Setting Time Zone
Information on OpenVMS Alpha Version 7.3 and Later and on OpenVMS
I64 Systems
This section contains instructions for setting time zone information
on OpenVMS Alpha Version 7.3 and later and on I64 machines. For
instructions on setting time zone information on OpenVMS Alpha prior
to Version 7.3 and on OpenVMS VAX, see
Setting Time Zone Information on OpenVMS VAX Systems.
If you are using the Distributed Time Synchronization
Service (DTSS), you must use the procedures supplied with DTSS to
set time zone information. See
Distributed Time Synchronization Service (DTSS).
Use the procedure SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM to set time
zone information.
SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM has some undocumented
uses that are not supported and can lead to inconsistent or incorrect
time zone information, For this reason, you should use SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM
only in the ways that are documented here.
To use SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM, you must have the following
privileges enabled: OPER, LOG_IO, SYSPRV, SYSNAM and CMEXEC. To
ensure that these privileges are enabled, execute the following
command:
$ SET PROCESS/PRIVILEGES=(OPER,LOG_IO,SYSPRV,SYSNAM,CMEXEC)
If these privileges are not enabled, you can encounter errors
or incorrect results.
You can use SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM to display current
time zone information or to set time zone information.
This results in the following (or similar) display:
AUTO_DLIGHT_SAV is set to "1".
OpenVMS will automatically change to/from Daylight Saving Time.
(in timezones that use Daylight Saving Time)
LOCAL TIME ZONE = EASTERN / US -- STANDARD TIME
LOCAL SYSTEM TIME = 20-MAR-2003 13:23:22.21 (EST)
TIME DIFFERENTIAL FACTOR = -5:00
TIME ZONE RULE = EST5EDT4,M4.1.0/02,M10.4.0/02
Change EST to EDT on the First Sunday of April (6-Apr-2003) at 02:00
Change EDT to EST on the Fourth Sunday of October (26-Oct-2003) at 02:00
In time zones that do not use Daylight Saving Time, a statement
to that effect will appear in place of the change statements.
If the AUTO_DLIGHT_SAVE system parameter is set to 0, you
may receive a display similar to the following:
AUTO_DLIGHT_SAV is set to "0" and DTSS is not in use.
You will have to manually change to/from Daylight Saving Time.
You can do this by executing SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM,
or you can use SYS$EXAMPLES:DAYLIGHT_SAVING.COM.
LOCAL TIME ZONE = ROC -- STANDARD TIME
LOCAL SYSTEM TIME = 19-MAR-2003 13:02:03.91 (CST)
TIME DIFFERENTIAL FACTOR = 8:00
TIME ZONE RULE = CST-8
This time zone does not use Daylight Saving Time.
You may also receive messages indicating that some time zone
parameters are not correctly set. If so, correct the time zone information
and rerun the procedure.
Setting Time Zone Information For local time zone support to work correctly, you must set
the time zone that accurately describes the location you want to
be considered as your default time zone. Usually, this is the time
zone in which your system is running. In addition, your system must
be correctly configured to use a valid OpenVMS time differential
factor (TDF).
Do not include any parameters with this command. When the
main time zone menu is displayed, you can select the time zone in
either of two ways: (1) by selecting the number in the main time
zone menu that best represents the time zone desired (if multiple
time zones exist for the selection you make, you will have to select
the exact time zone from another menu), or (2) by using a search
option that allows you to bypass the time zone menu and search by
name.
If you select one of the numbers in the time zone menu, the
corresponding time zone is selected. An asterisk (*) next to a number
indicates that more than one time zone exists for that selection.
If you select such a number, an additional menu displays with choices
that allow you to select the appropriate time zone. For example,
if you choose the United States (US) time zone from the main menu,
a second menu displays the specific time zones within the United
States. You then select the menu item that best represents the desired time
zone.
