> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.chronosphere.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Select time ranges
Many features in Chronosphere Observability Platform share a common interface and
methods for selecting a *time range*. Tools such as
[monitors](/investigate/alerts/monitors), [dashboards](/observe/dashboards), [service
pages](/observe/services/service-pages), and [explorers](/investigate) use time
ranges to segment or scope queries, charts, tables, and graphs.
In these tools, the ** time range selector** displays the
defined time range and provides multiple methods to select a new time range.
Click the time range selector to select a time range in one of the following ways:
* Enter a time or range in the bar.
* Select a range relative to the current time from a list of predefined options, such
as **Last 30 minutes**.
* Select full days using the calendar.
* Use the **From** and **To** fields to select a custom range.
Some time range selectors also provide additional controls to shift, expand, refresh,
or pin the selected time range. Next to the selected time, the time since the page
was last loaded displays if the page hasn't reloaded recently.
The time range selector provides options for defining a date and time range. The
selector also displays the currently applied time range.
Use the **From** and **To** fields to select a custom time.
The page display updates when a time range is selected.
## Manually enter a time range
To type in a range:
1. Click the ** time range selector** field as a dropdown menu.
2. In the preselected bar, type a value such as `Last 6 hours`.
3. Press `Enter` (`Return` on MacOS).
## Select a predefined relative time range
To select a predefined time range:
1. Click the ** time range selector** field as a dropdown menu.
2. Select a time range in the list, such as `Last 6 hours`.
## Select an absolute time and date range
To select an absolute time and date range from a calendar:
1. Click the ** time range selector** field as a dropdown menu.
2. Navigate to the month of the start date. To go forward or backward one month at a
time, click **** for the
previous month and **** for the
next month.
3. Optional: Instead of using the calendar, you can also click the **From** and
**To** date fields and enter the date, using the format `MM/DD/YYYY hh:mm:ss
AM/PM`.
4. Optional: You can set the **To** field to the current date and time by clicking
**Set to now**.
5. Click **Apply time range** to confirm the set time range.
## Enter a custom relative time range
To enter a custom relative time range:
1. Click the ** time range selector** field.
2. Use the **From** and **To** fields to enter a custom relative time range using
Observability Platform [time units](/overview/concepts/time-units).
The time range selector accepts any of these formats, where `1` is the quantity
and `week` and `w` represent the time unit:
* `Last 1 week`
* `1 week`
* `1w`
You can enter any integer quantity greater than zero. Relative ranges support only
millisecond and larger time units, and convert units smaller than a second to decimal
values of a second.
## Shift a time range
To shift the defined time range forward or backward in time while retaining the same
duration, click the ** previous** and ** next time range** buttons.
Shifting a relative time range also converts it to an absolute time range.
## Expand a time range
To expand the defined time range's duration while retaining the same point in time at
the range's center, click the ** zoom out** button.
Expanding a relative time range also converts it to an absolute time range.
On data visualization tools, there is no control to shrink, or "zoom in," for a time
range. Instead, click and drag within a panel visualization to select a time range.
## Refresh a time range
To manually refresh the current point in time for a relative time range, or to update
a visualization's contents within an absolute time range, click the time range
selector's ** Refresh** button.
On many pages, you can configure a default automatic refresh interval. For
details, see [Time ranges on dashboards](/observe/dashboards/panels#time-ranges).
## Pin a time range
You can **pin a time range** to specify a default range for a time range selector.
When you return to a feature where you've pinned a time range, that feature applies the
pinned range as the new default.
To pin a time range:
1. In the time range dropdown, click the **
pin** icon.
2. If a relative time range is selected, select whether to pin the relative time
range, or an absolute custom time range of the same duration that ends at the
current time.
To unpin a time range, click the ** pin** icon.
## Copy a time range
After selecting a time range, click the ** Copy** icon to copy
the selected range.
## Use a different time zone
To override the time zone, in the time range dropdown, select an option from the
**Page time zone** menu.
## Compare current data to past data
Comparison mode, sometimes called week-over-week view, is a Chronosphere
feature that overlays historical data on your current data in dashboards. This
feature provides additional context for comparing your current metrics with historical
trends and expectations, or identifying recurring trends and outliers.
To compare current data to past data:
1. Click **Compare**.
2. Select a past period to overlay onto the dashboard's panels.
The **Preceding period** option overlays the immediately preceding period of the same
length as the selected time range.
An additional query runs to pull historical ("offset") time series into your graph,
which returns data with the same resolution as your current data.
Depending on the time period you select and your data retention settings, the
result might include a gap for your most recent data, such as the last 10 minutes.
Chronosphere matches the current and historical data queries using tag logic, with
`_offset_:true` on the offset query and `_series_:series` for all of the
series. This associates data from the offset time series to the current series for
similar presentation, so the results in comparison mode contain labels that
resemble `__chrono_offset__: offset_7d1h` or `__chrono_series__: "series1"`.
For details, see the
[Chronosphere blog](https://chronosphere.io/learn/how-to-monitor-week-over-week-trends-in-chronosphere/).
To disable the overlay, click **Compare** and select **Off**.