MikroTik NTP Server and Client Configuration

Table of Contents

1. Prerequisites
2. NTP Server Configuration
3. NTP Client Configuration
4. Verification and Troubleshooting
5. Conclusion

Prerequisites

• A MikroTik router with the latest stable version of RouterOS installed.
• Basic familiarity with MikroTik’s WinBox or CLI interface.
• Access to a reliable upstream NTP server (if setting up a client).

MikroTik NTP Server Configuration

Follow these steps to configure your MikroTik router as an NTP server:

Step 1: Enable the NTP Server Package

First, ensure the NTP server package is installed and enabled. For RouterOS 7.x, the NTP server feature is built into the system:

/system/ntp/server/set enabled=yes

Step 2: Configure NTP Server Options

You can optionally define which interfaces should accept NTP requests and specify access restrictions. Example:

/system/ntp/server/set enabled=yes
/system/ntp/server/set multicast=yes
/system/ntp/server/set broadcast-addresses=192.168.88.255

Replace 192.168.88.255 with the broadcast address of your network.

MikroTik NTP Client Configuration

To configure your MikroTik device as an NTP client, follow these steps:

Step 1: Set Up the NTP Client

Use the following command to enable the NTP client and specify upstream servers:

/system/ntp/client/set enabled=yes
/system/ntp/client/servers/add address=pool.ntp.org
/system/ntp/client/servers/add address=0.europe.pool.ntp.org

Replace pool.ntp.org with the address of a reliable NTP server if needed.

Step 2: Configure Time Zone

Set your local time zone using the following command:

/system/clock/set time-zone-name=Europe/London

Replace Europe/London with your appropriate time zone.

Verification and Troubleshooting

Check the Current Time

Run the following command to ensure the time is synchronized correctly:

/system/clock/print

Check NTP Status

To verify the NTP client status:

/system/ntp/client/print

Common Issues

• Incorrect Time: Ensure the upstream NTP server is reachable.
• Firewall Rules: Verify that UDP port 123 is not blocked by any firewall rule.

Conclusion

By configuring your MikroTik router as an NTP server or client, you ensure accurate time synchronization across your network. This improves logging accuracy, network reliability, and device coordination. Feel free to experiment and adapt these configurations to your specific network needs.