{
	"id": "40a89e90-196d-43c7-8aba-d547a08b964c",
	"created_at": "2026-04-06T00:11:19.142735Z",
	"updated_at": "2026-04-10T13:12:36.634066Z",
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	"sha1_hash": "a03b2d77e459f67cde023497c54e44b7f7708cf7",
	"title": "Windows Time Service (W32Time)",
	"llm_title": "",
	"authors": "",
	"file_creation_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
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	"plain_text": "Windows Time Service (W32Time)\r\nBy robinharwood\r\nArchived: 2026-04-05 23:49:32 UTC\r\nThe Windows Time service (W32Time) synchronizes the date and time for all computers running in Active\r\nDirectory Domain Services (AD DS). Time synchronization is critical for the proper operation of many Windows\r\nservices and line-of-business (LOB) applications. The Windows Time service uses the Network Time Protocol\r\n(NTP) to synchronize computer clocks on the network. NTP ensures that an accurate clock value, or timestamp,\r\ncan be assigned to network validation and resource access requests.\r\nIn the Windows Time Service (W32Time) topic, the following content is available:\r\nWindows Server 2016 Accurate Time. Time synchronization accuracy in Windows Server 2016 has been\r\nimproved substantially, while maintaining full backwards NTP compatibility with older Windows versions.\r\nUnder reasonable operating conditions, you can maintain a 1-ms accuracy with respect to UTC or better for\r\nWindows Server 2016 and Windows 10 Anniversary Update domain members.\r\nSupport boundary for high-accuracy environments. This article describes the support boundaries for the\r\nWindows Time service (W32Time) in environments that require highly accurate and stable system time.\r\nConfiguring Systems for high accuracy. Time synchronization in Windows 10 and Windows Server 2016\r\nhas been substantially improved. Under reasonable operating conditions, systems can be configured to\r\nmaintain 1 ms (millisecond) accuracy or better (with respect to UTC).\r\nWindows Time for Traceability. Regulations in many sectors require systems to be traceable to UTC.\r\nThis means that a system's offset can be attested with respect to UTC. To enable regulatory compliance\r\nscenarios, Windows 10 and Server 2016 provide new event logs to provide a picture from the perspective\r\nof the Operating System to form an understanding of the actions taken on the system clock. These event\r\nlogs are generated continuously for Windows Time service and can be examined or archived for later\r\nanalysis.\r\nWindows Time service technical reference. The W32Time service provides network clock\r\nsynchronization for computers without the need for extensive configuration. The W32Time service is\r\nessential to the successful operation of Kerberos V5 authentication and, therefore, to AD DS-based\r\nauthentication.\r\nHow the Windows Time service works. Although the Windows Time service is not an exact\r\nimplementation of the Network Time Protocol (NTP), it uses the complex suite of algorithms that is\r\ndefined in the NTP specifications to ensure that clocks on computers throughout a network are as\r\naccurate as possible.\r\nWindows Time service tools and settings. Most domain member computers have a time client\r\ntype of NT5DS, which means that they synchronize time from the domain hierarchy. The only\r\ntypical exception to this is the domain controller that functions as the primary domain controller\r\n(PDC) emulator operations master of the forest root domain, which is usually configured to\r\nsynchronize time with an external time source.\r\nhttps://docs.microsoft.com/windows-server/networking/windows-time-service/windows-time-service-top\r\nPage 1 of 2\n\nFor more information about the domain hierarchy and scoring system, see the \"What is Windows Time Service?\"\r\nblog post.\r\nThe windows time provider plugin model is documented on TechNet.\r\nAn addendum referenced by the Windows 2016 Accurate Time article can be downloaded here\r\nFor a quick overview of Windows Time service, take a look at this high-level overview video.\r\nSource: https://docs.microsoft.com/windows-server/networking/windows-time-service/windows-time-service-top\r\nhttps://docs.microsoft.com/windows-server/networking/windows-time-service/windows-time-service-top\r\nPage 2 of 2",
	"extraction_quality": 1,
	"language": "EN",
	"sources": [
		"MITRE"
	],
	"origins": [
		"web"
	],
	"references": [
		"https://docs.microsoft.com/windows-server/networking/windows-time-service/windows-time-service-top"
	],
	"report_names": [
		"windows-time-service-top"
	],
	"threat_actors": [],
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	"ts_updated_at": 1775826756,
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