Click here for a humerous quick check for Y2K compliance
Free Y2K compliance check and fix for CVC families
The Y2K (Year 2000) Problem in brief:
Most applications/programs grab the system date from the operating system, whose software-based calendar is initialized at boot from the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) firmware, which inturn gets the date from the CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) Reat Time Clock (RTC), which is hardware. Whew! The CMOS RTC maintains a two-digit year, so the BIOS appends these two digits to a pair of stored century digits to compose the four-digit year. This four-digit year is then provided to the operating system. The hardware does not maintain the century digits, so even though the digits are set by any system date set command, they are not incremented when the year increments from 99 to 00. The result is that year 1999 will be followed by apparent year 1900. Strangely, this often results in the erroneous system date of 1980-01-01 at the next boot since 1900 is an invalid year to the operating system. Some applications, which take the date from the BIOS rather than the operating system, will receive year 1900 instead of 2000. I have seen some computers here at CVC transistion from 1999 to 1900, 1999 to 1980, and 1999 to 1984!! The Y2K problem is sometimes referred to as the Millennium bug or Year 2000 problem, but the problems can start before 2000 and after 2000 as explained below. This problem affects a huge amount of software, particularly accounting and database systems. Computerspeak: Y2KFor those intimidated by "Y2K":
Y = "year"
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TO WORK CORRECTLY
To be year 2000 compliant, a computer must do the following.
1. The computer clock must transition from Dec 31, 1999 to Jan 1, 2000
2. The computer must be able to remember that the year is 2000 or later when it reboots after Jan 1, 2000.
3. The computer must recognize that the day after Feb 28, 2000 is Feb 29,2000 but the day after Feb 28, 2001 is Mar 1, 2001 and know the correct day of the week for each date.
4. Windows 95 and Windows 98 (1st version) need patches, available free from Microsoft's website or downloadable here.
5. Windows 3.x, Windows 95, Windows 98 (1st version) need short date set for four digit year.
(start -- control panel -- regional settings -- date -- short date -- change from YY to YYYY.)
DOWNLOAD THE TEST
The following program will test your PC (not MAC) computer to see if it is year 2000 compliant: test2000.exe.
You may download it here:
Download 2000test.zip (70 KB)
This zipped file contains the following files:
run2000.bat
--- Place in C:\
a batch file for test2000.
test2000.exe
---- Place in C:\
It tests your computer for year2000 compliance
index.htm
---- a copy of this page
viewcmos.exe
-- Place in C:\
It shows what is going on in your cmos to help you evaluate any problems.
HOW TO EXTRACT THE FILES
Decompress 2000test.zip and extract the resulting files using winzip or other "unzipping" program.
Extract the files into your root directory. (C:\ in most computers)
THE TEST
You cannot run the test program from windows. Thus you must exit into dos.
From your root directory, type
C:\ test2000
The program will set your clock temporarily to Dec 31, 1999 a few seconds before midnight
to see if the transition takes place to Jan 1, 2000. Then, it will reboot your computer to see
if it remembers the year. Your clock will be reset to the correct time and rebooted one final
time. The screen will let you know if your computer is year 2000 compliant. If it is not, it
will inform you if your bios can be fixed with Y2KPCPro. All you really have to do
is edit autoexec.bat with the first line C:\cvc2000 after you download cvc2000.com into your route directory.
Reboot your system. Run the test program again and you will see that it is fixed.
(In very rare cases, this fix causes a machine not to boot.
If this is the case, boot up your computer with a floppy, edit autoexec.bat and remove the line that you added.
Then your computer will reboot.)
The test 2000 program only tests your computer for the year 2000 problem. It does not fix your problem. It will not change your system files. It does write a temporary batch file. This program is certified to be virus-free. It takes cvc2000.com to fix the problem, along with C:\cvc2000 as the first line in your autexec.bat
THE RESULTS
If the computer screen informs you that your computer is year 2000 compliant, you can rest easy, there is nothing to do.
If your computer fails the test, it will let you know if Y2KPCPro will correct the problem. If so you need to upgrade your computer. In most cases, you can correct the problem by uploading a new bios.(The URL for the vendor of Y2KPCPro is listed at the bottom of this page. Other BIOS upgrades are also possible solutions. Check first at http://www.firmware.com to get BIOS upgrades! Other sites are listed at the bottom of this page.)
