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Windows 2000 and 2007 Daylight Saving Time (DST) Changes

Category DST 2007
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According to the Microsoft DST web site, Windows 2000 has passed the end of Mainstream Support and will not be receiving an update without Extended Hotfix Support. Customers with this level of support should apply the Hotfix and ignore the following special instructions. The following guidance is for customers unable to apply the Windows 2000 hotfix.

For environments running Windows 2000, Microsoft provides tools (via Windows Resource Kits) that can modify timezone DST rules. The two common tools available are tzedit.exe and timezone.exe. For the reasons explained here, the use of the timezone.exe tool should be avoided. Instead, one of the following options is recommended:

1.        Change the clock times manually.
2.        Use the tzedit.exe tool from Microsoft.


Changing the clock times manually.

Adjust the system clock manually four times each year:

• In mid-March, when the new rules start, set forward the clock by one hour.
• In early-April, when the old rule would have started DST, the clock will need to be set back one hour. This is necessary because the change will already have been made manually three weeks earlier, so the change programmed for April must be cancelled.
• In late-October, cancel the programmed clock adjustment by setting the clock forward one hour ( DST now runs for an additional week)
• Finally, in early November when DST now ends, set the clock back one hour.

Using the tzedit.exe tool from Microsoft.

Download the tzedit.exe tool:
(also available from the Preparing for daylight saving time changes in 2007 Microsoft web page)



Unzip the files into a Windows program directory such as C:\Program Files\TZEdit

Apply the tzedit.exe process to your systems:

1. Exit out of applications.
2. Run the executable tzedit.exe using Start > Run, provide the full path, for example: c:\Program Files\TZEdit\tzedit.exe
3. Your current time zone should be highlighted. Click the Edit button.
4. Set Start Day to Second Sunday, March.
5. Set Last Day to First Sunday, November.
6. Click OK.
7. Click Close.

You need to change your time zone twice using the Windows Date and Time Control Panel.

1. From the Start menu, click Settings > Control Panel and then click Date and Time.
2. Click the Time Zone tab.
3. Select a different time zone and click Apply.
4. Now, select your time zone and click Apply, then click OK.
5. Restart your applications.

Special Notes:

• Additional information is also available within the following Microsoft article: Preparing for daylight saving time changes in 2007.
• The advice in the Microsoft Knowledge Base Article How to configure daylight saving time for the United States in 2007 concerning timezone.exe is insufficient to lead to a problem-free result for IBM software, so using tzedit.exe is recommended instead.
• The requirement to set your time zone twice is explained in various Microsoft articles.

Posted by Bodek Frak On 07/02/2007 | Digg This | Permalink