Symmetricom NTS-200 Time Server - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: BloodyCactus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 12:58:12 am
content: So, I got an NTS-200 off ebay for an absolute score, in unworking condition. Seller said it would not find satellites and nothing worked. ok.So, it finds satellites just fine (it can take 10 minutes to acquire, thats not unusual, maybe seller thought it would be instant.. shrug)..so I finally got into the remote system and reset the passwords, now the last problem its like dealing with racal dana all over again... dead buttons! Under the rubber button, there was supposed to be some conductive material, but its all gummed up and nasty. I needto figure what I can do to replace it. :/ anyone got any ideas. At worst I could try and jury rig a tactile button replacement and fit the black rubber pad back over top of it.Here is the dead input board;

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 01:48:03 am
content: HiWhen you get it up and running, I suspect you will find that the GPS has the decade rollover bug and needs to be replaced. I would double check that before you go much further.Bob

author: BloodyCactus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 02:04:47 am
content: Ive had it working fine, just the front buttons dont work. had it tracking 6+ sats and feeding time to several devices on my network without issue.whats the decade rollover bug? pulling the version I get "Network Interface 182-9004v8.2 (c) 1998 - 2003 Symmetricom Inc." so its 8.2 (there is/was a 8.4 but nobody seems to have it).

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 02:22:01 am
content: HiThe wonderful people who defined the standard GPS messages did not consider gear that would be running for a long time. The assumption was that anything past a few years was about all that needed to be covered. They came up with a coding system that rolls over every 1024 weeks. A lot of gear only knows that it was built in some year and it must not be before than year. Once you get past 1024 weeks past that, it gets confused. Symmetricom had a problem with a bunch of the NTS boxes fairly recently. I have no idea if the 200 was in that group or not.Bob

author: BloodyCactus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 02:25:33 am
content: aah ok, so its an uptime bug. I was thinking it was like a y2k bug. I dont expect I'd have such serious 1024 WEEK uptimes, thats like 18+ years...as for time, its fine on this end

author: edpalmer42
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 03:11:38 am
content: I don't know about the 'gummy' part of your problem, but I recently fixed some bad conductive spots by slicing off the old ones and gluing on ones that I cut off of a surplus remote control. It works fine, just be sure that after the replacement the spots aren't going to short out the contacts.If you want to get official, I've seen actual repair kits for this type of buttons. I don't know of a source, but Google knows all!

author: BloodyCactus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 03:32:33 am
content: thanks, thats a neat hack glueing old remote buttons on. I did a continuty test on the button pad and whatever is on there is not conductive.

author: edpalmer42
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 03:59:54 am
content: Quote from: BloodyCactus on February 03, 2016, 03:32:33 amCheck carefully! We're not talking 0 ohms, more like 100s of ohms. Or maybe, the lack of continuity is the problem. The buttons I had to replace were like that.

author: Mr Smiley
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 04:44:58 am
content: You can get repair kits like thishttp://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Keypad-Button-Repair-Kit-for-TV-Remote-Controls-Rubber-Buttons-Cordless-Phones-/252160081827?hash=item3ab5e97fa3:g:ueQAAOSwQoFWPOuY

author: edpalmer42
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 04:52:06 am
content: Good link! A little more searching found this one:http://www.ebay.com/itm/262265110349Choose your size and quantity.These are much cheaper than the one I saw!

author: TheSteve
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 04:58:07 am
content: I have also repaired a keypad before using parts from an old calculator. If you have something on hand to sacrifice give it a shot, if not get a repair kit.

author: Mr Smiley
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 05:12:52 am
content: I repaired my next door neighbours sky remote a few years ago, as in your case, the conductive rubber had perished on his most used button. A quick fix was some silver foil ( Aluminium cooking foil ) and a paper punch. punched out a small round piece and glued it onto the back of the button, still going strong

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 03, 2016, 05:54:43 pm
content: Quote from: BloodyCactus on February 03, 2016, 02:25:33 amHiThat looks ok.Actually the problem manifests its self like a Y2K bug in most systems. The date magically leaps back 1024 weeks when the "expiration date" on the GPS module firmware hits. The modules in some of these gizmos have firmware that dates to the mid/late 90's even if the device firmware was done later. It's well worth checking (as you have done). Yes you could write firmware that was a bit smarter, unfortunately a lot of people did not. You can also do a better job with the GPS data. That change will be implemented with the launch of some new sat's "real soon now" (first it was 2005 then 20010 then 2015 then 2018 ...).Bob

author: BloodyCactus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 09, 2016, 01:59:05 am
content: Got one of those button replacement kits from ebay for $2 or something. Worked like a charm. Now my goal is to get 100ft of LMR-240 with a male BNC on one and and male TNC on the other so I can run it to the roof. I should probably run some string to make sure 100ft is sufficient. I think it should be.Right now its serving time as a startum 1 ntp server to everything on the network. very cool!

