π ~1 min read
Table of contents
Symptom & Impact
Clock drift and jitter occur because multiple time daemons compete for control.
Environment & Reproduction
Seen after migrating from default `systemd-timesyncd` to `chrony` without cleanup.
timedatectl statusRoot Cause Analysis
Both services attempt synchronization, causing unstable offset and inconsistent status reporting.
Quick Triage
Determine active and enabled state of each service.
systemctl is-active chrony systemd-timesyncd; systemctl is-enabled chrony systemd-timesyncdStep-by-Step Diagnosis
Review synchronization sources and current offset measurements.
chronyc tracking && timedatectl timesync-status
Solution – Primary Fix
Disable one service and keep a single authoritative NTP daemon.
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sudo systemctl disable --now systemd-timesyncd && sudo systemctl enable --now chrony
Solution – Alternative Approaches
If chrony is not required, remove it and retain `systemd-timesyncd` for simpler setups.
Verification & Acceptance Criteria
Only one time service is active and offset remains stable over observation window.
Rollback Plan
Re-enable previous time daemon and restore original NTP source list.
Prevention & Hardening
Define baseline build policy for exactly one time synchronization stack.
Related Errors & Cross-Refs
Related to Kerberos clock skew and certificate validity timing anomalies.
Related tutorial: View the step-by-step tutorial for Ubuntu 26.04 LTS.
View all Ubuntu 26.04 LTS tutorials on the Tutorials Hub β
Browse all common problems & solutions on the Tutorials Hub.
References & Further Reading
Ubuntu chrony and systemd-timesyncd administration guidance.
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