RTEMS Frequently Asked Questions
Internally, RTEMS uses an unsigned thirty-two bit integer to represent the number of seconds since midnight January 1, 1988. This counter will overflow on February 5, 2124.
The time/date services in the Classic API will overflow when the RTEMS internal date/time representation overflows.
The POSIX API uses the type time_t to represent the number of seconds since January 1, 1970. Many traditional UNIX systems as well as RTEMS define time_t as a signed thirty-two bit integer. This representation overflows on January 18, 2038. The solution usually proposed is to define time_t as a sixty-four bit integer. This solution is appropriate for for UNIX workstations as many of them already support sixty-four bit integers natively. At this time, this imposes a burden on embedded systems which are still primarily using processors with native integers of thirty-two bits or less.
RTEMS Frequently Asked Questions
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