[pkg-ntp-maintainers] Bug#873057: ntp: ntpd not started at boot

[Bernhard Schmidt]

Control: tags -1 + moreinfo

On Thu, Aug 24, 2017 at 09:38:55AM +0300, Esa Peuha wrote:

Hi Esa,

> I have an installation of Debian testing with ntp installed on it. With
> ntp version 1:4.2.8p10+dfsg-3 and earlier, ntpd was started during boot,
> but with 1:4.2.8p10+dfsg-4 and -5, ntpd isn't started (which BTW is far
> from obvious; I became aware of the issue only after I noticed that the
> machine's clock had drifted about a minute from the correct time). If I
> copy /lib/systemd/system/ntp.service to /etc/systemd/system/ntp.service
> and comment out the line "Conflicts=systemd-timesyncd.service" then ntpd
> is started again, so I suggest that you remove that line. It shouldn't
> be necessary for ntp to conflict with timesyncd anyway, because the file
> /lib/systemd/system/systemd-timesyncd.service.d/disable-with-time-daemon.conf
> checks if /usr/sbin/ntpd exists, and doesn't start timesyncd if it does.

Thanks for your report. I have tested this on a new Buster installation.
Indeed systemd-timesyncd is running by default (which I think was not
the case with Stretch). But installing ntp and rebooting leads to
systemd-timesyncd being inactive and ntp running.

Can you show both

systemctl status ntp.service
systemctl status systemd-timesyncd.service

and relevant systemd messages from boot (journalctl -b | grep systemd)?

Thanks,
Bernhard