[Contributing Author: Robert Farrington]

Overview

Two new timezone definition files, DSTv32 and DSTv31, are now available and certified with Oracle E-Business Suite Releases 12.2 and 12.1. Note that DST patches are cumulative and therefore include all previous Oracle DST updates.

How Does Oracle E-Business Suite Work Across Timezones?

Periodically, many countries or regions change their timezone definitions. In addition, and more frequently, they may switch to or from Daylight Saving Time or Summer Time.

If your Oracle E-Business Suite environment is configured to support doing business across multiple timezones, you need to keep your timezone definition files up-to-date by applying patches as described in this article. This will ensure that the times transactions take place are recorded correctly, and thereby meet applicable business and legal requirements.

Is My Oracle E-Business Suite Environment Affected?

When a country or region changes its timezone definitions or DST rules, your Oracle E-Business Suite environment will require patching if either of the following is true:

  • Your EBS environment is located in the affected country or region.
  • Your EBS environment is located outside the affected country or region, but you conduct business or have customers or suppliers there.

The two new patches are differentiated as follows:

  • DSTv32 includes timezone information from the IANA Time Zone 2018e update, and includes changes or additions to the following timezone regions from the previous release: Africa/Khartoum, Africa/Windhoek, America/Grand_Turk, Asia/Famagusta, Pacific/Fiji, Pacific/Tongatapu.
  • DSTv31 includes timezone information from the IANA Time Zone 2017c update, and includes changes or additions to the following timezone regions from the previous release: Southern Brazil, São Tomé and Príncipe, Palestine, Casey Station in Antarctica, North Korea.

What Patches Do I Require?

The following MOS Note identifies the various components in your Oracle E-Business Suite environment that may need DST patches:

What if I Do Not Apply the Relevant Patches?

If you do business with a country or region that has changed its timezone definitions, and record a transaction that occurs at the boundary between the “old” and the “new” time, then the transaction may be recorded incorrectly. Specifically, that transaction’s timestamp may be out by an hour.

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References