Absolutely! Just like you handle SSH config tweaks with single commands, there are straightforward one-liners to update the server settings in /etc/ntp.conf. Here are the most practical approaches:

Replace All Existing Server Entries #

If you want to overwrite every server line with a new NTP server (e.g., pool.ntp.org), use sed with in-place editing:

sudo sed -i 's/^server .*/server pool.ntp.org iburst/' /etc/ntp.conf

• sudo is required since /etc/ntp.conf is a system-owned file
• -i edits the file in place (no need for temp files)
• ^server .* matches any line starting with server
• The replacement string sets your new server with the iburst flag for faster initial sync

Comment Out Old Servers & Add a New One #

If you prefer to keep old configs commented instead of deleting them, use this two-part sed command:

sudo sed -i -e '/^server/s/^/#/' -e '$a server pool.ntp.org iburst' /etc/ntp.conf

• -e '/^server/s/^/#/' adds a # at the start of every server line to comment them out
• -e '$a server pool.ntp.org iburst' appends the new server line to the end of the file

Replace a Specific Server Only #

If you just need to swap one particular old server for a new one (e.g., replace old.ntp.example.com with new.ntp.example.com):

sudo sed -i 's/^server old.ntp.example.com.*/server new.ntp.example.com iburst/' /etc/ntp.conf

Alternative: Using awk #

If you're more comfortable with awk, this command achieves the same "replace all server lines" effect:

awk '/^server/ {print "server pool.ntp.org iburst"; next}1' /etc/ntp.conf > temp.conf && sudo mv temp.conf /etc/ntp.conf

• /^server/ {print ...; next} replaces matching lines with your new server entry
• 1 prints all non-matching lines as-is
• We redirect to a temp file first, then overwrite the original (since awk doesn't support in-place editing natively)

Important Post-Modification Step #

After updating the config, don't forget to restart the NTP service to apply changes:

# For systemd-based distros (Ubuntu 16.04+, Debian 9+, etc.)
sudo systemctl restart ntp

# For SysVinit-based distros
sudo service ntp restart

内容的提问来源于stack exchange，提问作者Jasmine Lognnes