What is Year 2038 problem?
[[File:Year 2038 problem.gif|thumb|400px|Animation showing how the date would reset, represented as a signed 32-bit integer (at 03:14:08 UTC on 19 January 2038).]] The '''Year 2038 problem''' could affect [[Computer|computers]] that store time as the number of [[Second|seconds]] since 1 January 1970 at 00:00:00 [[Coordinated Universal Time|UTC]], using a [[32-bit]] signed integer.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/000095399/|title=The Open Group Base Specifications Issue 6|website=pubs.opengroup.org|access-date=2017-08-25}}</ref> The biggest number you can store this way is 2,147,483,647 seconds after 1 January 1970. This means 19 January 2038 at 03:14:07 UTC. The problem begins one second after this time. The computer will add 1 to this 32-bit number, and the computer will set the value to ''negative'' 2,147,483,648 seconds. This means 13 December 1901 at 20:45:52 UTC. Depending on how the computer has been [[Computer program|programmed]], the computer could behave incorrectly or even stop running. A solution to this problem is to store the time in a [[64-bit computing|64-bit]] value, which will work for 292 [[billion]] years. Many computers already store the time in a 64-bit number. Computers that store time in a 32-bit number will need to be reprogrammed before 2038. ==References== {{reflist}} [[Category:Computing]]