[lug] NTP Configuration

[Jonathan Briggs]

The ntpdate program does not use /etc/ntp.conf.  You must specify the 
server to use on the command line.

If you got xntpd or ntpd as part of a package it should have come with 
an init script.  The init script on RedHat is set to read 
/etc/ntp/step-tickers to run ntpdate.  After running ntpdate to set the 
time, it then starts ntpd to _keep_ the time syncronized.  ntpd is what 
uses the /etc/ntp.conf file.

And speaking of /etc/ntp.conf, some packages are configured to put all 
the configuration for NTP inside the /etc/ntp/ directory, so you might 
need to put the file at /etc/ntp/ntp.conf

If you're on a dial-up connection, you don't get a lot of benfit from 
running ntpd (unless you want to syncronize other computers inside your 
home network), and you should probably modify your ip-up scripts to call 
ntpdate when the connection comes up.


Glenn Murray wrote:

>No luck, the /etc/ntp.conf
>
>server time-c.timefreq.bldrdoc.gov
>#server time-b.timefreq.bldrdoc.gov
>#server time-a.timefreq.bldrdoc.gov
>server time.nist.gov
>server utcnist.colorado.edu
>driftfile /var/lib/ntp/ntp.drift
>#dirfitfile /etc/ntp/drift
>authenticate no
>
>still gives 
>
>$ sudo ntpdate -v  
>26 Sep 09:14:07 ntpdate[556]: no servers can be used, exiting   
>
>Did you actually mean "dirfitfile"?
>
>Thanks for any help,
>Glenn Murray
>www.mines.edu/~gmurray/public_html/Welcome.html
>
>On Fri, 14 Sep 2001, Hugh Brown wrote:
>
>>I have had success just using
>>
>>server servername1
>>server servername2
>>server servername3
>>server servername4
>>dirfitfile /etc/ntp/drift
>>authenticate no
>>
>>for my ntp.conf
>>
>>Hugh
>>
>
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