2.11BSD#431 - /usr/man/cat1/date.0

DATE(1)             UNIX Programmer's Manual		  DATE(1)


NAME
     date - print and set the date

SYNOPSIS
     date [-nu] [-d dst] [-t timezone] [yymmddhhmm [.ss] ]

DESCRIPTION
     If no arguments are given, the current date and time are
     printed.  Providing an argument will set the desired date;
     only the superuser can set the date.  The -d and -t flags
     set the kernel's values for daylight savings time and
     minutes west of GMT.  If dst is non-zero, future calls to
     gettimeofday(2) will return a non-zero tz_dsttime.  Timezone
     provides the number of minutes returned by future calls to
     gettimeofday(2) in tz_minuteswest.  The -u flag is used to
     display or set the date in GMT (universal) time.  yy
     represents the last two digits of the year; the first mm is
     the month number; dd is the day number; hh is the hour
     number (24 hour system); the second mm is the minute number;
     .ss is optional and represents the seconds.  For example:

	  date 8506131627

     sets the date to June 13 1985, 4:27 PM.  The year, month and
     day may be omitted; the default values will be the current
     ones.  The system operates in GMT.  Date takes care of the
     conversion to and from local standard and daylight-saving
     time.

     If timed(8) is running to synchronize the clocks of machines
     in a local area network, date sets the time globally on all
     those machines unless the -n option is given.

FILES
     /usr/adm/wtmp to record time-setting.  In /usr/adm/messages,
     date records the name of the user setting the time.

SEE ALSO
     gettimeofday(2), utmp(5), timed(8),
     TSP: The Time Synchronization Protocol for UNIX 4.3BSD, R.
     Gusella and S. Zatti

DIAGNOSTICS
     Exit status is 0 on success, 1 on complete failure to set
     the date, and 2 on successfully setting the local date but
     failing globally.

     Occasionally, when timed synchronizes the time on many
     hosts, the setting of a new time value may require more than
     a few seconds.  On these occasions, date prints: `Network
     time being set'.  The message `Communication error with
     timed' occurs when the communication between date and timed


Printed 11/26/99	 March 24, 1987                         1


DATE(1)             UNIX Programmer's Manual		  DATE(1)


     fails.

BUGS
     The system attempts to keep the date in a format closely
     compatible with VMS.  VMS, however, uses local time (rather
     than GMT) and does not understand daylight-saving time.
     Thus, if you use both UNIX and VMS, VMS will be running on
     GMT.


Printed 11/26/99	 March 24, 1987                         2