The timer frequency indicates the timer precision and resolution. For example, a timer frequency of 2 million ticks per second equals a timer resolution of 500 nanoseconds per tick. In other words, because one second equals 1 billion nanoseconds, a timer frequency of 2 million ticks per second is equivalent to 2 million ticks per 1 billion nanoseconds, which can be further simplified to 1 tick per 500 nanoseconds.

The Frequency value depends on the resolution of the underlying timing mechanism. If the installed hardware and operating system support a high-resolution performance counter, then the Frequency value reflects the frequency of that counter. Otherwise, the Frequency value is based on the system timer frequency.

Because the Stopwatch frequency depends on the installed hardware and operating system, the Frequency value remains constant while the system is running.

The following example displays the frequency and resolution of a Stopwatch timer. This code example is part of a larger example provided for the Stopwatch class.

Public Shared Sub DisplayTimerProperties()

   ' Display the timer frequency and resolution.
   If Stopwatch.IsHighResolution Then
      Console.WriteLine("Operations timed using the system's high-resolution performance counter.")
   Else
      Console.WriteLine("Operations timed using the DateTime class.")
   End If

   Dim frequency As Long = Stopwatch.Frequency
   Console.WriteLine("  Timer frequency in ticks per second = {0}", frequency)
   Dim nanosecPerTick As Long = 1000000000 / frequency
   Console.WriteLine("  Timer is accurate within {0} nanoseconds", nanosecPerTick)

End Sub

Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP SP2, Windows XP Media Center Edition, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Starter Edition, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2000 SP4, Windows Millennium Edition, Windows 98, Windows CE, Windows Mobile for Smartphone, Windows Mobile for Pocket PC, Xbox 360, Zune

.NET Framework

.NET Compact Framework

XNA Framework

Reference