LPIC-1 Essential System Services and Networking Practice Question
A system administrator notices that the system clock is consistently 5 minutes ahead of the actual time. The NTP service is enabled and running. Which command should the administrator run to force an immediate time synchronization?
⚠ Common exam trap
It's easy for candidates to assume restarting the NTP service (Option C) will immediately correct the time, but in reality, ntpd only adjusts gradually over several poll intervals unless the offset exceeds a panic threshold (default 1000 seconds) or the `-g` flag is used.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
ntpdate pool.ntp.org
`ntpdate` is a legacy command that forces an immediate, one-time synchronization of the system clock with an NTP server (e.g., pool.ntp.org). Even though NTP is running, it may take several polling intervals (typically 64–1024 seconds) to correct a large offset; `ntpdate` bypasses this gradual adjustment and sets the clock instantly.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
ntpq -p
Why it's wrong here
ntpq -p displays peers, does not force sync.
- ✓
ntpdate pool.ntp.org
Why this is correct
ntpdate performs immediate synchronization.
- ✗
systemctl restart ntpd
Why it's wrong here
Restarting ntpd may resync but not immediate; ntpd gradually adjusts.
- ✗
timedatectl set-time ...
Why it's wrong here
timedatectl set-time manually sets time, not NTP sync.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
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