pc clock

BlueRay2 · Nov 19, 2017

i built a desktop pc a couple of years ago, using Azus Z87-pro mobo, i7-9771 cpu, 16GB RAM, and upgraded win 10 from win 8! my issue is serious because mu desktop doesn't keep current time and this has been going on when i had win 8, also. actually i didn't use my pc except for a few times when i built it and then i moved from california to where i am now, so my destop was sitting idle for quite a while. i noticed the other night that the time was actually moving backward, to much of my surprise and dismay so i don't know how to remedy this. i don't know if the clock chip on the mobo (if the latest mobos still have such chip on board) is defective or what? i remember i purchased a pc in late 80s and i had similar experience, it had a defective clock chip on board so i took it back. i really don't know what to do at this point so your help is very much appreciated!!!!

Tom_N · Nov 20, 2017

It sounds like you might have a run-down clock battery. At least, that's what you should check first before assuming that the problem is something worse.

BlueRay2 · Nov 20, 2017

Tom_N said:
It sounds like you might have a run-down clock battery. At least, that's what you should check first before assuming that the problem is something worse.

yes, Tom, it just dawned on me when you mentioned it :-D i hope the battery is the culprit, i'll do it tomorrow, thank you so much.

ADMint · Nov 20, 2017

1Dx4me said:
Tom_N said:

It sounds like you might have a run-down clock battery. At least, that's what you should check first before assuming that the problem is something worse.

Click to expand...

yes, Tom, it just dawned on me when you mentioned it :-D i hope the battery is the culprit, i'll do it tomorrow, thank you so much.

The "clock" battery would be the CMOS battery for the BIOS. If that battery is dead or dying it will cause the clock issues you have. It is a coin type battery, usually a CR2032.

Anyway removing / changing this battery will clear the BIOS. However, the BIOS can be set back to factory defaults by finding something in the BIOS called "Load Optimized Defaults. Click and enable and your BIOS should be set. Oh, and you'll need to set both time and date there.

BlueRay2 · Nov 20, 2017

ADMint said:
1Dx4me said:

Tom_N said:

It sounds like you might have a run-down clock battery. At least, that's what you should check first before assuming that the problem is something worse.

Click to expand...

yes, Tom, it just dawned on me when you mentioned it :-D i hope the battery is the culprit, i'll do it tomorrow, thank you so much.

Click to expand...

The "clock" battery would be the CMOS battery for the BIOS. If that battery is dead or dying it will cause the clock issues you have. It is a coin type battery, usually a CR2032.

Anyway removing / changing this battery will clear the BIOS. However, the BIOS can be set back to factory defaults by finding something in the BIOS called "Load Optimized Defaults. Click and enable and your BIOS should be set. Oh, and you'll need to set both time and date there.

Zone8 · Nov 20, 2017

BlueRay2 said:
1Dx4me wrote: i really don't know what to do at this point so your help is very much appreciated!!!!

Hi. Get the little utility "Atomic Clock Sync" from this website:

Loading…

www.worldtimeserver.com

To sync your computer clock at any time (and you can configure to do this for you automatically) Once downloaded and installed, click to start, then click on the REPAIR SERVICE tabbed page. Then click on Start Service and once says is started, click on Sync Time.

grsnovi · Nov 20, 2017

You probably know this (but you said it has been a while): be sure to ground yourself before you go zapping thing on the mobo. I zapped a board years ago and trashed the system.

darg · Nov 20, 2017

Do you take the computer off of the power strip when not in use? I have similar effect from day 1 of a computer that I built with an Asus board. For whatever reason it does not keep the time or settings when I unplug it from the power strip but is fine when it stays at list on the strip when switched off. For me it looks like that Asus did a questionable setup on how the volatile RAM in the BIOS keeps powered when switched off since it only affects time, date and settings in the BIOS but not the saved profiles for over clocking.

Tom_N · Nov 20, 2017

darg said:
For me it looks like that Asus did a questionable setup on how the volatile RAM in the BIOS keeps powered when switched off since it only affects time, date and settings in the BIOS but not the saved profiles for over clocking.

A "questionable setup"?

