how to and effects of setting time backwards to real time

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ken Hack
  • Start date Start date
K

Ken Hack

Sorry if this is a repost but I cannot find my original message.....

Our Windows 2000 servers do not have an external time source set and the PDC
Emulator in the root domain has speed up the network time about 15 minutes.
We have another domain controller in the root and a child domain with 2
domain controllers. There are also about 10 member servers delivering
applications ie Exchange, SQL and such.

I know that all the servers and workstations eventually get their time from
the PDC Emulator in the root so logically I would only have to manually set
the time back 15 minutes on this server to get the Network in line.

Is this the correct way to do things or will I be causing some problems.
Should I immediately set all domain controllers to the same time and/or the
Exchange servers as well ?

Do anyone have any tips or gotchas that I need to know ? And yes I will be
setting a proper external time source soon after the change.

Thanks for your assistance,

Ken
 
given that kerberos is time sensitive and that the network could take up to
a day to synchronize, I think, would my users or applications servers have
any difficulty logging in ?
 
You are correct on the Kerberos issue. Microsoft generally suggests not setting the time back see Knowledge Base Article - 289668 on File Replication Service.

"You should never advance the system time on production Windows 2000 domain controllers beyond the current UTC time, or to some future time and then roll the clock back. This includes, but is not limited to, attempts to:...."

Moving the time back in AD can give lot's of problems. Solution-Soft's Time Machine specifically addresses the ability to do advanced date testing in AD but will also work for changing the FRS order so that different machines can take over file replication.

It may help with your issue (if you still have it). We can give you a free demo for 15 days which will be more than enough time for you to synch the time...

Mike.
 
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