To edit W32Time.ini to sync Windows NT workstations/serves to a time server
This section describes how to edit W32Time.ini for enabling Windows NT workstations to sync to either the Time Server. The REM statements and unnecessary changes have been deleted from these sections to simplify the application note.
- "Type=" is used to specify what type of service the computer is working as. When the workstation is designated as "NTP", the time is derived from an NTP Server. Type=NTP (Remove the semicolon from this statement) ;Type=PRIMARY ;Type=SECONDARY
- "Period =" is used to determine the delay between each Time Set. Initially, an attempt to sync will occur once every 45 minutes until initial sync. Thereafter, two to three times a day by default. The period can be set to a specific number of times per day. For example "Period=1" for every 24 hours, "Period=2" for every 12 hours or "Period=3" for every 8 hours. Enter the number of times daily that you desire the service to update the system clock if you have a preference. However, using a high value can cause errors so we do not recommend using more than about 3 times per day.
Period=3 (No semicolon)
- "TAsync=" means to use the TimeAdjustment API to disable CMOS synchronization. Tasync=no (No semicolon)
- "NTPServer=" is the name or numeric address of the Time Server. Enter the IP address of the Time Server.
NTPServer= ((Remove the semicolon from this statement. Type in the IP address of the Time Server). For example: NTPServer=xxx.xxx.xxx.xxxx (Where x is the IP address of the Time Server).
- "Log=yes" places an entry in the Application event log for only the first successful sync with an NTP Server. Failures are always logged no matter what the "Log= " statement is set to. ;Log=no
Log=yes (No semicolon)
- "LocalNTP" indicates whether to start an NTP server on the local machine.
LocalNTP=no (No semicolon)
- "PrimarySource" is supposed to allow the use of multiple Time Servers, but is does not function correctly.
;PrimarySource=\\MYNTPSERVER (Has semicolon)
- "RandomPrimary=" is supposed to allow a list of NTP servers to be selected at random, but does not function correctly
;RandomPrimary=yes
- Timesource= is used to listen for broadcasts by Secondary clients. Since the workstation does not need to listen for broadcasts, set the "timesource=" to "no".
timesource=no (Remove the semicolon from this statement)
;timesource=yes
- SecondaryDomain tells the workstations which domain to broadcast their time requests to. If this entry is empty or missing, these clients will query the current domain for a Primary Time Server. If the PDC is in another domain, specify it here.
SecondaryDomain= (No semicolon. Leave blank if workstation is in same domain as the PDC)
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Synchronizing Windows NT servers or workstations to either a domain controller or a time server