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LFCS · Question #38

Which of the following is observed and corrected by a NTP client?

The correct answer is B. The skew in time between the system clock and the reference clock. An NTP client observes and corrects the time difference, or skew, between its local system clock and a more accurate reference clock provided by an NTP server.

Submitted by yasin.bd· Apr 18, 2026Operation of Running Systems

Question

Which of the following is observed and corrected by a NTP client?

Options

  • AThe skew in time between the system clock and the hardware clock.
  • BThe skew in time between the system clock and the reference clock.
  • CChanges in the time zone of the current computer's location.
  • DAdjustments needed to support Daylight Saving Time.

How the community answered

(42 responses)
  • B
    90% (38)
  • C
    7% (3)
  • D
    2% (1)

Why each option

An NTP client observes and corrects the time difference, or skew, between its local system clock and a more accurate reference clock provided by an NTP server.

AThe skew in time between the system clock and the hardware clock.

The skew between the system clock and hardware clock is typically managed by `hwclock`, not by an NTP client's primary function which focuses on external time sources.

BThe skew in time between the system clock and the reference clock.Correct

An NTP client's fundamental role is to synchronize its system clock by comparing it to the highly accurate time received from an NTP server (the reference clock) and adjusting to minimize any drift or skew.

CChanges in the time zone of the current computer's location.

Time zone changes are configured by the operating system, often via `timedatectl` or `tzdata` packages, and are independent of NTP's time synchronization.

DAdjustments needed to support Daylight Saving Time.

Daylight Saving Time adjustments are handled by the operating system's time zone settings, not by NTP clients which provide Universal Coordinated Time (UTC) and expect the OS to convert to local time.

Concept tested: NTP client synchronization purpose

Source: https://www.ntp.org/documentation.html

Topics

#NTP#Time Synchronization#System Clock#Reference Clock

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