To provide synchronizing methods, optical switch modules, center devices, remote devices, optical access systems, optical access networks, programs, and recording media in the optical access network which can give the connection start time of the upstream optical switching element of the optical switch module. To the optical switch module, ranging functions are provided and the center device OLU carries out ranging of the optical switch module OSM as is the case of ranging of the remote device ONU. The center device OLU transmits the difference between roundtrip time of the remote device ONU and roundtrip time of optical switch module OSM, which is the result of these rangings, to the optical switch module OSM, and the optical switch module OSM can obtain the contact start time of the upstream optical switching element by calculating the contact start time using the difference.