Chapter 19. Using PTP hardware
You can configure linuxptp services and use PTP-capable hardware in OpenShift Container Platform cluster nodes.
19.1. About PTP hardware
You can use the OpenShift Container Platform console or OpenShift CLI (oc) to install PTP by deploying the PTP Operator. The PTP Operator creates and manages the linuxptp services and provides the following features:
- Discovery of the PTP-capable devices in the cluster.
-
Management of the configuration of
linuxptpservices. -
Notification of PTP clock events that negatively affect the performance and reliability of your application with the PTP Operator
cloud-event-proxysidecar.
The PTP Operator works with PTP-capable devices on clusters provisioned only on bare-metal infrastructure.
19.2. About PTP
Precision Time Protocol (PTP) is used to synchronize clocks in a network. When used in conjunction with hardware support, PTP is capable of sub-microsecond accuracy, and is more accurate than Network Time Protocol (NTP).
19.2.1. Elements of a PTP domain
PTP is used to synchronize multiple nodes connected in a network, with clocks for each node. The clocks synchronized by PTP are organized in a source-destination hierarchy. The hierarchy is created and updated automatically by the best master clock (BMC) algorithm, which runs on every clock. Destination clocks are synchronized to source clocks, and destination clocks can themselves be the source for other downstream clocks. The three primary types of PTP clocks are described below.
- Grandmaster clock
- The grandmaster clock provides standard time information to other clocks across the network and ensures accurate and stable synchronisation. It writes time stamps and responds to time requests from other clocks. Grandmaster clocks synchronize to a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) time source. The Grandmaster clock is the authoritative source of time in the network and is responsible for providing time synchronization to all other devices.
- Ordinary clock
- The ordinary clock has a single port connection that can play the role of source or destination clock, depending on its position in the network. The ordinary clock can read and write time stamps.
- Boundary clock
- The boundary clock has ports in two or more communication paths and can be a source and a destination to other destination clocks at the same time. The boundary clock works as a destination clock upstream. The destination clock receives the timing message, adjusts for delay, and then creates a new source time signal to pass down the network. The boundary clock produces a new timing packet that is still correctly synced with the source clock and can reduce the number of connected devices reporting directly to the source clock.
19.2.2. Advantages of PTP over NTP
One of the main advantages that PTP has over NTP is the hardware support present in various network interface controllers (NIC) and network switches. The specialized hardware allows PTP to account for delays in message transfer and improves the accuracy of time synchronization. To achieve the best possible accuracy, it is recommended that all networking components between PTP clocks are PTP hardware enabled.
Hardware-based PTP provides optimal accuracy, since the NIC can time stamp the PTP packets at the exact moment they are sent and received. Compare this to software-based PTP, which requires additional processing of the PTP packets by the operating system.
Before enabling PTP, ensure that NTP is disabled for the required nodes. You can disable the chrony time service (chronyd) using a MachineConfig custom resource. For more information, see Disabling chrony time service.
19.2.3. Using PTP with dual NIC hardware
OpenShift Container Platform supports single and dual NIC hardware for precision PTP timing in the cluster.
For 5G telco networks that deliver mid-band spectrum coverage, each virtual distributed unit (vDU) requires connections to 6 radio units (RUs). To make these connections, each vDU host requires 2 NICs configured as boundary clocks.
Dual NIC hardware allows you to connect each NIC to the same upstream leader clock with separate ptp4l instances for each NIC feeding the downstream clocks.
19.3. Overview of linuxptp in OpenShift Container Platform nodes
OpenShift Container Platform uses PTP and linuxptp for high precision system timing in bare-metal infrastructure. The linuxptp package includes the ts2phc, pmc, ptp4l, and phc2sys programs for system clock synchronization.
- ts2phc
ts2phcsynchronizes the PTP hardware clock (PHC) across PTP devices with a high degree of precision.ts2phcis used in grandmaster clock configurations. It receives the precision timing signal a high precision clock source such as Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). GNSS provides an accurate and reliable source of synchronized time for use in large distributed networks. GNSS clocks typically provide time information with a precision of a few nanoseconds.The
ts2phcsystem daemon sends timing information from the grandmaster clock to other PTP devices in the network by reading time information from the grandmaster clock and converting it to PHC format. PHC time is used by other devices in the network to synchronize their clocks with the grandmaster clock.- pmc
-
pmcimplements a PTP management client (pmc) according to IEEE standard 1588.1588.pmcprovides basic management access for theptp4lsystem daemon.pmcreads from standard input and sends the output over the selected transport, printing any replies it receives. - ptp4l
ptp4limplements the PTP boundary clock and ordinary clock and runs as a system daemon.ptp4ldoes the following:- Synchronizes the PHC to the source clock with hardware time stamping
- Synchronizes the system clock to the source clock with software time stamping
- phc2sys
-
phc2syssynchronizes the system clock to the PHC on the network interface controller (NIC). Thephc2syssystem daemon continuously monitors the PHC for timing information. When it detects a timing error, the PHC corrects the system clock.
19.4. Installing the PTP Operator using the CLI
As a cluster administrator, you can install the Operator by using the CLI.
Prerequisites
- A cluster installed on bare-metal hardware with nodes that have hardware that supports PTP.
-
Install the OpenShift CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges.
Procedure
Create a namespace for the PTP Operator.
Save the following YAML in the
ptp-namespace.yamlfile:apiVersion: v1 kind: Namespace metadata: name: openshift-ptp annotations: workload.openshift.io/allowed: management labels: name: openshift-ptp openshift.io/cluster-monitoring: "true"Create the
NamespaceCR:$ oc create -f ptp-namespace.yaml
Create an Operator group for the PTP Operator.
Save the following YAML in the
ptp-operatorgroup.yamlfile:apiVersion: operators.coreos.com/v1 kind: OperatorGroup metadata: name: ptp-operators namespace: openshift-ptp spec: targetNamespaces: - openshift-ptp
Create the
OperatorGroupCR:$ oc create -f ptp-operatorgroup.yaml
Subscribe to the PTP Operator.
Save the following YAML in the
ptp-sub.yamlfile:apiVersion: operators.coreos.com/v1alpha1 kind: Subscription metadata: name: ptp-operator-subscription namespace: openshift-ptp spec: channel: "stable" name: ptp-operator source: redhat-operators sourceNamespace: openshift-marketplace
Create the
SubscriptionCR:$ oc create -f ptp-sub.yaml
To verify that the Operator is installed, enter the following command:
$ oc get csv -n openshift-ptp -o custom-columns=Name:.metadata.name,Phase:.status.phase
Example output
Name Phase 4.13.0-202301261535 Succeeded
19.5. Installing the PTP Operator using the web console
As a cluster administrator, you can install the PTP Operator using the web console.
You have to create the namespace and Operator group as mentioned in the previous section.
Procedure
Install the PTP Operator using the OpenShift Container Platform web console:
- In the OpenShift Container Platform web console, click Operators → OperatorHub.
- Choose PTP Operator from the list of available Operators, and then click Install.
- On the Install Operator page, under A specific namespace on the cluster select openshift-ptp. Then, click Install.
Optional: Verify that the PTP Operator installed successfully:
- Switch to the Operators → Installed Operators page.
Ensure that PTP Operator is listed in the openshift-ptp project with a Status of InstallSucceeded.
NoteDuring installation an Operator might display a Failed status. If the installation later succeeds with an InstallSucceeded message, you can ignore the Failed message.
