Windows – Can’t synchronize time, Windows 7

clockdate timentpsyncwindows 7

Ok, I finally installed Windows 7, clean install. Time synchronization does not work. Clicking "Update now" gives message:

Unable to start the Windows Time service. Please try again later.

I use time.nist.gov, as I believe that use to be reliable, and works for my XP pc's.

Any hints on this?

I did edit the Task Scheduler,

Microsoft > Windows > Time Synchronization > SynchronizeTime

where I set it to synch every 6 hour (I need accurate clock), but this problem was also before I made that change. And this scheduler doesn't set the time either, as far as I can see..

Best Answer

It seems that Windows Time Service could not be started.

  1. Check if Windows Time Service is disabled. If yes enable it and set it to Automatic (open Run prompt and type "services.msc".Navigate to Windows Time, right click, select Properties and change Startup to Automatic).

  2. Try manually starting Windows Time Service (open Run prompt and type "services.msc"). Navigate to Windows Time right click and click Start. If it does not start properly, check the event log for the error.

If there is an error in the event log, update the question with the error.

UPDATE: Try http://www.worldtimeserver.com/atomic-clock/ first.

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