This article describes how to synchronize the time on your computers
by using the Windows Time Service. In Microsoft Windows XP, the
Windows Time service automatically synchronizes your computer's
internal clock with other clocks in the network. The time source for
this synchronization varies, depending on whether the computer is
joined to an Active Directory domain or to a workgroup.
When the computers are part of a workgroup, you must manually
configure the time synchronization settings. You might identify a
computer as a locally reliable time source by configuring the Windows
Time service on that computer to use a known accurate time source,
either by using special hardware or by using a time source that is
available on the Internet. You can configure all other workgroup
computers manually to synchronize their time with this local time
source.
If the computers belong to an Active Directory domain, the Windows
Time service configures itself automatically by using the Windows Time
service that is available on domain controllers. The Windows Time
service configures a domain controller in its domain as a reliable
time source and synchronizes itself periodically with this source. You
can modify or overwrite these settings, depending on your specific
needs. How to synchronize the time on a member computer in an Active
Directory domain
1.Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.
2.Type w32tm /resync, and then press ENTER.
How to synchronize an internal time server with an external source
1.Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.
2.Type the following line, where peerlist is a space-separated list of Domain Name System (DNS) names or IP addresses of the appropriate time
sources, and then press ENTER: w32tm /config /syncfromflags:manual
/manualpeerlist:peerlist
3.Type w32tm /config /update, and then press ENTER. Notes•The most common use of this procedure is to synchronize the internal network's
authoritative time source with a very precise external time source.
However, you can run this procedure on any Windows XP-based computer.
•If the computer cannot reach the servers, the procedure does not
succeed and an entry is written to the Event log. •You can use
computers on the Internet to provide accurate time information. For
example, use the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST), which provides the NIST Network Time service.
How to configure services
How to start, stop, pause, resume, or restart a service Note You must
be logged on as an administrator or a member of the Administrators
group to complete this procedure. If your computer is connected to a
network, network policy settings may also prevent you from completing
this procedure. 1.Click Start, click Control Panel, click Performance
and Maintenance, click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Services.
2.In the Details pane, click the service.
3.On the Action menu, click Start, Stop, Pause, Resume, or Restart.
4.To configure the startup parameters for a service, right-click the service, click Properties, and then type the parameters in the Start
parameters box before you click Start. These settings are used only
once and are not saved. A backslash character () is treated as an
escape character; type two backslashes for each backslash in a
parameter. Notes•If you stop, start, or restart a service, any
dependent services are also affected. •Changing the default service
settings might prevent key services from running correctly. Use
caution when you change the Startup Type and Log On As settings for
services that are configured to start automatically.
How to configure how a service is started Note You must be logged on
as an administrator or a member of the Administrators group to
complete this procedure. If your computer is connected to a network,
network policy settings may also prevent you from completing this
procedure. 1.Click Start, click Control Panel, click Performance and
Maintenance, click Administrative Tools, and then double-click
Services.
2.Right-click the service that you want to configure, and then click Properties.
3.Click the General tab, and then in the Startup type box, click Automatic, Manual, or Disabled.
4.To specify the user account that the service can use to log on, click the Log On tab, and then use one of the following methods: ◦To
specify that the service use the LocalSystem account, click Local
System account. ◦To specify that the service use the LocalService
account, click This account, and then type NT AUTHORITY\LocalService.
◦To specify that the service use the NetworkService account, click
This account, and then type NT AUTHORITY\NetworkService. ◦To specify
another account, click This account, click Browse, and then specify a
user account in the Select User dialog box. When you are finished,
click OK.
5.Type the password for the user account in the Password box and in the Confirm password box, and then click OK. Notes•Changing the
default service settings might prevent key services from running
correctly. Use caution when you change the Startup Type and Log On As
settings for services that are configured to start automatically. •If
you enable or disable a service and you encounter a problem in
starting the computer, you might be able to start the computer in Safe
mode. You can then change the service configuration or restore the
default configuration. •If you select the Allow service to interact
with desktop check box, the service is configured to provide a user
interface on a desktop. This feature is available only if you click
Local System account and only if the service is configured to interact
with the desktop.
Troubleshooting Clients not synchronized with servers can occur if
the Windows Time service has been stopped manually. To resolve this
issue, start the Windows Time service.
To start the Windows Time service: 1.Click Start, point to All
Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.
2.Type net start w32time, and then press ENTER.
If you use
w32tm ...options... /update
you don't have to manually restart the service withnet stop / start
– Gerd Klima – 2011-05-31T09:27:34.953While true, I prefer the two-step approach to address any changes to w32tm configuration I want to make before committing. – Theo – 2011-06-04T01:41:31.287