Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Re: Time sheet application

Not that I know of, no.

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Hi

I'm presuming that you are using code to generate the times. This may seem clunky, but how about creating a small file on a server somewhere. This should then take the server time for the file creation time. You could then use the file creation time as the time for your timesheet, then delete the file. If you use the same file name for all users, you may have conflict issues, so the file being generated should have something unique to that user (username perhaps) as the filename.

HTH

Tony

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

You use access policies.

If they are using XP or NT you can restrict what a user has access to in their system.

Speak to the person who configures your computers. He should really know how to do this.

If not, have a look here for one way of doing this.

Another way is to use the Group Policy Editor.

If you are not using industry standard operating systems then update or upgrade as soon as you can.

Regards

Rich

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

I use a routine to Test the Date time of our server and compare it to the current PC's date time. This has worked fine for me, as long as the server time is OK

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Simply without the FileServers assistance i can not see how this can be done. If the session is FAT Client Your stuck, hard to lock down without SoftWare help, this You state You do not want

Again Locking can be easy under Windows Server Policies, this i have at work Arggg .... as I am Terminal Services

jiuk

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Quote from Ivan F Moala

I use a routine to Test the Date time of our server and compare it to the current PC's date time. This has worked fine for me, as long as the server time is OK

And they have a network connection.....

How do you do it if they are working standalone ?

Use the tools that are correct for the job. There is no way that you will be able to stop the users changing the date and time of their laptop (as you have asked) unless you use access rights and/or group policies.

You can restrict access to just changing the date and time. It doesn't hurt any one. In fact the laptop I am using now does exactly just that and I haven't had any problems with it, and the users will not feel the effect of the restriction until they actually go to 'cheat' and change the date and time.

I think in all reality, to do the job properly you really do need to look at Group policies. It's what the tool is there for. Why reinvent the wheel ? (or at least reinvent a poorer version of the wheel.....)

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Quote from Rich_z

And they have a network connection.....

How do you do it if they are working standalone ?

Use the tools that are correct for the job. There is no way that you will be able to stop the users changing the date and time of their laptop (as you have asked) unless you use access rights and/or group policies.

You can restrict access to just changing the date and time. It doesn't hurt any one. In fact the laptop I am using now does exactly just that and I haven't had any problems with it, and the users will not feel the effect of the restriction until they actually go to 'cheat' and change the date and time.

I think in all reality, to do the job properly you really do need to look at Group policies. It's what the tool is there for. Why reinvent the wheel ? (or at least reinvent a poorer version of the wheel.....)

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Yes, so how do you propose to impliment this programatically for users and then return control back to them after workbook is closed ?
Via VBS, WMI, or other scripting languages.

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Quote from Ivan F Moala

Yes, so how do you propose to impliment this programatically for users and then return control back to them after workbook is closed ?
Via VBS, WMI, or other scripting languages.

You don't.

You use the MMC policy editor to role out the restrictions automatically when the users connect to the Lan, which hopefully they need to do at some time or another.

If not, it's a laptop recall, or a message to visit the IT department when they are next in the office.

As for returning control back to them when the work book is closed, why would you need to do that ?

How many times have you needed to change the date and time on your laptop once it has been set ?

The only reason is to set the date forward so that you can install some time dependant demonstration software so that when you put the date back the demo never expires. And if it's work laptops you are talking about, people should not be installing their own stuff on them any way.

No argument for not doing it.

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Quote from Rich_z

You don't.

You use the MMC policy editor to role out the restrictions automatically when the users connect to the Lan, which hopefully they need to do at some time or another.

If not, it's a laptop recall, or a message to visit the IT department when they are next in the office.

As for returning control back to them when the work book is closed, why would you need to do that ?

How many times have you needed to change the date and time on your laptop once it has been set ?

The only reason is to set the date forward so that you can install some time dependant demonstration software so that when you put the date back the demo never expires. And if it's work laptops you are talking about, people should not be installing their own stuff on them any way.

No argument for not doing it.

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Yep, that would work .... so the solution would involve IT, which most IT depts would set up for their LAN and WAN by default, at least from what I have seen, unless like in my case our productin PC is not set (in fact it is the only one ?) in which case I have set up the proposed routine I mentioned earlier, to check the server time. All other PC's cannot change there system time as they Don't have access to it.

Re: Stop Users Changing Computers Time/Date

Quote from Ivan F Moala

Yep, that would work .... so the solution would involve IT, which most IT depts would set up for their LAN and WAN by default, at least from what I have seen, unless like in my case our productin PC is not set (in fact it is the only one ?) in which case I have set up the proposed routine I mentioned earlier, to check the server time. All other PC's cannot change there system time as they Don't have access to it.

I must admit, over the last 11 years or so I've been a bit spoilt with what we call 'BASIS' ie, the people who manage the day to day running of the systems, the backups, network security and the rest of the infrastructure in that they tend to be big companies with a huge IT budget (on one project alone we went 15 million USD over and they didn't bat an eyelid).

I've also learnt over more years that I care to remember that taking a short cut in the programming world is liable to end up in disaster.

And lastly, what you guys have been trying to do via Excel and I've advocated using the correct tools for, seems to be that your current IT setup is using the correct tools so each user cannot change their system date and time anyway.

Going back to the OP's statement that he wouldn't want to restrict users access to their pc's, have your users ever had cause to complain ?

Regards

Rich