Network Time Protocol and Computer Time Synchronization
Ask any network administrator or IT engineer and ask them how important network time synchronization is and you’ll normally get the same answer – very.
Time is used in almost all aspects of computing for logging when events have happened. In fact timestamps are the only reference a computer can use to keep tracks of tasks it has done and those that it has yet to do.
When networks are unsynchronized the result can be a real headache for anybody tasked with debugging them. Data can be often lost, applications fail to commence, error logging is next to impossible, not to mention the security vulnerabilities that can result if there is no synchronized network time.
NTP (Network Time Protocol) is the leading time synchronisation application having been around since the 1980’s. It has been constantly developed and is used by virtually every computer network that requires accurate time.
Most operating systems have a version of NTP already installed and using it to synchronise a single computer is relatively straight forward by using the options in the clock settings or task bar.
However, by using the inbuilt NTP application or daemon on a computer will result in the device using a source of internet time as a timing reference. This is all well and good for single desk top machines but on a network a more secure solution is required.
It is vital on any computer network that there are no vulnerabilities in the firewall which can lead to attacks from malicious users. Keeping a port open to communicate with an internet timing source is one method an attacker can use to enter a network.
Fortunately there are alternatives to using the internet as a timing source. Atomic clock time signals can be received using long wave radio or GPS transmissions.
Dedicated NTP time server devices are available that make the process of time synchronisation extremely easy as the NTP servers receives the time (externally to the firewall) and can then distribute to all machines on a network – this is done securely and accurately with most networks synchronised to an NTP server working to within a few milliseconds of each other.
