[ntp:questions] NTP client with ability to write Windows NT system time to hardware clock?

Jan Ceuleers janspam.ceuleers at skynet.be
Sat Dec 11 18:10:27 UTC 2010


Piece of feedback below.

On 11/12/10 13:07, Brolin Empey wrote:
> I run Windows 7 Professional IA-32 with RealTimeIsUniversal=1 on
> brolin-V13, my Dell Vostro V13 laptop. This means brolin-V13’s hardware
> clock (RTC) runs in UTC, as it should, instead of the local time zone,
> as Microsoft still uses for the completely illogical default
> configuration. RealTimeIsUniversal=1 is /finally/ fixed and fully
> working beginning in Windows Vista SP2 + Windows 7, but there is still a
> problem: When RealTimeIsUniversal=0, which is also used when the
> RealTimeIsUniversal key does not exist, Windows 7 writes the Windows NT
> system time to the hardware clock during the shut down process. When
> RealTimeIsUniversal=1, though, the Windows NT system time is never
> written to the hardware clock. Consequently, I have to boot Ubuntu from
> a USB flash drive (brolin-V13 has no optical disc drive (ODD).), then
> use ntpdate-debian + hwclock to synchronise the Linux system clock with
> an NTP server on the Internet, then write the
> sufficiently-accurate-for-me Linux system time to the hardware clock so
> Windows 7 will set the Windows NT system clock from the accurate time in
> the hardware clock. After some time (at least 1 week, not sure.),
> though, my hardware clock is approximately 2 minutes behind the correct
> time from an NTP server, but Windows 7 never writes the Windows NT
> system time to the hardware clock when RealTimeIsUniversal=1, so I have
> to use my Ubuntu USB flash drive again. I know the proper solution is to
> get Microsoft to change Windows 7 so it can write the Windows NT system
> time to the hardware clock even when RealTimeIsUniversal=1, but that has
> not yet happened. I have at least asked a Microsoft employee about it,
> though, so they know users (well, at least 1 user. :)) want the feature.
> I can use w32time to force a synchronisation, but then I have to do that
> every time I boot Windows 7. brolin-V13 travels with me between home and
> work, so it is not always running. Maybe this causes the hardware clock
> to fall behind, but I do not think I can prevent having to shut down and
> boot brolin-V13 on a daily basis. Since I do not know if Microsoft will
> ever enable Windows 7 to write the Windows NT system time to the
> hardware clock when RealTimeIsUniversal=1, the next best solution is
> probably to write a hwclock.exe application for Windows NT, but I am
> hoping someone has already implemented this functionality in an
> application such as an NTP client. Googling “hwclock.exe” returns lots
> of noise because some malware uses this file name, but I have not found
> any real hwclock.exe equivalent to hwclock used on Linux.
>
> So, is there an NTP client or any other application for Windows NT which
> can write the Windows NT system time to the hardware clock so I do not
> have to write hwclock.exe for Windows NT?
>
> Thanks for reading,
> Brolin

There's no way I'm going to read all that. If you have a question for 
us, please can you put it a little more succinctly? Thanks.




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