Hello,

How to synchronize a NTP client (Linux) with a server running w32time (Win 2000)?
I tried a lot of times and each time I have the same error:
"no server suitable for synchronization found" and "Server dropped: strata too high".
My Win 2000 is not synchronized with "the real time" but I would like to use it as a time server for the others machine.
Other Windows station can synchronize on the Win 2000 server but not the Linux NTP client.
After a lot of tests, I installed YATS (Yet Another Time Server) and I was able to synchronize Linux on this Windows.
The problem is that YATS is not free and it expires in few days.
I can't use an other NTP server because the port is blocked by the firewall.

Is it possible to synchronize an NTP client with a server running w32time?
I read somewhere that w32time on Windows is a SNTP server and not a real NTP.
Is it possible to sync a Linux NTP client on a SNTP server?
Does a Linux SNTP client exist?

Thank for your help.

****************************************************************************
Here is the log on debug mode:
/usr/sbin/ntpdate -v -b -p 8 -d 131.176.123.85
  2 Mar 14:52:18 ntpdate[3018]: ntpdate 4.1.1@1.786 Tue May  7 02:44:51 EDT
2002 (1)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
receive(131.176.123.85)
transmit(131.176.123.85)
131.176.123.85: Server dropped: strata too high
server 131.176.123.85, port 123
stratum 16, precision -20, leap 11, trust 000
refid [0.0.0.0], delay 0.02579, dispersion 0.00000
transmitted 8, in filter 8
reference time:    00000000.00000000  Thu, Feb  7 2036  7:28:16.000
originate timestamp: c5d0438c.1d7635e7  Wed, Mar  2 2005 14:52:12.115
transmit timestamp:  c5d04393.0ac61522  Wed, Mar  2 2005 14:52:19.042
filter delay:  0.02608  0.02579  0.02579  0.02579
          0.02579  0.02579  0.02579  0.02579
filter offset: -6.92714 -6.92709 -6.92709 -6.92709
          -6.92709 -6.92709 -6.92709 -6.92709
delay 0.02579, dispersion 0.00000
offset -6.927096

  2 Mar 14:52:19 ntpdate[3018]: no server suitable for synchronization found
****************************************************************************

<philippe.reis@tiscali.be> wrote in message 
news:4225fd07$0$44063$5fc3050@dreader2.news.tiscali.nl...

> Is it possible to synchronize an NTP client with a server running w32time?

    This is not worth even attempting.

> I read somewhere that w32time on Windows is a SNTP server and not a real 
> NTP.
> Is it possible to sync a Linux NTP client on a SNTP server?
> Does a Linux SNTP client exist?

    You can use 'ntpdate' to set the time from the time server. But you 
can't really synchronize the time.

    DS

In article <4225fd07$0$44063$5fc3050@dreader2.news.tiscali.nl>,
philippe.reis@tiscali.be wrote:

> How to synchronize a NTP client (Linux) with a server running w32time (Win 2000)?

Not legally.  NTP requires an NTP server to work to specification.  If enough
fields are set appropriately in the reply, you might be able to in practice,
but you really should make Windows the leaf node and *nix the server,
as Windows is about the worst common platform, even when running the
reference implementation.

> My Win 2000 is not synchronized with "the real time" but I would like
** to use it as a time server for the others machine.

Looking further down, it isn't synchronized to a fake time either.  It simply
isn't synchronized.  No compliant NTP or SNTP server will synchronize to it.

> The problem is that YATS is not free and it expires in few days.

I fail to see why a market niche would exist for such a product, given that
full NTP is free and the OpenNTP SNTP client is also free.  Maybe it is
because people are prepared to pay to not be told the server is broken.

> Is it possible to synchronize an NTP client with a server running w32time?

It is possible with some versions of w32time, if they are themselves 
synchronised, although it will not be acting as a true NTP client.

> I read somewhere that w32time on Windows is a SNTP server and not a real NTP.

Worse than that, it is a broken SNTP server.

> Does a Linux SNTP client exist?

OpenNTP and (although some builds don't work) the one that comes with the
reference NTP, but if either of these synchs to the server that produced the
results below, please raise a bug report against it as it's broken.

> stratum 16, precision -20, leap 11, trust 000

Stratum 16 is "not synchronized" - server cannot be used
Leap 11 is ***ALARM***  - server cannot be used

> reference time:    00000000.00000000  Thu, Feb  7 2036  7:28:16.000

Reference time 0 is "never been synchronised"  - server cannot be used

You have a server that is telling clients not to use it in three
different ways.  Anything that does use it is broken.

> originate timestamp: c5d0438c.1d7635e7  Wed, Mar  2 2005 14:52:12.115
> transmit timestamp:  c5d04393.0ac61522  Wed, Mar  2 2005 14:52:19.042

Looks as though you have everything you need other than the lack of
synchronisation.

> filter delay:  0.02608  0.02579  0.02579  0.02579
>           0.02579  0.02579  0.02579  0.02579

25ms delay is very bad for a LAN.  You should expect this sort of delay
over broadband WAN, but is not surprising for a Windows based server.

Thanks for your reply.

As suggested by Jan, I have installed ntpd on Windows.
http://norloff.org/ntp/
ntpd is launched as a service of Windows.

My ntp.conf looks like:
server ntp1.belbone.be

Each time the service starts, I get the following error in the windows application log:
sendto(195.13.23.5): Une op�ration d'entr�e/sortie avec chevauchement est en cours d'ex�cution.
In English the error should be: "sendto(195.13.23.5): An input/output operation with overlap is executing".

Someone has an idea for this error?

This error is not blocking because the clock is adjusted few minutes after, but I think error this could make the system unstable.

Regards