Inspecting time sync settings

Prev Next

Available in VPC

NAVER Cloud Platform provides an NTP server for time synchronization. Time synchronization settings have significant effects on system operation and management and are closely related to security, network communication, and data accuracy. It is recommended to use a daemon that synchronizes the time continuously rather than performs 1-time synchronization periodically.

NAVIX, CentOS, Rocky Linux

Inspect the NTP settings and file in the RedHat OS provided on NAVER Cloud Platform.

Note

The following guide applies to CentOS 7, Rocky Linux 8, and Rocky Linux 9.

  1. Check whether chrony is installed and running.
    • CentOS 7
    [root@centos7 ~]# rpm -qa | grep chrony
    chrony-3.4-1.el7.x86_64
    
    [root@centos7 ~]# ps -ef|grep chronyd | grep -v grep 
    chrony     497     1  0 Mar27 ?        00:00:05 /usr/sbin/chronyd
    
    • Rocky Linux 8
    [root@rockylinux8 ~]# rpm -qa | grep chrony
    chrony-4.1-1.el8.rocky.0.1.x86_64
    
    [root@rockylinux8 ~]# ps -ef | grep chronyd | grep -v grep
    chrony       725       1  0 Jul25 ?        00:00:05 /usr/sbin/chronyd
    
    • NAVIX 9, Rocky Linux 9
    [root@navix9 ~]# rpm -qa | grep chrony
    chrony-4.6.1-1.el9.x86_64
    
    [rootnavix9 ~]# ps -ef | grep chronyd | grep -v grep
    chrony       768       1  0 14:52 ?        00:00:00 /usr/sbin/chronyd -F 2
    
  2. Check the NTP settings of NAVER Cloud Platform received from DHCP.
    The IPs of the NTP server provided in the VPC environment are 169.254.169.123 and 169.254.169.124.
    • CentOS 7, Rocky Linux 8
    [root@rockylinux8 ~]# cat /var/lib/dhclient/chrony.servers.eth0
    169.254.169.123 iburst 
    169.254.169.124 iburst
    
    • NAVIX 9, Rocky Linux 9
    [root@naivx9 ~]# cat /run/chrony-dhcp/eth0.sources
    server 169.254.169.123 iburst
    server 169.254.169.124 iburst
    server 169.254.169.123 iburst
    server 169.254.169.124 iburst
    
    If the file does not contain 169.254.169.123 and 169.254.169.124, you can add the NTP settings directly to proceed as follows:
    [root@naivx9 ~]# cat /etc/chrony.conf
    # Use public servers from the pool.ntp.org project.
    # Please consider joining the pool (https://www.pool.ntp.org/join.html).
    pool navix.pool.ntp.org iburst
    ... Omitted ...
    
    [root@naivx9 ~]# systemctl restart chronyd.service
    
    [root@naivx9 ~]# chronyc -n sources
    MS Name/IP address         Stratum Poll Reach LastRx Last sample
    ===============================================================================
    ^? 121.174.142.82                0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 175.195.167.194               0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^* 169.254.169.123               2   6    17    17    +11us[ +185us] +/- 1472us
    ^+ 169.254.169.124               2   6    17    17    +35us[ +208us] +/- 1447us
    
  3. Check whether time has been synchronized using the timedatectl command.
    If the NTP synchronized value or System clock synchronized value is yes, time has been synchronized successfully.
    • CentOS 7
    [root@centos7 ~]# timedatectl
                   Local time: Fri 2023-08-18 13:57:57 KST
               Universal time: Fri 2023-08-18 04:57:57 UTC
                     RTC time: Fri 2023-08-18 04:57:57
                    Time zone: Asia/Seoul (KST, +0900)
                  NTP enabled: yes
             NTP synchronized: yes
              RTC in local TZ: no
    