If the Operator does not appear as installed, to troubleshoot further:
- Go to the Operators → Installed Operators page and inspect the Operator Subscriptions and Install Plans tabs for any failure or errors under Status.
-
Go to the Workloads → Pods page and check the logs for pods in the
openshift-ptpproject.
19.6. Configuring PTP devices
The PTP Operator adds the NodePtpDevice.ptp.openshift.io custom resource definition (CRD) to OpenShift Container Platform.
When installed, the PTP Operator searches your cluster for PTP-capable network devices on each node. It creates and updates a NodePtpDevice custom resource (CR) object for each node that provides a compatible PTP-capable network device.
19.6.1. Discovering PTP capable network devices in your cluster
To return a complete list of PTP capable network devices in your cluster, run the following command:
$ oc get NodePtpDevice -n openshift-ptp -o yaml
Example output
apiVersion: v1 items: - apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: NodePtpDevice metadata: creationTimestamp: "2022-01-27T15:16:28Z" generation: 1 name: dev-worker-0 1 namespace: openshift-ptp resourceVersion: "6538103" uid: d42fc9ad-bcbf-4590-b6d8-b676c642781a spec: {} status: devices: 2 - name: eno1 - name: eno2 - name: eno3 - name: eno4 - name: enp5s0f0 - name: enp5s0f1 ...
19.6.2. Configuring linuxptp services as a grandmaster clock
You can configure the linuxptp services (ptp4l, phc2sys, ts2phc) as grandmaster clock by creating a PtpConfig custom resource (CR) that configures the host NIC.
The ts2phc utility allows you to synchronize the system clock with the PTP grandmaster clock so that the node can stream precision clock signal to downstream PTP ordinary clocks and boundary clocks.
Use the following example PtpConfig CR as the basis to configure linuxptp services as the grandmaster clock for your particular hardware and environment. This example CR does not configure PTP fast events. To configure PTP fast events, set appropriate values for ptp4lOpts, ptp4lConf, and ptpClockThreshold. ptpClockThreshold is used only when events are enabled. See "Configuring the PTP fast event notifications publisher" for more information.
Prerequisites
- Install an Intel Westport Channel network interface in the bare-metal cluster host.
-
Install the OpenShift CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - Install the PTP Operator.
Procedure
Create the
PtpConfigresource. For example:Save the following YAML in the
grandmaster-clock-ptp-config.yamlfile:Recommended PTP grandmaster clock configuration
apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpConfig metadata: name: grandmaster namespace: openshift-ptp spec: profile: - name: "grandmaster" ptp4lOpts: "-2 --summary_interval -4" phc2sysOpts: -r -u 0 -m -O -37 -N 8 -R 16 -s ens2f1 -n 24 ptpSchedulingPolicy: SCHED_FIFO ptpSchedulingPriority: 10 plugins: e810: enableDefaultConfig: true ts2phcOpts: " " ts2phcConf: | [nmea] ts2phc.master 1 [global] use_syslog 0 verbose 1 logging_level 7 ts2phc.pulsewidth 100000000 #GNSS module - ls /dev/gnss* -al ts2phc.nmea_serialport /dev/gnss0 leapfile /usr/share/zoneinfo/leap-seconds.list [ens2f1] ts2phc.extts_polarity rising ts2phc.extts_correction 0 ptp4lConf: | [ens2f1] masterOnly 1 [ens2f2] masterOnly 1 [ens2f3] masterOnly 1 [ens2f4] masterOnly 1 [global] # # Default Data Set # twoStepFlag 1 priority1 128 priority2 128 domainNumber 24 #utc_offset 37 clockClass 6 clockAccuracy 0x27 offsetScaledLogVariance 0xFFFF free_running 0 freq_est_interval 1 dscp_event 0 dscp_general 0 dataset_comparison G.8275.x G.8275.defaultDS.localPriority 128 # # Port Data Set # logAnnounceInterval -3 logSyncInterval -4 logMinDelayReqInterval -4 logMinPdelayReqInterval 0 announceReceiptTimeout 3 syncReceiptTimeout 0 delayAsymmetry 0 fault_reset_interval 4 neighborPropDelayThresh 20000000 masterOnly 0 G.8275.portDS.localPriority 128 # # Run time options # assume_two_step 0 logging_level 6 path_trace_enabled 0 follow_up_info 0 hybrid_e2e 0 inhibit_multicast_service 0 net_sync_monitor 0 tc_spanning_tree 0 tx_timestamp_timeout 50 unicast_listen 0 unicast_master_table 0 unicast_req_duration 3600 use_syslog 1 verbose 0 summary_interval -4 kernel_leap 1 check_fup_sync 0 # # Servo Options # pi_proportional_const 0.0 pi_integral_const 0.0 pi_proportional_scale 0.0 pi_proportional_exponent -0.3 pi_proportional_norm_max 0.7 pi_integral_scale 0.0 pi_integral_exponent 0.4 pi_integral_norm_max 0.3 step_threshold 0.0 first_step_threshold 0.00002 clock_servo pi sanity_freq_limit 200000000 ntpshm_segment 0 # # Transport options # transportSpecific 0x0 ptp_dst_mac 01:1B:19:00:00:00 p2p_dst_mac 01:80:C2:00:00:0E udp_ttl 1 udp6_scope 0x0E uds_address /var/run/ptp4l # # Default interface options # clock_type BC network_transport L2 delay_mechanism E2E time_stamping hardware tsproc_mode filter delay_filter moving_median delay_filter_length 10 egressLatency 0 ingressLatency 0 boundary_clock_jbod 0 # # Clock description # productDescription ;; revisionData ;; manufacturerIdentity 00:00:00 userDescription ; timeSource 0x20 recommend: - profile: "grandmaster" priority: 4 match: - nodeLabel: "node-role.kubernetes.io/worker"Create the CR by running the following command:
$ oc create -f grandmaster-clock-ptp-config.yaml
Verification
Check that the
PtpConfigprofile is applied to the node.Get the list of pods in the
openshift-ptpnamespace by running the following command:$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp -o wide
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE IP NODE linuxptp-daemon-74m2g 3/3 Running 3 4d15h 10.16.230.7 compute-1.example.com ptp-operator-5f4f48d7c-x7zkf 1/1 Running 1 4d15h 10.128.1.145 compute-1.example.com
Check that the profile is correct. Examine the logs of the
linuxptpdaemon that corresponds to the node you specified in thePtpConfigprofile. Run the following command:$ oc logs linuxptp-daemon-74m2g -n openshift-ptp -c linuxptp-daemon-container
Example output
ts2phc[94980.334]: [ts2phc.0.config] nmea delay: 98690975 ns ts2phc[94980.334]: [ts2phc.0.config] ens3f0 extts index 0 at 1676577329.999999999 corr 0 src 1676577330.901342528 diff -1 ts2phc[94980.334]: [ts2phc.0.config] ens3f0 master offset -1 s2 freq -1 ts2phc[94980.441]: [ts2phc.0.config] nmea sentence: GNRMC,195453.00,A,4233.24427,N,07126.64420,W,0.008,,160223,,,A,V phc2sys[94980.450]: [ptp4l.0.config] CLOCK_REALTIME phc offset 943 s2 freq -89604 delay 504 phc2sys[94980.512]: [ptp4l.0.config] CLOCK_REALTIME phc offset 1000 s2 freq -89264 delay 474
Additional resources
19.6.2.1. Grandmaster clock PtpConfig configuration reference
The following reference information describes the configuration options for the PtpConfig custom resource (CR) that configures the linuxptp services (ptp4l, phc2sys, ts2phc) as grandmaster clock.
