Akeeba Backup for Joomla!

Tuesday, 08 December 2015 12:41 CST

klabog

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT: Please attach a ZIP file containing your Akeeba Backup log file in order for us to help you with any backup or restoration issue. If the file is over 2Mb, please upload it on your server and post a link to it.

Description of my issue: When I do a cron backup with the modificated DrChalta's original script it works well, but the indicated creation time in the admin page of backup is not the server time. It seems to be UTC. The file name contains the correct time.
File name: ...-20151208-191501.jpa
Time in backup admin page: 08. Dezember 2015 18:15
Date on my server gives: Di 8. Dez 19:15:22 CET 2015
How can I fix this?

Thanks, Klaus

Edited by klabog on 2015-12-08 12:52 CST

Wednesday, 09 December 2015 03:10 CST

nicholas

The Manage Backups page always displays the backup start date and time in the UTC timezone. This is by design. Akeeba Backup stores UTC timestamps in the database. Converting them to the user's (your) timezone would require two things: a. the Server Timezone to be set correctly in Global Configuration and b. the correct timezone to be set to the user's profile. According to our experience the majority of our users cannot understand why the server timezone is neither the timezone of where they live nor the timezone of the hosting company's headquarters. For example, a Greek user who's bought hosting from a German company that has its servers located in New York needs to set up Joomla!'s Global Configuration to the America/New York timezone, not Europe/Athens or Europe/Berlin. This has proven impossible to communicate to clients. After receiving numerous support tickets complaining that "the time is wrong" from people who just wouldn't get that they need to set the correct server timezone I reverted everything to displaying UTC. This won't change, sorry :(

As for the timestamp in the filename uses the server's timezone. This makes it easier to figure out when exactly a remote backup or a CRON job was triggered: the timestamp in the filename is directly comparable to the timestamp displayed in the server's access logs.

Nicholas K. Dionysopoulos

Lead Developer and Director

🇬🇷Greek: native 🇬🇧English: excellent 🇫🇷French: basic • 🕐 My time zone is Europe / Athens
Please keep in mind my timezone and cultural differences when reading my replies. Thank you!

Wednesday, 09 December 2015 04:18 CST

klabog

Thank you for your large response. I understand your frustration because of people's problems to get the right date on their servers respectively in Joomla

Wednesday, 09 December 2015 05:12 CST

klabog

Sorry, my former response was killed - y now do it the third time (first an obviously illegal smiley then I edited the failed message, yes I could! - but at saving I got an 403) and would do it no more :-() if it fails another time!
What I tried to say:
Your argument for reverting to UTC is not totally correct. Talking of CLI application you are right. There normal users are not implicated and administrators should RTFM (if this fact is really mentioned - I didn't see it). CLI applications casually work when Joomla is stopped and settings perhaps aren't accessible. Therefore it's logical to use UTC or what else - it's even more handy for further processing and individualized output.
But here we are discussing a hybrid application which is started by crontab but uses frontpage backup in the same way a human would. Therefore it should give the same output as if used by humans.
I think you would have even minor support requests on this when time output of akeeba backup would be equal as Joomla outputs at any place. Regular users (even administrators) don't mind server time settings. They only mind wrong time output in Joomla and search for Joomla's time settings. If they don't find them they ask in Joomla support not in akeeba support.
Thanks for your great work!
Regards, Klaus

Edited by klabog on 2015-12-09 05:15 CST

Wednesday, 09 December 2015 07:07 CST

nicholas

Please re-read my reply. The problem is not at backup time: the correct time is recorded, in UTC. Storing date/time information in UTC is not just correct, it's the only reasonable way to store date/time information (that's the whole point of a timestamp). Your arguments against it are misguided.

As I told you, the problem is NOT storing information, the problem is displaying information. Converting to other timezones requires TWO settings that are outside our software and beyond our control. As I said:

Therefore, as I said:

After receiving numerous support tickets complaining that "the time is wrong" from people who just wouldn't get that they need to set the correct server timezone I reverted everything to displaying UTC. This won't change, sorry :(

No, I can't tell people "go look in the Joomla! forums" because they file refund requests or bad reviews. I don't have the time or money required to provide generic Joomla! support so, as I already said, I reverted everything to displaying UTC and this will NOT change.

And for this reason I am closing this ticket.

Nicholas K. Dionysopoulos

Lead Developer and Director

🇬🇷Greek: native 🇬🇧English: excellent 🇫🇷French: basic • 🕐 My time zone is Europe / Athens
Please keep in mind my timezone and cultural differences when reading my replies. Thank you!

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