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Advisory: Armenia will not observe daylight saving time in 2012

If you read this blog regularly, you’ll recall that Armenia proposed changes to their stand on daylight saving time…

We now have confirmed reports that similar to the move in Russia, that Armenia, Belarus and Ukraine won’t fall back but also stay permanently on summer time on October 30. (There have been some initial rumours about other countries following Russia’s lead and considering cancelling Daylight saving time too. We will also provide details on these changes as they come up and are ratified and enacted into law.)

Today we confirmed that Armenia has cancelled DST starting in 2012, as noted in this blog post advisory…

In an attempt to improve the country’s economy, the government of Armenia has cancelled Daylight Saving Time. This will result in the country staying on permanent ‘winter time’ and not moving an hour ahead on Sunday, March 25th 2012.

Since the new date published by the government is different from what was defined in the previous years, Windows-based computers will not correctly interpret the time after March 25th 2012.

Microsoft will not be issuing an update for Windows at this time to address this change. The recommendation is to move to an alternate time zone: Russian Standard Time [DisplayName: “(UTC+04:00) Moscow, St. Petersburg, Volgograd” ]

The time zone Caucasus Standard Time [DisplayName: “(UTC+04:00) Yerevan”] will be updated in the next cycle of cumulative time zone update for Windows (next planned is August 2012).

Essentially the recommendation is that customers in Armenia to move to an alternate time zone: one alternate time zone recommendation is “Russian Standard Time” DisplayName: (UTC +4:00) Moscow, St Petersburg, Volgograd) in Windows.

We don’t plan to issue a hotfix or update at this time for Windows, but plan to include and revise the native time zone for Armenia in the next release of Windows cumulative time zone updates, planned for August 2012.

We’ll continue to watch the developments and changes around the world. As noted previously, we do provide some guidance on http://www.microsoft.com/time, that in order to achieve more seamless transitions to new DST and time zones policies, Microsoft requests that governments provide the following:

  • Ample advance notice (1 year or more) of the planned change.
  • Official published confirmation of planned changes to DST or time zones.
  • Concentrated efforts on promoting the change to the affected citizens.

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, RSS,DST, Armenia

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Advisory: Windows Cumulative Update for Samoa, as they skip Friday and change their time zone

As I noted in a prior post, Samoa will move their time zone this week, essentially traveling to the future

When is December 30th not December 30th?

When it’s 2011 in Samoa.

[rimshot]

As you may have read, Samoa has decided to move ahead in time and join neighbors and trading partners on the western side of the International Date line (like Australia and New Zealand). In doing so, Samoa will move from December 29th directly to December 31st this year. As Alan Boyle wrote this week in his post on MSN… 

“Just this once, Samoa is making Dec. 30 disappear.

“It’s the key step in the Pacific island nation’s plan to move from the eastern to the western side of the International Date Line and mesh its work week with two of its primary trading partners, New Zealand and Australia. The New Zealand territory of Tokelau is making the switch as well.

“In doing business with New Zealand and Australia, we’re losing out on two working days a week,” Stuff.co.nz quoted Samoan Prime Minister Tuila’epa Sailele as saying. “While it’s Friday here, it’s Saturday in New Zealand, and when we’re at church Sunday, they’re already conducting business in Sydney and Brisbane.”

“Samoa will go directly from 11:59 p.m. Thursday, through midnight to 12:01 a.m. Saturday.

“It hasn’t been controversial,” the editor of the Samoa Observer, Mata’afa Lesa, told me today. (Yes, definitely still today.) “People are realizing when they sleep tomorrow night, they’ll wake up on Saturday.”

Not contraversial? I’m not so sure, but that’s not a matter for this post. Just ask people who will miss a birthday (perhaps they won’t age a year?) or a special anniversary.

Technical Changes

The change will be a move from from UTC -11:00 to UTC+13:00, and a change in the display name for UTC +13:00 time zone (Nuku’alofa, Samoa). So, on the next clock tick after Dec 29, 2011 at 23:59:59, Samoa’s UTC offset becomes UTC +13:00. And the next clock tick will be is Dec 31, 2011 00:00:000. Cartographers will have some challenges dealing with all the updates to maps, moving the International Date Line to 171 degrees longitude west of Greenwich.

Associated challenges

There are also other technical challenges as I called out last year… as this change again occurs at midnite, but this time with good reason…

Here’s my regular advice for governments: in support of these types of changes, we provide guidance and Microsoft’s Policy in Response to DST/TZ Requests. It’s important for countries and territories to work towards seamless transitions to new DST and time zones policies, providing ample advance notice (of a year or more) with published confirmation of planned changes.

