried however, are the motherboard's chips. I have removed the CMOS battery prior, and I am unsure if having no power to the motherboard can cause some kind of BIOS corruption rendering the motherboard dead.
Aside from that, I really don't see anything that prevents modern motherboards from working if properly stored. Am I right, or should I expect these things to pop their capacitors, or just be plain dead if I boot them up 10 years from now?