Configure Time Zone Settings for Windows Devices Using Microsoft Intune

Before creating any Intune policies, you need to identify the exact time zone ID that Windows uses internally. These IDs are different from display names and must be precise.

Open PowerShell as Administrator on any Windows device and run:

Get-TimeZone -ListAvailable | Format-Table Id, DisplayName -AutoSize

This command lists all available time zones. Look for the Id column - this is what you'll use in Intune. Common examples:

• India Standard Time for India
• W. Europe Standard Time for Western Europe
• Eastern Standard Time for US East Coast
• Pacific Standard Time for US West Coast

Navigate to the Microsoft Intune admin center and prepare to create a new configuration profile.

Open your web browser and go to https://intune.microsoft.com. Sign in with your administrator credentials.

From the left navigation menu, click Devices > Configuration. You'll see your existing configuration profiles here.

Click Create > New policy to start creating a new configuration profile.

Set up the basic profile configuration using the Settings Catalog approach, which provides the most granular control over Windows settings.

In the profile creation wizard:

1. Platform: Select Windows 10 and later
2. Profile type: Select Settings catalog
3. Click Create

On the Basics page:

• Name: Enter a descriptive name like Corporate Time Zone - Eastern US or Time Zone Policy - London Office
• Description: Add details like Enforces Eastern Standard Time for consistency across all corporate devices

Click Next to proceed to configuration settings.

Add the specific time zone configuration to your profile using Intune's Settings Catalog.

On the Configuration settings page:

1. Click Add settings
2. In the search box, type time zone
3. Expand Time language settings from the results
4. Check the box next to Configure Time Zone
5. Click Add

In the Configure Time Zone field that appears, enter the exact time zone ID you identified in Step 1. For example:

Eastern Standard Time

or

India Standard Time

Click Next to proceed to assignments.

Target specific device groups or all devices in your organization with the time zone policy.

On the Assignments page:

1. Under Included groups, click Add groups
2. Select the appropriate device groups:
   • All devices for organization-wide deployment
   • Specific Azure AD device groups for regional offices
   • Dynamic device groups based on location or department
3. Click Select

You can also exclude specific groups if needed. For example, exclude devices used by traveling executives who need automatic time zone detection.

Click Next to review your configuration.

Complete the profile creation and monitor its deployment across your targeted devices.

On the Review + create page:

1. Review all your settings carefully
2. Verify the time zone ID is correct
3. Confirm the assigned groups are appropriate
4. Click Create

The profile will now deploy to targeted devices. Monitor the deployment:

1. Go to Devices > Configuration
2. Click on your newly created time zone profile
3. Click Device status to see deployment progress

Devices typically receive the policy within 15-30 minutes, but you can force immediate sync on test devices.

Speed up policy deployment by manually triggering sync on test devices to verify the configuration works correctly.

For immediate testing, force sync on a target device:

Method 1 - From Intune Admin Center:

1. Go to Devices > All devices
2. Find and click on a target device
3. Click Sync at the top of the device page
4. Wait 2-3 minutes for the sync to complete

Method 2 - From the Device Itself:

1. Open Settings > Accounts > Access work or school
2. Click on your Intune enrollment account
3. Click Sync

Method 3 - PowerShell Command:

Get-ScheduledTask | Where-Object {$_.TaskName -eq "PushLaunch"} | Start-ScheduledTask

Confirm that the time zone policy has been applied correctly on target devices and troubleshoot any issues.

On a target device, open PowerShell as Administrator and run:

Get-TimeZone | Format-List Id, DisplayName, StandardName, DaylightName

The output should show your configured time zone. You can also check the Windows Settings:

1. Open Settings > Time & Language > Date & time
2. The time zone dropdown should be grayed out with text "Some settings are managed by your organization"
3. The correct time zone should be displayed

To check policy application events:

Get-EventLog -LogName System -Source "Microsoft-Windows-Kernel-General" -Newest 10 | Where-Object {$_.Message -like "*time zone*"}