BIOS date and time reset (system clock)
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Thread: BIOS date and time reset (system clock)

  1. #1
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    BIOS date and time reset (system clock)

    Back again - after the third battery, some cleaning etc. everything went smooth for a week.
    Now, when I enter the BIOS on first startup the date and time is reset again.
    What (hardware?) problem could that be?

  2. #2
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    Now I'm only a novice, but it sometimes helps to take a step back and look at things from a novices point of view.

    We can sometimes overlook the obvious, albeit a minor oversight. Just checking, you did save the new settings before you exited the BIOS?

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  3. #3
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    I certainly did. And I checked the jumper settings for the CMOS clock as well.
    The funny thing is that all other BIOS entries are correct and reflect my customization.
    It's just the date and time.

  4. #4
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    you got a weak battery sitting around in a shop for years but basically works ?. how off is it-in days

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  5. #5
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    It's the 3rd battery. And this time I checked the voltage - it's full.

    It defaults back to 1/1/97 (BIOS default)

  6. #6
    DrMDJ is offline Virtual PC Specialist!!!
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    Could be the RTC itself (bios chip). But just to be sure its not something else... For a day or two before you shut down check the bios time (not Win time) and see that it is correct. Then check it again immediately on boot up. Rule out any software issue.

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  7. #7
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    How do I access the BIOS b4 shutting down ?


  8. #8
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    In windows choose restart and then hit >del< (or whatever for your PC) on bios startup. Check the clock and then cut the power.

    Could it be that the pin fitting over the batteri doesn't always fit tight enough? Is the batteri still full after the clock resets, or has it somehow been drained?

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  9. #9
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    I'm getting closer...after monitoring the shutdown, the date and time get reset whenever I clean out my harddrive (i.e. disk cleanup, cookies and temp internet files).

    Could I accidently delete a file that has something to do with that ?

  10. #10
    DrMDJ is offline Virtual PC Specialist!!!
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    What exactly do you run to do this cleanup? No file on the hard drive is (should be) involved in maintaining the system clock time.

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  11. #11
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    Besides the standard disc-cleanup feature, I manually delete the contents of TEMP, TEMPORARY INTERNET FILES, DOWNLOADED... and everything that comes up when searching for cookies.


  12. #12
    DrMDJ is offline Virtual PC Specialist!!!
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    None of that would be touching the time (bios or otherwise). Something else has to be causing this.

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  13. #13
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    I just can't figure it out. Just another guess - could it have to do with power surges from my UPS device ???

  14. #14
    DrMDJ is offline Virtual PC Specialist!!!
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    I would think surges would be causing problems other than time related, far more troublesome.

    So you are saying that based on your tests, if you dont "cleanup" then the time stays fine, but if you do then it gets reset?

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  15. #15
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    That's the thing. Would I bet on it - no. But the last two times it occured the day after I did a HD cleanup.

    Could any shutdown procedure/program force a reset ? And how could I check step-by-step what happens while shutting down ? Q over Q

    My other idea was to try and reinstall WIN98.

    What's your ideas on this one ? (I'm about to buy a new PC now -j/k)

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