Table 19.1. PtpConfig configuration options for PTP Grandmaster clock
| PtpConfig CR field | Description |
|---|---|
|
|
Specify an array of
The plugin mechanism allows the PTP Operator to do automated hardware configuration. For the Intel Westport Channel NIC, when |
|
|
Specify system configuration options for the |
|
|
Specify the required configuration to start |
|
| Specify the maximum amount of time to wait for the transmit (TX) timestamp from the sender before discarding the data. |
|
| Specify the JBOD boundary clock time delay value. This value is used to correct the time values that are passed between the network time devices. |
|
|
Specify system config options for the Note
Ensure that the network interface listed here is configured as grandmaster and is referenced as required in the |
|
|
Configure the scheduling policy for |
|
|
Set an integer value from 1-65 to configure FIFO priority for |
|
|
Optional. If |
|
|
Sets the configuration for the
|
|
|
Set options for the |
|
|
Specify an array of one or more |
|
|
Specify the |
|
|
Specify the |
|
|
Specify |
|
|
Set |
|
|
Set |
19.6.3. Configuring linuxptp services as an ordinary clock
You can configure linuxptp services (ptp4l, phc2sys) as ordinary clock by creating a PtpConfig custom resource (CR) object.
Use the following example PtpConfig CR as the basis to configure linuxptp services as an ordinary clock for your particular hardware and environment. This example CR does not configure PTP fast events. To configure PTP fast events, set appropriate values for ptp4lOpts, ptp4lConf, and ptpClockThreshold. ptpClockThreshold is required only when events are enabled. See "Configuring the PTP fast event notifications publisher" for more information.
Prerequisites
-
Install the OpenShift CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - Install the PTP Operator.
Procedure
Create the following
PtpConfigCR, and then save the YAML in theordinary-clock-ptp-config.yamlfile.Recommended PTP ordinary clock configuration
apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpConfig metadata: name: ordinary-clock-ptp-config namespace: openshift-ptp spec: profile: - name: ordinary-clock interface: "<interface_name>" phc2sysOpts: "-a -r -n 24" ptp4lOpts: "-2 -s" ptpSchedulingPolicy: SCHED_FIFO ptpSchedulingPriority: 10 ptp4lConf: | [global] # # Default Data Set # twoStepFlag 1 slaveOnly 1 priority1 128 priority2 128 domainNumber 24 clockClass 255 clockAccuracy 0xFE offsetScaledLogVariance 0xFFFF free_running 0 freq_est_interval 1 dscp_event 0 dscp_general 0 dataset_comparison G.8275.x G.8275.defaultDS.localPriority 128 # # Port Data Set # logAnnounceInterval -3 logSyncInterval -4 logMinDelayReqInterval -4 logMinPdelayReqInterval -4 announceReceiptTimeout 3 syncReceiptTimeout 0 delayAsymmetry 0 fault_reset_interval 4 neighborPropDelayThresh 20000000 masterOnly 0 G.8275.portDS.localPriority 128 # # Run time options # assume_two_step 0 logging_level 6 path_trace_enabled 0 follow_up_info 0 hybrid_e2e 0 inhibit_multicast_service 0 net_sync_monitor 0 tc_spanning_tree 0 tx_timestamp_timeout 50 unicast_listen 0 unicast_master_table 0 unicast_req_duration 3600 use_syslog 1 verbose 0 summary_interval 0 kernel_leap 1 check_fup_sync 0 # # Servo Options # pi_proportional_const 0.0 pi_integral_const 0.0 pi_proportional_scale 0.0 pi_proportional_exponent -0.3 pi_proportional_norm_max 0.7 pi_integral_scale 0.0 pi_integral_exponent 0.4 pi_integral_norm_max 0.3 step_threshold 2.0 first_step_threshold 0.00002 max_frequency 900000000 clock_servo pi sanity_freq_limit 200000000 ntpshm_segment 0 # # Transport options # transportSpecific 0x0 ptp_dst_mac 01:1B:19:00:00:00 p2p_dst_mac 01:80:C2:00:00:0E udp_ttl 1 udp6_scope 0x0E uds_address /var/run/ptp4l # # Default interface options # clock_type OC network_transport L2 delay_mechanism E2E time_stamping hardware tsproc_mode filter delay_filter moving_median delay_filter_length 10 egressLatency 0 ingressLatency 0 boundary_clock_jbod 0 # # Clock description # productDescription ;; revisionData ;; manufacturerIdentity 00:00:00 userDescription ; timeSource 0xA0 recommend: - profile: ordinary-clock priority: 4 match: - nodeLabel: "node-role.kubernetes.io/worker" nodeName: "<node_name>"Table 19.2. PTP ordinary clock CR configuration options
Custom resource field Description nameThe name of the
PtpConfigCR.profileSpecify an array of one or more
profileobjects. Each profile must be uniquely named.interfaceSpecify the network interface to be used by the
ptp4lservice, for exampleens787f1.ptp4lOptsSpecify system config options for the
ptp4lservice, for example-2to select the IEEE 802.3 network transport. The options should not include the network interface name-i <interface>and service config file-f /etc/ptp4l.confbecause the network interface name and the service config file are automatically appended. Append--summary_interval -4to use PTP fast events with this interface.phc2sysOptsSpecify system config options for the
phc2sysservice. If this field is empty, the PTP Operator does not start thephc2sysservice. For Intel Columbiaville 800 Series NICs, setphc2sysOptsoptions to-a -r -m -n 24 -N 8 -R 16.-mprints messages tostdout. Thelinuxptp-daemonDaemonSetparses the logs and generates Prometheus metrics.ptp4lConfSpecify a string that contains the configuration to replace the default
/etc/ptp4l.conffile. To use the default configuration, leave the field empty.tx_timestamp_timeoutFor Intel Columbiaville 800 Series NICs, set
tx_timestamp_timeoutto50.boundary_clock_jbodFor Intel Columbiaville 800 Series NICs, set
boundary_clock_jbodto0.ptpSchedulingPolicyScheduling policy for
ptp4landphc2sysprocesses. Default value isSCHED_OTHER. UseSCHED_FIFOon systems that support FIFO scheduling.ptpSchedulingPriorityInteger value from 1-65 used to set FIFO priority for
ptp4landphc2sysprocesses whenptpSchedulingPolicyis set toSCHED_FIFO. TheptpSchedulingPriorityfield is not used whenptpSchedulingPolicyis set toSCHED_OTHER.ptpClockThresholdOptional. If
ptpClockThresholdis not present, default values are used for theptpClockThresholdfields.ptpClockThresholdconfigures how long after the PTP master clock is disconnected before PTP events are triggered.holdOverTimeoutis the time value in seconds before the PTP clock event state changes toFREERUNwhen the PTP master clock is disconnected. ThemaxOffsetThresholdandminOffsetThresholdsettings configure offset values in nanoseconds that compare against the values forCLOCK_REALTIME(phc2sys) or master offset (ptp4l). When theptp4lorphc2sysoffset value is outside this range, the PTP clock state is set toFREERUN. When the offset value is within this range, the PTP clock state is set toLOCKED.recommendSpecify an array of one or more
