Many users have reported receiving the incorrect time from their Novell’s servers upon login.  This problem can arise due to the great care Novell has gone into ensuring clients receive the correct time from the server, which can create some complexities.

The Novell Server does not simply set the client to the servers current time.  Rather it takes the UTC time and provides it to the Novell Client.  The Novell Client then applies the windows time settings to the UTC time provided.  To ensure the client is set to the correct time, the administrator must ensure all of the following things are correct.

1)   The Novell server has the proper time zone setting
2)      The Novell server has the proper daylight savings setting
3)      The Novell server has the correct time
4)      The Client Workstation has the correct time zone
5)      The Client Workstation has the daylight savings setting

Type "Time" at the server console to receive the time information about the server.
A Sample output is displayed below.

Time zone string: "EST5EDT"
DST status: ON
DST start: Sunday, April 1, 2001 2:00:00 am EST
DST end: Sunday, October 29, 2000 2:00:00 am EDT
Time synchronization is active.
Time is synchronized to the network.
Friday, August 18, 2000 10:47:12 pm UTC
Friday, August 18, 2000 6:47:12 pm EDT

The Time Zone String is actually 3 values in 1.  The first part is an abbreviation for the time zone.  The middle number represents the hour off-set of the time zone from UTC time.  The final portion is the time zone abbreviation during the time period in which daylight savings is in effect.  The server above is in the eastern time zone which is 5 hours different from UTC time except during daylight savings time.  This server will be in the EDT time zone during the daylight savings time.
(Set Time Zone= .....  to set the correct value.)

DST Status determines whether Daylight Savings time should be used to calculate time.  This value should always be left on or off.  It does not need to be changed for different times of the year.
(Set Daylight Savings Status=ON/OFF to set the correct value.)

DST Start/End determines the start and end periods for using the daylight savings time adjustment.
(Please type "Set" and "9" to see how to set these complicated values are set.)

Please note that the current time of the server is 6:47pm EDT, not EST.  This also indicates that daylight savings time is in effect.  On the East Coast of the US, there should be a 4 hour time difference between the UTC and the current time (EDT), while daylight savings is in effect and 5 hours (EST) when it is not.  PST locations should have a difference of 8hours except during PDT when the difference should be 7 hours. 

Common Time Zones and Offsets 
Australian Central Daylight +10:30 CSuT, ACDT, CDT
Australian Central Standard +9:30 ACST, CAST, CST
Australian Eastern Daylight +11 AEDT, ESuT
Australian Eastern Standard +10 AES, AEST, EAST, EST
Australian South Daylight +10:30 SADT
Australian South Standard +9:30 SAST
Australian Western Daylight +9 AWDT, WADT, WDT
Australian Western Standard +8 AWST, WAST, WST
Austria +1 WUT
Azores (obsolete) +2 AT
Baghdad +3 BT
Belgium, Mid-European +1 MET, MEWT
Bering Summer (1967-1983) 11 BST
Bering (until 1967) 11 BT
Brazil 3 BRA, BST
Brazil Summer 4 Horario_De_Verao
British Summer +1 BST
Canada, Atlantic Daylight 3 ADT, ASTU
Canada, Atlantic Standard 4 AST, ADT
Canada, Central Daylight 5 CDT
Canada, Central Standard 6 CST
Canada, Eastern Daylight 4 EDT
Canada, Eastern Standard 5 EST
Canada, Mountain Daylight 6 MDT
Canada, Mountain Standard 7 MST
Canada, Newfoundland Daylight 2:30 NDT
Canada, Newfoundland Standard 3:30 NST, NFT
Canada, Pacific Daylight 7 PDT
Canada, Pacific Standard 8 PST
Canada, Yukon Daylight 8 YDT
Canada, Yukon Standard 9 YST
Central Alaskan Standard (until 1967) 10 CAT
China Coast (obsolete) +8 CCT
China Daylight +9 CDT
China Standard +8 CST
Dansk Normal +1 DNT
Dansk Summer +2 DST
Europaeische, Mittel Sommerzeit +2 MESZ
Europaeische, Mittel Zeit +1 MEZ
European, Central +1 CET
European, Central Daylight +2 CETDST
European, Central Summer +2 CEST
European, Eastern +2 EET
European, Eastern Summer +3 EEST, EETDST
European, Middle Daylight +2 MEDST, MEST
European, Middle +1 MET, MEWT
European - Prague, Vienna +1 SET
European, Western Summer +1 WEST, WETDST
European, Western 0 WET
Fernando de Noronha Daylight 1 FDT
Fernando de Noronha Standard 2 FST
French Summer +2 FST
French Winter +1 FWT
Greenland, Standard (obsolete) 3 GST
Greenland, Eastern Daylight 1 WTZ
Greenland, Eastern Standard 2 VTZ
Greenland, Western Standard 3 UTZ
Greenland, Western Daylight 2 VTZ
Greenwich 0 GMT
Guam Standard +10 GST
Hawaiian Daylight (until 1947) 9:30 HDT
Heure Fancais d'Ete +2 HFE
Heure Fancais d'Hiver +1 HFH
Hong Kong +8 HKT
Indian Standard +5:30 IST
International Date line, East +12 IDLE
International Date line, West 12 IDLW
Iran Daylight +4:30 IDT
Iran Standard +3:30 IST
Iran +3:30 IT
Israeli Daylight +3 IDT
Israeli Standard +2 IST
Italy +1 ITA
Japanese Standard +9 JST
Java +7:30 JT
Korean Daylight +10 KDT
Korean Standard +9 KST
Malaysia +8 MAL
Melbourne, Australia +10 LIGT
Mexico 6 MEX
Moluccas (obsolete) +8:30 MT
Moscow Summer +3 MSD
Moscow W inter +2 MSK
New Zealand Daylight +13 NZDT
New Zealand Standard +12 NZT, NZST
Newfoundland Daylight 2:30 NDT
Newfoundland Standard 3:30 NST
Nome (until 1967) 11 NT
North Sumatran (obsolete) +8:30 NST
Norway +1 NOR, EMT
Samoa Standard 11 SST
Singapore Standard +8 SST
South Sumatran (obsolete) +7 SST
Spain +1 HOE
Swedish Summer +2 SST
Swedish +1 SWT
Thailand Standard +7 THA
Turkish Standard +3 TST, MAT
Universal 0 UT
Universal Time Coordinate 0 UTC
West Africa (obsolete) +1 WAT
United States, Alaska-Hawaii 9 AHDT
     Daylight (1967 to 1983)
United States, Alaska-Hawaii 10 AHST
     Standard (1967 to 1983)
United States, Alaska Daylight 8 AKDT
United States, Alaska Standard 9 AKST
United States, Atlantic Daylight 3 ADT
United States, Atlantic Standard 4 AST
United States, Central Daylight 5 CDT
United States, Central Standard 6 CST
United States, Eastern Daylight 4 EDT
United States, Eastern Standard 5 EST
United States, Hawaiian Standard 10 HST, HAST (10:20 until 1947)
United States, Hawaiian Daylight 9 HADT
United States, Mountain Daylight 6 MDT
United States, Mountain Standard 7 MST
United States, Pacific Daylight 7 PDT
United States, Pacific Standard 8 PST