    • NAVIX 9, Rocky Linux 8, Rocky Linux 9
    [root@navix9 ~]# timedatectl
                   Local time: Thu 2025-06-26 18:52:51 KST
               Universal time: Thu 2025-06-26 09:52:51 UTC
                     RTC time: Thu 2025-06-26 09:52:51
                    Time zone: Asia/Seoul (KST, +0900)
    System clock synchronized: yes
                  NTP service: active
              RTC in local TZ: no
    
  4. Check the settings and content of the /etc/chrony.conf file. Change the settings of this file to add new time synchronization settings or change the existing settings.
    The IPs of the NTP server provided in the VPC environment are 169.254.169.123 and 169.254.169.124.
    • CentOS 7
    [root@centos7 ~]# cat /etc/chrony.conf
    # Use public servers from the pool.ntp.org project.
    server 0.centos.pool.ntp.org iburst
    server 1.centos.pool.ntp.org iburst
    server 2.centos.pool.ntp.org iburst
    server 3.centos.pool.ntp.org iburst
    
    ... Omitted ...
    
    • Rocky Linux 8
    [root@rockylinux8 ~]# cat /etc/chrony.conf  
    # Use public servers from the pool.ntp.org project.
    # Please consider joining the pool (http://www.pool.ntp.org/join.html).
    pool 2.rocky.pool.ntp.org iburst
    ... Omitted ...
    
    • NAVIX 9, Rocky Linux 9
    [root@navix9 ~]# cat /etc/chrony.conf 
    # Use public servers from the pool.ntp.org project.
    # Please consider joining the pool (https://www.pool.ntp.org/join.html).
    pool navix.pool.ntp.org iburst
    ... Omitted ...
    
  5. Check the time synchronization content.
    [root@navix9 ~]# chronyc -n sources -v
    
      .-- Source mode  '^' = server, '=' = peer, '#' = local clock.
     / .- Source state '*' = current best, '+' = combined, '-' = not combined,
    | /             'x' = may be in error, '~' = too variable, '?' = unusable.
    ||                                                 .- xxxx [ yyyy ] +/- zzzz
    ||      Reachability register (octal) -.           |  xxxx = adjusted offset,
    ||      Log2(Polling interval) --.      |          |  yyyy = measured offset,
    ||                                \     |          |  zzzz = estimated error.
    ||                                 |    |           \
    MS Name/IP address         Stratum Poll Reach LastRx Last sample
    ===============================================================================
    ^? 175.195.167.194               0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 158.247.202.103               0  10     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 194.0.5.123                   0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 193.123.243.2                 0  10     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 175.210.18.47                 0  10     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 121.174.142.81                0  10     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 121.174.142.82                0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 203.32.26.46                  0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^+ 169.254.169.123               2   9   377   333   +859us[ +861us] +/- 2367us
    ^* 169.254.169.124               2   8   377   147  +1003us[+1005us] +/- 2174us
    

Ubuntu

Inspect the NTP settings and file on your Ubuntu OS provided on NAVER Cloud Platform.

Note

The following guide applies to Ubuntu 18.04 to Ubuntu 24.04.

  1. Check the status of the systemd-timesyncd daemon.
    If the systemd-timesyncd daemon is enabled, chronyd cannot be started upon booting.
    • Ubuntu 18.04
      On Ubuntu 18.04, systemd-timesynd.service is enabled. To use the chronyd service normally, change to disabled status.
    root@ubuntu1804:~# systemctl is-enabled systemd-timesyncd.service
    enabled
    
    root@ubuntu1804:~# systemctl disable systemd-timesyncd
    Removed /etc/systemd/system/sysinit.target.wants/systemd-timesyncd.service.
    
    root@ubuntu1804:~# systemctl stop systemd-timesyncd
    
    root@ubuntu1804:~# systemctl restart chronyd
    
    root@ubuntu1804:~# systemctl is-enabled systemd-timesyncd.service
    disabled
    
    • Ubuntu 20.04 ~ 22.04
    root@ubuntu2204:~# systemctl is-enabled systemd-timesyncd.service
    masked
    
    • Ubuntu 24.04
      By default, Ubuntu 24.04 does not have the systemd-timesyncd package installed.
    root@ubuntu2404:~# systemctl list-unit-files | grep systemd-timesyncd | wc -l
    0
    
