Microsoft Daylight Saving Time & Time Zone Blog : announcements

Notice: Now also available for Windows XP and Windows Server 2003: Optional Hotfix Available for Pakistan 2009 Daylight Saving Time

atsim — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 23:25:00 GMT

As reported in various publications, including Daily Times, Pakistan has announced the start of DST for 2009 on April 15^th at midnight. This information is subject to change as it has not been officially confirmed by a Pakistani government source.

Last Monday a hotfix was released to implement this change for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. The update is now also available for Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. If interested in downloading this hotfix, please refer to KB 970084 titled: “A hotfix is available to update the Daylight Saving Time for the "(GMT +5:00) Islamabad, Karachi" time zone for the year 2009 for Windows XP-based, Windows Server 2003-based, Windows Vista-based and Windows Server 2008-based computers”.

Notice: Optional Hotfix Available for Pakistan 2009 Daylight Saving Time

atsim — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 06:11:00 GMT

Microsoft has produced a hotfix to implement this change for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. If interested in downloading this hotfix, please refer to KB 970084 titled: “A hotfix is available to update the Daylight Saving Time for the "(GMT +5:00) Islamabad, Karachi" time zone for the year 2009 for Windows Vista-based and Windows Server 2008-based computers”.

For other Windows versions, please refer to KB 914387 “How to configure daylight saving time for Microsoft Windows operating systems” on how to update the time zone registry key.

Pakistan: Daylight saving time ends on November 1 at midnight

atsim — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 18:52:00 GMT

Daylight saving time ends this weekend in Pakistan. Late in August 2008, it was announced that Pakistan's daylight saving time (DST) would be extended to midnight between October 31 and November 1, 2008.

In May of 2008, Pakistan introduced the observance of DST for this year for the first time since 2002. Pakistan will use daylight saving time to save energy as it faces a power crisis. The clocks would move one hour ahead (to UTC+6) at midnight between Friday, May 31, and Saturday, June 1, in 2008. The DST end date was later in the year changed to October 31.

Daylight saving time is used to save energy by extending daylight, therefore reducing the need to use artificial lighting, air-conditioning and other electrical appliances. In recent times, electricity supplies to homes, businesses and factories across Pakistan were cut for several hours a day.

Announcement: daylight saving time ends in Morocco earlier, on September 1, 2008

atsim — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 07:30:36 GMT

(cross posted from Announcement- Changes to daylight saving time in Morocco, earlier than later on September 1, 2008)

We recently received news reports (via this link, in French) that the ministry for the Modernization of the public sector in Morocco issued a notice that the country has changed the end date to daylight saving time (DST, aka Summer Time, Heuer d'été) in the country. At midnight (0:00h) between August 31 and September 1, 2008, the country will move the clocks back one hour. This is several weeks earlier than the original scheduled change between September 27 and September 28. (For more on the change, see also the article posted here.)

Please note that this may present challenges for Moroccan consumers, industries and enterprises, and IT Pros may be inconvenienced independent of the architecture they support. We believe that due to the late notice of this change with little advance warning, there may be impacts to businesses and end users in Morocco and even some impacts to businesses and end users referring to the time zone setting outside the country. Such a timetable does businesses and infrastructure in Morocco and nearby regions to make the change, nor does it allow the worldwide community to make the needed changes to their systems and infrastructure.

At the moment, Microsoft recommends that customers who have applied the August 2008 DST & TZ update to the Windows OS, KB951072 should uncheck deselect "Automatically adjust clock for Daylight Saving Time" in the Date and Time control panel after the change takes place on Sept 1, as noted at right. Additional guidance will published this week on the Microsoft daylight saving and time zone site.

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, DST, Morocco

http://tinyurl.com/5mnnen

updateD: Hot Topics for Daylight Saving Time changes page

atsim — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 20:35:04 GMT

The 'Hot Topics for Daylight Saving Time changes' page at http://support.microsoft.com/gp/dst_hottopics has been updated:

Daylight Saving Time and Time Zone update for Windows now available (revised August 12, 2008)
The most recent cumulative updates to daylight saving time (DST) and world time zones (TZ) for Windows are now available for supported versions of the Windows operating system. The cumulative updates have been released to the Microsoft Download Center. These updates support versions of Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, and Windows Server 2008.

Technorati Profile

Daylight Saving Time and Time Zone update for Windows now available (August 2008)

atsim — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 00:44:52 GMT

The most recent cumulative updates to daylight saving time (DST) and world time zones (TZ) for Windows are now available for supported versions of the Windows operating system. The cumulative updates have been released to the Microsoft Download Center. These updates support versions of Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, and Windows Server 2008. For information that details the changes in the cumulative updates, visit the following Microsoft Web site: KB 951072, August 2008 cumulative time zone update for Microsoft Windows operating systems

(More details are available now at http://support.microsoft.com/gp/dst_hottopics. This information has been cross-posted to 'Available now: the latest Daylight Saving Time & Time Zone update for Windows.')