recommendobjects that define rules on how theprofileshould be applied to nodes..recommend.profileSpecify the
.recommend.profileobject name defined in theprofilesection..recommend.prioritySet
.recommend.priorityto0for ordinary clock..recommend.matchSpecify
.recommend.matchrules withnodeLabelornodeName..recommend.match.nodeLabelUpdate
nodeLabelwith thekeyofnode.Labelsfrom the node object by using theoc get nodes --show-labelscommand. For example:node-role.kubernetes.io/worker..recommend.match.nodeLabelUpdate
nodeNamewith value ofnode.Namefrom the node object by using theoc get nodescommand. For example:compute-0.example.com.Create the
PtpConfigCR by running the following command:$ oc create -f ordinary-clock-ptp-config.yaml
Verification
Check that the
PtpConfigprofile is applied to the node.Get the list of pods in the
openshift-ptpnamespace by running the following command:$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp -o wide
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE IP NODE linuxptp-daemon-4xkbb 1/1 Running 0 43m 10.1.196.24 compute-0.example.com linuxptp-daemon-tdspf 1/1 Running 0 43m 10.1.196.25 compute-1.example.com ptp-operator-657bbb64c8-2f8sj 1/1 Running 0 43m 10.129.0.61 control-plane-1.example.com
Check that the profile is correct. Examine the logs of the
linuxptpdaemon that corresponds to the node you specified in thePtpConfigprofile. Run the following command:$ oc logs linuxptp-daemon-4xkbb -n openshift-ptp -c linuxptp-daemon-container
Example output
I1115 09:41:17.117596 4143292 daemon.go:107] in applyNodePTPProfile I1115 09:41:17.117604 4143292 daemon.go:109] updating NodePTPProfile to: I1115 09:41:17.117607 4143292 daemon.go:110] ------------------------------------ I1115 09:41:17.117612 4143292 daemon.go:102] Profile Name: profile1 I1115 09:41:17.117616 4143292 daemon.go:102] Interface: ens787f1 I1115 09:41:17.117620 4143292 daemon.go:102] Ptp4lOpts: -2 -s I1115 09:41:17.117623 4143292 daemon.go:102] Phc2sysOpts: -a -r -n 24 I1115 09:41:17.117626 4143292 daemon.go:116] ------------------------------------
Additional resources
- For more information about FIFO priority scheduling on PTP hardware, see Configuring FIFO priority scheduling for PTP hardware.
- For more information about configuring PTP fast events, see Configuring the PTP fast event notifications publisher.
19.6.4. Configuring linuxptp services as a boundary clock
You can configure the linuxptp services (ptp4l, phc2sys) as boundary clock by creating a PtpConfig custom resource (CR) object.
Use the following example PtpConfig CR as the basis to configure linuxptp services as the boundary clock for your particular hardware and environment. This example CR does not configure PTP fast events. To configure PTP fast events, set appropriate values for ptp4lOpts, ptp4lConf, and ptpClockThreshold. ptpClockThreshold is used only when events are enabled. See "Configuring the PTP fast event notifications publisher" for more information.
Prerequisites
-
Install the OpenShift CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - Install the PTP Operator.
Procedure
Create the following
PtpConfigCR, and then save the YAML in theboundary-clock-ptp-config.yamlfile.Recommended PTP boundary clock configuration
--- apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpConfig metadata: name: boundary-clock-ptp-config namespace: openshift-ptp spec: profile: - name: boundary-clock phc2sysOpts: "-a -r -n 24" ptp4lOpts: "-2" ptpSchedulingPolicy: SCHED_FIFO ptpSchedulingPriority: 10 ptp4lConf: | [<interface_1>] masterOnly 0 [<interface_2>] masterOnly 1 [<interface_3>] masterOnly 1 [<interface_4>] masterOnly 1 [global] # # Default Data Set # twoStepFlag 1 slaveOnly 0 priority1 128 priority2 128 domainNumber 24 clockClass 248 clockAccuracy 0xFE offsetScaledLogVariance 0xFFFF free_running 0 freq_est_interval 1 dscp_event 0 dscp_general 0 dataset_comparison G.8275.x G.8275.defaultDS.localPriority 128 # # Port Data Set # logAnnounceInterval -3 logSyncInterval -4 logMinDelayReqInterval -4 logMinPdelayReqInterval -4 announceReceiptTimeout 3 syncReceiptTimeout 0 delayAsymmetry 0 fault_reset_interval 4 neighborPropDelayThresh 20000000 masterOnly 0 G.8275.portDS.localPriority 128 # # Run time options # assume_two_step 0 logging_level 6 path_trace_enabled 0 follow_up_info 0 hybrid_e2e 0 inhibit_multicast_service 0 net_sync_monitor 0 tc_spanning_tree 0 tx_timestamp_timeout 50 unicast_listen 0 unicast_master_table 0 unicast_req_duration 3600 use_syslog 1 verbose 0 summary_interval 0 kernel_leap 1 check_fup_sync 0 # # Servo Options # pi_proportional_const 0.0 pi_integral_const 0.0 pi_proportional_scale 0.0 pi_proportional_exponent -0.3 pi_proportional_norm_max 0.7 pi_integral_scale 0.0 pi_integral_exponent 0.4 pi_integral_norm_max 0.3 step_threshold 2.0 first_step_threshold 0.00002 max_frequency 900000000 clock_servo pi sanity_freq_limit 200000000 ntpshm_segment 0 # # Transport options # transportSpecific 0x0 ptp_dst_mac 01:1B:19:00:00:00 p2p_dst_mac 01:80:C2:00:00:0E udp_ttl 1 udp6_scope 0x0E uds_address /var/run/ptp4l # # Default interface options # clock_type BC network_transport L2 delay_mechanism E2E time_stamping hardware tsproc_mode filter delay_filter moving_median delay_filter_length 10 egressLatency 0 ingressLatency 0 boundary_clock_jbod 0 # # Clock description # productDescription ;; revisionData ;; manufacturerIdentity 00:00:00 userDescription ; timeSource 0xA0 recommend: - profile: boundary-clock priority: 4 match: - nodeLabel: node-role.kubernetes.io/master nodeName: <nodename>Table 19.3. PTP boundary clock CR configuration options
Custom resource field Description nameThe name of the
PtpConfigCR.profileSpecify an array of one or more
profileobjects.nameSpecify the name of a profile object which uniquely identifies a profile object.
ptp4lOptsSpecify system config options for the
ptp4lservice. The options should not include the network interface name-i <interface>and service config file-f /etc/ptp4l.confbecause the network interface name and the service config file are automatically appended.ptp4lConfSpecify the required configuration to start
ptp4las boundary clock. For example,ens1f0synchronizes from a grandmaster clock andens1f3synchronizes connected devices.<interface_1>The interface that receives the synchronization clock.
