Aussie Microsoft calendar mess (Time Zone glitch during Commonwealth Games to mangle appointments)

The Commonwealth Games are coming to Melbourne in March this year
http://www.melbourne2006.com.au/ and normally that would not matter to
us except that it's going to cause a major upheaval for users of
Microsoft Office, Exchange and Windows. It'll mostly affect our Aussie
friends but also anyone who deals with the Great Southern Land.

The problem is also a sharp indictment of Microsoft's spotty support
for changing time zones. Changes in daylight savings arrangements do
happen so paying customers of Windows and Office are entitled to expect
more elegant technologies to deal with this real world situation.
According to the Microsoft Knowledge Base the cause of the problem is
the change of daylight savings for the Commonwealth Games, but the real
source of the problem is Microsoft's failure to design for a rare, but
hardly unprecedented, occurrence.

As you'll see, special patches and even registry hacks can be required
and even that may not be enough!

Check your calendar - we _are_ in the 21st Century but after reading
this you'll be forgiven for thinking otherwise.

Lots of Aussies read Office Watch and the problem is such a blot on
Microsoft's copybook that we're devoting most of this issue to
explaining this mess.

The 26th January is the Australian national day, after all.

The Melbourne Games end on the weekend that daylight savings ('summer')
time would normally end in most (but not all) Australian states. So
the governments decided to extend summer time by an additional week so
that there would be no confusion during such a major event.

I should explain that the Commonwealth Games is a big deal in the UK
and its former colonies - second only to the Olympics in importance for
the countries involved.

For Victoria, ACT, NSW, Tasmania and South Australia states daylight
savings time would normally end on 26 March 2006 and that's what is
setup in Windows and Outlook currently.

Instead it'll end on 2 April 2006 - which means that appointments in
the week 26 March to 2 April can be out by one hour.

When you store an appointment in Outlook it records the UTC time plus
the time zone that applies to the appointment - you don't see that
directly, just the adjusted date and time show in Outlook. That time
zone information comes from Windows.

If you set a future appointment, Outlook looks not only at the time
zone but any 'summer time' adjustments that apply for the date of the
appointment. The date that the appointment is set for can adjust the
time zone setting, not just the location. For example, if you create
an appointment for 9am on a daylight savings day then another
appointment for 9am after summer time ends - the two appointments will
appear as 9am in the same time zone but underlying that is a different
UTC time (one hour different).

Because Windows has not been setup with the adjusted Aussie daylight
savings dates already, any appointments you've created in the extra
summer time week for 2006 will be off by one hour.

The problem is compounded because Microsoft's system can't cope with
'one off' time zone adjustments. If you update Windows with these 2006
Aussie adjustments, they'll carry forward into later years.
Appointments made for 2007, 2008 or beyond will be considered as
'summer time' meetings as well!

As well as having to patch Windows, you have to remember to UNpatch it
after 2 April 2006.

This means that during the 'extra' week you have to ensure that no
appointments (one off or recurring) for the same dates in future years
are made until after you've patched all Windows machines.

That's easy to say but if you have hundreds or thousands of computers
and people to manage then it's going to be a mammoth task.

We don't know what is more astonishing - that Microsoft didn't put 'one
off' time zone support into Windows years ago or that they've not
bothered to do so in the decade or more since. As far as we can tell,
there's no improvement in Vista either.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO

Anyone in Australia, certainly in the affected states should be working
on this now.

If you're in a non-summer time Aussie state (WA, QLD or NT) or have
dealings with Australia you might want to patch as well if you're
making appointments based on summer time. Most likely this will mean
using the alternate time zone option in Outlook.

Microsoft provides some advice in a KB article at
http://office-watch.com/kb/?909915 but it glosses over the sad
realities, especially for medium and large networks.

The first thing to do is apply the Windows patch asap - before more
appointments are made in the affected date range.

The patch works for Windows ME, 2000, XP and Server 2003. It's
apparently not included as an optional update even though geographical
information is available to the update process.

The patch creates special 'Commonwealth Games' time zones for Canberra,
Melbourne, Sydney, Hobart and Adelaide. While these zones are labeled
'Commonwealth Games' we feel they should have been labeled more
explicitly '2006 only' so it's clearer to all that they should be
removed afterwards.

Before applying the patch make sure you're running the latest Service
Packs (eg SP2 for Windows XP etc) because if you install a Service Pack
AFTER updating the time zone information, the SP will remove the
special time zone settings. The same thing will have if you do an
Emergency Repair Process. In other words, between the time you apply
this patch and 2 April 2006 you should not apply any major service
packs (the inevitable security patches are OK to install) or remember
to reapply the patch after an Emergency Repair.

To stop these time zone settings occurring again in 2007 and beyond you
should make a task / appointment for Sunday 2 April 2006 (or first
thing Monday) to uninstall the time zone patch and reset the time zone
on the computer.

