SAP Basis Tech Supports

Symptom

On Windows Server 2003, SAP high resolution timer delivers incorrect values. There are the following symptoms:
Developer traces contain a lot of warnings:
M *** WARNING => endtime (1177209745/443095)
before starttime (1177209745/709153)sapntchk.exe delivers the following log information:
Fast CPU timers : Not Synchronized
OS timers : Not Synchronized
ERROR : OS timers ‘QueryPerformanceCounter’ must be synchronized. Ask your hardware vendor for HAL update.

Other terms

AMD, X2, Opteron, Dual Core, Quad Core, Processor Driver, timers, sapntchk, QueryPerformanceCounter, /usepmtimer
Reason and Prerequisites

The SAP ABAP kernel uses the WIN32 API QueryPerformanceCounter / QueryPerformanceFrequency function to calculate high resolution timestamps. Windows uses by default processor counters that increase with the processor frequency. The “cool and quiet” technology from AMD varies this frequency depending on the processor load. In this environment these registers are not synchronized between the processors, and the timestamps are no longer useable for our purpose.
Solution

Before you install the SAP system on any Windows Server 2003 platform, download and install the latest processor drivers for your CPU from your hardware vendor’s site:
http://support.amd.com
The processor driver ensures that QueryPerformanceCounter uses appropriate sources.
Alternatively set key /usepmtimer in boot.ini.
Known issues: SQL Server 2005 might be affected from inaccurate CPU frequencies. For more information, see MS KB 931279, 938448, 895980.