On February 2nd, 2012, Springs Hosting added Stratum 0 devices and Stratum 1 time servers which are available to all colocation customers within the data centers. Our Stratum 0 devices directly synchronize to the correct time (UTC) using GPS transmissions. The Stratum 1 servers deliver the correct time to network devices, servers, and customer equipment. There are also multiple Stratum 2 servers available to customers throughout the Springs Hosting network who do not require +/- 10ms time syncronization.
“Keeping your equipment’s built in time clocks sync’d and especially your network equipment can be crucial to maintaining a smooth operating network.” said Brian Korzen, Systems Administrator at Springs Hosting. “The new additions just give us one more thing to offer to our customers and are especially helpful to our customers utilizing CCTV equipment.”
Time is critical for transactions across computer networks. Many events on the network need accurate time to initiate and control processes, and complete transactions such as authentication. Accurate time for time stamps and log files is also very important for billing systems, network diagnostics, digital forensics, high-reliability databases and process analysis. Yet clocks in electronic devices are not designed for accuracy and can drift by more than an hour in a year. The solution is to always connect your network devices and systems to a server via network time protocol (NTP).