[ntp:questions] Re: follow up on Windows 2003 SP1 Time Service versus ntpd

Richard B. Gilbert rgilbert88 at comcast.net
Mon Aug 14 15:09:37 UTC 2006


HokeyPokey wrote:
> I've been trying to get Windows XP SP2 to work as an NTP client for a 
> couple weeks now, but with very, very poor results compared to the 
> results I can obtain with Windows port of NTP.
> 
> As best I understand it, Windows XP has the same Windows Time Service as 
> Windows 2003 ... at least based on the common registry parameters.
> 
> Is there any reason I shouldn't be able to get my XP time service to 
> sync the time as well as NTP ... as you have demonstrated with Win2003?

W32TIME is NOT NTP.  It is Microsoft's feeble attempt at implementing 
SNTP.  Only random chance will make it work as well as SNTP.  Microsoft 
implementd W32TIME because they needed to keep systems within a couple 
of minutets of each other in order for Kerberos authentication to work 
properly.  Kerberos is happy if the time is within two minutes (or 
something like that, I'm too lazy to look it up).  W32TIME does better 
than that, maybe within 100 milliseconds.

If you want tight synchronization and accurate time, forget W32TIME!!




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