The cumulative updates are also available on the Windows Update site beginning August 12,2008, as part of the normal update process for Windows.

Consumers and small businesses may want to use Microsoft Update to download and install updates that are available from Windows Update or wait for the latest update to automatically install on your computer via Windows Automatic Update.
For more information about the service that is provided by Microsoft Update, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
http://www.microsoft.com/protect/computer/updates/mu.mspx

System administrators and IT professionals may download the latest packages for distribution to their users.

Microsoft product teams are moving to a semi-annual DST and TZ update schedule, which follows the Windows regular schedule for publishing newly legislated DST rules and time zone updates. These annual "Cumulative Daylight Saving Time and Time Zone Updates" will be released in November/December for the coming calendar year; a semi-annual update will be released in July/August, as needed. Other Microsoft products that are affected may also schedule updates to accommodate some of these changes. For the latest DST updates on each of these products, please visit the following Microsoft Web site:
http://support.microsoft.com/gp/dst_prodlist

For more information about all the DST and TZ updates that have been made to date, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
914387 How to configure daylight saving time for Microsoft Windows operating systems

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, RSS, DST.

Advisory: Potential changes to Daylight Saving Time in Iraq

atsim — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 01:27:00 GMT

Microsoft has learned of a potential change to the observance of Daylight Saving Time (DST) in Iraq that may impact customers using the Baghdad time zone.

An early, unsubstantiated report is that the Ministry of Iraq has decided that the country will no longer observe DST as they have in prior years, currently scheduled to take effect on April 1, 2008.

Thus far, Microsoft has not been able to officially verify this change: if the change to the implementation of DST in the country is made, this may impact customers and partners in the region who use the Baghdad time zone, including military facilities and other entities engaged in business in or with the region.

Microsoft is actively working with government representatives and customers in the region to confirm the change in Iraq, while also endeavoring to understand and document the scenarios and implications.

Specific guidance will be provided as it becomes available on the Microsoft DST & TZ Hot Topics page off of http://www.microsoft.com/time. For details on setting up RSS feeds for these pages, see this post on setting up RSS feeds.

(Cross posted at http://blogs.msdn.com/mthree/archive/2008/03/15/iraq-dst-031508.aspx)

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, RSS, DST. 3,530,000; 6,950,000; 649,000+

Chile announces an extension on their Daylight Saving Time for 2008

atsim — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 22:26:00 GMT

The government of Chile announced on February 7, 2008, that their current daylight saving time will be extended in order to save energy. The new fall back date for the daylight saving period of 2007-2008 is:

Daylight saving time ends: Last Saturday of March at 11:59:59PM

Information is available via our Chilean web site at http://www.microsoft.com/chile/cambiodehora, "Extension del horario de Verano en Chile". Customers and partners will find additional information on this change and manual remediation at http://blogs.technet.com/latam/archive/tags/DST/default.aspx:

The default configuration for the time zone “(GMT-04:00) Santiago” in Windows Operating Systems does not reflect the new final date for the daylight saving time defined by the government. This bulletin summarizes the actions recommended for customers in Chile to address the extension of daylight saving time and mitigate its impacts.

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, DST.

Daylight Saving Time Begins Sunday, March 9, in the US and Canada

atsim — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 22:20:00 GMT

[cross posted to http://blogs.msdn.com/mthree/archive/2008/03/07/dst-arrives-030708.aspx]

Daylight Saving Time begins in much of the US and Canada this weekend, as noted in more than 2,200 news articles today on March 9, several weeks earlier than in years prior to 2007. As you may recall, last year the US and Canada "sprang forward" a few weeks earlier than in past years in accordance with the US Department of Energy's Energy Policy Act of 2005 that was passed into law. DST will end later than usual, on the first Sunday of November (in 2008, November 2); more details on the new DST start and end times can be found here). This results in a new DST period that is approximately three to four weeks longer than in previous years.

So what should you do to make sure that your computers are ready for the change?

If you use Microsoft Update on your PC at home, chances are you're already covered. The December Cumulative 2008 Daylight Saving Time and Time Zone Update for Windows should already be installed on your PC. If you're not sure, visit Microsoft Windows Update to check your PC and install important updates.

At work, if an IT Pro (aka 'hero') manages your network, chances are good that the needed updates have already been installed on your computers and devices already.

