Error Message When Starting Date/Time Tool in Control Panel

The information in this article applies to:
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For information about how to do this, view the "Restoring the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or the "Restoring a Registry Key" Help topic in Regedt32.exe.

SYMPTOMS

When you attempt to start the Date/Time tool in Control Panel, you may receive the following error message:

An error occurred while Windows was working with the Control Panel file C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\TIMEDATE.CPL

CAUSE

This behavior occurs if the Time Zones registry key is missing or damaged.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, reinstall Windows.

WORKAROUND

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys and Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it. If you are running Windows NT or Windows 2000, you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

To work around this issue, create a registry script file to add an Eastern Standard Time value to the Time Zones key in the registry using the following steps:

  1. Open Notepad.

  2. Copy the following text and paste it into Notepad.

    REGEDIT4

    [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Time Zones]
    @="Pacific Standard Time"

    [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Time Zones\Eastern]
    "Display"="(GMT-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)"
    "Dlt"="Eastern Daylight Time"
    "Std"="Eastern Standard Time"
    "MapID"="38,39"
    "TZI"=hex:2c,01,00,00,00,00,00,00,c4,ff,ff,ff,00,00,0a,00,00,00,05,00,02,00,00,\ 
      00,00,00,00,00,00,00,04,00,00,00,01,00,02,00,00,00,00,00,00,00 

  3. Save the file with a .reg extension.

    NOTE: When you save the file, use the Save As option on the File menu. In the Save as type box, click All Files.

  4. After you create the file, double-click the file to add the information into the registry.

 

Taken from Microsoft Tech article Q250912

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