If there are other problems, the program called viewcmos.exe can show you what is happening with your CMOS/RTC/BIOS so you can better evaluate the problem.
If testing shows that the PC clock is incapable of being set to the year 2000, mark that PC for retirement prior to the Year 2000. These are most likely very old PCs that do not support a century indicator in the RTC.
Useful DefinitionsBIOS, Basic Input/Output System, is the software stored in a ROM (Read Only Memory) chip that is executed at the beginning of a system's boot. The BIOS performs a power-on-self-test (POST) which verifies vital component functions such as memory, CPU, cache, keyboard, video, hard disks, floppy, etc. This software may be stored on a EEPROM ((electrically erasable, programmable ROM) so that the user may "flash" or write to the ROM. (This chip is the one on the motherboard that usually has a sticker stuck to it.) Therefore the BIOS can be upgraded without buying a new ROM chip. The PnP BIOS enables the computer to find plug-n-play devices, so important to Windows 95/98. You should not cofuse BIOS with CMOS.CMOS (pronounced sea-moss, but not to be confused with marine critters.) Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor. There is more than one way to describe CMOS, including a discussion on the properties of doped silicon. CMOS is a type of semiconductor found in hardware on the motherboard. CMOS semiconductors use both NMOS (negative polarity) and PMOS (positive polarity) circuits. Only one of the circuit types is on at any given time, so CMOS chips require less power than chips using just one type of transistor. In the specialized use of the term in this paper, CMOS is the small 64-byte memory circuit that holds vital configuration data used by the BIOS every time the system is booted. The CMOS is what the Setup program writes to whenever the hard disk or memory settings are updated. The motherboard's CMOS is sometimes in two parts: one for the password, the other for the setup information. Most motherboards allow the setup CMOS and password CMOS to be cleared separately. Since the CMOS circuit must have constant power to maintain its contents, its contents can be cleared by moving a jumper on the motherboard which is provided for this function. Most motherboards have a mercury or alkaline battery to supply the real time clock (RTC) and the CMOS with power. Note that CMOS actually refers to the process employed to manufacture the circuit, and it is more properly called non-volatile RAM (NVRAM) to distinguish it from other CMOS circuits. |
Can there be other problems?
That depends on your operating system.
Some software takes its date from the operating system.
Others directly from the CMOS/RTC/BIOS. Make sure your operating system
is also 2000 compliant. You can
download win95y2k.exe (246 KB)
if you are running Windows95 and do not have the Y2K (Year 2000) fix to your
operating system. Run this program once while in Windows95. Follow the directions by clicking OK when it sets up.
The operating system needs to know which of two files of the same name is the most recent. Is a file written in "99" older
than a file written in "01"?
There is still the "old data" problem that needs to run on "compliant" systems.
Even when the computer bios is fixed, another problem arises because of how dates have been placed in programs. To reduce both key strokes and data storage, years have
historically been entered by two digits into programs. The order in which year, month, and day is stored in a program has
not been uniform. A day can be expressed as YYMMDD, MMDDYY, or DDMMYY. It is obvious that the date 01/23/98 is January 23,
1998 because 28 is out of range for the month and 98 is out of range for the month and day. How about 02/03/01? Is it February 3, 2003
or March 1, 2002?
To compound problems even more, some programs were written regarding a 00 entry for year
to be a null set, 99 to end a program, and more than two digits to be hash. Before 2000 the computer
knows when to replace a newer file for an older one. After 2000, it may be throwing out newer files
and keeping older ones, thinking that the year 00 is before the year 99!
If a you have made a spreadsheet or database program with two digit dates, you may
need to make changes. Also, if you have forced a "19" in front of any two digit year in a database or spread sheet, you may wish to rewrite.
The problem goes deeper. There is equipment out there with little microchips that have
embedded 2-digit years. They can render equipment useless. This is especially a problem with the power
industry. Who cares if our PCs are ready if the power industry isn't! (Get a laptop and a generator!)
The good news is that everything is fixable...but it takes time and effort, so do not procrastinate...and encourage your
utility companies, government, and military to do likewise. For your own computer, avoid this mess by setting your computer to use a four digit year.
