Computer loosing time

[Pastor JW]

On Wednesday 14 May 2008 09:16:15 pm Albert Charron wrote:
> Rashkae wrote:
> > Brian Lunergan wrote:
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> From: Rashkae <ubuntu at tigershaunt.com>
> >> Reply-To: Ubuntu user technical support,  not for general discussions
> >> <ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com>
> >> To: Ubuntu user technical support,  not for general discussions
> >> <ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com>
> >> Subject: Computer loosing time
> >> Date: Wed, 14 May 2008 21:55:16 -0400
> >> Mailer: Thunderbird 2.0.0.12 (X11/20080227)
> >>
> >> What would cause a computer to loose time while it's on and running?
> >> (approx. 10 minutes lost every 24 hrs)  It's easy enough to sync the
> >> clock with NTP, but it makes no sense to me that my pc can't count
> >> seconds properly.
> >>
> >> There may be other explanations possible (the ubertechs in the group can
> >> get themselves around that) but my speculative thought would be that the
> >> battery keeping your CMOS alive (and hence the time/date information)
> >> has reached its limits and is beginning to fail.
> >
> > Which would be first thought if the computer was ever turned off :)...
> > System time doesn't rely on CMOS clock except to to reand from the clock
> > on boot.
>
> I'd say the same thing that Brian said, but maybe the battery isn't the
> problem, only one of the symptoms... I got the exact same situation a
> couple of months ago with one of my computer ( that one running doze
> tho)... then, other problems started to occur (going from freezes to
> instant reboots).  At some point, I noticed that at every reboots, I
> would have to redo the settings in the Bios...
>
> The problem was in fact the power supply that wasn't giving enough power
> on the 3.3v, so the system was relying on the battery... When the
> battery drained... oups...
>
> In your bios, look if you don't have a voltage monitor. If the voltages
> there are too far from their rated voltage, there may be a problem
> (remember, when the OS is loaded, computer needs more power than when in
> the Bios only...

You are exactly correct!  It is a failing power supply and the new ones do not 
have the adjustment screw to crank it up and allow a little longer use!  Well 
it COULD be an Intel chip, ...but they DID fix that since the Olympics timing 
fiasco didn't they???  ;)  :)   The battery back-up for Bios being flat would 
just give random wrong times each time the computer was started but the time 
would not lose time drastically while running.  There is a nice complicated 
little formula to tell you how low your voltage is running but my books are 
in a closet in a house 2400 miles away!  When you don't use it every day you 
lose the ability to use it at all!  Ah well, I retired in '88 so I take it as 
a blessing each day I wake up!  Electrical math rarely comes up anymore!

-- 
73 de N7PSV aka Pastor JW <n><   PDGA# 35276
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