C# TimeZone Examples

You want to get information about the TimeZone that the current computeris in. Time zones on the planet Earth change on lines on longitude, and you cannotassume the current computer is in any particular time zone reliably. Fortunately,as we demonstrate in this example set, the TimeZone type provides information abouttime zones for C# programmers.

Time zone names

What is the name of a specific time zone? The .NET Framework contains informationabout the names for time zones; you can access the properties StandardName and DaylightNameto get these strings. Also, this example as well as the following ones shows howyou can get the current time zone with the TimeZone.CurrentTimeZone property accessor.

Program that gets time zone names [C#]

using System;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
	// Get current time zone.
	TimeZone zone = TimeZone.CurrentTimeZone;
	string standard = zone.StandardName;
	string daylight = zone.DaylightName;
	Console.WriteLine(standard);
	Console.WriteLine(daylight);
    }
}

Output
    (This will depend on your computer's location and system settings.)

Mountain Standard Time
Mountain Daylight Time

Get universal time (local time)

There are two concepts of time you can use: the local time, which depends on wherethe computer is located on the Earth; and the universal time, which is independentof the computer's location. If you use universal times, you can compare times fromdifferent locations with no errors.

Program that checks universal and local times [C#]

using System;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
	TimeZone zone =  TimeZone.CurrentTimeZone;
	// Demonstrate ToLocalTime and ToUniversalTime.
	DateTime local = zone.ToLocalTime(DateTime.Now);
	DateTime universal = zone.ToUniversalTime(DateTime.Now);
	Console.WriteLine(local);
	Console.WriteLine(universal);
    }
}

Output
    (This also depends on your computer's location.)

8/26/2010 1:02:28 PM
8/26/2010 7:02:28 PM

Get offsets

A UTC offset indicates how many hours a time zone differs from the Coordinated UniversalTime (also referred to as Zulu Time or Greenwich Mean Time). When you call GetUtcOffseton a TimeZone instance, you get a TimeSpan instance that indicates how many hoursthe time is different from UTC.

TimeSpan Examples

Program that checks UTC offset [C#]

using System;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
	TimeZone zone = TimeZone.CurrentTimeZone;
	// Get offset.
	TimeSpan offset = zone.GetUtcOffset(DateTime.Now);
	Console.WriteLine(offset);
    }
}

Output
    (Results vary on location.)

-06:00:00

Daylight changes

Daylight saving time was invented by George Vernon Hudson in New Zealand. Its intentionis to save money by reducing the costs of keeping lights on at night. Today, itsmain purpose is to make software programmers' lives hard. This short program showshow you can get information about the current year's daylight saving changes: whenthe clock is set forward, and when this change is reverted.

Program that shows daylight changes [C#]

using System;
using System.Globalization;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
	// Get daylight saving information for current time zone.
	TimeZone zone = TimeZone.CurrentTimeZone;
	DaylightTime time = zone.GetDaylightChanges(DateTime.Today.Year);
	Console.WriteLine("Start: {0}", time.Start);
	Console.WriteLine("End: {0}", time.End);
	Console.WriteLine("Delta: {0}", time.Delta);
    }
}

Output
    (Your mileage may vary.)

Start: 3/14/2010 2:00:00 AM
End: 11/7/2010 2:00:00 AM
Delta: 01:00:00

Daylight saving time

This program shows how you can scan individual dates for their daylight saving status.It is probably better to use the GetDaylightChanges method instead of the IsDaylightSavingTimemethod repeatedly; however, IsDaylightSavingTime can be useful in some cases.

Program that checks daylight saving time [C#]

using System;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
	DateTime d = new DateTime(2010, 1, 1);
	TimeZone cur = TimeZone.CurrentTimeZone;
	bool flag = !cur.IsDaylightSavingTime(d);

	for (int i = 0; i < 365; i++)
	{
	    bool f = cur.IsDaylightSavingTime(d);
	    if (f != flag)
	    {
		Console.WriteLine("{0}: begin {1}", d, f);
		flag = f;
	    }
	    d = d.AddDays(1);
	}
    }
}

Output
    (Depends on your time zone.)

1/1/2010 12:00:00 AM: begin False
3/15/2010 12:00:00 AM: begin True
11/8/2010 12:00:00 AM: begin False

Summary

The TimeZone type in the C# language and .NET Framework provides a handy way toget information about time zones. You can use the CurrentTimeZone property to getthe information for the computer, and then call methods that reveal informationabout daylight saving time universal times and UTC offsets.

Time Representations