If you manage servers and a host of Microsoft software, visit http://www.microsoft.com/time for more details. And visit the support web sites of any other software companies to see if you need to apply any updates - it's not just Microsoft software that may require updates. Keep in mind that it's not just the US and Canada that made changes to DST and time zones: we have an upcoming change in Australia and others noted on the DST and Time Zone Hot Topics page. (You can enable tracking for the Microsoft DST and time zone web pages (or any web page) via RSS feed using free, third party services like page2rss, feedity, feedyes and other services.)

In Australia, there are changes to Eastern & Central zones. Australia Eastern (New South Wales, Victoria, Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania) and Central (South Australia) time zones will extend daylight saving and also harmonize start and end times commencing April 2008. From April 2008, daylight saving will end on the first Sunday in April and recommence on the first Sunday in October in all states. See the Australian Government Time web site for more information.

For a summary of the status of product updates, we recommend that customers review the information at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-au/bb887637.aspx. In most cases, customer will find that these changes have been addressed when the latest cumulative time zone update for Microsoft Windows operating systems was applied (released December, 2007, as noted at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/942763). Some of the updates are not specific to the Australia Eastern and Central changes and can be applied immediately; other products (for example Office Groove) require manual adjustment after application of the time zone update to the host Windows operating system.

And remember: time is a precious thing. Never waste it.

Of interest, these top news articles for daylight saving time...

Daylight saving time: a hands-off experience (Minneapolis Star)
Time Out of Mind (New York Times)
Daylight saving time costs nation costs nation $1.7 billion (Morning Call)
Daylight-saving not good for cows (San Francisco Gate)
Research Sheds Light on Saving Time, Resources… (Daily Nexus)
Daylight saving time may not save much… (Everett Herald)

[update 2:40PM] And thanks to Mary Jo for mentioning this post on her blog to increase awareness.

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, DST. 3,530,000 (down a million items); 6,950,000; 649,000+

Argentina is changing their daylight saving time on December 30

atsim — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 00:40:00 GMT

(cross posted from this blog entry)

This past week, the government of Argentina approved a new change to their observance of daylight saving time in the country effective this Sunday, December 30, 2007 at 12:00am to March 16th, 12:00 for Argentina.

According to Reuters, "under the new law, which both houses of Congress passed the same day, the time in Argentina will jump forward an hour starting on Sunday. The clocks will turn back on March 16." Information is also available via our Argentinean web site at http://www.microsoft.com/argentina/dst.

Currently Argentina is using GMT-3, with this change we will be using GMT-2. This fast-tracked change came with little advance notice and little reason for a fast implementation. Many of our customers are in a so-called "freeze period" where they do not make any changes or deploy any updates to their networks or systems.

Possible changes: Some customers may select to manually move their own users and systems to an appropriate time zone (such as the Mid-Atlantic TZ) on December 30 and move clocks back to Buenos Aires (GMT -3) on March 16. Other customers may wish to follow the guidance below for manually changing the registry. (See the section below for considerations of these changes.)

In addition to Microsoft products, other software, OS releases and hardware (phones, routers, switches and managed devices) may require updates/ changes.

Upcoming Daylight Saving Time implementation for Argentina in 2007-2008

The steps provided in this bulletin were created to mitigate the impacts that the daylight saving time implementation will cause for customers in Argentina. These are the impacts primarily anticipated at the time this document was written, and the effects that customers may face are not restricted to them.

The suggested actions on this bulletin might receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by the DST changes in Argentina, we recommend that you wait for the next DST cumulative update that will likely contain the updates for Argentina.

This bulletin contains information about how to modify the registry. Make sure that you back up the registry before you modify it. Make sure that you know how to restore the registry if a problem occurs.

The information described in this document may change without notice. In addition, customers should be aware that further guidance will be provided at any time by Microsoft.

Background – implementation of Daylight Saving Time for Argentina in 2007-2008

The government of Argentina has announced the implementation of daylight saving time (DST) in Argentina. The following are the start and end dates for the daylight saving time defined:

Daylight saving time begins: Sunday, December 30^th, 2007 at 00:00 A.M local standard time.
Daylight saving time ends: Sunday, March 16^th, 2008 at 00:00 A.M local daylight saving time.

Currently, computers in Argentina use the “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” time zone setting. However, the default values for the “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” time zone setting in Microsoft Windows do not reflect the daylight saving time start and end dates defined by the government.

This bulletin summarizes the actions recommended for customers in Argentina to address the implementation of daylight saving time and mitigate its impacts.

General recommendations for customers in Argentina

1. In order to update Windows PC operating systems, we recommend administrators to create a new time zone to reflect the DST implementation in Argentina. Please read the section “How to update Windows Servers and Desktop Operating Systems” for details on the recommended steps.