  2. Check whether chrony is installed and running.
    root@ubuntu2404:~# dpkg -l | grep chrony
    ii  chrony                               4.5-1ubuntu4.2                          amd64        Versatile implementation of the Network Time Protocol
    
    root@ubuntu2404:~# ps -ef | grep chronyd | grep -v grep
    _chrony      734       1  0 14:52 ?        00:00:00 /usr/sbin/chronyd -F 1
    _chrony      737     734  0 14:52 ?        00:00:00 /usr/sbin/chronyd -F 1
    
  3. Check the NTP settings of NAVER Cloud Platform received from DHCP. The IPs of the NTP server provided in the VPC environment are 169.254.169.123 and 169.254.169.124.
    • Ubuntu 18.04 ~ 20.04
    root@ubuntu2004:~# cat /var/lib/dhcp/chrony.servers.eth0 
    169.254.169.123 iburst
    169.254.169.124 iburst
    
    • Ubuntu 22.04 ~ 24.04
    root@ubuntu2404:~# cat /run/chrony-dhcp/eth0.sources
    server 169.254.169.123 iburst
    server 169.254.169.124 iburst
    
    If 169.254.169.123 and 169.254.169.124 don't exist in the corresponding file, you can proceed as follows:
    root@ubuntu2404:~# cat /etc/chrony/chrony.conf
    ... Omitted ...
    # See http://www.pool.ntp.org/join.html for more information.
    pool ntp.ubuntu.com        iburst maxsources 4
    pool 0.ubuntu.pool.ntp.org iburst maxsources 1
    pool 1.ubuntu.pool.ntp.org iburst maxsources 1
    pool 2.ubuntu.pool.ntp.org iburst maxsources 2
    server 169.254.169.123 iburst
    server 169.254.169.124 iburst
    ... Omitted ...
    
    root@ubuntu2404:~# systemctl restart chronyd.service
    
    root@ubuntu2404:~# chronyc -n sources
    MS Name/IP address         Stratum Poll Reach LastRx Last sample
    ===============================================================================
    ^? 91.189.91.157                 0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 185.125.190.58                0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 185.125.190.56                0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 185.125.190.57                0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 194.0.5.123                   0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 193.123.243.2                 0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 175.195.167.194               0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 121.174.142.81                0   7     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^* 169.254.169.123               2   6    17     6  +7981ns[ +255ns] +/- 1530us
    ^+ 169.254.169.124               2   6    17     7   -550ns[-8276ns] +/- 1546us
    
  4. Check whether time has been synchronized using the timedatectl command.
    If the System clock synchronized value is yes, time has been synchronized successfully.
    • Ubuntu 18.04
      root@ubuntu1804:~# timedatectl
                            Local time: Wed 2023-08-18 19:33:52 KST
                        Universal time: Wed 2023-08-18 10:33:52 UTC
                              RTC time: Wed 2023-08-18 10:33:53
                             Time zone: Asia/Seoul (KST, +0900)
             System clock synchronized: yes
      systemd-timesyncd.service active: no
                       RTC in local TZ: no
      
    • Ubuntu 20.04 ~ 24.04
      root@ubuntu2404:~# timedatectl
                     Local time: Fri 2025-07-04 15:17:54 KST
                 Universal time: Fri 2025-07-04 06:17:54 UTC
                       RTC time: Fri 2025-07-04 06:17:54
                      Time zone: Asia/Seoul (KST, +0900)
      System clock synchronized: no
                    NTP service: active
                RTC in local TZ: no
      
  5. Check the settings and content of the /etc/chrony/chrony.conf file. Change the settings of this file to add new time synchronization settings or change the existing settings.
    The IPs of the NTP server provided in the VPC environment are 169.254.169.123 and 169.254.169.124.
    root@ubuntu2404:~# cat /etc/chrony/chrony.conf 
    # See http://www.pool.ntp.org/join.html for more information.
    pool ntp.ubuntu.com        iburst maxsources 4
    pool 0.ubuntu.pool.ntp.org iburst maxsources 1
    pool 1.ubuntu.pool.ntp.org iburst maxsources 1
    pool 2.ubuntu.pool.ntp.org iburst maxsources 2
    
    ... Omitted ...
    
