Controlling synchronization of audit actions

The CMS controls the synchronization of audit actions that occur on different machines. The CMS periodically broadcasts its system time to the auditees in UTC (Coordinated Universal Time). The auditees compare this time to their internal clocks, and then make the appropriate correction to the time stamp (in UTC) they record for subsequent audit actions. This correction affects only the time stamp that the auditee records in its audit log file. The auditee does not adjust the system time of the machine on which it is running.

By default, the CMS broadcasts its system time every 60 minutes. You can change the interval using the command-line option
-AuditeeTimeSyncInterval minutes

You can turn off this option by setting minutes to zero. For more information, see Crystal Management Server in Server Command Lines.

This built-in method of time synchronization will be accurate enough for most applications. For more accurate and robust time synchronization, configure the auditee and auditor machines to use an NTP (Network Time Protocol) client, and then turn off internal synchronization by setting
-AuditeeTimeSyncInterval 0

Tip:    If you have a CMS cluster, apply the same command-line options to each server. Only one CMS in the cluster acts as the auditor. However, if this CMS fails, another CMS takes over auditing. This CMS will apply its own command-line options. If these options are different than those of the original auditor, audit behavior may not be what you expect.

Related topics

• Server Command Lines