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Understanding time zone settings is important to successfully using Smartsheet. Especially when multiple people are working on a project or there is a lot of collaboration with overseas parties, setting an appropriate time zone is essential to prevent miscommunication and work delays.
In this article, recently uploadedHelp article, we will explain in detail how to set the time zone in your Smartsheet account and sheets, and what the settings mean.
Account time zone settings
Your Personal Smartsheet Time: How to Set Up Your Account
- Setup instructions: Account > Personalization > Settings > Time Zone.
- If you created your account via sharing: The location from which you shared will be the default. If you are in a different time zone, you can change this in your personal settings.
Example: If you are in Tokyo, select Japan Standard Time (JST). If you collaborate with Los Angeles, you can change to Pacific Time (PST).
Seat time zone settings
Who decides the time zone for shared sheets?Settings on the sheet side
- Note: The time zone will automatically switch to the setting of the last person who viewed it.
- What it means: The display of columns containing dates and times is affected. However, calculations and API calls are made in UTC.
Example: If you view the share sheet in Tokyo, it will switch to JST notation. If someone in Los Angeles views the same sheet, it will switch to PST notation.
System columns and time zones
The time display changes but the calculation remains the same: System column time zone
- Tip: System columns (creation date, modification date, etc.) are always stored internally in UTC, but the display is converted to match the viewer's time zone.
- What it means: System column display times are in local time, but calculations and API calls use UTC time.
(UCT time is effectively the same as GMT time; both are Japan Time (JST) minus 9 hours.)
Example: If you look at the "Creation Date" column in Tokyo, it will be displayed in JST, but the formula will treat it in UTC.
This requires some ingenuity when determining the date using the creation date. This is because the creation date (Created) entered in the DATEONLY() function is in UTC time, so for example, even though the creation date display field is today, yesterday's results will be displayed until 9 a.m.
In the sheet in the image below, the system column Created is converted to only a date using DATEONLY(Created@row) in the DATEONLY column, but 08/17/23 7:53 AM is before 08am, and the UTC time is Since it was the day before, it would be 16/23/XNUMX. The expression in Created Date shows one way to make this a Japanese date.
As mentioned in the point, ``System columns (creation date, update date, etc.) are always stored internally in UTC, but the display is converted according to the viewer's time zone,'' so be careful. (Another method is to pay attention to the display, convert it to a string with Created@row+"", and use a text function to get the date part in Japan time.)
Automation and Pacific Time
Sometimes it changes suddenly!? The influence of automation and Pacific time
- Note: Changes in automations, cell links, and cross-sheet formulas convert the entire sheet to Pacific Time (PST).
- Reason: Automation services operate in Pacific time settings.
- Impact: Display values for the TODAY() function and system columns may be updated.
Example: If you use a shared sheet in Tokyo and an automation runs in Los Angeles, the time display in the sheet may temporarily switch to PST.
Regarding this:Questions asked by Australian users in the CommunityI've answered this question before, but now I'm convinced by the help article I mentioned earlier about automation and the impact of Pacific Time.
Summary
Smartsheet time zone settings can be managed separately for your personal account and shared sheets. To use it comfortably in Japanese, it is important to set it to your time zone. However, when working with system columns and automation, be sure to understand the trade-offs with UTC and Pacific Time. Achieve smoother teamwork by setting appropriate time zones.