ntpd and kernel message set_rtc_mmss: can't update

[Rob Brown-Bayliss]

On 10/23/06, Jeff Vian <jvian10 at charter.net> wrote:

>It first tries to use the step tickers
> listed in /etc/ntp/step-tickers.  If it cannot use them then it falls
> back to use the servers listed in /etc/ntp.conf.
>
> On my system that means it does use ntp.conf since step-tickers is empty
> and always has been.

Yes, my step-tickers was empty, though I mistakenly reported it as not
being empty, and I also have a ntpservers file in the /etc/ntp
directory.  It had two redhat servers listed.  Not sure why, from the
install probable. I set the ntpservers and step-tickers to list the
same servers as in my /etc/ntp.conf file.


> If ntpd sees the time as too far off it will refuse to continue trying
> and that is not a good thing IMHO.

Yes, that does seem counter productive.

> The easiest way I have found is to simply do a
>         service ntpd stop
> followed by a
>         service ntpd start
> which takes care of running ntpdate to get any existing major time
> discrepancies adjusted, then runs ntpd to fine tune it and keep it
> accurate.

But that was not working.  If i stoped ntpd, and ran ntpdate with a
server it showed the wrong time as well.  Really strange.  Then I
noticed that ntpq -p is listing servers that are not in my config
files.  Also my /var/lib/ntp/drift was always 0.00

Since changing the ntpservers and step-tickers to have the same
servers as my ntp.conf file (about 6 hours ago) the time seems to be
working correctly, though ntpq -p still lists strange servers.

[root at localhost ~]# ntpq -p
     remote           refid      st t when poll reach   delay   offset  jitter
==============================================================================
-mu-relay2.masse 192.5.41.40      2 u  785 1024  377  229.875  -21.047 307.992
-ns2.compass.net 128.250.36.3     2 u  709 1024  377  302.162  133.363  24.773
*ntp.thistledown .GPS.            1 u  137 1024  377  489.738   67.315  35.318
+ns.tti.net.au   128.250.36.2     2 u  657 1024  377  448.110   33.651 231.163
+gen2.ihug.co.nz 130.217.76.49    2 u  777 1024  377  204.483   59.178  19.562

[root at localhost ~]# cat /etc/ntp/step-tickers
ntp.massey.ac.nz
ntp.iprolink.co.nz
0.oceania.pool.ntp.org
2.oceania.pool.ntp.org
1.nz.pool.ntp.org
0.nz.pool.ntp.org

I assume that is because the of the ntp pool entries above?

I will watch it for a few days and see how it is going.

-- 
Rob