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 09, 2016, 02:38:40 am
content: Quote from: BloodyCactus on February 09, 2016, 01:59:05 amHiRG-6 quad shield will save you a ton of money over the LMR. You can likely get RG-11 cheaper as well. For a GPS receive antenna it's more about loss than match. Neither end (source or load) may be well terminated. If it's outdoors, make sure you get the outdoor rated stuff. (still cheaper than LMR).Bob

author: MonarkeIV
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2019, 01:13:29 pm
content: I know this topic is 120 days past, but I found a notice from Microsemi that apparently it's the Symmetricom TS2100 which has the Decade Rollover Bug.http://www.heoldesign.com/IMG/pdf/heol-tech_note_119_en_r02.pdfIn case the link becomes invalid, I'll also attached the notice file.

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 03, 2019, 01:51:43 pm
content: HiIt's a pretty good bet that *any* GPS based gear you buy surplus will have a 1024 week related issue. The problem has been pretty well known for 20 years now. Oddly enough, the only parts I've seen with really good fixes for the issue have come out in the last 5 years or so. Since those are raw GPS module parts, it will take a while for them to get into products. It will then take a while for those products to get into the surplus market.Bob

author: MonarkeIV
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2019, 04:01:13 pm
content: Quote from: uncle_bob on March 03, 2019, 01:51:43 pmIf this is the case then used GPS units from Spectracom and Symmetricom should be priced much lower on eBay (thinking door stop) than they currently are, considering firmware updates may not be available from Microsemi and Orolia...

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 03, 2019, 04:22:06 pm
content: HiMost of these outfits support firmware upgrades over a limited period of time. If you get those sort of fixes for a 5 year period after you purchased the device directly from them, you are doing pretty well. Outfits like Cisco would like you to sign up (and pay for) updates on most of their gear. Survey GPS gear is in the same bucket. Pay them a couple thousand dollars and you can get your four year old device updated to latest revision. Pay them a whole lot more and you can get it upgraded to the current feature set. The days of "free updates forever and ever" are long gone. (If such a thing ever was the case in the past ....).Bob

author: edpalmer42
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2019, 05:39:09 pm
content: Another thing that helps give older GPS units a helping hand is that the NTP software running on Windows or Linux can be patched to compensate for a rollover bug. The Trimble Thunderbolt went through this a couple of years ago. Once the bug surfaced, it took some months for the fix to work its way through to the publicly released software, but it did happen.Ed

author: uncle_bob
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: March 03, 2019, 05:43:23 pm
content: HiOne gotcha with an external "fix" for a rollover shows up when a leap second comes along. The firmware *expects* to apply it at the end of December or end of June based on the standards that apply. The problem is, the device no longer is correct when it looks at the date. What it thinks is June is no longer June. In some cases things work ok. In other cases ...errr .... not so much.Bob

author: edpalmer42
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2019, 06:20:33 pm
content: Quote from: uncle_bob on March 03, 2019, 05:43:23 pmIf that happens, it can be patched. No, it isn't an ideal solution, and it likely isn't possible for a closed source device like a Symmetricom server, but it's practical for some situations.Ed

author: fira4
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: April 01, 2019, 07:18:14 am
content: Quote from: MonarkeIV on March 03, 2019, 01:13:29 pmi have 2 unit NTS-200 up and running till now, does this type impacted with gps rollover bug?

author: b0bd
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: December 30, 2019, 07:03:08 pm
content: fira4 or anyone else,anyone been affected by the GPS rollover bug, in that their NTS-200 now thinks its April of 2000. Took me a while to realize why my local clocks were suddenly an hour off. A couple of other servers that are available on the internet have the same issue.workaround for now is unplug the antenna and configure ntp servers.

author: fira4
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 06:11:52 am
content: Quote from: b0bd on December 30, 2019, 07:03:08 pmYep, its reset to 2000.

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 11:53:46 am
content: We have one that reset to year 2000 just on midnight between December 24 and 25...UTC Time: 15:22:09UTC Date: 05/15/2000We have a quite old 8.0 firmware dating back to 2003GeneralBootloader: 182-9003v008Software Build: 182-9004v008File System Version: 182-9005v008I found out on some forums that many were updated to 8.2 and some to 8.4 firmware, but files are unavailable.Instead on microsemi extranet under login there's a 2008 update, but with no instructions and a weird bin file name inside the archive:Title Description DateNTS-200 (1.81)Software to upgrade the NTS-200 to 1.8110/30/2008182-9004v8.4ckpt1.81.zip

author: b0bd
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 01:55:54 pm
content: anenni,can you give me more details of where to get that file? do you need a login? I've flashed the NTS-200 before so this is quite hopeful

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 02:32:50 pm
content: You just have to register on microsemi to time sync systems here:https://my.microsemi.com/AWelcome/HomeRNew.aspxInside the zip there's only a single .bin file with the same name with square brackets, that seems weird, and no instrucrions at all.Old update instructions I found report other 2 files with extensions .fs and .btftp://anthonygregory.com/Upgrade%20to%20Firmware%20Version%208.x.pdf

author: b0bd
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 02:39:58 pm
content: looking at your instructions, I'd just burn the .bin using the instructions you supplied above:>f100 bh <FTP IP Address> <Filename>.binBurn host is ready!!!>f100 bu (Note: enter “bu”, not “bub”)and skip the>f100 bh <FTP IP Address> <Filename>.bt>f100 buband>f100 bh <FTP IP Address> <Filename>.fs>f100 bfparts.since its not working anyway, not much to lose

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 02:53:58 pm
content: I thought of just skipping the other files, but the bin long file name with square brackets and 3 dots worries me a bit for ftp transfer and old filesystem naming limits.182-9004v8.4ckpt1.81.binI opened a case and waiting.If you want to experiment please post results.

