Why You Can't Adjust Time on Windows 10 Properly and How to Fix It

Time is weird. One minute you’re looking at your taskbar and it’s 2:00 PM, and the next, you realize your PC thinks it’s 2014 or perhaps three hours into the future. It’s annoying. Beyond the simple annoyance of missing a meeting, having an incorrect clock can actually break your internet connection because security certificates rely on a tight handshake between your system time and the server. If they don't match, the web basically shuts you out.

Most people think they know how to adjust time on Windows 10, but they usually just scratch the surface of the Settings menu. Windows is a complex beast. Sometimes the software loses sync with the hardware, or your CMOS battery—that tiny silver coin on your motherboard—is finally giving up the ghost after five years of service.

The Quick Way to Adjust Time on Windows 10 (And Why It Fails)

Usually, you just right-click the clock. You’ve done it. I’ve done it. You hit "Adjust date/time" and toggle the "Set time automatically" switch off and back on. Sometimes that's enough. Most of the time, though, if your clock is drifting, that toggle is just a temporary bandage on a larger wound.

Windows 10 relies on something called the Windows Time Service (W32Time). It’s a background process that pings a server—usually time.windows.com—to make sure your local seconds match the world’s seconds. If your firewall is being picky or if the Windows server is under heavy load, the sync fails. You'll see that little red text saying "Time synchronization failed." It's frustratingly vague.

Digging into the Control Panel

Did you know the old-school Control Panel is still there? It is. Microsoft has been trying to kill it for years, but for deep system tweaks, it’s still the king. You can find it by typing "Control Panel" into your Start menu. Navigate to Clock and Region, then Date and Time.

Inside this legacy window, there is a tab called Internet Time. This is where the real magic happens. If you click "Change settings," you can manually type in a different time server. A lot of power users swear by time.google.com or pool.ntp.org because the default Microsoft server can be notoriously flaky depending on your geographic location.

👉 See also: Mountain Time to IST: Why This Gap Is a Nightmare for Remote Teams

When Your PC Keeps Losing Time

Let’s talk about the hardware. If you adjust time on Windows 10 every single morning when you boot up, you don't have a software problem. You have a battery problem.

Inside every desktop and laptop is a CR2032 battery. It keeps the BIOS/UEFI settings alive while the power is off. When that battery dies, the hardware clock (RTC) resets to its factory default every time you pull the plug or the laptop battery hits zero. You'll notice this if the time is correct while the computer is running but resets to something like 12:00 AM on January 1st after a reboot. Replacing it costs about $2 and takes five minutes on a desktop, though laptops can be a bit more of a surgical procedure involving plastic pry tools and patience.

The Command Prompt Trick

Sometimes the UI just gives up. When the buttons in the Settings app are greyed out—which happens more than it should—you have to force the issue.

Open Command Prompt as an Administrator. You do this by right-clicking the Start button and choosing "Command Prompt (Admin)" or "Windows PowerShell (Admin)." Type these commands one by one, hitting Enter after each:

• net stop w32time
• w32tm /unregister
• w32tm /register
• net start w32time
• w32tm /resync

This basically kills the time service, deletes its registry entries, rebuilds them from scratch, and forces a fresh handshake with the internet. It’s the "turn it off and back on again" approach but on a molecular level. Honestly, this fixes 90% of the persistent sync issues I see.

Dealing with Time Zones and Daylight Savings

Windows 10 is generally smart about Daylight Savings Time, but it gets confused if your "Location Services" are turned off. If you’re traveling with a laptop, Windows tries to use your Wi-Fi signal to figure out where you are. If you’ve disabled location for privacy reasons—which is fair—the "Set time zone automatically" feature will fail.

You’ll end up in a loop where you manually adjust time on Windows 10, but then the OS "corrects" it back to the wrong zone because it thinks you’re still in New York when you’re actually in London. Turn off the automatic time zone toggle if you prefer manual control. It’s tucked right under the main time toggle in the settings menu.

Dual-Booting Issues: The Linux Problem

If you happen to run Windows 10 and Linux (like Ubuntu) on the same machine, you’ll notice something weird. Every time you switch from Linux back to Windows, the time is off by several hours.

This happens because Linux stores time in the hardware clock as UTC (Universal Coordinated Time), while Windows stores it as Local Time. They fight. To fix this, you have to tell Windows to use UTC. You do this via a Registry edit.

Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\TimeZoneInformation. Create a new DWORD (32-bit) Value called RealTimeIsUniversal and set its value to 1. Restart. Now Windows and Linux will finally agree on what time it is.

Fixing the "User Rights" Error

Occasionally, you might try to adjust time on Windows 10 only to be told you don't have permission. Even if you're the administrator. This usually stems from a corrupted local Group Policy.

You’ll need to open secpol.msc (the Local Security Policy tool). Go to Local Policies -> User Rights Assignment. Look for "Change the system time." Ensure your username or the "Administrators" group is actually listed there. If it's empty, you're locked out of your own clock. Adding yourself back in requires a reboot, but it restores your "god mode" over the system's ticking heart.

Real-World Impact of Clock Errors

It isn't just about being late for a Zoom call.

I’ve seen Windows Update completely fail with cryptic error codes like 0x80072F8F simply because the system clock was ten minutes off. Many gaming anti-cheat systems, like Easy Anti-Cheat or BattlEye, will kick you from a match if they detect a discrepancy between your local time and the game server. They think you're trying to manipulate time-based cooldowns or rewards.

👉 See also: Getting Your Google Home Mini Online: Why Most People Struggle with the Basics

If you're a gamer and you're getting "Connection Timed Out" errors, check your clock. It’s the most overlooked fix in the book.

Actionable Troubleshooting Checklist

If your Windows 10 clock is acting up right now, follow this specific order of operations to kill the problem for good:

1. Check the CMOS Battery: If the time resets specifically after the power is cut, replace the CR2032 battery on your motherboard.
2. Sync Manually: Go to Settings > Time & Language > Date & Time and hit the "Sync now" button under "Synchronize your clock."
3. Switch Servers: If sync fails, use the Control Panel to switch from time.windows.com to time.nist.gov.
4. Check Services: Open services.msc, find "Windows Time," and ensure the Startup Type is set to "Manual (Trigger Start)" and that it is currently running.
5. Audit Your Time Zone: Ensure "Adjust for daylight saving time automatically" is ON, but "Set time zone automatically" is OFF if you aren't using GPS/Location services.
6. Registry Fix for Dual-Booters: Use the RealTimeIsUniversal registry hack if you share your hardware with another operating system.

Correcting your system time is rarely about just moving the hands of a digital clock. It’s about ensuring the underlying services that talk to the world are healthy and that your hardware has the juice it needs to remember the time when the lights go out. Fix the service, check the battery, and your Windows 10 machine will stay on schedule.