2. Please note that if you adjust the machine’s clock manually, you may have adverse effects on your environment.

3. Before you apply the changes on Windows Operating Systems to reflect the DST dates in Argentina, be aware of potential issues that will affect Microsoft Office Outlook and Exchange Server. Read “Impacts for Outlook and OWA Clients” sections for more details.

4. Contact Microsoft Support prior to any modification if you are unsure about the steps to follow in order to be prepared for the DST implementation in Argentina.

How to update Windows Servers and Desktop Operating Systems

This session is based on the following article:

914387 - How to configure daylight saving time for Microsoft Windows operating systems

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;914387

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

There is no hotfix available at this time to update Windows Operating Systems with the DST dates for Argentina.
The current version of KB 914387 does not contain information about the new DST settings for Argentina.
The recommendation at this time is to create a new time zone to reflect the DST dates defined by the Argentina government. To do so, please proceed as follows:

Updating Windows Servers and Desktop Operating Systems

1. Create a registry file that will contain a new time zone for Argentina, following these steps:

1.1. Click Start, click Run, type notepad, and then click OK.

1.2. Copy the following registry information, and then paste it into the Notepad document:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Time Zones\Argentina Standard Time]

"Display"="(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires"

"Dlt"="Argentina Daylight Time"

"Std"="Argentina Standard Time"

"TZI"=hex:b4,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,c4,ff,ff,ff,00,00,03,00,00,00,03,00,00,00,00,\

00,00,00,00,00,00,00,0c,00,00,00,05,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Time Zones\Argentina Standard Time\Dynamic DST]

"FirstEntry"=dword:000007d6

"LastEntry"=dword:000007d8

"2008"=hex:b4,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,c4,ff,ff,ff,00,00,03,00,00,00,03,00,00,00,00,\

00,00,00,00,00,00,00,0c,00,00,00,05,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00

"2007"=hex:b4,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,c4,ff,ff,ff,00,00,01,00,01,00,01,00,00,00,00,\

00,00,00,00,00,00,00,0c,00,00,00,05,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00

"2006"=hex:b4,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,c4,ff,ff,ff,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,\

00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Time Zones\SA Eastern Standard Time]

"Display"="(GMT-03:00) Georgetown"

1.3. On the File menu, click Save As.

1.4. Select a destination, and then type TZupdate.reg in the File name box.

1.5. In the Save as type box, click All Files, and then click Save.

2. Import this registry key on target machines by double clicking in the TZupdate.reg and clicking ‘Yes’ when prompted. All machines (clients and servers) must be updated with this registry information.

2.1. After importing the registry key, the time zone “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” will be renamed to “(GMT-03:00) Georgetown”.

“(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” becomes “(GMT -03:00) Georgetown”

2.2. A new time zone named “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires” will be created.

New time zone “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires” – it contains the DST dates for Argentina

2.3. Users located in Argentina will need to change the time zone from “(GMT -03:00) Georgetown” to the new “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires” time zone.

2.4. Note that on the new time zone “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires” the option “Automatically adjust clock for daylight saving changes” is selected by default. Users should not uncheck this option.

3. In order to deploy these time zone changes in a corporate environment, you can use a startup script as described in the session “Deploy the registry file with the new DST information using Group Policy” below.

Deploying the registry file with the new DST information using Group Policy

1. Click Start, click Run, type notepad, and then press ENTER.

2. Copy the following code, and then paste it into the Notepad document.

@echo off

regedit /s \\contoso.com\NETLOGON\TZupdate.reg

Note: You must replace the \\contoso.com notation above with the actual DNS domain name for your Active Directory domain.

3. On the File menu, click Save As.

4. DST2007Update.cmd in the File name box.

5. In the Save as type box, click All Files, and then click Save.

6. Copy the following files to the Netlogon share folder of the domain controller that holds the PDC emulator role in the domain:
- TZupdate.reg
- DST2007Update.cmd

7. Wait until Active Directory replication occurs. Also, wait until the files and folders in the system volume (SYSVOL) shared folder replicate to domain controllers in the domain.

8. Click Start, click Run, type control admintools, and then click OK.

9. Double-click Active Directory Users and Computers.

10. Select an Organizational Unit (OU) which contains the computers that you want to apply this script to. In this example, we will use an OU that is named DST2007-W2K. This example also assumes that this OU contains computer accounts.

11. Right-click the DST2007-W2K OU and then click Properties.

12. Click the Group Policy tab, click New, type DST Registry Update, and then press ENTER.

13. Click Edit. The Group Policy Object Editor tool starts.

14. Expand Computer Configuration, expand Windows Settings, and then click Scripts (Startup/Shutdown).

15. Double-click Startup, and then click Add.

16. In the Script Name box, type the universal naming convention (UNC) path of the DST2007Update.cmd file that is located in the Netlogon share. For example, type \\contoso.com\NETLOGON\DST2007Update.cmd.