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 03:34:00 pm
content: There are a lot of microsemi/simmetrix with rollover date issuesTable 2 Discontinued ProductsFor the products listed in Table 3, These are Obsolete and unsupported products not affectedby the April 7th, 2019 GPS rollover event. Internal rollover is unknown for some. Please refer tonote column.Table 3 Obsolete ProductsProduct Line DescriptionsAffected PartNumbersInternalRollover DateNotesTimesource TS3x00090-72010-0x090-72020-0x090-72050-0x090-72060-0x10/21/2018 reference FSB 098-40621-95 for recommended actionTP 5000 IMC Card w/ Integrated GPS 090-50331-01 9/18/2022TP5000 IMC Card w/integrated GPS &exp cntl090-50331-02 9/18/20229/18/2022 GPS input2030 GNSS inputTP100 TP100 MODULE 090-95000-01 9/18/2022SyncServer 100 1520R-S100 (-xx) 9/18/2022SyncServer 200/2501520-S200 (-xx)1520R-S200 (-xx)1520-S250 (-xx)1520R-S250 (-xx)9/18/2022SyncServer 300/3501520-S300 (-xx)1520R-S300 (-xx)1520-S350 (-xx)1520R-S350 (-xx)9/18/2022XL GPS 1530-602-1 20269/18/2022 with GPS option module 87-8028-2 (Use Function 119 to verify receiver card)4/7/2019 with GPS option module 86-8013 (Use Function 119 to verify receiver card)SyncServerTimeProvider 5000TP5000 IMC Card w/dual GPS & exp cntl 090-50331-05GPS receiversXLi w/gps receiver 1510-6x2-xxx

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 03:36:14 pm
content: and more , see attached fileProduct Line Descriptions Part NumbersInternalRollover DateNotesbc11603-3001 unk If brought to last released EEPROM version per FSB 098-50620-77TTM637VME-xxxx unk If brought to last released EEPROM version per FSB 098-50620-76BC637PCI-U unk If updated to version 14 per FSB 098-50620-036XL AK XL-AK _151-60x unk Need to set Function 68 w/correct(2011) year infoXL-DC Xl-DC_151-6x2 unk Need to set Function 68 w/correct(2011) year infoET60x0 ET60x0 unk56000 Data Rate Clock 56K_560-5308-x unkTS2100-xxxx TS2100 2015 Rolled in 2015 reference - FSB 098-50620-819/16/2018 product shipped through 20049/18/2022 product shipped from 2005OEM Module GPS Timing Antenna58534A58534-H01GPS receiversBus Cards Time & Freq proc

author: b0bd
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 04:17:09 pm
content: Ok, I got it to take the file, unfortunately no life extension for me:UTC Time (UTC) 16:14:18UTC Date (UTC) 05/18/2000Pending LeapSecond Correction NONEI simply renamed the bin file to 182-9004v8.binCode:>f100 bh 172.31.90.132 pub/182-9004v8.binBurn host is ready!!!>f100 buAre you sure(y/N)?yBurning Prog1file: 182-9004v8.bin has NTS-200 :7Burning file 182-9004v8.bin with size 697140 to partition:1 sector:6Sec: 6 re: 0Sec: 7 re: 0Sec: 8 re: 0Sec: 9 re: 0Sec: 10 re: 0Sec: 11 re: 0Sec: 12 re: 0Sec: 13 re: 0Sec: 14 re: 0Sec: 15 re: 0Sec: 16 re: 0Flash successfully programmed CRC32 = 0x1E2E818>F100 K I L LAre you sure(y/N)?y>Connection closed by foreign host.>f100 verf100 VERBOOTLOADER 182-9003v8.4SOFTWARE 182-9004v8.4FILE SYSTEM 182-9005v8.4NVRAM VER 2

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 04:25:39 pm
content: Could you post the output of the command "f100 ver" to see the other files versions?

