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How to fix warning: date() [function.date] in PHP

Last updated on Oct 2,2024 |

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by l.lee

Warning: CentOS 7 reached its End of Life (EOL) in June 2024. As a result, it no longer receives security updates or official support, which may leave your server vulnerable to security threats. It is strongly recommended to upgrade to a currently supported Linux distribution for continued security and stability.

Introduction

When managing a PHP-based web server, it’s common to encounter warnings related to timezone configuration, especially if the server’s timezone has not been properly set. One such warning you may see is:

Warning: date()[function.date]

This warning occurs because PHP is unable to determine the correct timezone, which can lead to incorrect date and time displays on your web applications. Without a properly configured timezone, PHP will attempt to rely on the system’s default settings, which may not always align with your desired location or standard.

To prevent this issue and ensure accurate date and time management in your applications, you need to manually configure the timezone settings in your PHP configuration file. Below is a step-by-step guide to resolve this issue by setting the correct timezone in PHP.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Warning: date()[function.date] It is not safe to rely on the system’s timezone settings. Please use the date.timezone setting, the TZ environment variable, or the date_default_timezone_set() function. In case you used any of those methods and are still seeing this warning, you most likely misspelled the timezone identifier. We selected ‘Asia/Kuala_Lumpur’ for ‘MYT/8.0/no DST’ instead in …./includes/functions.php on line 4912.

Prerequisites

SSH access to your web server
Basic knowledge of terminal commands.
Ensure that PHP is installed and configured.

Step-by-step guide

1. SSH into your Server

ssh username@your_server_ip

2. Edit the php.ini File Location

If you’re unsure where the php.ini file is located, you can use the following command to find the location from the terminal:

php -i | grep "Loaded Configuration File"

3. Set the Timezone

```
sudo vi /usr/local/php83/lib/php.ini
```
Press i to enter insert mode, then add the following code:
```
 date.timezone = "Asia/Kuala_Lumpur"
```
Press Esc then type :wq to save and exit.

4. Restart your web service to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl restart apache2    #Ubuntu/Debian  
sudo systemctl restart httpd      #CentOS/RHEL/Fedora/Rocky

Conclusion

After following the steps outlined above, you will have successfully set the correct timezone for your PHP configuration, resolving the “timezone settings” warning. This ensures that the date() function and other time-related operations in your PHP applications function as expected, based on the configured timezone. Regularly reviewing and updating your php.in configuration can prevent similar warnings and ensure that your server operates in the desired time zone.

For additional assistance or if you encounter any issues, please contact our support team at support@ipserverone.com.