In addition – and this is important – we suggest that entities considering moves to DST implement changes at the next clock tick after 01:59:59 rather than at 00:00:00. Making the change at midnight can impact daily scheduled system events that sometimes occur at 12:00 midnite, such as back ups, data pulls or other automated tasks.

But I imagine that in Samoa’s case with this change, it would have been a greater challenge to have December 30th last only a few hours. Noting the article cites “there were 767 births and 43 marriages registered” on December 30th, I sympathize for the loss of a special day.

What’s Microsoft doing about this change?

Microsoft is aware of the upcoming change in time zone and shift in date for Samoa, and we’re looking at ways to minimize the impact this change has on our customers and partners. As with other changes to daylight saving time and time zones (like the recent change in Russia, noted here), this requires an update to the OS.

So users should look at the December 2011 cumulative time zone update for Windows operating systems avilable at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2633952.

In addition to the change to the UTC offset for Samoa standard time from (UTC-11) to (UTC+13) — which will change the time zone’s display name to “(UTC+13:00) Samoa” — we also made additional changes since the last semi-annual Windows cumulative time zone update (back in August):

  • Kaliningrad Standard Time:
    As previously announced in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 2625508, Belarus has decided to discontinue daylight saving time from 2011 and stay on permanent “summer time.” That article suggested that users move to a “workaround time” of Kaliningrad standard time. This windows update makes the move permanent by including Minsk in the display name for Kaliningrad standard time. The new display name for Kaliningrad standard time is “(UTC+03:00) Kaliningrad, Minsk.”
  • E.Europe Standard Time:
    The display name for this time zone has been updated to “(UTC+2:00) Nicosia.”
  • Bahia Standard Time [Display Name “(UTC-3:00) Salvador”]:
    A new windows time zone has been created for the Brazilian state of Bahia.
  • Fiji Standard Time [Display Name “(UTC+12:00) Fiji”]:
    Sets the 2012 DST start date to occur on the fourth Sunday of January.

Most applications and services reference the underlying Windows OS for their TZ and DST rules, with some exceptions. This change in Samoa has the potential for worldwide impacts on time references for multinational customers. Updates will be important not only for users in Samoa but for connected systems around the world, particularly Samoa’s closest partners in the region. Additional information is also available on our official Daylight Saving Time Help and Support Centre at http://www.microsoft.com/time.

So happy new year! Take comfort that at least Samoa decided not to skip that holiday. 😉

 

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, RSS, DST, Samoa

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Announcement: Late breaking 2011 time zone changes for Armenia and Ukraine (again)

I originally posted that we confirmed that Armenia, Belarus and Ukraine won’t fall back but also stay permanently on summer time on October 30, similar to the move in Russia.

Well, it appears that that these decisions were recently reversed.

Please note we have received reports that Armenia and Ukraine have canceled their proposed changes. (http://blogs.technet.com/b/dst2007/archive/2011/10/19/notice-ukraine-and-armenia-revert-2011-dst-cancellation.aspx).

According to reports in Rada and Kyivpost that we have confirmed through our offices in the region, Ukraine will not stay on permanent summer time and instead will fall back to winter time on October 30, 2011 as originally scheduled. If these reports become the plan of record, customers in Armenia and Ukraine will not have to adjust time zone settings on their computers that are running Windows operating system.

The Microsoft Knowledgebase article KB2625508 has been updated with this information.

Our advice? Check with your local government if you live in Armenia or Ukraine to get more details. This is one of the reasons we recommend that in order to achieve more seamless transitions to new DST and time zone policies, Microsoft requests that governments provide the following:

  1. Ample advance notice (1 year or more) of the planned change.
  2. Official published confirmation of planned changes to DST or time zones.
  3. Concentrated efforts on promoting the change to the affected citizens.

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, RSS, DST, Russia

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Advisory: Fiji plans to shift from daylight saving to standard time earlier in 2012

As you may have read, Fiji has decided to shift their move back to standard time earlier than originally planned in 2012. This from the Government of Fiji

“The end of daylight saving scheduled initially for the 26th of February 2012 has been brought forward to the 22nd of January 2012.

“The commencement of daylight saving will remain unchanged and start on the 23rd of October, 2011. An official gazette reflecting this change will be released early this week.”

Technical Changes

The change will be a move from the original scheduled date of Sunday, February 26, to January 22, 2012. Folks in Fiji will then turn back their clocks one hour from 3:00:00 AM FJST (Fiji Summer Time) to 2:00:00 AM FJT (that’s Fiji Time).

