Time out of sync Windows 7 guest/OpensSuse 15.4 host

Discussions about using Windows guests in VirtualBox.
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rick71
Posts: 3
Joined: 20. Apr 2023, 14:05

Time out of sync Windows 7 guest/OpensSuse 15.4 host

Post by rick71 »

My host system is OpenSuse 15.4 Linux, fully updated. The guest system is Windows 7, fully updated. The time in the guest is not synching properly. It moves between 1-3 seconds behind to 1-3 seconds ahead. This seems to be the cause of malfunctions in a program (WSJT-X) that is very time sensitive. I have a XUbuntu Linux guest installed with no problems. Can anyone advise on what to adjust, or any other information I need to provide for trouble shooting,
Thanks
scottgus1
Site Moderator
Posts: 20965
Joined: 30. Dec 2009, 20:14
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Windows, Linux

Re: Time out of sync Windows 7 guest/OpensSuse 15.4 host

Post by scottgus1 »

Start the VM from full normal shutdown, not save-state. Run until you see the problem happen, then shut down the VM from within the VM's OS if possible. If not possible, close the Virtualbox window for the VM with the Power Off option set.

Right-click the VM in the main Virtualbox window's VM list, choose Show in Explorer/Finder/File Manager. In the "Logs" subfolder, zip the VM's "vbox.log", and post the zip file, using the forum's Upload Attachment tab. (Configure your host OS to show all extensions so you can find the "vbox.log", not "vbox.log.1", etc.)
rick71
Posts: 3
Joined: 20. Apr 2023, 14:05

Re: Time out of sync Windows 7 guest/OpensSuse 15.4 host

Post by rick71 »

VBox.log.zip is attached...
I hope :-)
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scottgus1
Site Moderator
Posts: 20965
Joined: 30. Dec 2009, 20:14
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Windows, Linux

Re: Time out of sync Windows 7 guest/OpensSuse 15.4 host

Post by scottgus1 »

The VM could use another processor, it only has 1 now, and sluggishness could happen. Set to 2 processors.

There are vboxmanage commands that adjust how the time sync works with the host, but I don't know what these commands' results look like in the log. Do you recall running any commands shown in the manual here: https://www.virtualbox.org/manual/ch09. ... une-timers

If rock-solid timing is necessary for the app, getting it from a VM may be iffy. VMs are known to be not 100% on steady time, since it is the host that must do what the VM wants, and the host may be busy for a moment. Only problem is the VM OS doesn't know this, so all it sees is "where's my time going?"

I'd lean toward reconfiguring your Windows 7 VM OS to get time sync from the internet instead of the host. This vboxmanage command should disable host time sync:

VBoxManage setextradata <VM-name> "VBoxInternal/Devices/VMMDev/0/Config/GetHostTimeDisabled" 1

Your VM appears to have a Host-Only adapter. You can add a NAT adapter, or change the Host-Only to Bridged, to get internet into the VM, then configure for an internet time server.

Antivirus in the VM OS shouldn't necessarily be required, as long as you don't go browsing the web in it. Disable Windows updates, too, to stop that traffic.
rick71
Posts: 3
Joined: 20. Apr 2023, 14:05

Re: Time out of sync Windows 7 guest/OpensSuse 15.4 host

Post by rick71 »

I increased cpus to 2.
The network card is already bridged.
Time is set to be acquired from time.nist.gov in the guest vm. I will look at the timing command you posted.
With the new cpu, the time starts out correctly, and goes to 2 seconds fast.
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