GetLocalTime

GetLocalTime is a function in the Windows API that retrieves the current local date and time. It fills a SYSTEMTIME structure with the local time components, including year, month, day, day of week, hour, minute, second, and milliseconds.

Prototype: VOID GetLocalTime(LPSYSTEMTIME lpSystemTime);

Parameter: lpSystemTime — a pointer to a SYSTEMTIME structure that receives the local time.

Return value: The function does not return a value. It writes the local time data into the provided SYSTEMTIME structure. The caller must supply a non-null pointer; passing NULL yields undefined behavior.

Notes on behavior: The time returned by GetLocalTime is adjusted according to the system’s time zone and daylight saving time settings. This means the components reflect local rather than universal time. It is distinct from GetSystemTime, which retrieves the current Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).

Common use cases: Displaying or logging timestamps in the user’s local time context, formatting time for user interfaces, or obtaining components of the current local time for further processing.

Limitations and related functions: Because the result is local time, conversions may be needed to compare or convert to UTC. Related functions include GetSystemTime (UTC), GetSystemTimeAsFileTime, and SystemTimeToFileTime or FileTimeToSystemTime for conversions between SYSTEMTIME and FILETIME representations. For locale-aware conversions, functions like TzSpecificLocalTimeToSystemTime may be used in more complex scenarios.

See also: GetSystemTime, GetSystemTimeAsFileTime, SystemTimeToFileTime, FileTimeToSystemTime, TzSpecificLocalTimeToSystemTime.