Computer Network Time Synchronization: The Network Time Protocol

What started with the sundial has, thus far, been refined to a level of precision based on atomic resonance: Time. Our obsession with time is evident in this continued scaling down to nanosecond resolution and beyond. But this obsession is not without warrant. Precision and time synchronization are critical in many applications, such as air traffic control and stock trading, and pose complex and important challenges in modern information networks.

Penned by David L. Mills, the original developer of the Network Time Protocol (NTP), Computer Network Time Synchronization: The Network Time Protocol takes a broad look at the architecture, protocols, and algorithms involved in time dissemination, distribution, and synchronization. Focused on the fourth generation of NTP, Mills' magnum opus gives an in-depth configuration and performance analysis of typical deployed NTP networks as well as a detailed error budget showing the influence of network and computer delay variations on accuracy. Mills demonstrates the algorithms used to select measurements accessed via diverse pathways to achieve the best accuracy, addresses security issues in depth, and describes the engineering principles underlying NTP architecture and timestamping exchange procedures.

Opening the door to highly precise time synchronization in both public and private networks, Computer Network Time Synchronization offers in-depth analysis, theory, and practical concerns in a unified and authoritative reference.

...a valuable book for those that are serious about network time synchronization. David Mills, the author of the book, is one of the pillars of the network time synchronization community, and an original developer of the IETF-based network time protocol (NTP). The book is the summation of his decades of experience and a detailed look at how to use NTP to achieve highly accurate time on your network. ...clearly the indisputable reference on the subject, given its extraordinary depth and breadth.

...For those that are simply interested in how time synchronization works, or are responsible for time synchronization in their organization, Computer Network Time Synchronization: The Network Time Protocol is the most comprehensive guide available to using NTP. For those that need an exhaustive tome on all of the minutiae related to NTP and synchronization, this is the source. Short of a vendor and product analysis, the book covers every detail within NTP and is the definitive title on the subject. ...this book should be considered the last word on the topic.
-- Ben Rothke on Slashdot.org

This is the bible of the subject....it contains enough information to take you just as far as you want to go....Dr. Mills is the original developer of NTP.
Books On-Line June 21, 2006