17. Click OK two times.

Note: Client computers that are within the DST2007-W2K organizational unit will run the startup script the next time the machine starts up. This will make the system to recognize the existence of the new “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires” time zone, however you still need to move to the new time zone that was just created. Please read the section ‘Changing the computer time zone via startup script’ for information on how to automatically change the time zone using a group policy.

Changing the computer time zone via startup script

1. Click Start, click Run, type notepad, and then press ENTER.

2. Copy the following lines, and then paste it into the Notepad document.

@echo off

ver |find /i "6.0">nul

IF %errorlevel% EQU 0 GOTO end

control.exe timedate.cpl,,/Z Argentina Standard Time

:end

3. On the File menu, click Save As.

4. Select a destination, and then type ChangeTZ.cmd in the File name box.

5. In the Save as type box, click All Files, and then click Save.

6. Copy the file to the Netlogon share folder of the domain controller that holds the PDC emulator role in the domain.

7. Wait until Active Directory replication occurs. Also, wait until the files and folders in the system volume (SYSVOL) shared folder replicate to domain controllers in the domain.

8. Click Start, click Run, type control admintools, and then click OK.

9. Double-click Active Directory Users and Computers.

10. Select an OU that contains the computers that you want to apply this script to. In this example, we will use an OU that is named DST2007-W2K. This example also assumes that this OU contains all computer accounts.

11. Right-click the DST2007-W2K, and then click Properties.

12. Click the Group Policy tab, click New, type DST Time Zone Change, and then press ENTER.

13. Click Edit. The Group Policy Object Editor tool starts.

14. Expand Computer Configuration, expand Windows Settings, and then click Scripts (Startup/Shutdown).

15. Double-click Startup, and then click Add.

16. In the Script Name box, type the universal naming convention (UNC) path of the ChangeTZ.cmd file that is located in the Netlogon share. For example, type \\contoso.com\NETLOGON\ChangeTZ.cmd.

17. Click OK two times.

Important information about procedures described in this document:

a. You can import the registry key detailed above in any Windows Operating system language. However since it contains display information, the new time zone display names will be based on the “English US” language, as follows:

Argentina Daylight Time
Argentina Standard Time

b. The information on “Deploying the registry file with the new DST information using Group Policy” session can be applied to all computers in the network.

c. The information on “Changing the computer time zone via startup script” should be applied only to computers located in Argentina.

d. The instructions above can be applied on Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 Operating systems, however after performing these instructions on a Windows 2003 operating system, the current time zone may not be automatically changed to the ‘(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires’. Users may need to change the time zone manually after importing the registry key via startup script on Windows 2003 machines.

e. The instructions above are not supported on Windows Vista operating systems.

Impacts for Windows Mobile users in Argentina

Windows Mobile devices will show all items (messages and appointments) 1 hour off during the DST period (December 30, 2007 to March 15, 2008).

These devices require an update that is not available at this time. Information will be released as soon as it becomes available.

Impact for Outlook clients in Argentina

Three factors affect the scheduling of a meeting and appointment in Outlook:

The computer's clock setting (time).
The computer's local time zone setting.
The computer's daylight saving time adjustment setting.

Outlook time stamps the message request with the Greenwich Mean Time for the meeting. Outlook calculates Greenwich Mean Time by using the computer's clock time, plus or minus the local time zone adjustment, minus (depending upon the time of year) the daylight-saving time adjustment. If any of the three factors listed above are incorrect at the time the item is saved or if there is a modification afterwards (such as a DST change), the meeting time will be incorrect.

In the Argentina scenario, after moving Windows clients and servers to the new time zone “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires”, Outlook calendars will display items 1 hour ahead their actual time during the DST period (December 30, 2007 to March 15, 2008).

In addition, because there was a time zone move, all appointments need to be updated to reflect the new time zone information.

As such, "rebasing" of the items will be required to allow them to display the proper time and the proper time zone information.

The Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Outlook can be used to update your calendar items to the new time zone “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires”.

1. What can I do to fix my appointments?

Users will have to use “Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Outlook” on local computers to fix the appointments (recommended option).

-or-

Manually modify each appointment after the operating system time zone has been changed.

The Time Zone Data Update Tool for Outlook must be used with the /PHYSICALMOVE command-line parameter, which is not the default mode for the tool and, perhaps most importantly, not the mode in which the tool is launched automatically during setup.

Many of the special command-line options available for the Outlook tool are not supported when doing a time zone move. Most notably, /QUIET mode is not supported and the procedure needs manual intervention from the end-user.