It's pretty common for some settings to use battery-backed RAM instead of non-volatile flash memory. But even if most settings are in flash, how is the clock supposed to keep ticking without power?

Patco · Nov 20, 2017

darg said:
Do you take the computer off of the power strip when not in use? I have similar effect from day 1 of a computer that I built with an Asus board. For whatever reason it does not keep the time or settings when I unplug it from the power strip but is fine when it stays at list on the strip when switched off. For me it looks like that Asus did a questionable setup on how the volatile RAM in the BIOS keeps powered when switched off since it only affects time, date and settings in the BIOS but not the saved profiles for over clocking.

I haven't used Asus boards, but aren't Asus OC profiles stored in a file, as well?

I would suspect the CMOS battery is weak/dead, or not making good contact.

Billiam29 · Nov 20, 2017

Zone8 said:
Hi. Get the little utility "Atomic Clock Sync" from this website:

https://www.worldtimeserver.com/atomic-clock/

To sync your computer clock at any time (and you can configure to do this for you automatically) Once downloaded and installed, click to start, then click on the REPAIR SERVICE tabbed page. Then click on Start Service and once says is started, click on Sync Time.

You don't need a third party utility to sync Windows' time with an external server. This functionality is built into Windows itself. In Win 10 it can be found in Date and Time Control Panel -> Internet Time -> Change Settings button. Win 8.1 is the same. I don't recall the situation with Win 7.

43e87426c4974b5d8f5b72f154caee47.jpg.png

Side Note: If your machine is a member of an Active Directory domain, it will by default sync its time with a domain controller on the local network. Admins have control of which DC is the authoritative time source and where that DC gets its time from.

Patco · Nov 20, 2017

Billiam29 said:
You don't need a third party utility to sync Windows' time with an external server. This functionality is built into Windows itself. In Win 10 it can be found in Date and Time Control Panel -> Internet Time -> Change Settings button. Win 8.1 is the same. I don't recall the situation with Win 7.

I just checked a Win 7 computer, and it's pretty much the same.
It's been a long time since I used a 3rd party time synchronizer - maybe Win 98 or earlier?

--
Patco
A photograph is more than a bunch of pixels

ADMint · Nov 20, 2017

Zone8 said:
Zone8 said:

1Dx4me wrote: i really don't know what to do at this point so your help is very much appreciated!!!!

Click to expand...

Hi. Get the little utility "Atomic Clock Sync" from this website:

https://www.worldtimeserver.com/atomic-clock/

To sync your computer clock at any time (and you can configure to do this for you automatically) Once downloaded and installed, click to start, then click on the REPAIR SERVICE tabbed page. Then click on Start Service and once says is started, click on Sync Time.

There's no need to download that utility because Windows already links to a time server and it's where it has always been since the Win XP / 2K days... Control Panel, Date and Time, Internet Time tab, Change settings...

Regardless, this will do nothing for the BIOS time since it can't access the BIOS. Nor can it charge the dead CMOS battery.

--
The obsession is in the chasing and not the apprehension.

darg · Nov 20, 2017

Tom_N said:
darg said:

For me it looks like that Asus did a questionable setup on how the volatile RAM in the BIOS keeps powered when switched off since it only affects time, date and settings in the BIOS but not the saved profiles for over clocking.

Click to expand...

A "questionable setup"?

It's pretty common for some settings to use battery-backed RAM instead of non-volatile flash memory. But even if most settings are in flash, how is the clock supposed to keep ticking without power?

Exactly, the clock is normally buffered by the battery but not my Asus board and it might be also that OPs board has the same issue. BTW, I changed the battery after I got fed up with having the computer hanging on power when switched off but still the same. Might be also a bad QA or nonexistent OQA on Asus’s Side

wouldn’t be the first since nobody Tests motherboards anymore.

ADMint · Nov 20, 2017

darg said:
Tom_N said:

darg said:

For me it looks like that Asus did a questionable setup on how the volatile RAM in the BIOS keeps powered when switched off since it only affects time, date and settings in the BIOS but not the saved profiles for over clocking.

Click to expand...

A "questionable setup"?

It's pretty common for some settings to use battery-backed RAM instead of non-volatile flash memory. But even if most settings are in flash, how is the clock supposed to keep ticking without power?