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 04:32:13 pm
content: Mine is:Bootloader: 182-9003v008Software Build: 182-9004v008File System Version: 182-9005v008But I found some having at least 2 items updated, so maybe there's a prerequisite version for updating just the bin file to the latest 2008 version.182-9004v8.2182-9005v8.2

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 04:34:58 pm
content: Didn't notice it was scrollable.So you have:BOOTLOADER 182-9003v8.4SOFTWARE 182-9004v8.4FILE SYSTEM 182-9005v8.4NVRAM VER 2But after a correct update at least the second item should change....Do you have by chance the old 8.4 update?

author: b0bd
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 04:56:03 pm
content: Quote from: anenni on January 02, 2020, 04:34:58 pmsorry, I don't have it, I did look

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 05:03:47 pm
content: neither the previous 8.2?

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 05:21:26 pm
content: By the way I'm not able to update that way:>f100 verf100 VERBOOTLOADER 182-9003v008SOFTWARE 182-9004v008FILE SYSTEM 182-9005v008NVRAM VER 2>f100 bh 172.16.11.24 182-9004v8.binBurn host is ready!!!>f100 buAre you sure(y/N)?yBurning Prog1Can't open file: 182-9004v8.binWrong File type

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 05:36:29 pm
content: Maybe without the bootloader update you can't update the software.And maybe you succeeded in writing the file because it's the same latest release v8.4 you already had.

author: b0bd
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 02, 2020, 09:08:41 pm
content: Quote from: anenni on January 02, 2020, 05:21:26 pmmake sure your ftp is set up for anonymous ftp. I fought through an hour of this. Ignore the 'wrong file type' and focus on the 'cant open file'

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 03, 2020, 07:07:36 pm
content: What a misleading error message.I checked anonymous was working, but the file had permission problems.thank you.Now I succeded and the system updated from v8.0 v8.4, and it updated all three itmes with the single bin file, but copyright year passed only from 2002 to 2003, changing company from truetime to Symmetricomyear 2008 from the microsemi file description was nowhere, and after the update gps date remained indentically wrong.they didn't even change truetime brand and copyright date on the web interfaceWelcome to TrueTime Network InterfaceUser name: operatorpassword: *******Network Interface 182-9004v008 (c) 1998 - 2002 TrueTime Inc.All Rights ReservedLogin successful> f100 bh 172.16.11.24 pub/182-9004v8.binBurn host is ready!!!> f100 buAre you sure(y/N)?yBurning Prog1file: 182-9004v8.bin has NTS-200 :7Burning file 182-9004v8.bin with size 697140 to partition:1 sector:6Sec: 6 re: 0Sec: 7 re: 0Sec: 8 re: 0Sec: 9 re: 0Sec: 10 re: 0Sec: 11 re: 0Sec: 12 re: 0Sec: 13 re: 0Sec: 14 re: 0Sec: 15 re: 0Sec: 16 re: 0Flash successfully programmed CRC32 = 0x1E2E818> f100 K I L LAre you sure(y/N)?yWelcome to Symmetricom Network InterfaceUser name: operatorpassword: *******Network Interface 182-9004v8.4 (c) 1998 - 2003 Symmetricom Inc.All Rights ReservedLogin successful> f100 verf100 VERBOOTLOADER 182-9003v8.4SOFTWARE 182-9004v8.4FILE SYSTEM 182-9005v8.4NVRAM VER 2SER NUM 024029586

author: InFoq
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 09, 2020, 09:34:19 am
content: Would anyone happen to know if inside the NTS-200 there might be a PPS (Pulse per second) test-point signal somewhere? (even if mine is giving the wrong 2000 date as NTP server, at least I might get some value out of using it for accurate time-span measurement?) thanx

author: b0bd
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 09, 2020, 03:53:31 pm
content: I opened it up to have a look at that kind of possibility. It uses a Zarlink GP2021 GPS Correlator, and data sheets are readily available on the Internet. I don't have an oscilloscope to probe the likely pins for a PPS signal though, so I just ordered a ublox GPS module and going to build a Raspberry Pi time source instead.

author: anenni
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2020, 09:14:32 pm
content: I'm wondering if a linux ntpd or other daemon between nts200 and clients can correct the gps epoch correctly.I read that there is such possibility with gpsd through a serial or usb port GPS.

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 12, 2020, 04:03:39 am
content: I"ve just started playing with this also and have a ebay unit coming soonit says in the listingBOOTLOADER 182-9003v8.4SOFTWARE 182-9004v8.4FILE SYSTEM 182-9005v8.4SER NUM SRNO:032840810I tried creating an account but it says "The Resource you are trying to access requires an Active Support Contract"can some one post the zip hereI'd like to look at it and see if there is a chance to hack itthe other think will be to read out the various memorys and try to hack it directly

author: gregorysch
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 13, 2020, 01:00:20 pm
content: Hello,I have got also a NTS-200. Is it possible that someone post the firmware in this forum?I created an account on Microsemi and requested the access but I didn't received any feedback.Thanks a lot,Greg.

author: SoundTech-LG
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 13, 2020, 04:01:46 pm
content: Well at least they can spam you now. Thank you Microsemi er... Microchip !!!

author: aol
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 15, 2020, 08:52:18 am
content: Hello,does anyone have the fs file? I have made a stupid thing, and my fs contains now bin partition.Thank you

author: InFoq
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 22, 2020, 11:55:27 pm
content: Quote from: b0bd on January 09, 2020, 03:53:31 pmOn the front bottom left of the front panel, there seems to be a flashing PPS green LED. Oscillopscope measurements seems to show that LED pulse is tracking my Adafruit PA6H GPS module's PPS but is creeping slowly between 5.2 ms to 0.7 ms behind the PA6H, but I am not sure which GPS is more accurate. Anyone else been able to confirm the accuracy of this LED as potential NTS-200 1 PPS signal? Thanks

author: ibjeepin
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 24, 2020, 05:17:00 pm
content: Quote from: anenni on January 02, 2020, 02:32:50 pmanenni, how did you get access to the file as it seems like its locked on the microsemi site.

