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Support boundary to configure the Windows Time service for high accuracy environments

Article ID: 939322 - View products that this article applies to.

INTRODUCTION

This article describes the support boundary to configure the Windows Time service (W32Time) for high accuracy environments. High accuracy environments include exchange trading houses and high precision manufacturing companies where critically accurate time measurement is required for the success of the organization.

MORE INFORMATION

The W32Time service uses the Simple Network Time Protocol (SNTP) in Microsoft Windows 2000. The W32Time service uses the Network Time Protocol (NTP) in Microsoft Windows Server 2003, in Windows Server 2003 R2, in Windows Server 2008, and in Windows Server 2008 R2.

We do not guarantee and we do not support the accuracy of the W32Time service between nodes on a network. The W32Time service is not a full-featured NTP solution that meets time-sensitive application needs. The W32Time service is primarily designed to do the following:

Make the Kerberos version 5 authentication protocol work.
Provide loose sync time for client computers.

The W32Time service cannot reliably maintain sync time to the range of 1 to 2 seconds. Such tolerances are outside the design specification of the W32Time service.

For more information about the W32Time service, visit the following Microsoft TechNet website:

Windows Time Service Tools and Settings

(http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc773263(WS.10).aspx)

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) maintains a list of third-party publishers of time and frequency software. To view this list, visit the following NIST website:

http://www.nist.gov/physlab/div847/grp40/softwarelist.cfm

(http://www.nist.gov/physlab/div847/grp40/softwarelist.cfm)

Microsoft provides third-party contact information to help you find technical support. This contact information may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this third-party contact information.

The third-party products that this article discusses are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, about the performance or reliability of these products.