Step by step procedure to use “Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Outlook”

The following describes the ideal set of steps to be followed by end-users performing a time zone move:

I. Update the Operating System’s time zone information according to the section “How to update Windows Servers and Desktop Operating Systems” above

II. Switch the current time zone “(GMT -03:00) Georgetown” to the target time zone “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires”.

III. Download and run the installation package from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=%20E343A233-B9C8-4652-9DD8-AE0F1AF62568&displaylang=en.

IV. When the tool is automatically launched as part of the above install, click the Cancel button.

NOTE: Step IV is necessary because the tool is automatically launched in time zone update mode rather than physical move mode. The above screen shot shows the tool in time zone update mode; note that there is only one time zone selector for “Your Time Zone” in update mode. Below you can find a screen shot of the tool running in time zone move mode; note that there are two time zone selectors for “Original Time Zone” and “New Time Zone.”

V. Restart the installed executable using the /PHYSICALMOVE switch:

a. On a 32-bit OS, run “%PROGRAMFILES%\Microsoft Office\Office12\Office Outlook Time Zone Data Update Tool\tzmove.exe” /PHYSICALMOVE

b. On a 64-bit OS, run “%PROGRAMFILES(x86)%\Microsoft Office\Office12\Office Outlook Time Zone Data Update Tool\tzmove.exe” /PHYSICALMOVE

NOTE: Do not confuse the installation package with the tool itself (both have the same name tzmove.exe). The resulting dialog should look like the following:

VI. Properly select “(GMT -03:00) Georgetown” from the “Original Time Zone:” drop down, and “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires” from the “New Time Zone:” drop down and click OK.

NOTE: As with standard time zone updates, the tool defaults to updating affected items on your Calendar and in your Reminders folder. If you would like to update additional items (e.g. items in additional Calendars or a PST), you can do so by clicking the ‘Custom…’ button and manually selecting the target folder.

VII. The tool will inspect your mailbox and will report how many appointments will be moved:

If you click “Details” the appointment list will appear and you will be able to select all (default) or some of the appointments. In a normal situation you will move all the appointments to the new time zone. Click “OK” in the following dialog to proceed moving the appointments. A log file “Outlook Time Zone Update .log” will be generated in the %temp% directory.

VIII. After moving Click “OK” again to close the tool.

In addition to simply using the above guidance, IT administrators might consider streamlining the above procedure as follows:

In place of step III, create a local copy of tzmove.exe (the name of the self-extracting executable available at http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=%20E343A233-B9C8-4652-9DD8-AE0F1AF62568&displaylang=en) and install the Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Office Outlook using the /QUIET command-line parameter. By running the self-extracting executable in quiet mode, you will prevent it from automatically launching the installed tool in time zone update mode as described in step IV above.

Automatically launch the tool in time zone move mode after having installed it in quiet mode.

The above two steps can be captured in a simple .bat file similar to the following thus allowing end users to combine steps III, IV, and V above into one (i.e. just launch the .bat file):

@echo off

<path to tzmove.exe that was saved from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=%20E343A233-B9C8-4652-9DD8-AE0F1AF62568&displaylang=en>\tzmove.exe /quiet

"%PROGRAMFILES%\Microsoft Office\Office12\Office Outlook Time Zone Data Update Tool\tzmove.exe" /physicalMove

@echo on

This is the maximum level of automation allowed by the tool in Time Zone Move mode. As you can see it still requires end-user intervention from the dialog in step V and forward.

2. What is the best time to update my calendar?

The best time to update your calendar items is as soon as you have changed your time zone settings in your operating system and before any new calendar item is created, accepted or sent.

3. Can I use the “Exchange Calendar Update Tool” to update (rebase) the appointments/meetings on the Exchange Server?

You cannot use “Exchange Calendar Update Tool” in the Argentina scenario. The Exchange Calendar Update Tool is not designed to update appointments when there is a move from one time zone to another.

The update has to be done on each client either manually or using the “Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Outlook”.

Impact for Outlook Web Access clients in Argentina

The new time zone “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires” created following the recommendations on section “Updating Windows Servers and Desktop Operating Systems” will not be available on the OWA (Exchange Server 2000 and Exchange Server 2003) time zone options at this time. In order to have this new time zone available in OWA, there is a dependency on an index key which is not currently defined. We expect this to be defined over the next months.
After you configure Windows clients and servers to use the new time zone “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires”, OWA users using “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” on the OWA time zone options, will receive the following warning when accessing their inbox:

When you open a message in OWA, it will be displayed with the incorrect time during the DST period. This is related to the CDO components in Exchange and there is no workaround for this behavior at this time.

Additional known issues for Exchange Server and Outlook clients

Meeting invitations sent by Outlook clients between different Exchange organizations may be off by 1 hour. This is related to the CDO components in Exchange and there is no workaround for this behavior at this time.
After Exchange Server 2007 is updated with the new time zone “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires”, the “Microsoft Exchange Mail Submission” and “Microsoft Exchange Transport” services should be restarted.