The following example shows how you would select the Eastern
time zone for the United States by using the menu numbers:
Configuring the Local Time Zone
TIME ZONE SPECIFICATION -- MAIN Time Zone Menu "*" indicates a menu
0* GMT
1* AFRICA 12) EET 23) JAPAN 34) ROK
2* AMERICA 13) EGYPT 24) LIBYA 35) SINGAPORE
3* ANTARCTICA 14) FACTORY 25) MET 36* SYSTEMV
4* ASIA 15) GB-EIRE 26* MEXICO 37) TURKEY
5* ATLANTIC 16) GREENWICH 27) NAVAJO 38) UCT
6* AUSTRALIA 17) HONGKONG 28) NZ-CHAT 39) UNIVERSAL
7* BRAZIL 18) ICELAND 29) NZ 40* US
8* CANADA 19* INDIAN 30* PACIFIC 41) UTC
9) CET 20) IRAN 31) POLAND 42) W-SU
10* CHILE 21) ISRAEL 32) PRC 43) WET
11) CUBA 22) JAMAICA 33) ROC 44) ZULU
Press "Return" to redisplay, enter "=" to search or "?" for help, or
Select the number above that best represents the desired time zone: 40
US Time Zone Menu "*" indicates a menu
0* RETURN TO MAIN TIME ZONE MENU
1) ALASKA 4) CENTRAL 7) HAWAII 10) MOUNTAIN
2) ALEUTIAN 5) EAST-INDIANA 8) INDIANA-STARKE 11) PACIFIC
3) ARIZONA 6) EASTERN 9) MICHIGAN 12) SAMOA
Press "Return" to redisplay, enter "=" to search or "?" for help, or
Select the number above that best represents the desired time zone: 6
You selected EASTERN / US as your time zone.
Is this correct? (Yes/No) [YES]:
Time Zone Acronyms lists
and describes the acronyms that appear in the Main Time Zone Menu.
Table 1 Time Zone Acronyms
Time Zone Acronym
Description
CET
Central European Time
EET
Eastern European Time
FACTORY
Specifies no time zone
GB-EIRE
Great Britain/Ireland
GMT
Greenwich Mean Time
MET
Middle European Time
NZ
New Zealand
NZ-CHAT
New Zealand, Chatham Islands
PRC
People's Republic of China
ROC
Republic of China
ROK
Republic of Korea
SYSTEMV
Specific to System V operating
system
UCT
Coordinated Universal Time
US
United States
UTC
Coordinated Universal Time
UNIVERSAL
Coordinated Universal Time
W-SU
Middle European Time
WET
Western European Time
To use the search option instead of menu numbers to select
the time zone, enter an equal string (=) at the menu prompt instead
of a number. The procedure then prompts you for the full or partial
name of the time zone you want to select. After you enter that information,
the procedure displays all matching time zones, and you can then
select the appropriate one.
Search only for a specific submenu name, such as US
or INDIAN, or for a menu entry, such as POLAND (or partial name
POL, for example) or EASTERN. Attempts to search for EASTERN / US
or REUNION / INDIAN will fail to bring up choices for you.
The following example shows how you would select the Eastern
time zone for the United States by using the search option:
Configuring the Local Time Zone
TIME ZONE SPECIFICATION -- MAIN Time Zone Menu "*" indicates a menu
0* GMT
1* AFRICA 12) EET 23) JAPAN 34) ROK
2* AMERICA 13) EGYPT 24) LIBYA 35) SINGAPORE
3* ANTARCTICA 14) FACTORY 25) MET 36* SYSTEMV
4* ASIA 15) GB-EIRE 26* MEXICO 37) TURKEY
5* ATLANTIC 16) GREENWICH 27) NAVAJO 38) UCT
6* AUSTRALIA 17) HONGKONG 28) NZ-CHAT 39) UNIVERSAL
7* BRAZIL 18) ICELAND 29) NZ 40* US
8* CANADA 19* INDIAN 30* PACIFIC 41) UTC
9) CET 20) IRAN 31) POLAND 42) W-SU
10* CHILE 21) ISRAEL 32) PRC 43) WET
11) CUBA 22) JAMAICA 33) ROC 44) ZULU
Press "Return" to redisplay, enter "=" to search or "?" for help, or
Select the number above that best represents the desired time zone: =EAST
Search for Time Zone by Full or Partial Name
"*" indicates a menu
1) EAST / BRAZIL
2) EAST-SASKATCHEWAN / CANADA
3) EASTERN / CANADA
4) EASTERISLAND / CHILE
5) EASTER / PACIFIC
6) EAST-INDIANA / US
7) EASTERN / US
Press "Return" to redisplay this menu,
enter "=" to search for a new zone,
enter "0" to return to the Main Time Zone Menu,
enter "?" for help, or
Select the number above that best represents the desired time zone: 7
You selected EASTERN / US as your time zone.
