Why does my Computer Clock Keep Changing it’s Time?

There are many things that most people take for granted. One of them is that clocks always show the current time. When you tend to rely on your computer’s time and your computer clock loses time, this can be fatal. There are several situations where the Windows clock starts showing the wrong time. Below are the three most likely reasons why and how to fix them. Keep in mind it is possible these will not fix your clock issue, but I would try these fixes first.

CMOS Battery

This is the most likely scenario, especially if your computer is not brand new.

The CMOS battery sits on your computer’s motherboard and provides power to the Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) chip. The CMOS chip stores information about the system configuration, including the date and time. The CMOS battery makes sure the chip can store this data even while the computer is turned off and not hooked up to power. If the battery goes bad, the chip starts losing information and one of the symptoms is that your computer no longer maintains its time and date.

How to replace your CMOS Battery

You can bring it in to SNECS and have one of our Techs replace the battery for you, if you can’t do that then you can replace it yourself You just have to purchase a CR2032 Battery at a local CVS, or Drugstore, and watch the install video below

Laptop CMOS Replacement                                                                                                     

Desktop CMOS Replacement

Time Zone

This is an easy to fix for when your computer clock loses time.

Your computer may simply be set to the wrong time zone and every time you fix the time, it resets itself to that time zone when you reboot. If the minutes are correct and only the hour is bad, that’s probably the issue you’re dealing with.

In Windows 7 you can easily fix the time zone. Right-click the system clock in your taskbar and select > Adjust date/time. Under the headline > Time Zone check whether the information is correct. If not, click the > Change time zone… button and set your time zone. Don’t forget to confirm your changes and you’re all set.

Virus or Malware

This is the least pleasant and most difficult to manage scenario.

Your computer may have been hijacked by a virus that messes with your computer time. To fix it, you need to remove the infection. First, make sure your Norton Anti-virus program is up to date with the latest virus definitions. Give you system a full scan if it does not pick up anything or remove any virus, it might be time to bring you PC into the shop and have a Pro take a look at it.

If you’re obsessed with having the exact time on your computer no matter what, you may want to set up synchronization with a remote server. Before you do that however, please note that an inaccurate Windows clock should not be taken lightly.

Atomic Clock Sync offers an easy way to configure how often your computer will check in with an atomic clock server to keep your local system clock adjusted for accuracy. The default in Windows is to sync every 7 days, but you can easily change this to be more often if you find your computer clock gets behind or ahead too quickly.

Atomic Clock Sync can even help repair the Windows Time Service if your computer is no longer able to check for Internet Time updates as it normally would.