Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Control Components and Device Management Guide, Releases 26.x and Later

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Configuring a router as an NTP primary

Updated: June 9, 2026

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Describes methods for configuring a router as an NTP primary.

Configure a router as an NTP primary using templates

Configure a router to operate as an NTP primary using templates.

You can configure one or more supported routers as an NTP primary router in a Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN deployment. A router that is configured in this way acts as the NTP server to which other nodes in the deployment synchronize their clocks.

Configuring a router as an NTP primary router is useful if you do not have an NTP server in your deployment.

To configure a router as an NTP primary router, create a template that includes configured parameters for the NTP primary router.

Before you begin

Follow these steps to configure a router to operate as an NTP primary.

Procedure

	1.	From the Cisco SD-WAN Manager menu, choose Configuration > Templates.
	2.	Create a new Cisco NTP feature template or edit an existing one. To create a new Cisco NTP feature template, click Feature Templates, click Add Template, select the type of device to be the NTP primary router, and then select the Cisco NTP template in the Basic Information section. To update an existing Cisco NTP feature template, click Feature Templates, click ... adjacent to a template, and select Edit.
	3.	For a new template, enter a name and description.
	4.	In the Master tab, perform these steps: For the Master option, choose Global from the drop-down list, and then select On. (Optional) In the Stratum field, enter the stratum value for the NTP primary router, which is the hierarchical distance of the router from its reference clock. Range: 1 to 15 Default: 8 (Optional) In the Source field, enter the name of the exit interface for NTP communication. If configured, the system sends NTP traffic to this interface. Examples: GigabitEthernet1, Loopback0
	5.	Click Save for a new template, or Update if updating an existing template.

Configure a router as an NTP primary using CLI commands

Configure NTP using CLI commands in a CLI add-on profile or CLI add-on template.

These CLI instructions are not comprehensive.

Configuring a router as an NTP primary router is useful if you do not have an NTP server in your deployment.

Before you begin

Perform these steps to configure NTP settings using CLI commands.

Procedure

	1.	Create a CLI add-on profile or CLI add-on template.
	2.	Use ntp master to configure a device as primary. Optionally, include a stratum value for the NTP primary router. The stratum value defines the hierarchical distance of the router from its reference clock. For stratum-number : Range: 1 to 15 Default: 8 `ntp master [stratum-number]`
	3.	(Optional) Use ntp source to configure an NTP source, which is an exit interface for NTP communication. If configured, the system sends NTP traffic to this interface. Examples for source-interface : GigabitEthernet1, Loopback0 `ntp source source-interface`

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