Computer clock is slow

[Jyeshta]

Hi all,

This is a new computer so I can't believe the battery needs replacing.
Is there any sort of atomic clock on the internet to which I can
connect my computer?

Thanks.

Gail

 

[Shenan Stanley]

This is a new computer so I can't believe the battery needs
replacing. Is there any sort of atomic clock on the internet to
which I can connect my computer?

Yes..
But I would look into a possible BIOS upgrade to fix the issue. Synching
your clockevery so often is not a fix, it is a work-around.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

This is a new computer so I can't believe the battery needs replacing.

It's not terribly likely, but even new batteries can be bad. I wouldn't
necessarily rule that possibility out.

How much time does the clock lose? Before anyone whose clock is running slow
rushes out to buy a new battery, he should first take note of whether he is
losing time while the computer is running or while it's powered off. If it's
while powered off, the problem *is* very likely the battery. But if it's
while running, it can *not* be the battery, because the battery isn't used
while the computer is running.

If the clock loses time while running, try this:

Open a command prompt window (Start | Run | cmd) and enter the following
commands:

net stop w32time
w32tm /unregister
w32tm /register
net start w32time

Is there any sort of atomic clock on the internet to which I can
connect my computer?

Yes, there are many, and Windows automatically synchs to one once a week.
You can change the interval to do it more frequently, or you can use one of
the third-party clock programs, like the freeware TClock, which does this
and several other useful things.

 

[Bill Ridgeway]

The best advice is to not muck about with changing the BIOS. You may have a
computer that works better, you may not notice any change or worse still
your computer may not work at all. I would suggest you replace the CMOS
battery before mucking about with the BIOS..

Regards.

Bill Ridgeway
Computer Solutions

 

[Jyeshta]

Yes..
But I would look into a possible BIOS upgrade to fix the issue. Synching
your clockevery so often is not a fix, it is a work-around.

Thank you, Shenan. I wouldn't know how to do that myself.

Gail

 

[Jyeshta]

Thank you, Bill. As I said, this computer is barely 2 months old -
can't believe it would need a new battery already. I have a 5 year
old computer that runs Win2K and *its* clock runs fast! Maybe it's
another Dell peculiarity. Thanks.

Gail

The best advice is to not muck about with changing the BIOS. You may have a
computer that works better, you may not notice any change or worse still
your computer may not work at all. I would suggest you replace the CMOS
battery before mucking about with the BIOS..

Regards.

Bill Ridgeway
Computer Solutions

 

[Jyeshta]

It's not terribly likely, but even new batteries can be bad. I wouldn't
necessarily rule that possibility out.

How much time does the clock lose? Before anyone whose clock is running slow
rushes out to buy a new battery, he should first take note of whether he is
losing time while the computer is running or while it's powered off. If it's
while powered off, the problem *is* very likely the battery. But if it's
while running, it can *not* be the battery, because the battery isn't used
while the computer is running.

If the clock loses time while running, try this:

Open a command prompt window (Start | Run | cmd) and enter the following
commands:

net stop w32time
w32tm /unregister
w32tm /register
net start w32time





Yes, there are many, and Windows automatically synchs to one once a week.
You can change the interval to do it more frequently, or you can use one of
the third-party clock programs, like the freeware TClock, which does this
and several other useful things.

Thank you so much, Ken. I think the clock is losing time while turned
off because the problem has only begun since I had it turned off two
nights last week. Is there any danger in not replacing the battery?

Gail

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Thank you so much, Ken. I think the clock is losing time while turned
off because the problem has only begun since I had it turned off two
nights last week. Is there any danger in not replacing the battery?

You're welcome. If the clock is losing time while turned off, just replace
the battery. It's cheap and easy.

If you don't, sooner of later you'll lose all the CMOS settings.

By the way you usually have at last 15 minutes to replace the battery before
losing the settings, but it's prudent to have a hard copy of what they are
before beginning, just in case you have to put them back manually.

 

[Og]

Hi all,

This is a new computer so I can't believe the battery needs replacing.
Is there any sort of atomic clock on the internet to which I can
connect my computer?

Thanks.

Gail

Since you have "a new computer", I STRONGLY urge you to contact the
manufacturer Technical Support to resolve this issue.
Opening the case of your computer to replace a battery, as other posters
have suggested, may VOID your warranty. If the problem is a more serious
than a mere battery, having a voiding warranty will force you to pay for
repairs that otherwise would have been performed by the manufacturer.
Steve

 

[Jyeshta]

You're welcome. If the clock is losing time while turned off, just replace
the battery. It's cheap and easy.

If you don't, sooner of later you'll lose all the CMOS settings.

By the way you usually have at last 15 minutes to replace the battery before
losing the settings, but it's prudent to have a hard copy of what they are
before beginning, just in case you have to put them back manually.

Thank you, Ken. What are the CMOS settings? Sorry for being so
ignorant.