ABOUT THE PATCH

There are actually two patches and three files available from
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=DDA845DE-
9D70-487C-8F7C-093D4DFD1899&displaylang=en with no clear explanation of the
differences between the downloads.

Mel-2006-dst-ntx86.exe 146 KB
This is the download for Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server
2003.

mel-2006-dst-me.exe 129 KB
This is the download for Windows ME.

mel-2006-dst-all.exe 282 KB
This file contains both of the above patches.

The readme file that comes in the downloads is really important - if
you're like most people and ignore the readme files then this is one
time you should break from your standard routine. The readme is
important, yet not available on the Microsoft web site so we've decided
to publish in full below.

You can apply the patch even if your Windows machines are set to a
different time zone (ie not one of the Aussie summer time states).

For computers running on the time zone in the affected areas there are
two steps to the patch:

1. Apply the patch. This adds the special time zone that extends the
length of Australian Summer Time.
2. Change the time zone setting on the computer to the applicable
'Commonwealth Games' setting (Control Panel | Date and Time | Time
Zone).

If your Windows computers are not set to the time in one of the
affected areas (ie you're just adding the time zone information for
reference as an alternate zone) then you only need to apply the patch.

The readme file supplied by Microsoft has more instructions including
sample scripts to help administrators deploy the changes. Remember
that the sample scripts need mapped drive letters not UNC paths.

On or after 2 April 2006
You should reset the time zone to the standard setting and remove the
'one off' time zones (so they aren't accidentally used in future years).

The people who put together the patch have done a good job. Though the
KB article could be clearer, the patch itself thoughtfully includes the
necessary utilities so you don't have to hunt around for them plus
sample scripts for admins.

What a pity then that the whole patch is spoiled by the bottom line of
the readme file:

" The solutions provided have not been regression-tested and may be
destabilizing in a production environment. Install fixes at your own
risk. "

Despite having enough time and resources, Microsoft admits that it
hasn't properly tested the patch and washes its corporate hands of all
responsibility. Thanks a lot ...

FIXING APPOINTMENTS

Any appointments created to occur between 26 March and 2 April will be
one hour off after the Windows patch is implemented (because they are
set to the normal summer time settings instead of the 2006 special
dates).

Microsoft tries to outdo itself in arrogance by simply saying 'Do not
create appointments during the overlap period until after the operating
system time zone has been updated' - as if it was a simple as that.

How an IT department with hundreds or thousands of users is supposed to
force people not to make appointments in a particular week is beyond us.

In addition you're supposed to remember not to setup appointments for
the same week in 2007 or beyond. This is unlikely except for recurring
appointments made using the special time zone setting.

To adjust appointments made in the problem week you have to export the
appointments then import them again after the new time zone is added.
Details at http://office-watch.com/kb/?909915

You may want to create an 'all day' appointment for the range 26 March
to 2 April to warn you to check the time of appointments during that
period. Network admins may want to warn their users to double-check
the times of appointments during the week in question (perhaps a
message in the week before?).

WINDOWS CE, POCKET PC, WINDOWS MOBILE GET NOTHING

And if you think that's bad - people who have given Microsoft money for
their portable devices get even less. Not even some temporary time
zones to cover the applicable period.

There's a lot of stuff at http://office-watch.com/kb?907494 but it
comes down to this:

On 26 March 2006 you have to manually adjust your mobile device to the
+11 time zone - on the 2 April you have to remember to change it back
again.

We suggest you create tasks / appointments that will remind you to make
the two changes on the right dates.

Carefully check the times of appointments synched from Outlook for the
week in question.

We feel that Microsoft is capable of doing better than this and have
let down their customers badly. The company has very smart people
working for it but sometimes fundamental problems get sidelined - much
in the same way that security issues where ignored by Microsoft for so
many years.

The Windows time zone support is designed for a neat and orderly
world - not the real one. You can't help feeling that a situation
like this in the USA would have had Microsoft putting a lot more effort
into the fundamental technology in Windows.

Surely a fraction of the smarts that is directed to things like new
toolbars and flash 'Plus' packs should be aimed at making Windows and
Office support changing time zone parameters less of a drama for both
customers and Microsoft itself?

Microsoft does some good things (about which more next week) but let
their customers get bogged down in this avoidable nonsense. Then
Redmond wonders why people are reluctant to pay yet more money for
Office upgrades.

The readme file that comes with the 2006 Aussie time zone patch is very
important yet easily overlooked and not included on the Microsoft web
site. So we've decided to include it here as an appendix to this issue
for your convenience (eg it'll show up in any desktop searches you
do). It sets out the steps to take with the patch both for machines
inside and outside the affected areas.

