plug and play

plug and play

(1) The ability to add a new component to a system and have it work automatically without having to do any technical analysis or manual configuration. See definition below, UPnP and Plug-and-play TV.

(2) (Plug and Play) A standard from Intel for peripheral expansion on a PC. On starting up the computer, Plug and Play (PnP) recognizes the attached peripheral devices and adjusts the appropriate internal settings, namely configuring the IRQ, DMA and I/O address. See IRQ, DMA and PC I/O addressing.

PnP and Windows 95 to the Rescue
PnP eliminated the frustration of manually reconfiguring the PC when new peripherals were installed. Every device added made it even more complicated. In the mid-1990s, PC vendors began to update their motherboards with a PnP BIOS, and peripheral vendors began to add PnP to their cards. Windows 95 was the first PC operating system to support PnP.

The Transition to PnP
PnP computers supported older, non-PnP ISA cards. If one was installed, the ISA Configuration Utility (ICU) checked a list of requirements and recommended settings. If the card was not in the list, it made partial recommendations ("plug and tell"). In addition, PnP cards could be installed in non-PnP computers by using the DWCFGMG.SYS driver. See also UPnP.

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(jargon)

plug and play - 1. Hardware or software that, after being installed ("plugged in"), can immediately be used ("played with"), as opposed to hardware or software which requires configuration. See also turnkey, plug and pray. 2. A new recruit who needs no training. "The new guy, John, is great. He's totally plug-and-play."