A Late DST Update for Windows 2000 Server

I forgot to update the Windows 2000 server running at a business in Lowell, which resulted in the wrong timestamps for employees when they punched into the time clock system. It's no big deal, as the number of hours worked is correct -- it just shows the wrong time. After everyone punched out for the day, I proceeded to remotely update the server with the new DST settings.

Apparently, since Microsoft stopped supporting Windows 2000 Server a few months ago, they refuse to release the patch to update the DST, and instead want you to pay something in the order of $4,000 to purchase the patch. Ha. Sure.

A quick Google search turned up a very simple solution, using a free tool that Microsoft released back in the days of Windows 95! It's a cool tool that allows you to edit the timezone information:

I didn't even need to reboot the server after making the changes! I simply double-clicked the clock to open the Time & Date Settings, changed the timezone to something other than Eastern, clicked Apply, then selected Eastern again and clicked Apply once more. Bingo, the time was updated! Once I restarted the web service, the time clock software also showed the correct time.

Download TZEDIT from Microsoft.

Write a Comment

Comment