Multiple Time Zones

The RALS™ SYSTEM has the ability to interpret, calculate, and display date and time data across multiple time zones.

Enabling Support for Multiple Time Zones

Support for multiple time zones is not enabled by default on new or upgraded systems, and it can only be enabled by RALS™ SYSTEM customer support.

When multiple time zone support is enabled, the server’s time zone when the RALS™ SYSTEM was last upgraded or installed is the time zone associated with all existing data. As new results come into the RALS™ SYSTEM, they can be stored and viewed independently of the server’s time zone.

Once multiple time zone support has been enabled:

• It can not be disabled
• Reports are not supported

Locations and Institutions

The server, each location, and each institution within the RALS™ SYSTEM can be in different time zones.

• A location can be set to use a specific time zone or it can inherit the time zone of its institution. See Locations for more information.
  
• An institution can be set to use a specific time zone or it can inherit the time zone of the server. See Institutions for more information.
  

Devices

A device inherits its time zone from its location. If the location’s time zone is invalid, results from all devices assigned to that location will not be processed in the RALS™ SYSTEM until a valid time zone is selected for the location. See Devices for more information.

Operator Time Zone Preference

Each operator can select their own preferred time zone for viewing dates and times throughout the RALS™ SYSTEM. See Preferences for more information.

However, when a date or time is relative to another context/entity, it will not be adjusted for your time zone preference. For instance, dates on operator certifications are not adjusted when displayed in the RALS™ SYSTEM. Instead, they are adjusted when used within the context of a device (e.g., uploading operators or evaluating a result).

For more information about which fields are or are not aware of your time zone preference, see the Fields section on any relevant page of this documentation.