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 27, 2020, 01:32:44 am
content: register on the website then try to download the file.it will tell you that you need approval, complete the request.they completed mine in a few days.I do have the files you get attached

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 27, 2020, 04:33:54 am
content: Just for a FYII ran the bin file thru binwalk and we can see theseroot@kali:~/Downloads# binwalk '182-9004v8.4ckpt1.81.bin'Code:DECIMAL HEXADECIMAL DESCRIPTION--------------------------------------------------------------------------------24 0x18 Copyright string: "Copyright 1999 TrueTime Inc. and Wind River Systems, Inc."22960 0x59B0 Copyright string: "Copyright 1984-1996 Wind River Systems, Inc."23553 0x5C01 Zlib compressed data, default compressioni extracted the zlib filedd if=182-9004v8.4ckpt1.81.bin skip=23553 bs=1 of=23553.zzdecompressed itunpigz 23553.zzroot@kali:~/Downloads# binwalk 23553Code:DECIMAL HEXADECIMAL DESCRIPTION--------------------------------------------------------------------------------303148 0x4A02C HTML document header304687 0x4A62F HTML document footer307184 0x4AFF0 HTML document header307591 0x4B187 HTML document footer1443260 0x1605BC VxWorks WIND kernel version "2.5"1456188 0x16383C Copyright string: "Copyright Wind River Systems, Inc., 1984-1999"1461152 0x164BA0 HTML document header1561621 0x17D415 Copyright string: "copyright_wind_river"1622016 0x18C000 Copyright string: "Copyright 1984-1996 Wind River Systems, Inc."1640900 0x1909C4 VxWorks symbol table, big endian, first entry: [type: function, code address: 0x789B0200, symbol address: 0x4C3F1800]looked at some stringsCode:/config/acts.conf/etc/ntp.conf/etc/ntp.keys/ramdrv/ntp.log/config/snmp.conf/config/truetime.conf/web/data/IndexPg.dat/web/data/ControlPg.dat/web/data/TimePg.dat/web/data/TimeContPg.dat/web/data/NetworkPg.dat/web/data/NetContPg.dat/web/data/SatPg.dat/web/data/SatContPg.dat/web/data/GpsPg.dat/web/data/GpsContPg.dat/web/data/ActsPg.dat/web/data/ActsContPg.dat/web/data/ActsConfPg.dat/web/data/NtpConfPg.dat/web/data/Md5ConfPg.dat/web/data/SnmpConfPg.dat/web/data/NtpLogPg.datntp-4.0.94ARM PID - ARM7TDMI (ARM)Osicom NET+ARM Ethernet driverJun 20 2008, 14:46:00WIND version 2.5]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] Development System]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] ]]]]] ]]] ]]]]]]] ] ]]]]]]] ]]]] ]]]] ]]]] ]]]]]]]]]]]] ]]]]] ] ]]]]]] ] ]]] ]]]] ]] ]]]] ]]]] ]]]] ]]]]]]]]]] ]]]]] ]]]]]] ] ]]]]] ]]]] ]] ]]]] ]]]]]]]] ]]]]]]]]] ] ]]]] ]]]]] ]]]]]]]] ]]]] ]] ]]]] ]]]]]]] ]]]]]]]] ]]] ]] ] ]]] ]] ]]]]] ]]]]]] ]] ]]]]]]] ]]]] ]] ]]]]]]] ]]]]] ] ]]] ] ]]]] ]]] ]]]]]]]]] ]]]] ]] ]]]] ]] ]]]]]]] ]]]]]]] ]]]]]]]] ]]]]]] ] ]] ]]]]] ]]]]]]]]] ]]]]]] ]]]]]]]] ]] ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] ]]]] ]]]]]]]]]] ]] ]]]] (R)]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] VxWorks version]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] KERNEL:]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] Copyright Wind River Systems, Inc., 1984-1999spy not configured into this system./bin/ls -a %s/bin/rm %scat: read error: Is a directory/bin/cat < %s/bin/cat > %sIP 4.4 TCP/IPIP 4.4 ARPxWorks (%s) FTP server readyLocal resource failure: %sDirectory non existent or syntax errorData connection errorParameter not acceptedCan't open passive connectionHELP USER PASS QUIT LIST NLSTRETR STOR CWD TYPE PORT PWDSTRU MODE ALLO ACCT PASV NOOPVxWorks login:Copyright 1984-1996 Wind River Systems, Inc.This program contains confidential information of Wind River Systems, Inc.and disclosure and copying are prohibited.