Gail

 

[Jyeshta]

Since you have "a new computer", I STRONGLY urge you to contact the
manufacturer Technical Support to resolve this issue.
Opening the case of your computer to replace a battery, as other posters
have suggested, may VOID your warranty. If the problem is a more serious
than a mere battery, having a voiding warranty will force you to pay for
repairs that otherwise would have been performed by the manufacturer.
Steve

Thank you, Steve. I do intend to contact Dell and have them deal with
it. I don't feel confident enough myself to open the case and try
replacing the battery, plus I'm under warranty.

Gail

 

[Og]

Thank you, Steve. I do intend to contact Dell and have them deal with
it. I don't feel confident enough myself to open the case and try
replacing the battery, plus I'm under warranty.

Gail

Gail:
Shenan, Bill, and Ken are very knowledgeable and you are normally wise to
heed their words of wisdom, but in this instance all three seem to have
overlooked the words "new computer" in your post.
Steve

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Shenan, Bill, and Ken are very knowledgeable and you are normally
wise to heed their words of wisdom, but in this instance all three
seem to have overlooked the words "new computer" in your post.

Thanks for the kind words. but, no I didn't overlook those words. In fact in
my first post in the thread I said "It's not terribly likely, but even new
batteries can be bad. I wouldn't necessarily rule that possibility out"

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

On Sun, 6 Aug 2006 17:03:47 -0700, "Ken Blake, MVP"


Thank you, Ken. What are the CMOS settings? Sorry for being so
ignorant.

These are setting that are kept in a special memory chip on the motherboard.
They are the basic hardware settings on the system, and contain the time and
date, among other things. The battery we've been talking about keeps all of
those settings correct, as well as the time and date.

 

[Jyeshta]

These are setting that are kept in a special memory chip on the motherboard.
They are the basic hardware settings on the system, and contain the time and
date, among other things. The battery we've been talking about keeps all of
those settings correct, as well as the time and date.

Once again, thank you Ken.

Gail

 

[Jyeshta]

Gail:
Shenan, Bill, and Ken are very knowledgeable and you are normally wise to
heed their words of wisdom, but in this instance all three seem to have
overlooked the words "new computer" in your post.
Steve

Thanks, Steve.

Gail

 

[Bill Ridgeway]

Steve wrote << Shenan, Bill, and Ken are very knowledgeable and you are
normally wise to heed their words of wisdom, but in this instance all three
seem to have overlooked the words "new computer" in your post.>> Thanks for
the accolade.

Glossed over rather than overlooked. It is quite possible for a component
in a new computer to be faulty. One in particular I recall is a hard disk
drive fresh out of the sealed packet which failed to spin. So it is useful
to include this in the response to consider as a possible if improbable.
For completeness, although not strictly relevant to this enquiry (for any
other reader with a similar issue) the phrase "new computer" can mean
second-user computer that is new to me.

Regards.

Bill Ridgeway
Computer Solutions

 

[Mike Hall - MS MVP Windows Shell/User]

The fact that a system is new does not guarantee that all is well with it.
The battery may not be all that it should be, and can generally be replaced
easily enough. Systems where the battery is soldered to the board do not
come into this category. Try replacing the battery, and if that fails,
contact the vendor. Time is maintained by the battery, but is actually
controlled by an oscillator circuit on the motherboard. It may be that this
is faulty. In some instances, a faulty oscillator circuit can lead to other
problems.

 

[Bill Ridgeway]

Ken Blake wrote <<These are setting that are kept in a special memory chip
on the motherboard. They are the basic hardware settings on the system, and
contain the time and date, among other things. The battery we've been
talking about keeps all of those settings correct, as well as the time and
date.>>

Perhaps this needs fleshing out a bit. When a computer is off it is nothing
more than a collection of metal, plastic etc. It doesn't 'know' anything
about anything. except the CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor).
This chip stores the very basic parameters of the computer. These include
the date, time and a technical description of the such things as the hard
disk drive - and many others. Obviously when the computer is not connected
to the mains it needs something to maintain this information and that is the
job of the CMOS battery. Now CMOS batteries like any other have a life. If
the computer is stored unused (in a shop or whilst you are on a long
holiday) the power is being drained from the battery. A charge in a CMOS
battery can last for, say, 3 or 4 years. When you turn on you computer it
first looks to information in the CMOS to tell itself what it is before
looking to the BIOS and then the hard disk to load the operating system
(Windows) and other software. Think of it as a bit like you waking up on
the first morning of a holiday and having to work out why the sun is now
coming in from the opposite direction etc before you try to work out what
you will be doing that day.

Regards.

Bill Ridgeway
Computer Solutions

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

On Mon, 7 Aug 2006 07:40:18 -0700, "Ken Blake, MVP"


Once again, thank you Ken.

You're welcome, Gail.