<interface_2>The interface that sends the synchronization clock.
tx_timestamp_timeoutFor Intel Columbiaville 800 Series NICs, set
tx_timestamp_timeoutto50.boundary_clock_jbodFor Intel Columbiaville 800 Series NICs, ensure
boundary_clock_jbodis set to0. For Intel Fortville X710 Series NICs, ensureboundary_clock_jbodis set to1.phc2sysOptsSpecify system config options for the
phc2sysservice. If this field is empty, the PTP Operator does not start thephc2sysservice.ptpSchedulingPolicyScheduling policy for ptp4l and phc2sys processes. Default value is
SCHED_OTHER. UseSCHED_FIFOon systems that support FIFO scheduling.ptpSchedulingPriorityInteger value from 1-65 used to set FIFO priority for
ptp4landphc2sysprocesses whenptpSchedulingPolicyis set toSCHED_FIFO. TheptpSchedulingPriorityfield is not used whenptpSchedulingPolicyis set toSCHED_OTHER.ptpClockThresholdOptional. If
ptpClockThresholdis not present, default values are used for theptpClockThresholdfields.ptpClockThresholdconfigures how long after the PTP master clock is disconnected before PTP events are triggered.holdOverTimeoutis the time value in seconds before the PTP clock event state changes toFREERUNwhen the PTP master clock is disconnected. ThemaxOffsetThresholdandminOffsetThresholdsettings configure offset values in nanoseconds that compare against the values forCLOCK_REALTIME(phc2sys) or master offset (ptp4l). When theptp4lorphc2sysoffset value is outside this range, the PTP clock state is set toFREERUN. When the offset value is within this range, the PTP clock state is set toLOCKED.recommendSpecify an array of one or more
recommendobjects that define rules on how theprofileshould be applied to nodes..recommend.profileSpecify the
.recommend.profileobject name defined in theprofilesection..recommend.prioritySpecify the
prioritywith an integer value between0and99. A larger number gets lower priority, so a priority of99is lower than a priority of10. If a node can be matched with multiple profiles according to rules defined in thematchfield, the profile with the higher priority is applied to that node..recommend.matchSpecify
.recommend.matchrules withnodeLabelornodeName..recommend.match.nodeLabelUpdate
nodeLabelwith thekeyofnode.Labelsfrom the node object by using theoc get nodes --show-labelscommand. For example:node-role.kubernetes.io/worker..recommend.match.nodeLabelUpdate
nodeNamewith value ofnode.Namefrom the node object by using theoc get nodescommand. For example:compute-0.example.com.Create the CR by running the following command:
$ oc create -f boundary-clock-ptp-config.yaml
Verification
Check that the
PtpConfigprofile is applied to the node.Get the list of pods in the
openshift-ptpnamespace by running the following command:$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp -o wide
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE IP NODE linuxptp-daemon-4xkbb 1/1 Running 0 43m 10.1.196.24 compute-0.example.com linuxptp-daemon-tdspf 1/1 Running 0 43m 10.1.196.25 compute-1.example.com ptp-operator-657bbb64c8-2f8sj 1/1 Running 0 43m 10.129.0.61 control-plane-1.example.com
Check that the profile is correct. Examine the logs of the
linuxptpdaemon that corresponds to the node you specified in thePtpConfigprofile. Run the following command:$ oc logs linuxptp-daemon-4xkbb -n openshift-ptp -c linuxptp-daemon-container
Example output
I1115 09:41:17.117596 4143292 daemon.go:107] in applyNodePTPProfile I1115 09:41:17.117604 4143292 daemon.go:109] updating NodePTPProfile to: I1115 09:41:17.117607 4143292 daemon.go:110] ------------------------------------ I1115 09:41:17.117612 4143292 daemon.go:102] Profile Name: profile1 I1115 09:41:17.117616 4143292 daemon.go:102] Interface: I1115 09:41:17.117620 4143292 daemon.go:102] Ptp4lOpts: -2 I1115 09:41:17.117623 4143292 daemon.go:102] Phc2sysOpts: -a -r -n 24 I1115 09:41:17.117626 4143292 daemon.go:116] ------------------------------------
Additional resources
- For more information about FIFO priority scheduling on PTP hardware, see Configuring FIFO priority scheduling for PTP hardware.
- For more information about configuring PTP fast events, see Configuring the PTP fast event notifications publisher.
19.6.5. Configuring linuxptp services as boundary clocks for dual NIC hardware
Precision Time Protocol (PTP) hardware with dual NIC configured as boundary clocks is a Technology Preview feature only. Technology Preview features are not supported with Red Hat production service level agreements (SLAs) and might not be functionally complete. Red Hat does not recommend using them in production. These features provide early access to upcoming product features, enabling customers to test functionality and provide feedback during the development process.
For more information about the support scope of Red Hat Technology Preview features, see Technology Preview Features Support Scope.
You can configure the linuxptp services (ptp4l, phc2sys) as boundary clocks for dual NIC hardware by creating a PtpConfig custom resource (CR) object for each NIC.
Dual NIC hardware allows you to connect each NIC to the same upstream leader clock with separate ptp4l instances for each NIC feeding the downstream clocks.
Prerequisites
-
Install the OpenShift CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - Install the PTP Operator.
Procedure
Create two separate
PtpConfigCRs, one for each NIC, using the reference CR in "Configuring linuxptp services as a boundary clock" as the basis for each CR. For example:Create
boundary-clock-ptp-config-nic1.yaml, specifying values forphc2sysOpts:apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpConfig metadata: name: boundary-clock-ptp-config-nic1 namespace: openshift-ptp spec: profile: - name: "profile1" ptp4lOpts: "-2 --summary_interval -4" ptp4lConf: | 1 [ens5f1] masterOnly 1 [ens5f0] masterOnly 0 ... phc2sysOpts: "-a -r -m -n 24 -N 8 -R 16" 2- 1
- Specify the required interfaces to start
ptp4las a boundary clock. For example,ens5f0synchronizes from a grandmaster clock andens5f1synchronizes connected devices. - 2
- Required
phc2sysOptsvalues.-mprints messages tostdout. Thelinuxptp-daemonDaemonSetparses the logs and generates Prometheus metrics.
Create
boundary-clock-ptp-config-nic2.yaml, removing thephc2sysOptsfield altogether to disable thephc2sysservice for the second NIC:apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpConfig metadata: name: boundary-clock-ptp-config-nic2 namespace: openshift-ptp spec: profile: - name: "profile2" ptp4lOpts: "-2 --summary_interval -4" ptp4lConf: | 1 [ens7f1] masterOnly 1 [ens7f0] masterOnly 0 ...- 1
- Specify the required interfaces to start
ptp4las a boundary clock on the second NIC.
NoteYou must completely remove the
phc2sysOptsfield from the secondPtpConfigCR to disable thephc2sysservice on the second NIC.
Create the dual NIC
PtpConfigCRs by running the following commands:Create the CR that configures PTP for the first NIC:
$ oc create -f boundary-clock-ptp-config-nic1.yaml
Create the CR that configures PTP for the second NIC:
$ oc create -f boundary-clock-ptp-config-nic2.yaml
Verification
Check that the PTP Operator has applied the
PtpConfigCRs for both NICs. Examine the logs for thelinuxptpdaemon corresponding to the node that has the dual NIC hardware installed. For example, run the following command:$ oc logs linuxptp-daemon-cvgr6 -n openshift-ptp -c linuxptp-daemon-container
Example output
ptp4l[80828.335]: [ptp4l.1.config] master offset 5 s2 freq -5727 path delay 519 ptp4l[80828.343]: [ptp4l.0.config] master offset -5 s2 freq -10607 path delay 533 phc2sys[80828.390]: [ptp4l.0.config] CLOCK_REALTIME phc offset 1 s2 freq -87239 delay 539
19.6.6. Intel Columbiaville E800 series NIC as PTP ordinary clock reference
The following table describes the changes that you must make to the reference PTP configuration in order to use Intel Columbiaville E800 series NICs as ordinary clocks. Make the changes in a PtpConfig custom resource (CR) that you apply to the cluster.
