PowerStore: NTPD service failure results in a node reboot

An unexpected node reboot may be observed if the svc_ntp_ctl --set command is used in of the following scenarios:

• Executed multiple times on one node via multiple sessions either in parallel or in a short period of time
• Executed multiple times on both nodes either in parallel or in a short period of time

The same symptom may occur if the svc_ntp_ctl --set command is executed while applying NTP server setting updates through the WebUI, REST API, or PSTCLI.

The node reboots and automatically recovers.

The svc_ntp_ctl --set command may fail to bind the ntpd port internally if another process is holding the port by running concurrent svc_ntp_ctl --set commands or by an NTP server update request.
On PowerStoreOS 3.0 and 3.2, the ntpd service attempts to restart immediately after a failure, so it will quickly exhaust its restart count under this condition and declare the service failed.
Due to the design of the orchestration HA policy, the system proactively initiated a node reboot when the ntpd service failed as part of self-recovery actions.

This issue is fixed in PowerStoreOS 3.5.

Workaround to Prevent this Issue from Occurring
To prevent the issue from occurring, run the svc_ntp_ctl --set command one at a time on an appliance, only when needed.
Also, do not run the svc_ntp_ctl --set command while applying NTP server setting updates through the PowerStore Manager UI, REST API, or PSTCLI.

• KB 000132575 PowerStore Alerts: Time difference between the node and the following available NTP servers is huge
• Dell EMC PowerStore Service Scripts Guide(pdf) - Check and fix the NTP status (svc_ntp_ctl)