NTP server not working

[JBruyet]

Hey all, I followed the instructions in Microsoft's KB816042 but NMAP says port 123 is still closed:

PORT STATE SERVICE
123/tcp closed ntp
MAC Address: 00:12:79:xx:xx:xx (Hewlett Packard)
Too many fingerprints match this host to give specific OS details

I even rebooted the server to see if that would help but no joy. I had no problems or errors when I was setting up the NTP service. Any ideas for some diagnostic steps I can take to find out what's wrong?

Thanks,

Joe B

 

[itsp1965]

Instead of looking at it from an NMAP level, what exactly did you do to configure NTP services. Remember Windows time services are slightly different (it uses the SNTP protocol). Do you have any errors in the event log pointing to the W32Time service?

 

[JBruyet]

itsp1965, I get an occasional time message in my event log (seven in the last two months) but nothing new since I added the NTP service. This was a member server running my HP Systems Insight Management software and nothing else. Here are the steps from the MS site:

To configure an internal time server to synchronize with an external time source, follow these steps:

1. Change the server type to NTP. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.
2. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\Parameters\Type
3. In the right pane, right-click Type, and then click Modify.
4. In Edit Value, type NTP in the Value data box, and then click OK.
2. Set AnnounceFlags to 5. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\Config\AnnounceFlags
2. In the right pane, right-click AnnounceFlags, and then click Modify.
3. In Edit DWORD Value, type 5 in the Value data box, and then click OK.
3. Enable NTPServer. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\TimeProviders\NtpServer
2. In the right pane, right-click Enabled, and then click Modify.
3. In Edit DWORD Value, type 1 in the Value data box, and then click OK.
4. Specify the time sources. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\Parameters
2. In the right pane, right-click NtpServer, and then click Modify.
3. In Edit Value, type Peers in the Value data box, and then click OK.

Note Peers is a placeholder for a space-delimited list of peers from which your computer obtains time stamps. Each DNS name that is listed must be unique. You must append ,0x1 to the end of each DNS name. If you do not append ,0x1 to the end of each DNS name, the changes made in step 5 will not take effect.
5. Select the poll interval. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\TimeProviders\NtpClient\SpecialPollInterval
2. In the right pane, right-click SpecialPollInterval, and then click Modify.
3. In Edit DWORD Value, type TimeInSeconds in the Value data box, and then click OK.

Note TimeInSeconds is a placeholder for the number of seconds that you want between each poll. A recommended value is 900 Decimal. This value configures the Time Server to poll every 15 minutes.
6. Configure the time correction settings. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\Config\MaxPosPhaseCorrection
2. In the right pane, right-click MaxPosPhaseCorrection, and then click Modify.
3. In Edit DWORD Value, click to select Decimal in the Base box.
4. In Edit DWORD Value, type TimeInSeconds in the Value data box, and then click OK.

Note TimeInSeconds is a placeholder for a reasonable value, such as 1 hour (3600) or 30 minutes (1800). The value that you select will depend upon the poll interval, network condition, and external time source.
5. Locate and then click the following registry subkey: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\Config\MaxNegPhaseCorrection
6. In the right pane, right-click MaxNegPhaseCorrection, and then click Modify.
7. In Edit DWORD Value, click to select Decimal in the Base box.
8. In Edit DWORD Value, type TimeInSeconds in the Value data box, and then click OK.

Note TimeInSeconds is a placeholder for a reasonable value, such as 1 hour (3600) or 30 minutes (1800). The value that you select will depend upon the poll interval, network condition, and external time source.
7. Quit Registry Editor.
8. At the command prompt, type the following command to restart the Windows Time service, and then press ENTER:
net stop w32time && net start w32time

Thanks for the help,

Joe B