How to modify system date and time formats on Ubuntu

Customizing the date and time formats on your Ubuntu system is essential for aligning with regional preferences and organizational standards. Whether managing an Ubuntu desktop or server, adjusting these settings can enhance usability and meet specific requirements. Customizing these settings allows for seamless integration into diverse environments.

Ubuntu offers multiple ways to modify these settings through a graphical user interface or command-line tools. For desktop users, the settings menu provides an easy method to configure regional settings, including date and time formats. Server administrators or those who prefer the command line can use commands like locale and timedatectl to achieve similar results, offering flexibility and control where a graphical interface may not be practical.

Administrators can quickly check and modify locale settings using the command line to match desired regional formats. Commands such as locale-gen and update-locale facilitate generating and applying new locales, while timedatectl is used to set the system time and timezone. These tools ensure Ubuntu systems are correctly configured, providing accurate and region-specific representations of date and time across applications and processes.

1. Navigate to the system settings or system preferences.
2. Go to the “Region & Language” section.
3. In the “Formats” dropdown, select your desired regional format. The system will adjust the date, time, number, and currency formats accordingly.
4. Verify the changes by looking at the system date and time in the taskbar.

1. Open the terminal.
2. Generate the required locale if it is not already available.

   $ locale

3. If you wish to change the locale, first generate the required locale if it isn't already available. For instance, to generate the US English locale:

   $ sudo locale-gen en_US.UTF-8

   Replace “en_US.UTF-8” with your desired locale.

4. Now, set the system locale using the following:

   $ sudo update-locale LANG=en_US.UTF-8

5. To verify the changes, display the date:

   $ date

6. If you wish to adjust the timezone, utilize the timedatectl command:

   $ sudo timedatectl set-timezone America/New_York

   Replace “America/New_York” with your desired timezone.

After following these steps, your Ubuntu system will represent date, time, numbers, and currency in the format associated with your selected region or language. Adjustments made will persist across system restarts and user logins.