  6. Check the time synchronization content.
    root@ubuntu2404:~# chronyc -n sources -v
    
      .-- Source mode  '^' = server, '=' = peer, '#' = local clock.
     / .- Source state '*' = current best, '+' = combined, '-' = not combined,
    | /             'x' = may be in error, '~' = too variable, '?' = unusable.
    ||                                                 .- xxxx [ yyyy ] +/- zzzz
    ||      Reachability register (octal) -.           |  xxxx = adjusted offset,
    ||      Log2(Polling interval) --.      |          |  yyyy = measured offset,
    ||                                \     |          |  zzzz = estimated error.
    ||                                 |    |           \
    MS Name/IP address         Stratum Poll Reach LastRx Last sample
    ===============================================================================
    ^? 185.125.190.57                0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 185.125.190.58                0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 185.125.190.56                0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 91.189.91.157                 0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 158.247.202.103               0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 194.0.5.123                   0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 121.174.142.82                0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 121.174.142.81                0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 203.32.26.46                  0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^? 175.195.167.194               0   9     0     -     +0ns[   +0ns] +/-    0ns
    ^+ 169.254.169.123               2   7   377   201   +128us[ +128us] +/- 1573us
    ^* 169.254.169.124               2   9   377   256   +946us[ +932us] +/- 2307us
    
    Note

    It has been found that NTP server settings provided via DHCP are not being applied on Ubuntu 24.04.
    This may cause time differences in environments where external communication is not possible (no public IP or no NAT configuration). This issue does not occur in environments with a public IP or NAT configuration, as it synchronizes normally with an external public time server.

    This issue has been confirmed to be an internal bug in the Ubuntu 24.04 OS, and an edited BaseOS image is scheduled for release according to the following timeline:

    • BaseOS image applied on November 20, 2025
      ※ Date may be subject to change depending on internal circumstances.

    For Ubuntu 24.04 VMs that are already in use and cannot communicate externally (no public IP or NAT configuration), you may take the following actions:

    root@ubuntu2404:~# chronyc -n sources -v | grep -e 169.254.169.123 -e 169.254.169.124
    root@ubuntu2404:~#
    
    root@ubuntu2404:~# echo -e "server 169.254.169.123 iburst\nserver 169.254.169.124 iburst" >/etc/chrony/sources.d/navercloud-ntp-server.sources
    
    root@ubuntu2404:~# cat /etc/chrony/sources.d/navercloud-ntp-server.sources
    server 169.254.169.123 iburst
    server 169.254.169.124 iburst
    
    root@ubuntu2404:~# systemctl restart chronyd
    
    root@ubuntu2404:~# chronyc -n sources -v | grep -e 169.254.169.123 -e 169.254.169.124
    ^- 169.254.169.123               2   6    17     0    +28us[  +28us] +/- 1460us
    ^* 169.254.169.124               2   6     7     1  +1923ns[-4830ns] +/- 1613us 
    

NTP FAQs

Q: Do I only need to set up 2 NTP servers provided by NAVER Cloud for time synchronization through the network?

NAVER Cloud provides NTP servers for free, considering the diverse environments used by customers.
If your network environment enables external access through NAT or public IP, it is recommended to set up at least 3 external public NTP servers in addition to NAVER Cloud NTP servers.

If you set up only 2 NTP servers and synchronization fails on 1 of the 2 servers, it may lead to a majority problem where it becomes unclear which server is providing the accurate time. The official NTP configuration guide also recommends a minimum of 3 servers and 5 servers in general. For more information, see Official website.

If your private subnet without the NAT settings blocks access to the external network, it is recommended to set up at least 3 NTP servers, including a Bastion server configured to synchronize with external public NTP servers.