[ntp:questions] ntpdate removal is coming

Harlan Stenn stenn at ntp.org
Tue Dec 13 23:35:00 UTC 2011


Richard wrote:
[much elided]

> Like it or not, NTPD, when started, will need up to TEN HOURS to
> settle down with the best time that you are going to get!  This is not
> a hardship if you run NTPD 24x365 (366 in leap years).  If you have to
> shutdown frequently and can't wait for NTPD to reach steady state then
> NTP is the wrong tool for you!

You say this as if it is necessarily a bad thing.

NTP is *careful* about choosing reference time.  It acts conservatively.

There are a bunch of folks who consider this to be a feature.

Are you implying that before ntpd gets "the best time that you are going
to get" that the actual time on the box is inadequate?

In that interim, is the time "bad" or are the error numbers just
shrinking?

> There is at least one other program that offers faster startup.  To 
> really understand the trade offs you would need to understand control 
> system theory.  If you can follow the math, Dave Mills wrote the book on 
> NTP.
> 
> BTW, is your return key broken?  The paragraph beginning
> "An IT tech . . ." is rendered by my news reader as a single line, 
> several hundred character long!

Richard, I would similary appreciate your eliding much more context in
your replies.

H


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