This article explains the benefits of a dedicated NTP server
Just as your computer is only as good as the software it is running, a time server is only as useful as the timing source it uses. Time servers are similar to other servers in that they are located on a network but the primary function of a time server is to supply timing information rather than storing or routing data.
For computers a time stamp is the only point of a reference a computer can use to establish a sequence of events. Timestamps are used in everything from sending an email to debugging a system and ensuring your network is secure.
This article explains the benefits of a dedicated NTP server
Just as your computer is only as good as the software it is running, a time server is only as useful as the timing source it uses. Time servers are similar to other servers in that they are located on a network but the primary function of a time server is to supply timing information rather than storing or routing data.
For computers a time stamp is the only point of a reference a computer can use to establish a sequence of events. Timestamps are used in everything from sending an email to debugging a system and ensuring your network is secure.
This article explores the phenomenon of NTP abuse and misuse and describes several methods and developments that can reduce the problems.
This article explains all the different time
scale utilized and how time can be synchronised globally.
Asking
somebody the time may be one of today’s most common questions but have you ever
wondered where the time on our watches comes from?
Accurate
clocks have only been around since the mid 17th century, before then,
time was completely subjective. People would use the celestial bodies as a time
reference such as noon (when the sun was highest) and midnight (when the moon
is at its highest) and also dawn and dusk. Often lengths of time were referred
to in comparison such as the time it would take a man to walk a mile.
This article attempts to explain NTP (Network Time Protocol) and how it is utilised in time servers to synchronise computer networks.
A Guide to NTP and Computer Network Time Synchronisation
Network Time Protocol (NTP) is one of the Internet’s
oldest protocols. In use for over 25 years, NTP is still under development
with version 4 currently in progress. Put simply, NTP is a computer
protocol that is used to
synchronise the clocks of computer systems; usually to an
authoritative time reference such as UTC (Coordinated Universal Time or Temps Universel Coordonné)
which became the international standard of time after the development of
atomic clocks.
Thi article explains the importance of using an authenticated timing reference when using a NTP time server (Network Time Protocol)
NTP
(Network Time Protocol) synchronises networks to a single time source using
timestamps to represent the current time of the day, this is essential for time
sensitive transactions and many system applications such as email.
NTP is
therefore vulnerable to security threats, whether from a malicious hacker who
wants to alter the timestamp to commit fraud or a DDoS attack (Distributed
Denial of Service - normally caused by malicious malware that floods a server
with traffic) that blocks server access.