Adding time servers to Windows XP

Windows XP by default allows you to configure it to automatically keep your system clock synchronized to two servers (time.windows.com and time.nist.gov). How about if you want to add another server to the list?

There are two ways to do this.

a) If you are logged in as an Administrator, you can directly type in the name of the server into the Internet Time tab (see image below, just type in the name of the server into the Server: box.) (ntppub.tamu.edu is the public facing NTP server from Texas A&M University)

b) Alternatively, you can add a couple of registry entries. [BEWARE! MODIFYING THE REGISTRY IS A RISKY BUSINESS, DO IT AT YOUR OWN RISK]

To make this happen: [1]

Open the Registry Editor (Start > Run> regedit.exe)

Navigate to to the following entry HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Current
Version\DateTime\Servers. Click on the "Servers" entry to activate it on the right side.

You should see a list of servers (time.windows.com and time.nist.gov) listed in the window to the right.

Right-click in the window the right and select New > String value.

Name the value 3 (one more than the last # present) , and press [Enter] twice to open the "Edit StringValue" dialog.

Type the address of the NTP server into the textbox named Value Data, and click OK.

Close the Registry editor.

Now if you look at the Internet Time Tab, you should see your new time servers listed there.

[1] http://www.techrepublic.com/article/tech-tip-add-internet-time-servers/5109818