Date format using xp_cmdshell

• beath

  SSCrazy

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  May 28, 2004 at 5:26 am

  #85804

  Hi

  I have a server running SQL 7 on NT4 and recently installed SP4. I now have a strange date format problem. I'm returning a directory listing using the following command:

  master..xp_cmdshell 'dir'

  and it returns different results depending on whether the server is logged in or not. If the server is logged in then the dates are correctly returned in UK format dd/mm/yy However if the server is left not logged in at the CTRL+ALT+DEL prompt then the dates are returned in US format mm/dd/yy

  I'm not looking for a workaround, more an explanation of this behaviour. Are there any specific registry settings that control date formats before and after the login prompt?

  I also installed SP4 on another server with the same setup and didn't get this problem which confuses things further.!

   

  cheers

• May 31, 2004 at 8:00 am

  This was removed by the editor as SPAM

• Steve Jones - SSC Editor

  SSC Guru

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  May 31, 2004 at 9:14 am

  #508410

  That is strange. Most likely the regional settings aren't applied until someone is logged in. Can you log in as the SQL Server service account and set the settings for UK that way? Or check them?

• David Burrows

  SSC Guru

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  June 1, 2004 at 5:57 am

  #508479

  If you are running sql under the system account maybe the cause.

  In Control Panel, Regional Settings, set the locale and date/time settings and tick the box called Set as system default locale, apply the settings (requires a reboot).

  This should work. Be aware that this may affect anything you run on the server that uses date/time.

  Far away is close at hand in the images of elsewhere.
  Anon.