[ntp:questions] [Version 3 & 4] Aren't NTP stratums 17 ... 256 (1001b...11111111b) totally pointless? Why not use these extra bits for a CRC-4...

Max Power mikehack at u.washington.edu
Sun Jun 4 00:21:35 UTC 2006


[Version 3 & 4] Aren't NTP stratums 17 ... 256 (1001b...11111111b) totally 
pointless?
Why not use these extra bits for a CRC-4 ... for all the bits used in that 
datafield.
At least the CRC-4 could be put to some use.

Mainly
* Only about 1% of know NTP servers are Stratum [8...16]
* The stratum hierarchy (and accuracy of a vast majority of public NTP 
servers) are not policed that well, as there is no distributed NTP 
application being used to find lists of dodgy NTP servers.
* The NTP time distribution system would probably work best with only 8 
stratums anyway.

Will this surplus stratum problem be fixed in NTPv5? 





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