Here’s how to make sure your computer clock is set correctly if the time on your Windows 10 computer is incorrect or continually changing.
The source of a constantly incorrect or changing time on your Windows 10 computer could be anything from a fading battery to a broken configuration. We’ll show you why your computer clock isn’t working and how to fix it.
3 Common Causes for Windows 10 Time Being Wrong
Let’s take a look at the most typical reasons why your computer clock is off by a few minutes or keeps resetting.
1. A Dead CMOS Battery
This is a common cause of PC clock problems, especially if your machine is old.
The Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) chip is powered by the CMOS battery, which is located on the motherboard of your computer. This chip keeps track of the system’s settings, including the date and time. Even if your computer is turned down and not connected to power, the CMOS battery ensures that the chip can store this information.
When this battery dies, the chip begins to lose information. One of the signs is that your Windows computer’s time and date are no longer accurate. When you restart your computer, the clock defaults to an inaccurate date and time, such as January 1 at midnight
Fortunately, replacing the CMOS battery is simple. To check which sort of battery is in your motherboard, just turn off your computer, ground yourself to protect against static electricity, open the case, and check which type of battery is in your motherboard. Then, once you’ve purchased a replacement, reopen your computer and replace the CMOS battery.
2. An Incorrect Time Zone Setting
Windows may be set to the wrong time zone if your computer clock is off by exactly one or more hours. Even if you manually correct the time, Windows will revert to the incorrect time zone when you reboot. If the minutes are accurate but the hour is off, you’re most likely dealing with a misconfigured time zone.
In Windows 10, right-click the system clock in the System Tray in the bottom-right corner of the screen and select Adjust date/time to change your time zone. You may also go to Settings > Time & Language > Date & Time to change the date and time.
Check the information in the Time zone box to see if it’s right. If not, use the dropdown menu to choose the relevant time zone. If the dropdown box is grayed out, you may need to disable the Set time zone automatically slider.
You should activate both Adjust for daylight saving time automatically and Set time automatically for ease, so you don’t have to bother about manually changing them. Finally, while you’re here, click Sync Now to ensure that Windows pulls the correct time.
3. Windows Time Is Out of Sync
If your CMOS battery is still fine and your computer clock is merely out by seconds or minutes over long periods of time, you may have bad synchronization settings.
To begin, make sure your computer’s clock is synchronized with a reliable time server. To do so, go to Settings > Time & Language > Region, then on the right side, select Additional date, time & regional settings.
You’ll be redirected to the old Control Panel interface. Set the time and date under Date and Time, which launches a new window. Change the Server if necessary by going to the Internet Time tab and clicking Change Settings.
Choose a server from the dropdown menu or type one in manually. This will be used by your system to synchronize the clock and prevent it from drifting slightly over time.
Now, press the Windows key to enter the Start menu search, type services, and open that tool to ensure Windows is synchronizing its time on a regular basis.
Locate Windows Time in the Name column of the Services window, right-click it, and select Properties.
Set the Startup type to Automatic in the Windows Time Properties box. Then select Start to verify that the service is up and running, then OK to save your changes.
Bonus: An Incorrect Computer Clock Could Be Malware
Because malware is typically difficult to eradicate, this is the worst-case situation.
If none of the previous methods succeeded to correct your computer’s clock, malware may have taken control of your computer and messed with its time. You’ll need a couple of malware removal tools to fix it. To begin, ensure that your antivirus software is up to date with the most recent virus definitions. Then, like Malwarebytes, purchase an excellent on-demand secondary malware scanner.
After you’ve downloaded, updated, and installed all of these tools, boot in Safe Mode and run them. It’s critical to start in Safe Mode because the virus won’t run at startup and won’t be active if you do so. This means it’ll be more difficult to discover and remove.
If you’re using Windows 10, you should reset or refresh your system to ensure that the infection is gone.
Your Windows Computer Clock Is Back on Time
Are you on schedule now? If none of these solutions worked, several users claimed that updating their BIOS or UEFI version fixed the problem.
You’ll know to pay attention to even the tiniest elements of your machine from now on. Simple anomalies can be a warning indication of impending disaster. If your CMOS battery dies, for example, your computer will forget everything when it reboots, requiring it to be introduced to its hardware components each time it boots (via the BIOS). That’s just as frustrating as a virus or a faulty time zone setting that messes up everything from the clock to the timestamps in your email client. So be wise and take action as soon as you see a problem.
If you’re very concerned about the accuracy of your computer’s clock, you can go even further.
If your Windows 10 time is always wrong, this video will help you to fix it:
That’s about it.
