Western Australia (Perth) Daylight Savings Trial End - 2009 - GroupWise

In November 2006 the Government of the state of Western Australia announced a three year trial of daylight savings, to begin December 2006 and end March 2009.  On the 16th May 2009 a referendum was held, with the public of Western Australia voting AGAINST the permanent introduction of daylight savings.

TID 3091733 provided the procedure to implement the DST change in 2006. This TID provides the procedure to disable DST for this time zone from October 2009.

Server Operating Systems

OS updates implementing this time zone change will need to be applied to servers hosting GroupWise agents. Please refer to OS vendors for details.

GroupWise Agents

While Novell recommends applying the latest patches, the GroupWise agents (POA, MTA, GWIA and WebAccess) do not need to be updated specifically for this time zone change if they are at the following minimum patch levels:

GroupWise 7 SP3

GroupWise 8

GroupWise Time Zone definitions maintained by ConsoleOne

The GroupWise time zone definition for the AWT zone, listed as "(GMT +8.0) Perth”, needs to be modified to disable DST.  Steps for making these changes can be found in the GroupWise Documentation.

After updating the time zone database, you should restart the agents to ensure that updated time zone information takes effect. These changes should be made as soon as possible.

Workstation Operating Systems

Workstation OS updates implementing this time zone change will need to be applied to workstations on which a GroupWise Client is installed.

GroupWise Clients

It is not necessary to update GroupWise clients. GroupWise clients depend on the workstation's operating system for time zone information. Updating the operating system's time zone information helps ensure that GroupWise appointments are scheduled correctly.

Mobile Device Operating Systems

Mobile Device OS updates implementing this time zone change will need to be applied to mobile devices synchronizing with GroupWise Mailboxes.

GroupWise Mobile Server (GMS)

It is not necessary to update any GMS components as long as GMS is fully patched. DST updates for the server and mobile device OS's now provide everything GMS requires. Novell recommends the following minimum patch levels for GMS:

GroupWise Mobile Server 2.0.3 or 3.0.1 for Linux

GroupWise Mobile Server 2.0.4 oe 3.0.1 for Windows

Consequences of Using old DST information

Before a workstation's time zone is updated, an appointment scheduled for a date between the DST start and end dates could be off by one hour.  This will only be apparent after updating to the new DST transition rules. After a workstation's time zone definitions are updated, appointments can be correctly scheduled for this time period.

What is the best way to handle this?

The best course of action is to update workstation time zone definitions in a timely manner. The sooner this is done, the less likely it is that users will create appointments in the affected time periods.

Users may have already created appointments in these time periods, or may do so before the workstation's time zones are updated. After a workstation is updated, users should be advised to inspect appointments in those time periods and adjust them if necessary.

NOTE: The tzchangefolder GWCheck option was added in GroupWise 7 SP3. This option allows Administrators to assist users in identifying the calendar items they need to check.

Steps for dealing with this issue are:

1. Update workstation time zone definitions as soon as possible.

2. Advise users to inspect appointments in the affected time periods and, if necessary, adjust them.

3. Advise users to reset their work schedule time zone.

Adjusting appointments that are mis-scheduled

Adjusting Posted Appointments:

1. Drag and drop the appointment to the new time

   or

2. Open the appointment, modify the time, then post.

Adjusting Sent Appointments:

1. Drag and drop the appointment to the new time. When prompted to edit, choose no. The old appointment is retracted and the new one sent.

   or

2. Select the appointment. Choose the Resend menu option. Modify the time (and other changes if desired) then click Send. Choose Yes to retract.

Adjusting Posted All-Day Events:

1. Drag/Drop the all-day event onto the same day.

   or

2. Open the item, click the all-day event check box, then click Post.

Adjusting Sent All-Day Events.

1. Select the all-day event. Choose the Resend menu option. Click the all-day event check box, then click Send. Choose Yes to retract.

Adjusting Received Appointments or All-Day Events.

1. Contact the organizer and ask him or her to adjust and resend the item.

NOTE: You have no control over the calendars of external recipients of appointments in your users' calendars, so your users will have to confirm appointment times with all external recipients regardless of what you do to implement this time zone change for your GroupWise system.

Setting the Work Schedule time zone

The current work schedule time zone is displayed next to the "Work Schedule” group box title on the Tools – Options – Date and Time dialog. Even if the work schedule time zone displays correctly, performing the following steps ensures that the correct time zone information, along with DST transition rules, is stored correctly.

1. Choose Tools | Options | Date and Time...

2. Change the start/end time (or uncheck a workday).

3. Click OK.

4. Choose Date and Time...

5. Set Start/End back to what it should be.

6. Click OK. Click OK.