Time zone update for older systems: SOLVED

Everyone:

Herewith a procedure I just used to update time zone data directly on a machine still running Fedora Core 1. (Why the machine is in that state is beyond scope here; it has to wait until I get a madwifi-compatible PCI wireless card to replace the Linksys WMP-54G v3 that it has in it now.)

Step one: acquire time zone data. I went right to the source:

ftp://elsie.nci.nih.gov/pub/

Look for a file titled "tzdata2007c.tar.gz" or anything later. The "c" version dates from 26 February 2007.

Step two: extract this archive into a temporary folder:

$ mkdir tztemp
$ tar -zxvf tzdata2007c.tar.gz

Step three: compile the time zone data. North America should hold all the changes you need.

$mkdir zoneinfo
#su
#zic -d zoneinfo northamerica

Step four: Copy /everything/ in your new zoneinfo directory into /usr/share/zoneinfo. Use recursive copying, or dive into the various directories, whatever--but copy /everything/ into /usr/share/zoneinfo. (You never know when you might move from one time zone to another in the future.)

Step five: Quit the terminal, and then use the "Adjust Date and Time" routine for a special maneuver. You must /change your time zone/ to some other, arbitrary time zone, /quit/ the time-adjustment program, /restart/ that program, and then change your time zone /back/. That will copy the necessary file from /usr/share/zoneinfo into /etc/localtime.

The test: when you execute

$ /usr/sbin/zdump -v /etc/localtime | grep 2007

you should see four lines, proposing a change to DST on March 11, 2007 and a change back to ST on November 4.

The above should solve the immediate problem--or at least, I'll know when I wake up on March 11 and start that machine again, and see whether it agrees with all the clocks that I have rolled forward the night before.

Credit goes to users "Brydon" and "jacqespi" at LinusQuestions.org, the first for suggesting most of the steps, and the second for providing the URL for the time zone files published by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology. Changing the time zone setting back and forth comes from an insight into exactly how the file /etc/localtime is set. I suppose I could have established a forced symbolic link, but that seemed "dirty," and I like things "clean."

Temlakos

--
fedora-list mailing list
fedora-list@xxxxxxxxxx
To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list

Relevant Pages

  • Re: DST patch
    ... is way too hard to attempt to expand it for modern time zone data. ... sense for the Apple IIgs to use the same data. ... downloaded automatically so the developer wouldn't have to generate new releases ten or so times a year (that assumes that the tzdata format doesn't require a new parser). ...
    (comp.sys.apple2)
  • Re: DST patch
    ... is way too hard to attempt to expand it for modern time zone data. ... sense for the Apple IIgs to use the same data. ... into the tzdata format because this sounds like an interesting project. ...
    (comp.sys.apple2)
  • Re: Mapping Java Time Zone data to Microsoft (WinCE 5.0) Time Zones.
    ... time and appropriate time zone with our web server ... zone of where the mobile device is currently located. ... from the UI on our web-based server application then it will respond to ... the Time Zone data found in the Registry on a WinCE 5.0 Mobile Device? ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsce.app.development)
  • Re: DST 2007, Outlook, Terminal Server, thin client....HELP!
    ... If Time Zone Redirection is enabled on the server, then the server pulls the time zone offsets, daylight savings start/end, descriptions, etc. from the client device. ... In other words, the time zone data is redirected from the client to the server--if this data is incorrect, then the session's time will be incorrect as well. ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.terminal_services)
  • Re: Time zone update for older systems: SOLVED
    ... Subject: Time zone update for older systems: SOLVED ... Step one: acquire time zone data. ... #zic -d zoneinfo northamerica ...
    (Fedora)