Clock skew too great while getting initial credentials error and solution

Posted on in Categories Linux, Troubleshooting last updated November 1, 2006

This error is related to Kerberos. When kinit starts you get message as follows:
Clock skew too great while getting initial credentials

What does this error mean? After searching bit I found that:
The clock on you system (Linux/UNIX) is too far off from the correct time. Your machine needs to be within 5 minutes of the Kerberos servers in order to get any tickets. You will need to run ntp, or a similar service to keep your clock within the five minute window.

Finally, ntp was setup and error vanished 🙂

Also make sure you have proper DNS server setup in /etc/resolv.conf file.

See more troubleshooting tips at HP website.

Posted by: Vivek Gite

The author is the creator of nixCraft and a seasoned sysadmin and a trainer for the Linux operating system/Unix shell scripting. He has worked with global clients and in various industries, including IT, education, defense and space research, and the nonprofit sector. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, Google+.

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3 comment

  1. CC drivers/video/bfin_ad7171fb_main.o
    drivers/video/bfin_ad7171fb_main.c:509: warning: initialization from incompatible pointer type
    drivers/video/bfin_ad7171fb_main.c:510: warning: initialization from incompatible pointer type
    LD drivers/video/fb.o
    make[4]: Warning: File `include/config/auto.conf’ has modification time 2.7e+05 s in the future
    make[4]: warning: Clock skew detected. Your build may be incomplete.
    LD drivers/video/bfin_ad7171fb.o
    LD drivers/video/built-in.o
    make[3]: warning: Clock skew detected. Your build may be incomplete.
    LD drivers/built-in.o
    drivers/char/built-in.o: In function `ppi_reg_reset’:
    (.text+0x8104): multiple definition of `ppi_reg_reset’
    drivers/video/built-in.o:(.text+0x3f34): first defined here
    make[2]: *** [drivers/built-in.o] Error 1
    make[1]: *** [drivers] Error 2
    make[1]: Leaving directory `/ramakrishna/uClinux-dist/linux-2.6.x’
    make: *** [linux] Error 1

    There is compilation error ,I am mot getting any file in image directory. Why we are getting this type of problem and what is the solution for this.
    please reply
    Pranay upadhyay

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  2. I the clocks are in sync then you may need to run:
    # kdestroy
    and init again.
    If your station is using daytime saving then you may need to destroy your domain key/ticket when time saving actually happen.

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  3. You can increase the clockskew under [libdefaults] section to a larger number. It does not really matter how far apart in time the client and server are. The tickets work fine nonetheless.

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