Cadence Time Services


Frequently Asked Questions

    Pre-sales Questions

  1. What are the differences between Cadence v2.x and Cadence Time Services v3.x?
    Cadence Time Services v3.x is a complete re-design of Cadence. Changes include:
    • Multiple Time Services - Cadence Time Services can use up to 64 different time sources, mixing between Dialup, NTP, and Serial Clock types, all at the same time.
    • Filtering and Sanity Checking - Cadence keeps track of each time source's performance over time, checking to make sure that it is stable. Cadence will only use time information from sources that maintain stable time rates. In addition, Cadence will select among all of it's time sources those closest to a national standard to use as sources of synchronization. If Cadence looses contact with the most accurate sources, it will fall back to using other sources until contact can be re-established.
    • Windows NT Support - Cadence Time Services can run as a NT Service, allowing your entire network to be synchronized by one product.
    • Single Point of Configuration - Rather than make you configure Cadence from each individual server, Cadence Time Services allows you to do all installation and configuration from a common Control Center.
    • Network Time Protocol Server - Cadence can now provide time to other clients through the Network Time Protocol (RFC 1305, or NTP), an Internet Standard for distributing time to multiple systems. NTP Clients can be used on almost any platform or Operating System, and in many cases, are free or low-cost.
    • Customizable Serial Clock Driver - Cadence now includes a driver that can access almost any clock capable of sending time information over a serial line (RS-232). Support for the Traconex ITS and TrueTime TL-3 are built-in, other clocks will be added as demand requires.
  2. Which versions of Cadence will work on NetWare v5.0?
    Cadence Time Services v3.10, as well as Cadence v2.53, will run on NetWare v5.0. As always, we recommend updating to the most recent version of Cadence, so we recommend using Cadence v2.53 Build 1007, or Cadence Time Services v3.10f.

      Installation Questions

    1. My Server isn't showing up on the Uninstalled Servers List.
      On some Windows 95/98 systems, NetWare servers will not show up. You probably have Novell Network clients installed on your workstation. If so, some versions report back different network provider types when we scan for network objects. If you have 3.10F, exit CCC, and using Regedit add a key value to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Polygon/Cadence Time Services/3.10/CCC
      Right click on CCC, then select New... and add a DWORD. Change its name to Options and it value to 1. Exit Regedit, restart CCC and you should see your Novell servers.  This fix will be incorporated into subsequent releases.
    2. I'm trying to use the Add Server button, but it gives me WSA Errors
      Generally, this means that Cadence can't look up the name of the server in the DNS tables. Check to make sure that you have EITHER an entry for the server in the DNS system, using the server name as the host name, OR have an entry for the server in your local HOSTS file.
    3. What is the location for the HOSTS file?
      • Windows NT: WINNT\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC\HOSTS
      • Windows 95: WINDOWS\HOSTS
      • NetWare: SYS:ETC/HOSTS

      Windows NT and 95 include a HOSTS.SAM (sample) file to show you the format. NetWare has an existing file named HOSTS with some sample entries.
      Note: After changing the HOSTS file on a NetWare server, you will need to reboot the server. This is the only way to get the server to re-read the file

    4. My NetWare server give me errors saying that a NTP peer doesn't exist.
      NetWare needs to be told where your DNS servers are. Create a file in the SYS:ETC directory called RESOLV.CFG. The first line should be the word "domain" followed by the IP domain name that the system resides in. The second line should be the word "nameserver" followed by the IP address of your DNS server. After changing this file, you will need to unload and reload the NETDB.NLM on the server.

      Configuration Questions

    1. What is all of this information on the Cadence Screen on my server?
      Cadence has the option of showing a multitude of it's inner workings on both screen/window, and a log file. By default, all of the possible information is shown, in case of problems. One of the first things you will want to do is to turn off some of the diagnostic modes. In Server Setup, you will see a list of each of the diagnostic modes. Generally, the only one you want on is Minimal Info, which logs only Errors, Warnings, and a one-line update notice when an update is applied. Just de-select any diagnostic modes you do not wish to use and hit OK twice. If you do not want a screen or window on the server, uncheck the "Log To Screen" checkbox.
    2. What is the difference between each of the NTP modes?
      For the most part, you will only be using Client mode. This means that your server will get time from the remote server. Active Peer mode means that Cadence will get time, and give time, to the remote peer. This is useful if you have a cluster of servers in a fail-over situation. Each server would get time from a national source using Client mode, then share it with the other servers in Peer mode. Other clients could then get their time from the cluster. This allows servers to provide a more consistent, if possibly not as accurate, timestamp.
    3. My NTP client doesn't give me a scheduling option. How do I schedule it?
      NTP does it's own scheduling. In order to comply with the NTP Specification, Cadence must get it's time over NTP within specific limits. The minimum is 64 seconds, the maximum is 1024, or about 17 minutes. Cadence will adjust this time as it feels necessary.
    4. I want to be able to use more than one Configuration Machine.
      This can be done very easily. After installing Cadence on the server you want to configure, use REGEDIT.EXE to export the following key and all sub-keys from the Control Center machine's registry:
      HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Polygon/Cadence Time Services/3.10/CCC
      Once the key is exported, copy the resulting .REG file to another machine with Cadence Control Center on it. Then Import the .REG file to that system's registry. From that point on, you should be able to configure the server from both machines.

      Operation Questions

    1. My NetWare Servers keep dropping in and out of synchronization. Why?
      This is normal the first day or so after starting Cadence. Whenever Cadence makes an update, it informs TIMESYNC that there has been a change in time. TIMESYNC will then let every other server know that time has changed, which causes a re-sync. This will happen whenever there is a large change in time. As Cadence runs, it better controls the drift of the server. This means that time changes are smaller, eventually in the 10's of milliseconds. TIMESYNC can distribute this adjustment without causing a network resync. In other words, for the first day, Cadence will seem to make your network jump in and out of synchronization. However, this should stabilize fairly quickly and stop altogether after a day or two.
    2. I had to reload Windows on the CCC machine and no longer can manage my Cadence servers.
      Cadence stores your licensing and installed server information in the registry. We recommend that you save the installed configuration (see 4., above) on a floppy, or network drive.  However, if you didn't, follow these steps: First install the Cadence distribution kit on your workstation again. Start Cadence Control Center and re-enter your licensing information. Re-check that you have the licensing correctly entered. Next, you have to go through the motions of re-installing Cadence on each of your servers. For Novell servers, follow the normal procedure; you can continue to leave Cadence running. For NT servers, stop the Cadence service on the NT system before attempting to re-install. Cadence will copy the program files over to the servers, but does not copy any configuration information. The configuration information stored on each individual Cadence server will remain intact. After re-installing, restart, if necessary, Cadence on the servers.  You should now be able to access the servers via CCC. If you have saved the registry information (see 4., above), simply import the .REG file after re-installing Cadence on the management workstation.

Note: If you have a question that isn't answered in this document, please contact Technical Support.