Is this correct? (Yes/No) [YES]
If you enter No, you are returned to the Main Time Zone Menu.
If you answer Yes or press Return to accept the default, time
zone information is set. This includes:
The following system logical names,
which are set with the time zone information:
SYS$LOCALTIME
SYS$POSIXRULES
SYS$TIMEZONE_DAYLIGHT_SAVING
SYS$TIMEZONE_NAME
SYS$TIMEZONE_RULE
The following files, which are written so that time
zone information can be reset when the system is rebooted:
[VMS$COMMON.SYSEXE]SYS$TIMEZONE_SRC.DAT
[VMS$COMMON.SYS$STARTUP]TDF$UTC_STARTUP.COM
The TDF is the difference between your system time and Coordinated
Universal Time (UTC), which is an international standard (similar
to Greenwich Mean Time) for measuring time of day. The system next displays
the TDFs for standard and daylight saving time that correspond to
the time zone you have selected, and information about the TDF.
For example:
Default Time Differential Factor for standard time is -5:00.
Default Time Differential Factor for daylight saving time is -4:00.
The Time Differential Factor (TDF) is the difference between your
system time and Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). UTC is similar
in most repects to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
The TDF is expressed as hours and minutes, and should be entered
in the hh:mm format. TDFs for the Americas will be negative
(-3:00, -4:00, etc.); TDFs for Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia
will be positive (1:00, 2:00, etc.).
Note that the system displays daylight saving time information
only for time zones that use daylight saving time. If the time zone
you selected uses daylight saving time, you must indicate whether
daylight saving time is or is not currently in effect. Answer Y
(Yes) or N (No) when you are prompted. For example:
Is Daylight Savings time in effect?Y
You are then prompted to enter the TDF. A default, based on
your time zone and daylight saving time information, is provided.
In the following example the default is -4:00. HP recommends
that you press Return to accept the default.
Enter the Time Differential Factor [-4:00]:
This results in the following (or similar) display:
If this is a seasonal time change, it may also be necessary to
modify the system time. Generally, seasonal time changes result
in adding 1:00 hour, or adding -1:00 hour to the system time.
When you are prompted, enter Yes or No.
Do you wish to modify the local system time [N]:Yes
If you answer Yes, the following is displayed:
Enter the time adjustment value you would like to add to
the local time. You can enter hours only (hh) or hours and
minutes (hh:mm) The value can be positive (hh:mm or +hh:mm)
or negative (-hh:mm).
You are then asked to enter the time adjustment, usually either
-1:00 or +1:00.
Enter the time adjustment value:-1:00
Finally, the TDF and the time adjustment (if any) is displayed,
and you are asked to confirm that they are correct.
NEW SYSTEM TIME DIFFERENTIAL FACTOR = -4:00
ADDING -1:00 TO THE LOCAL TIME.
Is this correct? [Y]:
If you answer Yes, the TDF is set, and the system logical
name SYS$TIMEZONE_DIFFERENTIAL is defined.
If you answer No, you are returned to the TDF information
display, from which you can reenter your TDF and time adjustment
choices.