NT 4.0 Problems
NT has four currently known Y2K-related problems. First, User Manager does not recognize the date February 29, 2000. User Manager and User Manager for Domains reject this date as invalid. For more information about this problem, see the Microsoft Support Online article "User Manager Does Not Recognize February 2000 As a Leap Year" (http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q175/0/93.asp).
Second, Control Panel's Date/Time applet might increase the displayed date by 1 day. The system date is correct, but the displayed date is wrong. Microsoft documented this problem in its Support Online article "After Changing the Time, Windows NT May Skip a Day." This article is no longer available on Microsoft's Web site.
Third, custom date properties assume the year 19xx when you input a two-digit year. For example, the year 01 (2001) appears as 1901. For more information about this problem, see the Microsoft Support Online article "Shell Doc Property Dialog Custom Date Incorrect After Year 2000" (http://support.microsoft.com/ support/kb/articles/q183/1/25.asp).
Fourth, NT's Find Files feature does not recognize years greater than 1999. The Start, Find, Files or Folders, Date Modified tab has two date entry fields that show non-numeric data if you input a year greater than 1999. For more information about this problem, see the Microsoft Support Online article "Find Files Displays Garbled Date If Year Is 2000 or Greater" (http://support.microsoft.com/ support/kb/articles/q183/1/23.asp).
Service Pack 3 (SP3) hotfixes y2kfixi.exe and y2kfixa.exe correct these four problems. You can download the hotfixes from Microsoft's Windows NT Server Web site (http://www.microsoft.com/ntserver). Click Downloads in the left-hand menu, and scroll down to Service Packs and Updates. You can also find these files at ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/ bussys/winnt/winnt-public/fixes/usa/NT40/hotfixes-postSP3/y2k-fix. Service Pack 4 (SP4) includes a hotfix for these problems.
IE 3.x Problems
Internet Explorer (IE) 3.x has two Y2K problems. The first problem involves cookies. If a Web site uses a cookie with a two-digit year of 00, IE recognizes the cookie as expired. Cookies with other two-digit expiration dates or with four-digit dates work correctly. The second IE problem involves HTTP headers. If a Web server communicates a two-digit year of 00 in its HTTP 1.0 header, IE recognizes pages on that site as expired and does not cache them locally. HTTP 1.1 headers containing other two-digit years or containing four-digit years work correctly. Microsoft provides a hotfix for this problem on its Internet Explorer Web site (http://www.microsoft.com/ie). Scroll down to New Patch Readies Internet Explorer 3.02 for Year 2000.
IE 4.0 Problems
IE 4.0 has only one known Y2K problem. Microsoft Wallet does not recognize credit card expiration dates beyond 1999. (Other Web-based products, such as Microsoft Site Server, also use the Wallet.) IE 4.0 Service Pack 1 (SP1) has a hotfix for this problem. You can download the hotfix from Microsoft's Internet Explorer Web site (http://www.microsoft.com/ie). Scroll down to Patch Now Available for First Internet Explorer Service Pack to download SP1 and the latest patch (English version only; other languages available third quarter 1998).
Outlook 97 (8.0x) Problems
Outlook 8.0x uses a two-digit date window that spans from 30 years before the current date to 70 years after the current date. You must obtain the file outllib.dll (version 8.03.4919) to handle two-digit dates that span the century boundary. For more information about this problem, see the Microsoft Support Online article "OL97: Year 2000 Compliance for Outlook 97" (http://support.microsoft.com/ support/kb/articles/q181/3/51.asp). Outlook 98 (version 8.5.5104.6) includes a fix for this problem.
SQL Server 6.5 Problems
SQL Server 6.5 has several Y2K problems. First, the EXPIREDATE clause for DUMP DATABASE does not properly handle dates after 1999. Second, SQL Executive does not recognize 2000 as a leap year. SQL Server 6.5 SP2 fixes this bug. Third, Task Manager's user interface does not recognize 2000 as a leap year. To avoid this problem, execute the stored procedure rather than the user interface to schedule the task. SQL Server 6.5 Service Pack 5 (SP5) fixes these problems.
SMS 1.2 BIOS Problems
Systems Management Server (SMS) physically inventories systems. For SMS to execute properly, the dates that the BIOS sets must be correct. As many as 47 percent of systems shipped in 1997 and 79 percent of all pre-1998 PCs fail the BIOS Y2K test. BIOS clocks have three common Y2K bugs. First, when the clock rolls from 1999 to 2000, the system clock resets to 1980. You can set the system clock to the correct year-2000 date, but the problem will recur in 2100. BIOS clocks might not recognize 2000 as a leap year or February 29, 2000, as a valid date.
Vendors use a variety of motherboards and change components based on price, availability, and functionality. Thus, you might have BIOS problems with only certain machines. To be safe, you need to verify BIOS Y2K date compatibility on every system you support. Many shareware and low-cost utilities are available for this purpose. Hardware vendors sometimes provide inexpensive BIOS updates for their systems.
Protect Yourself
Y2K problems are as important to small businesses as they are to large corporations. Protect yourself now to prevent problems in the millennium. Upgrade your software to Y2K-compliant versions before the end of 1998. If you run software that does not have an upgraded version, call your vendor monthly to find out if and when the company will release a Y2K-compliant version. Test your software for Y2K compliance before you need to reference 2000 as a valid date. Make sure your systems' BIOSs will function properly on January 1, 2000. Finally, check Microsoft's Web site monthly to learn about new Y2K problems.