$ Linux Command

Administration

timedatectl

Control system time, date, and timezone.

timedatetimezonentpsystemd

Additional Notes

timedatectl is part of the systemd suite and manages the system clock, date, time zone, and NTP synchronization. It replaces traditional tools like date, hwclock, tzselect, and ntpdate for most administrative tasks on modern Linux systems.

It can query and set the system time, the real-time clock (RTC), the time zone, and enable or disable automatic NTP synchronization. Changes made with timedatectl persist across reboots and apply system-wide.

Syntax

timedatectl [options] [command]

Commands

  • (no command): Show current time, date, time zone, RTC status, and NTP status.
  • status: Same as default, display current settings.
  • set-time "YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS": Set the system time.
  • set-timezone TIMEZONE: Set the system time zone.
  • set-local-rtc BOOL: Control whether the RTC uses local time (1) or UTC (0).
  • set-ntp BOOL: Enable (1) or disable (0) automatic NTP synchronization.
  • list-timezones: List all available time zones.

Parameters

  • options: Flags that change how timedatectl behaves.
  • target: Optional file, device, interface, user, service, or command target when the command supports one.

Common Options

  • --no-pager: Show output inline instead of using a pager.
  • -H, --host USER@HOST: Operate on a remote host over SSH.
  • -M, --machine CONTAINER: Operate on a local container.

Examples

timedatectl

Display current time, date, time zone, and NTP status.

timedatectl list-timezones | grep -i "los_angeles"

Search for a specific time zone.

sudo timedatectl set-timezone America/New_York

Change the system time zone.

sudo timedatectl set-time "2026-06-09 14:30:00"

Manually set the system time (disables NTP).

sudo timedatectl set-ntp true

Enable automatic NTP synchronization.

sudo timedatectl set-local-rtc 1

Tell the system that the hardware clock uses local time (not recommended).

Practical Notes

  • Use timedatectl set-ntp true to enable NTP; systemd-timesyncd handles it automatically.
  • Setting the time manually disables NTP. Re-enable it with set-ntp true afterward.
  • The hardware clock (RTC) should generally use UTC (set-local-rtc 0). Using local time can cause issues with dual-boot and time zone changes.
  • To configure a custom NTP server, edit /etc/systemd/timesyncd.conf and restart systemd-timesyncd.
  • Always use sudo when changing time or date settings.