It is siimple. Change your short date to YYYY in your Regional settings in the Control Panel.
Even if your computer is year 2000 compliant and all of your spreadsheets, databases, and programs are in order,
if your programs contain old data that was not entered with the new "compliant" system in mind, if you share data with someone else whose computer is not compliant, problems may occur.
If you are depending on some old programs, such as DOS programs, you may wish to upgrade to a newer version. Some programmers
force "19" in front of two digit dates. Others, thinking they were doing you a favor,
wrote programs which flag errors when an entered or calculated year is
too small (such as 00). Swiching to a Y2K-complaint program may be costly
in time and money. Not only do you have to purchase a new program, but you may spend
hours reentering data.
A LAST WORD
The year 2000 problem can be dangerous indeed: destroying records, crashing computers, denying access to programs, etc. Concerning your computer, it is a problem that can be easily fixed. Be responsible concerning your computer and hope that your bank, power company, employer, and others follow suit!
What are some things that can happen? An embedded system in a bank vault door won't recognize Jan 1, 2000 as Saturday. An automated process control system becomes erratic when dates past December 31, 1999 were input. A smelter shuts down when software could not deal with a leap year date. A traffic light system becomes erratic because day-of-week was off (Jan, 1900 was a Monday). Building energy management systems become erratic.
Some people incorrectly think that the 2000 problem comes on Jan 1, 2000. Wrong! Even now, some credit card systems won't accept cards with an expiration date ending in 00. September 9, 1999 may be a problem because some programmers used 9/9/99 to indicate an invalid date field. The 99th day of 1999 (April 9th) is another stopping day for some programs. Thus, do not procrastinate and mark your calendar in several dates.
Take the Y2K problem seriously, but do not enter an apacalyptic mindset. Some Christians are expecting the Second Coming or the Antichrist. Jews expect their Messiah (whom we Christians claim has already come). Fundamentalist groups of many faiths declare doom while those who have never embraced technology are now proponents of ecological and technological doom. Hogwash! The problem is serious, but fixable... so lets get about fixing it. The downloads on this page should fix any problem you have with your PC, by the way.
Don't worry, Senior class of CVCHS. Our school office computers may not be compliant yet,
but at your graduation you can take pride when we present the class of 1900!
by Bill Drennon
Adv Computing Teacher, Director of Technology, Central Valley Christian Schools
B.E.E. (electrical engineering) from Georgia Tech and M.S.
Did You Know?Most people incorrectly think that the year 2000 is the beginning of a new millennium. The year 2000 is NOT the start of a new millennium! It is the last year of the 20th century. The year 2001 is actually the beginning of the new millennium! |
Return to Central Valley Christian High School's home page
We will make your computer y2k Compliant-- We provide a free service to families of CVC students and our supporting churches. Details on this page. Next date: Sat Mar 6, 1999
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/topics/year2k/product/product.htm
http://www.sysopt.com/bios.html
Sysopt's BIOS setup Information Guide.
http://www.ping.be/bios/
Gigantic list of Flash Bios Upgrades for tons of systems!
http://www.firmware.com
Check here for bios upgrades or add in cards if your computer failed the 2000 compliance test.
www.vendor2000.com - published a huge database of vendors/software along with contact and Y2K compliance information.
http://www.mitre.org/research/cots/COMPLIANT_BIOS.html
US Navy's Year 2000 Compliance PC Internal Clock & BIOS
http://www.doncio.navy.mil/y2k/year2000.htm
US Navy y2K site
http://www.doncio.navy.mil/y2k/tools.htm#PC
US Navy's testing and tools for PCs.
http://www.nim.com.au/year2000/ye02001.htm#ye02004
This page lists motherboards and bios chips that fail the Y2K test.
http://www.zdnet.com/pcweek/reviews/0413/13y2k.html
Power tools--but not magic wands--for dealing with Y2K problems from the outside
http://www.rightime.com/
Y2KPCPro and Right Time
http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/story/story_2318.html
Your Y2K Survival Kit from ZDNet
http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/bcenter/bcenter_287.html
Summaries and links to recent articles on the Y2K problem.
first pub in Oct 1, 1998