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Q154409: Setting WINS Clients Refresh Intervals to Occur Infrequently

Article: Q154409
Product(s): Windows for Workgroups and Windows NT Networking Issues
Version(s): 3.5,3.51,4.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbnetwork
Last Modified: 11-JUN-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Windows NT Workstation versions 3.5, 3.51, 4.0 
- Microsoft Windows NT Server versions 3.5, 3.51, 4.0 
- Microsoft Windows for Workgroups 
- Microsoft TCP/IP-32 for Windows for Workgroups 
- Microsoft Windows 95 
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IMPORTANT: This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q256986 Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry

SUMMARY
=======

If you want to set a Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS) client to refresh
its names with the WINS server infrequently, you must make a change in the
registry (or System.ini file if you are using Windows for Workgroups 3.11).

MORE INFORMATION
================

In environments with Dial-on-Demand routers, frequent name refreshes may create
undesirable router traffic that can be limited by adding a static entry for the
client in WINS.

When a WINS client is started, it sends its name registrations to the WINS
server. If the WINS server is across a Dial-on-Demand router, the router dials.

The WINS client then sends a refresh request of its name to the WINS server. The
first attempt to send the refresh request occurs when one-eighth of its
InitialRefreshTimeout interval expires. By default, the value for the
InitialRefreshTimeout is 960,000 ms (or 16 minutes), and one-eighth of that
value is 2 minutes.

The minimum value for this registry entry is 960,000 ms, so it is impossible to
prevent the refresh request from occurring. Setting the value in the registry to
0xffffffff defines the interval for the refresh request, or one-eighth of the
IntitialRefreshTimeout, to approximately 50 days.

Once a WINS server receives the refresh request from the WINS client across the
router, the WINS server returns a refresh response. The server's refresh
response includes the client's renewal interval, which the client uses to
determine the wait time before its next refresh request. This is determined by
one-eighth of the renewal interval (which by default is 96 hours, so the next
refresh will occur in 12 hours).

You can change the value if the InitialRefreshTimeout setting according to your
needs. For more information on where you can change this parameter, see the
section below for your version of Windows.

Windows NT
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WARNING: If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems
that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot
guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor
incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For computers running Windows NT Server or Windows NT Workstation, you can change
the registry entry for InitialRefreshTimeout. It is located in the following
registry key:

  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\NetBt\Parameters
  InitialRefreshT.O. REG_DWORD
  Range : 960,000 to 0xFFFFFFF milliseconds
  Default: 960,000 (16 minutes)

This parameter specifies the initial refresh timeout used by NetBIOS over TCP/IP
(NBT) during name registration. NBT tries to contact the WINS servers at
one-eighth of this time interval when it first registers names. When it receives
a successful registration response, that response contains the new refresh
interval to use.

Windows for Workgroups 3.11
---------------------------

For computers running Windows for Workgroups 3.11, you can add the following line
to the [NBT] section of the System.ini file:

InitialRefreshT.O.=<value in milliseconds>

Windows 95
----------

For computers running Windows 95, you can change the registry entry for
InitialRefreshTimeout. It is located in the following registry key:

  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\MSTCP
  InitialRefreshTimeout: REG_DWORD: milliseconds

Additional query words: networking dun ras

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Keywords          : kbnetwork 
Technology        : kbWinNTsearch kbWinNTWsearch kbWinNTW400 kbWinNTW400search kbWinNT351search kbWinNT350search kbWinNT400search kbWinNTW350 kbWinNTW350search kbWinNTW351search kbWinNTW351 kbWinNTSsearch kbWinNTS400search kbWinNTS400 kbWinNTS351 kbWinNTS350 kbWinNTS351search kbWinNTS350search kbAudDeveloper kbWin95search kbTCPIPSearch kbWFWSearch kbZNotKeyword3
Version           : :3.5,3.51,4.0

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