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 27, 2020, 04:59:47 am
content: Does any one have all the update files for any version of of the NTS-200?looks like there should be atleast 3bootloaderfilesystemand the main programmight help figuring more outI would really like the filesystem one. a look at etc/passwd would help and more importantly removing passwords from accounts where we don't know the passwords i think would be helpfull

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 27, 2020, 06:27:16 am
content: Adding a little more information herethe GPS systems in the NTS-200 is theGP2015/GP2021 and P60ARMThe GP2015 (RF Frontend) & GP2021(GPS 12 channel Correlator) process the GPS signal and pass it to the P60ARM (ARM Processor)the 1 PPS should be available on pin (32, 68 or 80 of the GP2021) depending on how the registers are setup.Will track down where this is available later.It also looks like the J11 connector is the JTAG connector for the P60ARM (Pins 67-71)Will figure out pin out later.my un-educated guess at this point is the code in the P60ARM is probably where any patch would occurattached are datasheets for the 3 component mentioned as well asphoto's of the componentsGP2015GP2021P60ARM

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 27, 2020, 06:34:17 am
content: Ran out of attachment room, here's the datasheets

author: composerjk
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 27, 2020, 05:34:40 pm
content: Quote from: smgvbest on January 27, 2020, 04:59:47 amAttached is a tar of the prior version 8.2 firmware files for the TrueTime NTS-200 from 2004. Hope they help. I may have at least a version before that, if helpful. [Updated the tar file to include the release notes and upgrade document.]

author: InFoq
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 28, 2020, 12:38:56 am
content: Quote from: smgvbest on January 27, 2020, 06:27:16 amafter satellite acquisition, I attempted to oscilloscope pins 1,32,68 and 80, but did not seem to get anything close to a 1 PPS signal with my existing firmware. Wonder how the front panel green flashing LED is derived...

author: fira4
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: January 28, 2020, 11:30:58 pm
content: after successful upgrade , date time still set to 2000, how to fix the timeCode:>F100 VERF100 VERBOOTLOADER 182-9003v8.4SOFTWARE 182-9004v8.4FILE SYSTEM 182-9005v8.4NVRAM VER 2SER NUM 044550681>F03F03 UTC 6/13/2000 23:29:49>

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 29, 2020, 02:36:10 am
content: i'll take a look at this and see if there's anything extra interesting

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 29, 2020, 02:57:57 am
content: so looking and reading more on this it's not going to a application firmware fix it's going to be the firmware shared by the GP2021/P60ARM they share SRAM and EPROM the GP2022 is the memory controler for the P60ARM if i read things correctlythat being case and this being the GPS WNRO issue where the Week Number is a 10bit value upto 1024 weeks what we have to find int he P60ARM code is where doe it calucate the week number of offset by the latest week number.They followed the dev system pretty much to a tee which helps. based on this the U39/U40 are the EPROMs and U19/U21 are the SRAM used by the GP2022/P60ARM and U22 may be the EEPROM from the memory map but not shown in the block diagram (this is only a guess until I open it p again)see attached app note on that and datasheet for the EPROM (need to verify though)Oh, Pin80 of the GP2021 is an INPUT not an outputan4855.pdf(793.11 kB - downloaded 281 times.)

author: fira4
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 04, 2020, 04:17:15 am
content: so there is no way to fix nts-200 ?

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 05, 2020, 01:14:45 am
content: don't know yet, I'm going to get dumps of the P60ARM EPROMs and take a look but I'm not a developer.I'll publish what I find here and maybe others will take interest and help

author: ibjeepin
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 07, 2020, 11:11:16 am
content: Sandra, thanks for putting in your time and brain into this problem. I know i dont have the energy to do this.