Additional recommendations

Simulate the changes on a lab environment, so you know what will happen and what to expect.

Before doing any change in Outlook, request the users to print their schedule so they have a reference to follow if they have to manually update the appointments or double check after running the Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Outlook.

— For the meetings with multiple attendees only the meeting requestor should update the time. An update will be sent automatically by the Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Outlook.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I use Tzedit.exe to modify the time “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” in order to include the DST dates defined for Argentina?

Based on previous experiences with other time zone updates released by Microsoft, this will not be the definite solution. The time “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” is shared with other country (Guyana) and this country is not adopting DST at this time.

We preferred the option to have a new time zone as this goes in line with what was done in the past for countries like Venezuela. In addition, we avoid impacts for countries currently using “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” other than Argentina.

2. Do I have to update machines outside Argentina?

It is recommended that you apply the registry updates to all machines, including the ones outside Argentina. However, the time zone move should be performed only on machines located in Argentina.

3. Should I manually adjust the machine’s clock on December 30^th2007?

You should not adjust the machine’s clock manually. This can cause adverse effects on your environment.

4. What calendar items will be updated using the Time Zone Update Calendar tool for MS Outlook?

Only appointments created using the original time zone “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” which occur after the date/time the tool is executed.

5. Should I move to the time zone “(GMT -02:00) Mid-Atlantic” on December 30, 2007 and move back to “(GMT -03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” after March 16, 2008?

This is a feasible workaround for home users; however it may not be the best option for corporations/enterprise customers as it can cause undesirable results on Outlook calendars.

One of the side effects from this workaround is related with appointments created in different time zones. For instance, appointments created before the change will be in “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” and appointments created during the DST will be on “(GMT -02:00) Mid Atlantic”.

Another effect is that appointments created after March 16^th 2008 during the DST time will be off by one hour when the user go back to “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown”.

If the Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Outlook needed to be run for some reason, users would need to run it twice, once for the items created in “(GMT-03:00) Buenos Aires, Georgetown” and once for “(GMT -02:00) Mid Atlantic”.

There may be more side effects on this workaround; this option was not thoroughly tested.

6. Is there any public guidance/documentation available on this matter?

Please direct your customers to:

§ LATAM Team Blog – http://blogs.technet.com/latam/default.aspx

§ Exchange Team Blog - http://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2007/12/28/447791.aspx

§ Microsoft Argentina web site - http://www.microsoft.com/argentina/dst/

If you want more information, you can refer to the following Microsoft articles:

195900 - How Outlook handles time zones for meeting requests

http://support.microsoft.com/?id=195900

931667 - How to address time zone changes by using the Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Office Outlook

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;931667

914387 - How to configure daylight saving time for Microsoft Windows operating systems

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;914387

325413 - INFO: Task Scheduler Behavior at Daylight Saving Time Transitions and Other Events

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;325413

Windows Mobile: Preventing Devices from "Falling Back" Early

atsim — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 01:32:50 GMT

A recent update was posted to the Microsoft Daylight Saving Time & Time Zone hot topics page which details impacts to some users of certain Windows Mobile devices, who may have experienced an early changeover. A copy of that posting is found below: please refer to the information on the page and contact your mobile operator's customer support line if you experience any difficulties.

Windows Mobile Devices
In observance of the various Daylight Saving Time (DST) and time zone changes, Microsoft has been working closely with customers, partners and others in the industry to help ensure a smooth and seamless transition. Although updates have been made available for mobile devices running Windows Mobile software, some end users may not have the information needed or followed the steps necessary to apply those patches.
Mobile devices for users who did not update may have experienced the "Fall Back" in North America on October 28th, as some user's mobile devices and their calendars may be incorrectly early by one hour for the following week if the appropriate updates are not applied. The correct end to DST for 2007 in North America is November 4, 2007. Microsoft recommendations that those customers needing to update should follow the instructions on http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/daylightsaving/default.mspx for updating their devices.

For the latest news and customer guidance, please visit Microsoft’s Hot Topics web page at http://www.microsoft.com/time.

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, DST, Windows Mobile

Windows Hotfix Update now available for new Daylight Saving Time changes in Brazil

atsim — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 06:28:34 GMT

To be posted to the Microsoft Daylight Saving Time & Time Zone Hot Topics page at http://support.microsoft.com/gp/dst_hottopics...

Brazil 2007-2008 Daylight Saving changes: The government of Brazil announced a change on September 20, 2007, in the observance of daylight saving time in the country. The new time change will take place in Brazil on October 14th (three weeks earlier than in 2006) when clocks should move one hour forward at midnight (between Saturday and Sunday). On February 17, 2008, Brazil will move clocks one hour at midnight (again, between Saturday and Sunday), one week earlier than in 2006.

