Re: [gentoo-user] Re: another "headless device"-question: In search of the LAN

[Poison BL.]

On Tue, Sep 30, 2014 at 8:34 AM,  <meino.cramer@×××.de> wrote:
> James <wireless@×××××××××××.com> [14-09-30 14:24]:
>> Meino,
>>
>>
>> Make sure your system time (hwclock) is properly set upon bootup.
>> Since you are running on an embedded hardware board, I'd look at
>> those docs and find a forum as to the specifics of how the hardware
>> clock is set and maintained on the board. Once you get it close,
>> then ntp should be configuration.
>>
>> man hwclock
>>
>> hth,
>> James
>>
>>
>
> Hi James,
>
> ...the system has no built-in RTC which still runs if the system is
> powered off.
> After power is up and eth0 is alive, the time/date has to be set via
> ntp-client. The rest already working.
> I called
>     /etc/init.d/ntp-client start
> after booting the little beast and plugging in the RJ45 and everything
> else was fine.
> Currently I am experimenting with chrony (emerging).
> Will see, if this will make a difference ;)
>
> Best
> mcc
>

The trick for bringing the clock into the right era after boot on a
system like that one (and what's used in raspbian for the pi) is to,
at shutdown, write the current date/time into a file. Then, on boot,
set the date/time to what that file has, meaning it won't be perfectly
accurate, but it will be considerably closer until ntp's available to
it again. The most important thing that accomplishes for me is, while
it doesn't keep the wall clock times accurate, maintaining the right
order of times on log messages, etc. It also prevents a lot of issues
with log and backup rotations that depend on 'which file is newer?',
etc.

-- 
Poison [BLX]
Joshua M. Murphy