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 08, 2020, 09:36:39 pm
content: My thought/hope is I can fine where the GPS Week value is read in and basically add 1024 to it and see if that works. if so that would buy another 19+ yearsif not I read one way is to find where the base date is storedThe first GPS Date was January 6, 1980 and the first rollover was midnight August 21, 1999 so I am hoping to find the August date somewhere in the firmwareif that can be changed April 6, 2019 that might also fix it. but I'm truthfully not sure what I'll be able to figure out on thisthis is me just saving some links I found that I thought might be helpfulhttp://gnsstk.sourceforge.net/gps_8c-source.html#l00714http://www.telesens.co/2017/07/17/calculating-position-from-raw-gps-data/#Processing_Raw_GPS_Datahttps://www.unoosa.org/documents/pdf/icg/2018/ait-gnss/15a_PPP_RTKLIB.pdfhttps://www.gps.gov/technical/ps/1995-SPS-signal-specification.pdfhttps://sourceforge.net/projects/gnss-sdr/http://en.qi-hardware.com/wiki/GPS_Free_Stackhttp://www.rtklib.com/https://www.gps.gov/https://gogps-project.github.io/https://www.use-snip.com/kb/article-categories/message-decoding/https://www.gps.gov/technical/icwg/IS-GPS-200H.pdfFor reference Subframe 1-3 structureCode:------------------------------------------------------------------SUBFRAME1------------------------------------------------------------------TERM, NR BITS, BITS NO PARITY, BITS WITH PARITYpreamble, 8, 1-8, 1-8,TLM, 14, 9-22, 9-22reserved, 2, 23-24, 23-24--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30TOW, 17, 25-41, 31-47alert_flag, 1, 42, 48anti_spoof_flag, 1, 43, 49subframeID, 3, 44-46, 50-52parity_related, 2, 47-48, 53-54--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30week, 10, 49-58, 61-70code_on_L2, 2, 59,60, 71-72ura, 4, 61-64, 73-76health, 6, 65-70, 77-82iodc_MSB, 2, 71-72, 83-84--PARITY-- 6, ----- 85-90L2_P_data_flag, 1, 73, 91reserved, 23, 74-96, 92-114--PARITY-- 6, ----- 115-120reserved, 24, 97-120, 121-144--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30reserved, 24, 121-144, 151-174--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30reserved, 16, 145-160, 181-196tgd, 8, 161-168, 197-204--PARITY-- 6, ----- 205-210iodc_LSB, 8, 169-176, 211-218toc, 16, 177-192, 219-234--PARITY-- 6, ----- 235-240af2, 8, 193-200, 241-248af1, 16, 201-216, 249-264--PARITY-- 6, ----- 265-270af0, 22, 217-238, 271-292parity_related, 2, 239-240, 293-294--PARITY-- 6, ----- 295-300------------------------------------------------------------------SUBFRAME2------------------------------------------------------------------TERM, NR BITS, BITS NO PARITY, BITS WITH PARITYpreamble, 8, 1-8, 1-8,TLM, 14, 9-22, 9-22reserved, 2, 23-24, 23-24--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30TOW, 17, 25-41, 31-47alert_flag, 1, 42, 48anti_spoof_flag, 1, 43, 49subframeID, 3, 44-46, 50-52parity_related, 2, 47-48, 53-54--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30iode, 8, 49-56, 61-68crs, 16, 57-72, 69-84--PARITY-- 6, ----- 95-90delta_n, 16, 73-88, 91-106m0_MSB, 8, 89-96, 107-114--PARITY-- 6, ----- 115-120m0_LSB, 24, 97-120, 121-144--PARITY-- 6, ----- 145-150cuc, 16, 121-136, 151-166ecc_MSB, 8, 137-144, 167-174--PARITY-- 6, ----- 175-180ecc_LSB, 24, 145-168, 181-204--PARITY-- 6, ----- 205-210cus, 16, 169-184, 211-226sqrta_MSB, 8, 185-192, 227-234--PARITY-- 6, ----- 235-240sqrta_LSB, 24, 193-216, 241-264--PARITY-- 6, ----- 265-270toe, 16, 217-232, 271-286fit_interval_flag, 1, 233, 287age_of_data_offset, 5, 234-238, 288-292parity_related, 2, 239-240, 293-294--PARITY-- 6, ----- 295-300------------------------------------------------------------------SUBFRAME3------------------------------------------------------------------TERM, NR BITS, BITS NO PARITY, BITS WITH PARITYpreamble, 8, 1-8, 1-8,TLM, 14, 9-22, 9-22reserved, 2, 23-24, 23-24--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30TOW, 17, 25-41, 31-47alert_flag, 1, 42, 48anti_spoof_flag, 1, 43, 49subframeID, 3, 44-46, 50-52parity_related, 2, 47-48, 53-54--PARITY-- 6, ----- 25-30cic, 16, 49-64, 61-76omega0_MSB, 8, 65-72, 77-84--PARITY-- 6, ----- 85-90omega0_LSB, 24, 73-96, 91-114--PARITY-- 6, ----- 115-120cis, 16, 97-112, 121-136i0_MSB, 8, 113-120, 137-144--PARITY-- 6, ----- 145-150i0_LSB, 24, 121-144, 151-174--PARITY-- 6, ----- 175-180crc, 16, 145-160, 181-196w_MSB, 8, 161-168, 197-204--PARITY-- 6, ----- 205-210w_LSB, 24, 169-192, 211-234--PARITY-- 6, ----- 235-240omegadot, 24, 193-216, 241-264--PARITY-- 6, ----- 265-270iode, 8, 217-224, 271-278idot, 14, 225-238, 279-292parity_related, 2, 239-240, 293-294------------------------------------------------------------------

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 10, 2020, 01:30:30 am
content: Here's the JP11 JTAG Pinout for the P60ARM Processor

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 10, 2020, 01:35:03 am
content: This is the full view of the P60ARM JTAG connectorthe EPROMs used for the P60ARM Processor at AT27C516 (32Kx16) These are U39 & U40And their datasheetAT27C516.pdf(270.29 kB - downloaded 150 times.)