Microsoft has provided a hotfix update for customers requiring an update for this time change: for more information and to obtain the hotfix, please see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 943000.

Manual remediation has been provided for Windows as noted in KB article 914387, updated with the proper registry keys to account for the changes in Brazil; “Dynamic DST” keys are included allowing calendar rebasing with the Outlook Time Zone Data Update Tool (TZDUT).

Technical "Deep-Dive" LiveMeeting today on DST and Time Zones

atsim — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 23:07:55 GMT

Today we will host a Technical "Deep-Dive" Webcast...

Monday, September 24, 2007 at 2:00pm Pacific

This LiveMeeting Webcast will be hosted by members of our Microsoft DST Team to provide a technical overview of resources available to help prepare Microsoft products for the change to Daylight Saving Time and time zones around the world. It will cover the core scenarios where the Outlook and Exchange update tools should be used, in addition to helpful links to patches and other information relative to other Microsoft products affected by the DST changes.

Click here just before 2PM PAC today: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/lmevents/join?id=msft092407sa&role=attend&pw=ATN783

Available now: Webcast Live Meeting on-demand from September 14, 2007...

An overview of DST, Microsoft resources, impacted products, updates and tools. Click this link to view this web cast now. Click here to watch this recorded LiveMeeting.

Venezuela Time Zone Update Hotfix for the Windows OS is Available

atsim — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 07:22:27 GMT

The government of Venezuela has announced a change to the time zone for the country. To date, Venezuela observed AST. The new time zone change will begin September 24, 2007, when clocks will move backwards 30 minutes, from UTC-4:00 GMT to UTC-4:30. This change begins at 11:59:59 PM local time on September 24. Clocks should be moved back to 11:30:00 PM rather than advancing to 12:00:00 AM (midnight.)

Microsoft recommends that customers downloading this update should maintain their current time zone settings and confirm the start date of the time zone change in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela before using the new time zone.

For more information, please see Microsoft Knowledge Base article 938977.

The KB is now live and you can request the hotfix by going to http://support.microsoft.com/gp/CUHotFix_LandingPage_Request.

Details: The name of the new time zone is Venezuela Standard Time, and the display name for this time zone is (GMT -04:30) Caracas.

The government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has announced a change to the time zone for the country, which to date has typically observed South America Western Standard Time. According to current official reports, the new time zone change is currently scheduled to begin September 24, 2007, when clocks will move backwards 30 minutes, from UTC -4:00 to UTC-4:30. This change begins at 11:59:59 PM local time on September 24, 2007. Clocks should be moved back to 11:30:00 PM rather than advancing to 12:00:00 AM (midnight).

Microsoft recommends that customers downloading this update should maintain their current time zone settings and confirm the start date of the time zone change in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela before using the new time zone. End users may install this update and the resulting new time zone may remain on the time zone with a display name of (GMT-04:00) La Paz, also known as SA Western Standard Time, until manually making a transition to Venezuela Standard Time.

Installing and using this new time zone prior to the official time zone change will impact the date and time on your computer (see below).

For more information about how to manually change your time zone, please see the following:

DST VIDEOS NOW AVAILABLE!

atsim — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 22:08:45 GMT

Steve Justice (Senior Escalation Engineer) and Joel Schaeffer (Escalation Engineer) from Microsoft Product Support have put together some instructional videos to assist your DST planning efforts.

On-Demand (hosted by Channel9.MSDN.com)
These videos can be streamed on-demand for viewing.

DST: Cumulative Time Zone Update for Microsoft Windows
http://channel9.msdn.com/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=341535

DST: Using the Outlook v2.0 Time Zone Data Update Tool
http://channel9.msdn.com/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=341649

DST: How to Address Daylight Saving Time in Exchange Server by Using the Exchange Calendar Update Tool v2.0
http://channel9.msdn.com/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=341747

Microsoft Download Center (table of contents included – use as a reference)
These videos include a web-based table of contents that allow them to be used as an offline reference.

VIDEO: Cumulative Time Zone Update for Microsoft Windows and Windows Mobile
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=1E55473C-80FF-4E87-A48F-3BC872EF39AA&displaylang=en

VIDEO: Using the Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Office Outlook v2.0
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=1A511C92-A45B-46ED-9848-64349EEBD040&displaylang=en

VIDEO: Using the Time Zone Data Update Tool for Microsoft Exchange Server v2.0
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=A05519EF-B698-4A60-8292-D22D35393E43&displaylang=en

Enjoy!

The Microsoft DST Team

[JS]