Bug#785208: adjtimex postinst adjusts clock
Package: adjtimex
Version: 1.29-3
Severity: normal
The postinst script for the adjtimex package insists on running
adjtimex to perform some clock adjustment. This is silly. At the time
the package is installed or upgraded, the system is already running,
quite likely with the clock already well regulated (especially if this
was an upgrade). In my case, I'm regulating the clock with ntpd, so
adjtimex should never be automatically run outside the boot sequence.
The postinst script should not be performing any clock adjustment.
It seems that, as with ntpdate in Bug#714997, the package is conflating
the desire to install a tool with the desire to use it in a particular
way. adjtimex is useful for much more than just the automatic adjustment
that the postinst script contemplates. I use it mainly in read-only
mode to watch what in fine detail what ntpd and the kernel are doing
with the clock.
-zefram
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