Vulnerable Systems
Embedded systems are most likely to be affected by the 2038 bug. Telecommunication systems and transportation systems from flight to automobiles increasingly use embedded systems. Automobiles, electric vehicles, and hybrid vehicles are increasingly using embedded systems to maximize efficiency and reduce pollution. Other automotive safety systems include anti-lock braking system (ABS), electronic stability control (ESC/ESP), traction control (TCS) and automatic four-wheel drive. New aircraft contain advanced avionics such as inertial guidance systems and GPS receivers that also have considerable safety requirements. Another major use of embedded systems is in communications devices, including cell phones and Internet appliances (routers, wireless access points, etc.) which rely on storing an accurate time and date and are increasingly based on UNIX-like operating systems. For example, the bug makes some Android devices crash and not restart when the time is changed to that date.
As of 2012, most embedded systems use 8-bit or 16-bit microprocessors, even as desktop systems are transitioning to 64-bit systems. Despite the modern 18–24-month generational update in computer systems technology, embedded systems are designed to last the lifetime of the machine in which they are a component. It is conceivable that some of these systems may still be in use in 2038. It may be impractical or, in some cases, impossible to upgrade the software running these systems, ultimately requiring replacement if 32-bit time_t limitations are to be corrected.
The use of 32-bit time_t has also been encoded into some file formats, which means it can live on well beyond the life of the machines on which such file formats were originally supported.
MySQL database's inbuilt functions like UNIX_TIMESTAMP will return 0 after 03:14:07 UTC on 19 January 2038. The limit reached will vary in time, based on the time zones as in the following table:
| Auckland | 19 January 2038, 16:14:07 NZDT (UTC+13:00) |
| Sydney | 19 January 2038, 14:14:07 AEDT (UTC+11:00) |
| Tokyo | 19 January 2038, 12:14:07 JST (UTC+09:00) |
| Beijing | 19 January 2038, 11:14:07 CST (UTC+08:00) |
| Mumbai | 19 January 2038, 08:44:07 IST (UTC+05:30) |
| Dubai | 19 January 2038, 07:14:07 GST (UTC+04:00) |
| Nairobi | 19 January 2038, 06:14:07 EAT (UTC+03:00) |
| Cairo | 19 January 2038, 05:14:07 EET (UTC+02:00) |
| Paris | 19 January 2038, 04:14:07 CET (UTC+01:00) |
| London | 19 January 2038, 03:14:07 GMT (UTC±00:00) |
| Brasília | 19 January 2038, 01:14:07 BRST (UTC−02:00) |
| Atlantic Time | 18 January 2038, 23:14:07 AST (UTC−04:00) |
| Eastern Time | 18 January 2038, 22:14:07 EST (UTC−05:00) |
| Central Time | 18 January 2038, 21:14:07 CST (UTC−06:00) |
| Mountain Time | 18 January 2038, 20:14:07 MST (UTC−07:00) |
| Pacific Time | 18 January 2038, 19:14:07 PST (UTC−08:00) |
| Hawaiʻi | 18 January 2038, 17:14:07 HST (UTC−10:00) |
Read more about this topic: Year 2038 Problem
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