Table 19.4. Recommended PTP settings for Intel Columbiaville NIC
| PTP configuration | Recommended setting |
|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For phc2sysOpts, -m prints messages to stdout. The linuxptp-daemon DaemonSet parses the logs and generates Prometheus metrics.
Additional resources
-
For a complete example CR that configures
linuxptpservices as an ordinary clock with PTP fast events, see Configuring linuxptp services as ordinary clock.
19.6.7. Configuring FIFO priority scheduling for PTP hardware
In telco or other deployment configurations that require low latency performance, PTP daemon threads run in a constrained CPU footprint alongside the rest of the infrastructure components. By default, PTP threads run with the SCHED_OTHER policy. Under high load, these threads might not get the scheduling latency they require for error-free operation.
To mitigate against potential scheduling latency errors, you can configure the PTP Operator linuxptp services to allow threads to run with a SCHED_FIFO policy. If SCHED_FIFO is set for a PtpConfig CR, then ptp4l and phc2sys will run in the parent container under chrt with a priority set by the ptpSchedulingPriority field of the PtpConfig CR.
Setting ptpSchedulingPolicy is optional, and is only required if you are experiencing latency errors.
Procedure
Edit the
PtpConfigCR profile:$ oc edit PtpConfig -n openshift-ptp
Change the
ptpSchedulingPolicyandptpSchedulingPriorityfields:apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpConfig metadata: name: <ptp_config_name> namespace: openshift-ptp ... spec: profile: - name: "profile1" ... ptpSchedulingPolicy: SCHED_FIFO 1 ptpSchedulingPriority: 10 2-
Save and exit to apply the changes to the
PtpConfigCR.
Verification
Get the name of the
linuxptp-daemonpod and corresponding node where thePtpConfigCR has been applied:$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp -o wide
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE IP NODE linuxptp-daemon-gmv2n 3/3 Running 0 1d17h 10.1.196.24 compute-0.example.com linuxptp-daemon-lgm55 3/3 Running 0 1d17h 10.1.196.25 compute-1.example.com ptp-operator-3r4dcvf7f4-zndk7 1/1 Running 0 1d7h 10.129.0.61 control-plane-1.example.com
Check that the
ptp4lprocess is running with the updatedchrtFIFO priority:$ oc -n openshift-ptp logs linuxptp-daemon-lgm55 -c linuxptp-daemon-container|grep chrt
Example output
I1216 19:24:57.091872 1600715 daemon.go:285] /bin/chrt -f 65 /usr/sbin/ptp4l -f /var/run/ptp4l.0.config -2 --summary_interval -4 -m
19.6.8. Configuring log filtering for linuxptp services
The linuxptp daemon generates logs that you can use for debugging purposes. In telco or other deployment configurations that feature a limited storage capacity, these logs can add to the storage demand.
To reduce the number log messages, you can configure the PtpConfig custom resource (CR) to exclude log messages that report the master offset value. The master offset log message reports the difference between the current node’s clock and the master clock in nanoseconds.
Prerequisites
-
Install the OpenShift CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - Install the PTP Operator.
Procedure
Edit the
PtpConfigCR:$ oc edit PtpConfig -n openshift-ptp
In
spec.profile, add theptpSettings.logReducespecification and set the value totrue:apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpConfig metadata: name: <ptp_config_name> namespace: openshift-ptp ... spec: profile: - name: "profile1" ... ptpSettings: logReduce: "true"NoteFor debugging purposes, you can revert this specification to
Falseto include the master offset messages.-
Save and exit to apply the changes to the
PtpConfigCR.
Verification
Get the name of the
linuxptp-daemonpod and corresponding node where thePtpConfigCR has been applied:$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp -o wide
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE IP NODE linuxptp-daemon-gmv2n 3/3 Running 0 1d17h 10.1.196.24 compute-0.example.com linuxptp-daemon-lgm55 3/3 Running 0 1d17h 10.1.196.25 compute-1.example.com ptp-operator-3r4dcvf7f4-zndk7 1/1 Running 0 1d7h 10.129.0.61 control-plane-1.example.com
Verify that master offset messages are excluded from the logs by running the following command:
$ oc -n openshift-ptp logs <linux_daemon_container> -c linuxptp-daemon-container | grep "master offset" 1- 1
- <linux_daemon_container> is the name of the
linuxptp-daemonpod, for examplelinuxptp-daemon-gmv2n.
When you configure the
logReducespecification, this command does not report any instances ofmaster offsetin the logs of thelinuxptpdaemon.
19.7. Troubleshooting common PTP Operator issues
Troubleshoot common problems with the PTP Operator by performing the following steps.
Prerequisites
-
Install the OpenShift Container Platform CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - Install the PTP Operator on a bare-metal cluster with hosts that support PTP.
Procedure
Check the Operator and operands are successfully deployed in the cluster for the configured nodes.
$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp -o wide
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE IP NODE linuxptp-daemon-lmvgn 3/3 Running 0 4d17h 10.1.196.24 compute-0.example.com linuxptp-daemon-qhfg7 3/3 Running 0 4d17h 10.1.196.25 compute-1.example.com ptp-operator-6b8dcbf7f4-zndk7 1/1 Running 0 5d7h 10.129.0.61 control-plane-1.example.com
NoteWhen the PTP fast event bus is enabled, the number of ready
linuxptp-daemonpods is3/3. If the PTP fast event bus is not enabled,2/2is displayed.Check that supported hardware is found in the cluster.
$ oc -n openshift-ptp get nodeptpdevices.ptp.openshift.io
Example output
NAME AGE control-plane-0.example.com 10d control-plane-1.example.com 10d compute-0.example.com 10d compute-1.example.com 10d compute-2.example.com 10d
Check the available PTP network interfaces for a node:
$ oc -n openshift-ptp get nodeptpdevices.ptp.openshift.io <node_name> -o yaml
where:
- <node_name>
Specifies the node you want to query, for example,
compute-0.example.com.Example output
apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: NodePtpDevice metadata: creationTimestamp: "2021-09-14T16:52:33Z" generation: 1 name: compute-0.example.com namespace: openshift-ptp resourceVersion: "177400" uid: 30413db0-4d8d-46da-9bef-737bacd548fd spec: {} status: devices: - name: eno1 - name: eno2 - name: eno3 - name: eno4 - name: enp5s0f0 - name: enp5s0f1
Check that the PTP interface is successfully synchronized to the primary clock by accessing the
linuxptp-daemonpod for the corresponding node.Get the name of the
linuxptp-daemonpod and corresponding node you want to troubleshoot by running the following command:$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp -o wide
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE IP NODE linuxptp-daemon-lmvgn 3/3 Running 0 4d17h 10.1.196.24 compute-0.example.com linuxptp-daemon-qhfg7 3/3 Running 0 4d17h 10.1.196.25 compute-1.example.com ptp-operator-6b8dcbf7f4-zndk7 1/1 Running 0 5d7h 10.129.0.61 control-plane-1.example.com
Remote shell into the required
linuxptp-daemoncontainer:$ oc rsh -n openshift-ptp -c linuxptp-daemon-container <linux_daemon_container>
where:
- <linux_daemon_container>
-
is the container you want to diagnose, for example
linuxptp-daemon-lmvgn.