" Melbourne Commonwealth Games 2006 only Daylight Savings / Time Zones
update for Windows 2000 / XP / 2003

Included files:
---------------

setgames2k6-nti.exe    :The self installing exe, just adds the new time
zones into the registry.
remgames2k6-nti.exe    :The uninstall exe to removes the added
timezones after the CG 2006 end of DST.

Sample Batch Files:
-----------------------------

sample_newdst.bat      :The Sample script file that uses the
corresponding files for implementing the Australian
                        Daylight savings changes.
sample_rem_newdst.bat :The Sample script file that uses the
corresponding files for implementing the Australian
                        Daylight savings changes.

Useful utilities
---------------------
The following Resource Kit class utilities are included for convenience
as some System administrators may prefer scripting these changes.

SETTZ.EXE           :Utility for setting the timezones automatically
(/i uses the decimal equivalent of the Index registry setting )
GetTZ.exe           :Utility to return an error code for the three
impacted timezones or their matching updated TZ's.
tz.exe              :Utility for displaying the current/set Daylight
Savings values from a script.

Typical Sequence of Operation for updates for machines in impacted
timezones:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----

The impacted timezones are:

* Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney ( AUS Eastern Daylight Time )
* Hobart ( Tasmania Daylight Time )
* Adelaide ( Cen. Australia Daylight Time )

a) Run setgames2k6-nti.exe to add the new timezones with modified DST.

AND

b) Change the current timezone either manually via the Control Panel
Date and Time
OR
By running the settz utility
i.e. settz /i 2147483903 or the matching new TZ index ( see sample
batch files for examples )

AND

At the end of the new daylight savings period in 2006:

c) Set the timezone back to the previous selection (manually or using
settz)
settz /i 255

AND

d) Remove the added zone by running remgames2k6-nti.exe

Typical Sequence of Operation for machines that are not in one of the
above impacted timezones
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Typically these machines are ones that would require knowledge of the
target timezone such as would be needed for scheduling applications,
but do not need to be set to that particular timezone.

a) Run setgames2k6-nti.exe to add the new timezones with modified DST

AND

At the end of the new daylight savings period in 2006:

b) Remove the added timezone by running remgames2k6-nti.exe

Examples:

The command below will set the time zone to (GMT+10:00) Canberra,
Melbourne, Sydney (Commonwealth Games).

c:\>settz /i 2147483903

Similarly it is possible to use the corresponding index entry under
HKLM,SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Time Zones hive for
timezone selection with this utility.

The command below will show the current DST Information.

For example:

C:\>tz.exe
Time Zone Information.
    Bias from UTC: 4294967286:00
    Standard time:
        Name: AUS Eastern Standard Time 2006
        Bias: 0:00
        Start: 03:00am first Sunday of April
    Daylight time:
        Name: AUS Eastern Daylight Time 2006
        Bias: -1:00
        Start: 02:00am last Sunday of October

Known Issues:
===========
If you run the removal scripts to remove the added timezone, before
setting the Timezone appropriately beforehand, the OS will set the
Timezone to Brisbane because it is the first GMT+10:00 offset zone.
Please review the "Implications for the use of Microsoft calendaring
software" section of the distribution document for proper steps of
removal for calendaring/scheduling software.

Local Admin rights are required to add the timezone.

"Set Time Privilege" is required to set the time zone.

If a Service Pack is applied or an Emergency Repair Process is
performed, The TimeZone Hive will be removed and recreated, requiring
this update to get reapplied.

If this fix is implemented on X64 or IA64 you will need to copy cmd.exe
from %systemroot%\system32 to command.com in the directory that the
setgames2k6-nti.exe and remgames2k6-nti.exe are located to allow them
to execute on that specific platform.

The sample scripts require a mapped drive letter rather than a UNC path
to function correctly.

The solutions provided have not been regression-tested and may be
destabilizing in a production environment. Install fixes at your own
risk. "

From the article:

"It'll mostly affect our Aussie friends but also anyone who deals with the Great Southern Land."

(emphasis added)

The Office Watch website from whence this article came Office-Watch offer several excellent, free newsletters that I've been subscribing to for years....they often contain excellent information and is geared toward pretty much anybody who uses Windows and Office....not just techies. Highly recommended.

And no, they don't spam you.

The gentleman (or lady) who wrote this article will have failed if this were an engineering school report assignment. What is he (or she) trying to communicate here?

(I have to stress that I'm not a good writer myself, but even I passed in university reports writing)

What is he (or she) trying to communicate here?

1. There's a problem with Microsoft Outlook that will crop up during the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Australia. It relates to the short-term Time Zone changes that will be implemented during that time.

2. If not corrected, the problem will mangle the appointments that you have set up in Outlook.

3. The problem can be at least partially corrected by following the instructions given in the article.

4. The problem will affect not only all of our Australian friends but also anyone who interacts with Australia on a business level where you are using appointments in Outlook.

Sorry about the difficulty and I hope that this might help :-)

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