MS Dos Command - Time

[frogman]

System is starting to lose time by the day, and after reading the link below I had tested the time in the ms dos mode by entering time, normally as per this link below you can just enter exit , but when I enter time into the ms dos command the next line underneath the time it gives says enter new time, this isn't mentioned in this link.

I am led to believe that this is the Bios time, and not the Windows time, so every time I go into the msdos command to check the bios time I then always have to reset the time, is this normal?

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/189706

Edited December 3, 2010 by frogman

[toutounet]

Windows 98 lose the time if you have a low disk space warning message on the screen. More the message stay on the screen more the memory and the time are dammaged. May be an experimented user can explain more on this bug.

[frogman]

Windows 98 lose the time if you have a low disk space warning message on the screen. More the message stay on the screen more the memory and the time are dammaged. May be an experimented user can explain more on this bug.

Ah, that is interesting, so it's the PC clock that is the problem and not the bios system time i.e the battery.

You could well be right on that as currently I have the following below which is nearly close to full capacity, haven't had the low space warning as yet though.

Capacity 74.5GB

Used 72.6

Free 1.88

[dencorso]

System is starting to lose time by the day, [...]

Because your CMOS battery is worn out. Just replace it and the problem will go away.

[...] I had tested the time in the ms dos mode by entering time, [...] but when I enter time into the ms dos command the next line underneath the time it gives says enter new time, [...] is this normal?

Yes. The TIME command behaves like that since 1981 (PC-DOS 1.0). However, you're not forced to update time at all: if you just press enter instead, without imputing a time string, it'll understand you don't want to change the value it just displayed, and it will keep it.

Windows 98 lose the time if you have a low disk space warning message on the screen. More the message stay on the screen more the memory and the time are dammaged. May be an experimented user can explain more on this bug.

[...] I [...] haven't had the low space warning as yet though.

Since you haven't had the warning, it follows it *cannot* possibly be the cause of the time loss.

[frogman]

Must be the battery then, strange that though as this current battery hasn't been in as long as the first one.

One day it lost 5 minutes, just checked it right now and it hasn't lost any time from last night, so I thought if it was the battery it would lose time on every occasion.

I know the CMOS holds the system time, and this backs up the windows system clock when the PC is switched on, and it's when the PC is switched on when it can lose time, so if it is a full battery and time is lost then it is Windows that is losing the time and not the CMOS, have I got that right?

Edited December 4, 2010 by frogman

[frogman]

The time shown by going to the MS DOS command and enter the word TIME, is the result from this the time of the CMOS battery, or is it reporting the time of the windows system? or are they both of the same?

Is it possible for the windows system clock to show a different time to the CMOS shown in the BIOS System Time? are they both coming from different sources is what I am really asking.

[dencorso]

TIME should get it's info from the BIOS, but if you reset the BIOS real-time clock, Windows will know about it, and reset its own. So the only way to find out if the BIOS real-time clock is loosing time is by reseting the clock (either from windows or using TIME, using an external reference, say, your mobile phone), then shutting down and keeping the machine off for at least one day, then turning on and, *immediately* after windows is fully loaded, comparing the time (either from windows or using TIME) with the same external reference used before: if the machine has lost some time, then it's probably the battery, if not, the problem may lie with windows.

[frogman]

I changed the system time by going into the BIOS and saving the setting, and it seems to be keeping the time correct on windows, well apart from a couple of seconds that is which I can live with, and I have had the PC off for the whole night.

[MDGx]

These web pages may help...

http://forums.cnet.com/7723-10149_102-38612.html

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/189706

http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch000386.htm

http://www.windowskb.com/Uwe/Forum.aspx/windows-98/28326/Windows-98-loses-time

http://bizsupport1.austin.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?objectID=bph05702&printver=true

HTH

[frogman]

HTH

It certainly does, thank you, and to the others.

[deda]

English isn't may native idiom.

The battery only works when computer is powered off, if there's no charge on it, on boot time you will be warned about this, and, generally, with something like this: "CMOS is out fo date, press F1 to continue or DEL to setup". All hardware access is managed through BIOS (Basic InpuT Output System), so, must have a sync between hardware and software (Windows). The quartz crystal that pulse, givin the frequency that processor works, among other things, must be the cause, I presume.

[dencorso]

You're right, deda, but when that happens the battery is almost completely gone.

Much before that, there can happen time losses of several minutes, before the point the BIOS will notice.

At that point the battery is already not good, but not bad enough for the BIOS to detect it.

[jds]

I changed the system time by going into the BIOS and saving the setting, and it seems to be keeping the time correct on windows, well apart from a couple of seconds that is which I can live with, and I have had the PC off for the whole night.

Changing it from the DOS prompt via the 'time' command is a more convenient way to do the same thing (that's one of the things that the 'time' command does for you, since about MS/PC-DOS 3.2 +/- 0.1). Changing it from Windows probably also updates the RTC, although I've never verified this.

The RTC is only read at boot time. If the PC loses time while powered down, it's an RTC battery problem. If the PC loses time while running, it isn't.

Joe.

[frogman]

I changed the system time by going into the BIOS and saving the setting, and it seems to be keeping the time correct on windows, well apart from a couple of seconds that is which I can live with, and I have had the PC off for the whole night.

Changing it from the DOS prompt via the 'time' command is a more convenient way to do the same thing (that's one of the things that the 'time' command does for you, since about MS/PC-DOS 3.2 +/- 0.1). Changing it from Windows probably also updates the RTC, although I've never verified this.

The RTC is only read at boot time. If the PC loses time while powered down, it's an RTC battery problem. If the PC loses time while running, it isn't.

Joe.

Thanks Joe, it's all strange though as since I corrected the time while in BIOS it has been not too bad and currently is about 8 seconds behind, whereas at one time it appeared to be about 5 minutes behind all of a sudden.

I must say that every time I check the BIOS time as opposed to the windows time they are always the same by the second.

I made the mistake once by using the DOS command and forgetting to put the a or p at the end to indicate AM or PM, and because of this I was 12 hours behind, of course this was my own fault.

[rloew]

Changing it from the DOS prompt via the 'time' command is a more convenient way to do the same thing (that's one of the things that the 'time' command does for you, since about MS/PC-DOS 3.2 +/- 0.1). Changing it from Windows probably also updates the RTC, although I've never verified this.

Joe.

Thanks Joe, it's all strange though as since I corrected the time while in BIOS it has been not too bad and currently is about 8 seconds behind, whereas at one time it appeared to be about 5 minutes behind all of a sudden.

Setting the time in Windows will set the RTC.

System time can lag significantly behind the RTC if the system becomes too busy to update. I have seen this happen often with some programs.