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 10, 2020, 01:37:25 am
content: Here's the Full View of the Main Board front

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 10, 2020, 01:39:38 am
content: Back side of the Main Board (nothing to see here except a unpopulated memory footprint

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 10, 2020, 01:44:08 am
content: Next are some of the chips with labels so we know what they areLattice GAL16V8D @ U22and datasheetGAL16V8.pdf(761.38 kB - downloaded 70 times.)XILINIX 1765EPC @ U4and datasheetXC1765EPC.pdf(248.7 kB - downloaded 234 times.)

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 10, 2020, 01:50:01 am
content: Here's another one of the Lattice chips, the GAL22LV10C @ U15and it's datasheetGAL22LV10D.PDF(588.45 kB - downloaded 120 times.)

author: acfnews
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 16, 2020, 02:37:24 pm
content: Sandra (et all),I also have a NTS-200 (on a remote site), which I'm eager to get fixed as the time on this unit is also affected by the week-rollover issue.I will pick this unit up for some debugging on this.Hopefully we can get this fixed, seems like a lot of people still have this unit...Ron

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 18, 2020, 01:29:11 pm
content: I looks like you can use a AT49F1025 to replace the EPROMs on the NTS-200. They are pin compatible with 1 extra address line (A15) that on the AT27F516 is a NC pin.this will make testing code changes easier as the chip can be reflashed as needed unlike the 27F516 which is OTP

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 19, 2020, 12:00:12 am
content: if I'm lucky I finally found the NET+40 hardware reference manual and datasheet (more of a marketing sheet)see attached73-NET-40-QIPRO-4.pdf(4343.89 kB - downloaded 139 times.)93600.pdf(175.72 kB - downloaded 168 times.)

author: BloodyCactus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: February 19, 2020, 03:25:33 am
content: Just noticed this, from my original post my nts-200 is now toast. its weird, its rollover occured very early january I think or something. My machines started saying it was 2006 :/I guess these things are basically paperweights now... shame.

author: YetAnotherTechie
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 20, 2020, 08:36:27 pm
content: Hello,I've been following this thread and just have to ask...I saw on one of the datasheets above that the timing accuracy is at least 150ns plus a few millis once you add the other network overheads. There's been a lot of progress on GPS chipsets in the last 20(!) years, have you considered using a modern timing unit like ublox M8T and say a raspberry pi or similar?Don't get me wrong, i know and love fixing old gear, but i also consider the performance of the fixed unit and the usefulness of the knowledge i gain repairing it, and to me this units seem like a bad proposition?

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 22, 2020, 10:58:37 pm
content: I have and use a Pi3 + ublox as a stratum 1 time source with fall back to ntp servers as a Stratum 2 time source. My usage is in Astronomy and keeping my PC set so that images have a accurate timestamp.for me this is a fun problem to solve, Just wanted to see if I could do it while learning some reverse engineering techniques.

author: acfnews
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 23, 2020, 09:30:09 am
content: Hi,Also totally aware of the (better) possibilities of other hardware. The remote site where the NTS-200 was located also has a newer GPS stratum1 timeserver used in an IoT gateway. The NTS-200 has more emotional value than technical value, and still I think messing around with it is a learning process...Best regards,Ron

author: smgvbest
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 04, 2020, 09:04:34 am
content: I have not fixed mine yet.I am convinced until you resolve the incorrect time coming from the P60ARM/GPS you're not going to have a reliable fix.Problem I have is my EPROM read does not read the 16bit eproms used by this controller nor does the JTAG interface support reading them from what I can tell. it has a limited JTAG version 1 implementation.I'm not a JTAG expert but even if I could get a dump of the memory i have no way to write new eproms.I did find the AT49F1025 are a pin compatible replacement but are also very hard to find and my programmer does not support them either. the 8 bit version yes, not the 16 bit version

author: InFoq
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: December 26, 2020, 07:15:11 am
content: Quote from: anenni on January 09, 2020, 09:14:32 pmnot a solution for everyone...but it was not too difficult to program NFQUEUE processes in C on my linux (running ntpd client) to do the timestamp offset corrections in each traffic direction. Turned out simplicity of NTP protocol being self-unaware enough to allow this to work quite well! Not sure how non-deterministic the OS's NFQUEUE mechanism is, but NTP's PLL corrections should not be much worse than for other worst-case internetworking jitters... E.g. MitM mangling set-top-box protocol:https://xakcop.com/post/mitm-stb/

author: Uky
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: December 21, 2024, 01:47:17 pm
content: Reviving this thread, I picked up one of these NTS-150'son a flea market.While the unit is indead dead regarding the date roll over,I am considering using it as a 1 second (precision) source...It does find a lot of satellites and are able to track many of them.Time is correct (but not date).Has anyone been able to figure out a signal on the PCBthat can be used as a source? There are two LED's flashingwith 1pps ... but they do this also with no antenna connected...Ulf