In the remote shell connection to the
linuxptp-daemoncontainer, use the PTP Management Client (pmc) tool to diagnose the network interface. Run the followingpmccommand to check the sync status of the PTP device, for exampleptp4l.# pmc -u -f /var/run/ptp4l.0.config -b 0 'GET PORT_DATA_SET'
Example output when the node is successfully synced to the primary clock
sending: GET PORT_DATA_SET 40a6b7.fffe.166ef0-1 seq 0 RESPONSE MANAGEMENT PORT_DATA_SET portIdentity 40a6b7.fffe.166ef0-1 portState SLAVE logMinDelayReqInterval -4 peerMeanPathDelay 0 logAnnounceInterval -3 announceReceiptTimeout 3 logSyncInterval -4 delayMechanism 1 logMinPdelayReqInterval -4 versionNumber 2
19.8. PTP hardware fast event notifications framework
Cloud native applications such as virtual RAN (vRAN) require access to notifications about hardware timing events that are critical to the functioning of the overall network. PTP clock synchronization errors can negatively affect the performance and reliability of your low-latency application, for example, a vRAN application running in a distributed unit (DU).
19.8.1. About PTP and clock synchronization error events
Loss of PTP synchronization is a critical error for a RAN network. If synchronization is lost on a node, the radio might be shut down and the network Over the Air (OTA) traffic might be shifted to another node in the wireless network. Fast event notifications mitigate against workload errors by allowing cluster nodes to communicate PTP clock sync status to the vRAN application running in the DU.
Event notifications are available to vRAN applications running on the same DU node. A publish-subscribe REST API passes events notifications to the messaging bus. Publish-subscribe messaging, or pub-sub messaging, is an asynchronous service-to-service communication architecture where any message published to a topic is immediately received by all of the subscribers to the topic.
The PTP Operator generates fast event notifications for every PTP-capable network interface. You can access the events by using a cloud-event-proxy sidecar container over an HTTP or Advanced Message Queuing Protocol (AMQP) message bus.
PTP fast event notifications are available for network interfaces configured to use PTP ordinary clocks or PTP boundary clocks.
Use HTTP transport instead of AMQP for PTP and bare-metal events where possible. AMQ Interconnect is EOL from 30 June 2024. Extended life cycle support (ELS) for AMQ Interconnect ends 29 November 2029. For more information see, Red Hat AMQ Interconnect support status.
19.8.2. About the PTP fast event notifications framework
Use the Precision Time Protocol (PTP) fast event notifications framework to subscribe cluster applications to PTP events that the bare-metal cluster node generates.
The fast events notifications framework uses a REST API for communication. The REST API is based on the O-RAN O-Cloud Notification API Specification for Event Consumers 3.0 that is available from O-RAN ALLIANCE Specifications.
The framework consists of a publisher, subscriber, and an AMQ or HTTP messaging protocol to handle communications between the publisher and subscriber applications. Applications run the cloud-event-proxy container in a sidecar pattern to subscribe to PTP events. The cloud-event-proxy sidecar container can access the same resources as the primary application container without using any of the resources of the primary application and with no significant latency.
Use HTTP transport instead of AMQP for PTP and bare-metal events where possible. AMQ Interconnect is EOL from 30 June 2024. Extended life cycle support (ELS) for AMQ Interconnect ends 29 November 2029. For more information see, Red Hat AMQ Interconnect support status.
Figure 19.1. Overview of PTP fast events

-
Event is generated on the cluster host -
linuxptp-daemonin the PTP Operator-managed pod runs as a KubernetesDaemonSetand manages the variouslinuxptpprocesses (ptp4l,phc2sys, and optionally for grandmaster clocks,ts2phc). Thelinuxptp-daemonpasses the event to the UNIX domain socket. -
Event is passed to the cloud-event-proxy sidecar -
The PTP plugin reads the event from the UNIX domain socket and passes it to the
cloud-event-proxysidecar in the PTP Operator-managed pod.cloud-event-proxydelivers the event from the Kubernetes infrastructure to Cloud-Native Network Functions (CNFs) with low latency. -
Event is persisted -
The
cloud-event-proxysidecar in the PTP Operator-managed pod processes the event and publishes the cloud-native event by using a REST API. -
Message is transported -
The message transporter transports the event to the
cloud-event-proxysidecar in the application pod over HTTP or AMQP 1.0 QPID. -
Event is available from the REST API -
The
cloud-event-proxysidecar in the Application pod processes the event and makes it available by using the REST API. -
Consumer application requests a subscription and receives the subscribed event -
The consumer application sends an API request to the
cloud-event-proxysidecar in the application pod to create a PTP events subscription. Thecloud-event-proxysidecar creates an AMQ or HTTP messaging listener protocol for the resource specified in the subscription.
The cloud-event-proxy sidecar in the application pod receives the event from the PTP Operator-managed pod, unwraps the cloud events object to retrieve the data, and posts the event to the consumer application. The consumer application listens to the address specified in the resource qualifier and receives and processes the PTP event.
19.8.3. Configuring the PTP fast event notifications publisher
To start using PTP fast event notifications for a network interface in your cluster, you must enable the fast event publisher in the PTP Operator PtpOperatorConfig custom resource (CR) and configure ptpClockThreshold values in a PtpConfig CR that you create.
Prerequisites
-
You have installed the OpenShift Container Platform CLI (
oc). -
You have logged in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - You have installed the PTP Operator.
Procedure
Modify the default PTP Operator config to enable PTP fast events.
Save the following YAML in the
ptp-operatorconfig.yamlfile:apiVersion: ptp.openshift.io/v1 kind: PtpOperatorConfig metadata: name: default namespace: openshift-ptp spec: daemonNodeSelector: node-role.kubernetes.io/worker: "" ptpEventConfig: enableEventPublisher: true 1- 1
- Set
enableEventPublishertotrueto enable PTP fast event notifications.
NoteIn OpenShift Container Platform 4.13 or later, you do not need to set the
spec.ptpEventConfig.transportHostfield in thePtpOperatorConfigresource when you use HTTP transport for PTP events. SettransportHostonly when you use AMQP transport for PTP events.Update the
PtpOperatorConfigCR:$ oc apply -f ptp-operatorconfig.yaml
Create a
PtpConfigcustom resource (CR) for the PTP enabled interface, and set the required values forptpClockThresholdandptp4lOpts. The following YAML illustrates the required values that you must set in thePtpConfigCR:spec: profile: - name: "profile1" interface: "enp5s0f0" ptp4lOpts: "-2 -s --summary_interval -4" 1 phc2sysOpts: "-a -r -m -n 24 -N 8 -R 16" 2 ptp4lConf: "" 3 ptpClockThreshold: 4 holdOverTimeout: 5 maxOffsetThreshold: 100 minOffsetThreshold: -100- 1
- Append
--summary_interval -4to use PTP fast events. - 2
- Required
phc2sysOptsvalues.-mprints messages tostdout. Thelinuxptp-daemonDaemonSetparses the logs and generates Prometheus metrics. - 3
- Specify a string that contains the configuration to replace the default
/etc/ptp4l.conffile. To use the default configuration, leave the field empty. - 4
- Optional. If the
ptpClockThresholdstanza is not present, default values are used for theptpClockThresholdfields. The stanza shows defaultptpClockThresholdvalues. TheptpClockThresholdvalues configure how long after the PTP master clock is disconnected before PTP events are triggered.holdOverTimeoutis the time value in seconds before the PTP clock event state changes toFREERUNwhen the PTP master clock is disconnected. ThemaxOffsetThresholdandminOffsetThresholdsettings configure offset values in nanoseconds that compare against the values forCLOCK_REALTIME(phc2sys) or master offset (ptp4l). When theptp4lorphc2sysoffset value is outside this range, the PTP clock state is set toFREERUN. When the offset value is within this range, the PTP clock state is set toLOCKED.
