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Setting Time Zone Information on OpenVMS VAX Systems  



This section presents instructions for setting time zone information on OpenVMS VAX and on OpenVMS Alpha prior to Version 7.3. For instructions about setting time zone information on OpenVMS Alpha Version 7.3 and later and on I64, see Setting Time Zone Information on OpenVMS Alpha Version 7.3 and Later and on OpenVMS I64 Systems.

You use the command procedure SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM to set time zone information, including:

If you set the time zone and the TDF on one node in a cluster, the values you set take effect on other nodes in the cluster when those nodes are rebooted.

For your convenience, the instructions for using the command procedure have been split into two sections:

Beginning the Procedure

To use SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to the SYSTEM account or enter the following command to enable LOG_IO and OPER privileges:
    $ SET PROCESS/PRIVILEGES=(LOG_IO,OPER) 
  2. Enter the following command to start UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM:
    $ @SYS$MANAGER:UTC$TIME_SETUP.COM
    %UTC-I-UPDTIME, updating Time Zone information in SYS$COMMON:[SYSEXE]
  3. Press Return to accept the default of BOTH or enter one of the other choices in answer to the following question:
    Configure which time parameter (TIMEZONE/TDF/BOTH/NONE)? [BOTH]

    NoteHP recommends that you set both the time zone and the TDF. If you set the TDF without setting the time zone, the procedure cannot provide default TDF values.

If you answer BOTH or TIMEZONE to the time parameter question in the command procedure, continue in Setting the Time Zone on Your System. If you answer TDF to the question, continue in Setting the TDF on Your System.

Setting the Time Zone on Your System  

The local time zone is the location you want to consider your default local time zone. Usually this local time zone is the same as the local time zone in which your system is located.

You set the local time zone by making choices in a command procedure.

The system first displays the following information:

    Configuring the Local Time Zone
 
    TIME ZONE SPECIFICATION -- Main Time Zone Menu
 
      1) Australia       11) GMT             21) Mexico          31) Turkey
      2) Brazil          12) Greenwich       22) NZ              32) UCT
      3) CET             13) Hong Kong       23) NZ-CHAT         33) US
      4) Canada          14) Iceland         24) Navajo          34) UTC
      5) Chile           15) Iran            25) PRC             35) Universal
      6) Cuba            16) Israel          26) Poland          36) W-SU
      7) EET             17) Jamaica         27) ROC             37) WET
      8) Egypt           18) Japan           28) ROK             38) Zulu
      9) Factory         19) Libya           29) Singapore
     10) GB-Eire         20) MET             30) SystemV
 
      0) None of the above
Time Zone Acronyms lists and describes the acronyms that appear in the Main Time Zone Menu.

To select a time zone, follow these steps:

  1. Enter a number after the following question; for example, 33, for the United States:
    Select the number above that best describes your location: 33
    If you enter 0, the system defaults to GMT.
  2. If you enter a country that has more than one time zone, the system displays a message and asks for a confirmation like the following one (if not, skip to the explanation following step 4):
    You selected US as your time zone.
    Is this correct? (Yes/No) [YES]: 
  3. The system displays areas with different time zones and asks you to select your area. Enter a number, for example, 6:
        US 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
     
           0) None of the above
    Select the number above that best describes your location: 6
  4. Confirm the displayed information or enter another number after the following prompt; for example:
    You selected US/Eastern as your time zone.
    Is this correct? (Yes/No) [YES]: 
    When you confirm the last statement, the system redefines the following system logical names: The HP C RTL uses these logical names to compute the time zone rules for your applications. The system also writes this information to SYS$TIMEZONE.DAT. The system uses this file to reset SYS$LOCALTIME and SYS$POSIXRULES when you reboot.

    The system then displays the TDFs for standard and daylight saving time that correspond to the time zone you have selected:
        Default Time Differential Factor for standard time is -5:00.
       *Default Time Differential Factor for daylight saving time is -4:00.
    * The system displays daylight saving time only for time zones that use daylight saving time.

Setting the TDF on Your System  

If you answer TDF or BOTH to the time parameter question at the beginning of the command procedure, the system displays prompts for the TDF on your system.

To set the TDF, answer the following questions:

  1. Select option 2 to display the TDF the system has calculated for you:
        Configuring the Time Differential Factor (TDF)
     
        Enter ? anytime for help
     
        [0]     Exit
        [1]     Set the Time Differential Factor
        [2]      Display the Time Differential Factor
    Please pick an option number [2]: 2
    The system displays information similar to the following items:
        SYSTEM TIME DIFFERENTIAL FACTOR = -4:00  (-14400 seconds).
        LOCAL SYSTEM TIME               = 22-JAN-2001 10:49:45.20.
  2. Select option 1 to verify the TDF displayed or to enter a new one:
        Configuring the Time Differential Factor (TDF)
     
        Enter ? anytime for help
     
        [0]     Exit
        [1]     Set the Time Differential Factor
        [2]     Display the Time Differential Factor
     
    Please pick an option number [2]: 1
    The system then displays the following information:
        The Time Differential Factor (TDF) is the difference between your
        system time and Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).  UTC is similar
        in most respects 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.).
    The system displays the following question only if you set the time zone as well. However, some time zones do not have daylight saving time; if they do not, the system also does not display this question.
  3. Answer Yes or No to the following question:
    Is Daylight Saving time in effect? (Yes/No): 
  4. After the following prompt, either press Return to accept the displayed default or enter the correct TDF. (If you have not set the time zone, the system does not display a default TDF value.)
    Enter the Time Differential Factor [-4:00]:
    The system then explains the need to modify the system time as well for season time changes:
        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.
  5. To the following question, answer Yes if you need to modify the local system time or No if you do not:
    Do you wish to modify the local system time [N]: 
    If you answer Yes, the system leads you through a dialogue similar to the one in Adjusting for Daylight Saving Time on OpenVMS Version 7.2

    If you answer No, the system next displays the new TDF:
        NEW SYSTEM TIME DIFFERENTIAL FACTOR = -4:00.
  6. Answer Yes to confirm the displayed TDF or No if it is incorrect:
    Is this correct? [Y]:
    If you answer No, the system returns to step 1 in this section.

    If you answer Yes, the system displays both the TDF and the local system time.
        SYSTEM TIME DIFFERENTIAL FACTOR = -4:00  (-14400 seconds).
        LOCAL SYSTEM TIME               = 22-JAN-2001 10:52:37.36.

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