How to Change the Time Synchronization Interval in Windows

Last Updated: May 5, 2021

Your computer's clock may be as many as a few seconds to a few minutes off the correct time. Therefore, Windows includes a time synchronization scheduler to synchronize your clock automatically, located on the Internet Time tab in the Date & Time Settings. The default interval for this process is one week (which is 604,800 seconds). There is no way to change this interval through the user interface, it has to be done using the registry editor (regedit).

Steps

1
Open Internet Time Synchronization. To do this, open Date and Time Settings. You can do this either through the Control Panel, or by clicking on the time on the taskbar, then clicking "Change date and time settings..." then clicking the "Internet Time" tab.
- Verify the computer is set to synchronize automatically.
2
Open the Registry Editor. There are several ways of doing this, choose the most convenient for you. If you get a User Account Control dialog, click Yes.
- Press the Windows logo key and R. This will open the Run dialog. Then type regedit and click OK.
- Alternatively, open the Start Menu and type "regedit" in the search box. Click the regedit program to open.
Advertisement
3
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\services\W32Time\TimeProviders\NtpClient. Just click the arrows next to the folder icons to navigate to the correct directories. You may have to scroll a bit when you reach the SYSTEM key.
4
Right click on the SpecialPollInterval key, then click Modify.
5
Convert your desired time to seconds. You can quickly do this using Google or a website like Easysurf.
6
Click Decimal. Then, enter your interval in seconds (without commas), and click OK.
7
Close the Registry Editor.
8
Open Date and Time Settings. Click Internet Time, click Change Settings, then Update Now. This will immediately synchronize your clock. Click OK to close the dialog.
9
Confirm your new synchronization interval works. If it does, the next synchronization time should be exactly one interval away from the time you synchronized.

Community Q&A

Question

Will this cause an issue with my Internet access?

Community Answer

No, it won't cause internet access issues.
Question

What units are the value for the system variable that I change in in Windows?

Community Answer

You may specify decimal (base 10, like our number system) or hexadecimal (base 16, used in the programming industry).
Question

Purely for curiosity's sake, why not set it to less than 15 minutes?

Arrogance

Top Answerer

There's a possibility that Microsoft could block you from the server if you send too many requests in a short amount of time.

Warnings

Keep in mind that it takes several seconds to synchronize the time. So, do not make the interval one second. This will cause unnecessary load to your computer, as it will be constantly running the synchronization program.

⧼thumbs_response⧽
Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0