Click to expand...

Exactly, the clock is normally buffered by the battery but not my Asus board and it might be also that OPs board has the same issue.

I not going to get into the technical details but Asus isn't doing anything differently than any other board manufacture where the CMOS battery powers the CMOS RAM for memorizing BIOS settings. This is pretty much universal across boards. Just as power supply connections are universal across a myriad motherboards.

Zone8 · Nov 21, 2017

Member said:
ADMint wrote: There's no need to download that utility because Windows already links to a time server and it's where it has always been since the Win XP / 2K days... Control Panel, Date and Time, Internet Time tab, Change settings... Regardless, this will do nothing for the BIOS time since it can't access the BIOS. Nor can it charge the dead CMOS battery.

The solution I gave overcomes the problems being experienced relying on both the BIOS and Windoze to do it for you.

It's such a simple solution for the OP.

ADMint · Nov 21, 2017

Zone8 said:
Zone8 said:

ADMint wrote: There's no need to download that utility because Windows already links to a time server and it's where it has always been since the Win XP / 2K days... Control Panel, Date and Time, Internet Time tab, Change settings... Regardless, this will do nothing for the BIOS time since it can't access the BIOS. Nor can it charge the dead CMOS battery.

Click to expand...

The solution I gave overcomes the problems being experienced relying on both the BIOS and Windoze to do it for you. It's such a simple solution for the OP

You are completely and utterly wrong if you think your software solution solves an incorrect BIOS Time.

Sorry, you'd be arguing a provable losing argument with me on this one.

--
The obsession is in the chasing and not the apprehension.

Zone8 · Nov 21, 2017

Member said:
ADMint wrote: You are completely and utterly wrong if you think your software solution solves an incorrect BIOS Time. Sorry, you'd be arguing a provable losing argument with me on this one.

I think you have misunderstood my response. I gave a perfectly reasonable solution to keeping the time when the OP is using Windows. In that sense, the time in the BIOS becomes irrelevant. Whilst I agree a replacement battery on the motherboard may cure the BIOS time problems (but he would have other problems if that was the actual situation, meaning the BIOS settings would need re-setting at every startup) using the utility mentioned would keep his working Windows time accurate. The OP didn't (as far as I can recall) mention other problems that could be due the BIOS settings not being held in a saved format. In some situations in the past, where clients have had clock timings act strangely, it proved to be down to something running in the background, which was traced using the MSCONFIG utility and disabled. In earlier days, that was often down to games, especially ones running in DOS mode.

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Billiam29 · Nov 21, 2017

Zone8 said:
I think you have misunderstood my response. I gave a perfectly reasonable solution to keeping the time when the OP is using Windows.

So you consider installing an additional piece of software that duplicates functionality the Windows OS has contained since Win 7 a perfectly reasonably solution?

ADMint · Nov 21, 2017

Zone8 said:
Zone8 said:

ADMint wrote: You are completely and utterly wrong if you think your software solution solves an incorrect BIOS Time. Sorry, you'd be arguing a provable losing argument with me on this one.

Click to expand...

In that sense, the time in the BIOS becomes irrelevant.

Until the PC is powered down (not standby, Hibernation, or Sleep), but actually powered down. When powered down, the CMOS battery is charged with insuring the CMOS RAM has power to memorize settings used by the BIOS, including the BIOS date & time.

When the PC powers up and Windows is loaded through the BIOS, it (Windows) will initially get its date & time from the BIOS until it (Windows) connects to a time server. Once power is removed from the system, this cycle starts again.

The reason Windows gets it's initial time from the BIOS? Windows can't do anything, including sync time if there's no power to the PC. Additionally, if you've got no internet service you can't connect to a time server.

(but he would have other problems if that was the actual situation said:
The OP didn't (as far as I can recall) mention other problems that could be due the BIOS settings not being held in a saved format.

Not specifically, but they did say...

1Dx4me, post: 60408642, member: 67867"]
i don't know if the clock chip on the mobo (if the latest mobos still have such chip on board) is defective or what?

Oh, and I agree with Billiam29, except to add it's been there since at least the XP / Windows 2000 (2K) days.
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