[bug] Time zone error (error parsing query: unable to find time zone)

[seinta-amrutha]

Describe the bug
TimeZone Needs Updated

Steps To Reproduce
Login to OpenWisp Dashboard, error starts coming
https://openwisp.example.com/api/v1/monitoring/dashboard/?timezone=Asia/Calcutta&time=7d
Response code: 500

Expected behavior
no error on time

Screenshots
na

[INFO 2025-08-11 06:16:43,998] module: utils, process: 44608, thread: 126298241562432
Error while executing method "query":
400: {"error":"error parsing query: unable to find time zone Asia/Calcutta"}
Attempt 6 out of 6.

System Informatioon:

• OS: Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
• Python Version: Python 3.12.3

[nemesifier]

Describe the bug TimeZone Needs Updated

Steps To Reproduce Login to OpenWisp Dashboard, error starts coming https://openwisp.example.com/api/v1/monitoring/dashboard/?timezone=Asia/Calcutta&time=7d Response code: 500

Expected behavior no error on time

Screenshots na

[INFO 2025-08-11 06:16:43,998] module: utils, process: 44608, thread: 126298241562432 Error while executing method "query": 400: {"error":"error parsing query: unable to find time zone Asia/Calcutta"} Attempt 6 out of 6.

System Informatioon:

• OS: Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
• Python Version: Python 3.12.3

I've seen this error, but it's coming from influxdb 1.8. Further debugging is needed to determine what it is causing it exactly.

[pandafy]

Why does this error occur?

This error appears because "Asia/Calcutta" is a legacy timezone name that has been replaced by "Asia/Kolkata" in modern Linux systems. If OpenWISP or its dependencies (like InfluxDB) try to use "Asia/Calcutta", but your system only provides "Asia/Kolkata", you will encounter a timezone not found error.

Workaround Steps

1. Log in to your server where OpenWISP is running.

2. Create the Asia directory (if it doesn't already exist):

   sudo mkdir -p /usr/share/zoneinfo/Asia

3. Create a symbolic link so "Asia/Calcutta" points to "Asia/Kolkata":

   sudo ln -sf /usr/share/zoneinfo/Asia/Kolkata /usr/share/zoneinfo/Asia/Calcutta

4. Restart InfluxDB to apply the change:

   sudo systemctl restart influxdb

5. Reload the OpenWISP dashboard to confirm the error is resolved.

---

This workaround allows applications looking for "Asia/Calcutta" to use the modern "Asia/Kolkata" timezone data. Restarting InfluxDB ensures the new symlink is recognized.

[aditya-7562]

Thanks for documenting the cause and the workaround.

That said, we need to be clear that the symlink approach is just a band-aid, not a solution. Asia/Calcutta is a deprecated IANA alias, and honestly, OpenWISP shouldn't be sending deprecated timezone names downstream.

The real fix needs to happen in the application layer. OpenWISP should either normalize these values (mapping Asia/Calcutta → Asia/Kolkata) or reject them entirely before they ever hit InfluxDB.

Patching this by messing with /usr/share/zoneinfo is fragile, especially in containers or managed environments and it essentially masks a missing input validation step in the code. We should address this in the OpenWISP codebase rather than relying on system configuration hacks.

[pandafy]

@aditya-7562 you're correct. My previous comment was a workaround until we found a solution to this problem.

The openwisp-monitoring module interacts with InfluxDB. We need to find a list of all deprecated timezones and provide appropriate normalization in the InfluxDB client.

@aditya-7562 can you open an issue in openwisp-monitoring with the relevant details?

EDIT: I have opened the issue openwisp/openwisp-monitoring#728

[UltraBot05]

Hi,

openwisp/openwisp-monitoring#766 addresses this issue referenced in openwisp/openwisp-monitoring#728

Once #728 is merged, it should fix this problem too.