Electrical connector having board locks

An electrical connector for mating with a mating connector, comprising:

• an insulative housing having a base portion, a pair of guiding portions extending upwardly from opposite ends of the base portion for engaging with guiding sections of the mating connector, a pair of mounting sections formed on the opposite ends of the base portion and locating under the guiding portions;
• a plurality of contacts received in the housing;
• and
• a pair of metal board locks mounted to the mounting sections of the housing and each board lock comprising a main base abutting against a bottom face of the mounting section, a first beam extending upwardly from a first edge of the main base and securely retained to the mounting section, a pair of second beams extending upwardly from opposite sides of the main base and securely retained into the mounting section, the second beams being opposite to each other and perpendicular to the first beam, a pair of retaining legs extending downwardly from a second edge of the main base opposite to the first edge for mounting the connector to a printed circuit board;
• wherein
• the mounting section of the housing has a main portion connecting the end of base portion and a pair of side walls protruding outwardly and beyond a pair of opposite sides of the base portion, and an end wall connecting both side walls of the mounting section;
• wherein
• the guiding portion comprises an end section integrally extending upwardly from the end wall of the mounting section, an outmost surface of the end wall of the mounting section is coplanar with an outmost surface of the guiding portion;
• wherein
• both side walls and the end wall together circulate the main portion;
• wherein
• a first slot is defined in the mounting section from a bottom face of the mounting section and between the main portion and the end wall of the mounting section, the first beam is securely fixed into the first slot.