The Cisco switch must be configured to synchronize its clock with the primary and secondary time sources using redundant authoritative time sources.
Severity | Group ID | Group Title | Version | Rule ID | Date | STIG Version |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| medium | V-220498 | SRG-APP-000373-NDM-000298 | CISC-ND-001030 | SV-220498r1026071_rule | 2025-02-27 | 3 |
| Description |
|---|
| The loss of connectivity to a particular authoritative time source will result in the loss of time synchronization (free-run mode) and increasingly inaccurate time stamps on audit events and other functions. Multiple time sources provide redundancy by including a secondary source. Time synchronization is usually a hierarchy; clients synchronize time to a local source while that source synchronizes its time to a more accurate source. The network device must utilize an authoritative time server and/or be configured to use redundant authoritative time sources. This requirement is related to the comparison done in CCI-001891. DOD-approved solutions consist of a combination of a primary and secondary time source using a combination or multiple instances of the following: a time server designated for the appropriate DOD network (NIPRNet/SIPRNet); United States Naval Observatory (USNO) time servers; and/or the Global Positioning System (GPS). The secondary time source must be located in a different geographic region than the primary time source. |
| ℹ️ Check |
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| Review the Cisco switch configuration to verify it is compliant with this requirement as shown in the configuration example below: ntp server 10.1.12.10 ntp server 10.1.22.13 If the Cisco switch is not configured to synchronize its clock with redundant authoritative time sources, this is a finding. |
| ✔️ Fix |
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| Configure the Cisco switch to synchronize its clock with redundant authoritative time sources as shown in the example below: SW1(config)# feature ntp SW1(config)# ntp server 10.1.12.10 SW1(config)# ntp server 10.1.22.13 SW1(config)# end |