Now, who wouldn’t want to be on Fiji Time? I thought it was always summer time in Fiji, where the temperatures in summer and winter are around 85-88ºF (or 30ºC for my shivering friends up north).

Associated challenges

There are also other social challenges as this change happens with only a few months warning. Here’s our regular advice for governments: in support of these types of changes, we provide guidance and Microsoft’s Policy in Response to DST/TZ Requests. It’s important for countries and territories to work towards seamless transitions to new DST and time zones policies, providing ample advance notice (of a year or more) with published confirmation of planned changes.

What’s Microsoft doing about this change?

Microsoft is aware of the upcoming change in time zone, ending daylight saving time earlier in Fiji, and we will work to minimize the impact this change has on our customers and partners. As with other changes to daylight saving time and time zones (like the impending change in Russia noted here), this will require an update to the OS, likely as part of the Windows December Cumulative Update. Most applications and services reference the underlying Windows OS for their TZ and DST rules, with some exceptions. This change in Fiji has the potential for worldwide impacts on time references for multinational customers. Updates will be important not only for users in Fiji but for connected systems around the world. Further information will be shared here and reported on our official Daylight Saving Time Help and Support Centre at http://www.microsoft.com/time as status updates are available.

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, RSS, DST, Fiji

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Announcement: Late 2011 time zone changes for Armenia, Belarus, Ukraine

Important update October 21, 2011: Please note we have received reports that Armenia and Ukraine have canceled their proposed changes. (http://blogs.technet.com/b/dst2007/archive/2011/10/19/notice-ukraine-and-armenia-revert-2011-dst-cancellation.aspx).

According to reports in Rada and Kyivpost that we have confirmed through our offices in the region, Ukraine will not stay on permanent summer time and instead will fall back to winter time on October 30, 2011 as originally scheduled. If these reports become the plan of record, customers in Armenia and Ukraine will not have to adjust time zone settings on their computers that are running Windows operating system.

The Microsoft Knowledgebase article KB2625508 has been updated with this information.

 

[10/06/2011: See this blog post form the Windows team for more information on the changes.]

As I noted in a post last week, we confirmed that similar to the move in Russia, that Armenia, Belarus and Ukraine won’t fall back but also stay permanently on summer time on October 30.

Microsoft’s guidance for Windows to the affected countries will be to move to another time zone has been released in the KB Article 2011 time zone changes for Eastern Europe

Ukraine, Belarus, and Armenia have decided to discontinue daylight saving time in 2011. According to the current Windows time zone rules, daylight saving time (summer time) is (UTC+3:00) in Belarus and Ukraine and (UTC+5:00) in Armenia. Summer time is scheduled to end on October 30, 2011 and move to winter time, which is (UTC+2:00) in Belarus and Ukraine and (UTC+4:00) in Armenia. According to the latest changes, they will remain on summer time (UTC +3:00) indefinitely and will not “fall back” to winter time. However, Ukraine, Belarus, and Armenia have now discontinued winter time and will remain permanently on summer time.

The native time zones for the affected countries will be updated in the next planned cumulative Windows time update in December 2011. No hotfix is planned for release in the interim. Users in these time zones should move to the following alternative suggested time zones:

  • (UTC +3:00) Kaliningrad
  • (UTC +5:00) Tashkent

Note To move to the “(UTC +3:00) Kaliningrad” time zones, customers must first install the August 2011 cumulative time zone update for Windows operating systems (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2570791).  A new time zone will be created for Ukraine and Belarus in the December 2011 Windows time cumulative update, which users can move back to.

Affected Country Current Native Time Zone Current Standard Time Current Summer Time (DST) New Workaround Time Zone (no DST)

Belarus

(UTC+02:00) Minsk

UTC+2:00

UTC+3:00

(UTC +3:00) Kaliningrad

Ukraine

(UTC+02:00) Helsinki, Kyiv, Riga, Sofia, Tallinn, Vilnius

UTC+2:00

UTC+3:00

(UTC +3:00) Kaliningrad

Armenia

(UTC+04:00) Yerevan

UTC+4:00

UTC+5:00

(UTC +5:00) Tashkent

For more information, click the following article number to view Microsoft Knowledge Base article 2570791 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2570791/) August 2011 cumulative time zone update for Windows operating systems

 

Tags: Microsoft, Daylight Saving Time, Daylight Savings Time, RSS, DST, Russia

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