ntpd-rs is an NTP implementation written in Rust, with a focus on security and stability. It includes client and server functionality and supports NTS.
If a feature you need is missing please let us know by opening an issue.
The recommended way of installing ntpd-rs is with the pre-built packages from
the [releases page]. The installers automatically handle setting up users,
permissions and configuration. Alternatively, you can use cargo install ntpd
or build from source by cloning the repository yourself.
Currently, ntpd-rs only supports Linux-based operating systems. Our current testing only targets Linux kernels after version 5.0.0, older kernels may work but this is not guaranteed.
ntpd-rs is written in rust. We strongly recommend using [rustup] to install a rust toolchain, because the version provided by system package managers tends to be out of date. Be sure to use a recent version of the rust compiler. To build ntpd-rs run
sh
cargo build --release
This produces a ntp-daemon binary at target/release/ntp-daemon, which is the
main NTP daemon. Before running the ntpd-rs daemon, make sure that no other NTP
daemons are running. E.g. when chrony is running
sh
systemctl stop chronyd
The ntpd-rs daemon requires elevated permissions to change the system clock.
sh
sudo ./target/release/ntp-daemon -c ./ntp.toml
By default, at least 3 sources are needed for the algorithm to change the time. After a few minutes you should start to see messages indicating the offset of your machine from the server.
2023-04-11T10:06:24.847375Z INFO ntp_proto::algorithm::kalman: Offset: 1.7506740305607742+-12.951528666965439ms, frequency: 8.525844072881435+-5.089483351832892ppm
2023-04-11T10:06:25.443852Z INFO ntp_proto::algorithm::kalman: Offset: 1.8947020578044949+-12.981792974220694ms, frequency: 7.654657944152439+-3.3911904299378386ppm
2023-04-11T10:06:25.443979Z INFO ntp_proto::algorithm::kalman: Changed frequency, current steer 4.26346751414286ppm, desired freq 0ppm
A complete description of how the daemon can be configured can be found in the documentation found in the documentation.
We make no guarantees about supporting older versions of rust. When building
from source (either manually or with cargo install) use the latest rust
version to prevent issues.
We are committed to keep ntpd-rs working on at least the latest stable and beta compilers. Beyond this, we keep track of the current minimum rust version needed to compile our code for purposes of documentation. However, right now we do not have a policy guaranteeing a minimum amount of time we will support a stable rust release beyond the 6 weeks during which it is the latest stable version.
Please note that the Rust project only supports the latest stable rust release. As this is the only release that will receive any security updates, we STRONGLY recommend using the latest stable rust version for compiling ntpd-rs for daily use.
Currently, the code is split up into several separate crates:
ntp-proto contains the packet parsing and the algorithms needed for clock
selection, filtering and steering.ntp-os-clock contains the unsafe code needed to interface with system
clocks.ntp-udp contains the unsafe code needed to deal with timestamping on the
network layer.ntpd contains the entrypoints for all our binaries and the code for the
daemon (ntp-daemon), control client (ntp-ctl) and OpenMetrics/prometheus
exporter (ntp-metrics-exporter).All unsafe code is contained within the ntp-os-clock and ntp-udp packages,
which are kept as small as possible. All interfaces exposed by these crates
should be safe. For a more detailed description of how ntpd-rs is structured,
see the development documentation.
In Q1 2023 we completed our work on NTS. Our implementation is now full-featured, it supports NTP client and server with NTS.
Our roadmap for 2023-2024:
We seek sponsorship for features and maintenance to continue our work. Contact us via pendulum@tweedegolf.com if you are interested!
The project originates from ISRG's project [Prossimo], as part of their mission to achieve memory safety for the Internet's most critical infrastructure.
Prossimo funded the initial development of the NTP client and server, and NTS support. The [NTP initiative page] on Prossimo's website tells the story.
After completion of the initial development, the project's ownership moved from Prossimo to Tweede golf in April 2023. See the [NTP announcement] for more information.
Tweede golf is the long-term maintainer of ntpd-rs, that is now part of Tweede golf's [Project Pendulum]. Pendulum is building modern, open-source implementations of the Network Time Protocol (ntpd-rs) and the Precision Time Protocol (Statime).
In July of 2023 the [Sovereign Tech Fund] invested in Pendulum, securing ntpd-rs development and maintenance in 2023, and maintenance and adoption work in 2024.