Additional resources
-
For a complete example CR that configures
linuxptpservices as an ordinary clock with PTP fast events, see Configuring linuxptp services as ordinary clock.
19.8.4. Migrating consumer applications to use HTTP transport for PTP or bare-metal events
If you have previously deployed PTP or bare-metal events consumer applications, you need to update the applications to use HTTP message transport.
Prerequisites
-
You have installed the OpenShift CLI (
oc). -
You have logged in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - You have updated the PTP Operator or Bare Metal Event Relay to version 4.13+ which uses HTTP transport by default.
Procedure
Update your events consumer application to use HTTP transport. Set the
http-event-publishersvariable for the cloud event sidecar deployment.For example, in a cluster with PTP events configured, the following YAML snippet illustrates a cloud event sidecar deployment:
containers: - name: cloud-event-sidecar image: cloud-event-sidecar args: - "--metrics-addr=127.0.0.1:9091" - "--store-path=/store" - "--transport-host=consumer-events-subscription-service.cloud-events.svc.cluster.local:9043" - "--http-event-publishers=ptp-event-publisher-service-NODE_NAME.openshift-ptp.svc.cluster.local:9043" 1 - "--api-port=8089"- 1
- The PTP Operator automatically resolves
NODE_NAMEto the host that is generating the PTP events. For example,compute-1.example.com.
In a cluster with bare-metal events configured, set the
http-event-publishersfield tohw-event-publisher-service.openshift-bare-metal-events.svc.cluster.local:9043in the cloud event sidecar deployment CR.Deploy the
consumer-events-subscription-serviceservice alongside the events consumer application. For example:apiVersion: v1 kind: Service metadata: annotations: prometheus.io/scrape: "true" service.alpha.openshift.io/serving-cert-secret-name: sidecar-consumer-secret name: consumer-events-subscription-service namespace: cloud-events labels: app: consumer-service spec: ports: - name: sub-port port: 9043 selector: app: consumer clusterIP: None sessionAffinity: None type: ClusterIP
19.8.5. Installing the AMQ messaging bus
To pass PTP fast event notifications between publisher and subscriber on a node, you can install and configure an AMQ messaging bus to run locally on the node. To use AMQ messaging, you must install the AMQ Interconnect Operator.
Use HTTP transport instead of AMQP for PTP and bare-metal events where possible. AMQ Interconnect is EOL from 30 June 2024. Extended life cycle support (ELS) for AMQ Interconnect ends 29 November 2029. For more information see, Red Hat AMQ Interconnect support status.
Prerequisites
-
Install the OpenShift Container Platform CLI (
oc). -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges.
Procedure
-
Install the AMQ Interconnect Operator to its own
amq-interconnectnamespace. See Adding the Red Hat Integration - AMQ Interconnect Operator.
Verification
Check that the AMQ Interconnect Operator is available and the required pods are running:
$ oc get pods -n amq-interconnect
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE amq-interconnect-645db76c76-k8ghs 1/1 Running 0 23h interconnect-operator-5cb5fc7cc-4v7qm 1/1 Running 0 23h
Check that the required
linuxptp-daemonPTP event producer pods are running in theopenshift-ptpnamespace.$ oc get pods -n openshift-ptp
Example output
NAME READY STATUS RESTARTS AGE linuxptp-daemon-2t78p 3/3 Running 0 12h linuxptp-daemon-k8n88 3/3 Running 0 12h
19.8.6. Subscribing DU applications to PTP events REST API reference
Use the PTP event notifications REST API to subscribe a distributed unit (DU) application to the PTP events that are generated on the parent node.
Subscribe applications to PTP events by using the resource address /cluster/node/<node_name>/ptp, where <node_name> is the cluster node running the DU application.
Deploy your cloud-event-consumer DU application container and cloud-event-proxy sidecar container in a separate DU application pod. The cloud-event-consumer DU application subscribes to the cloud-event-proxy container in the application pod.
Use the following API endpoints to subscribe the cloud-event-consumer DU application to PTP events posted by the cloud-event-proxy container at http://localhost:8089/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/ in the DU application pod:
/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions-
POST: Creates a new subscription -
GET: Retrieves a list of subscriptions
-
/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/<subscription_id>-
GET: Returns details for the specified subscription ID
-
api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/status/<subscription_id>-
PUT: Creates a new status ping request for the specified subscription ID
-
/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/health-
GET: Returns the health status ofocloudNotificationsAPI
-
api/ocloudNotifications/v1/publishers-
GET: Returns an array ofos-clock-sync-state,ptp-clock-class-change, andlock-statemessages for the cluster node
-
/api/ocloudnotifications/v1/<resource_address>/CurrentState-
GET: Returns the current state of one the following event types:os-clock-sync-state,ptp-clock-class-change, orlock-stateevents
-
9089 is the default port for the cloud-event-consumer container deployed in the application pod. You can configure a different port for your DU application as required.
19.8.6.1. api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions
HTTP method
GET api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions
Description
Returns a list of subscriptions. If subscriptions exist, a 200 OK status code is returned along with the list of subscriptions.
Example API response
[
{
"id": "75b1ad8f-c807-4c23-acf5-56f4b7ee3826",
"endpointUri": "http://localhost:9089/event",
"uriLocation": "http://localhost:8089/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/75b1ad8f-c807-4c23-acf5-56f4b7ee3826",
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/ptp"
}
]
HTTP method
POST api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions
Description
Creates a new subscription. If a subscription is successfully created, or if it already exists, a 201 Created status code is returned.
Table 19.5. Query parameters
| Parameter | Type |
|---|---|
| subscription | data |
Example payload
{
"uriLocation": "http://localhost:8089/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions",
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/ptp"
}
19.8.6.2. api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/<subscription_id>
HTTP method
GET api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/<subscription_id>
Description
Returns details for the subscription with ID <subscription_id>
Table 19.6. Query parameters
| Parameter | Type |
|---|---|
|
| string |
Example API response
{
"id":"48210fb3-45be-4ce0-aa9b-41a0e58730ab",
"endpointUri": "http://localhost:9089/event",
"uriLocation":"http://localhost:8089/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/48210fb3-45be-4ce0-aa9b-41a0e58730ab",
"resource":"/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/ptp"
}
19.8.6.3. api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/status/<subscription_id>
HTTP method
PUT api/ocloudNotifications/v1/subscriptions/status/<subscription_id>
Description
Creates a new status ping request for subscription with ID <subscription_id>. If a subscription is present, the status request is successful and a 202 Accepted status code is returned.
Table 19.7. Query parameters
| Parameter | Type |
|---|---|
|
| string |
Example API response
{"status":"ping sent"}
19.8.6.4. api/ocloudNotifications/v1/health/
HTTP method
GET api/ocloudNotifications/v1/health/
Description
Returns the health status for the ocloudNotifications REST API.
Example API response
OK
19.8.6.5. api/ocloudNotifications/v1/publishers
HTTP method
GET api/ocloudNotifications/v1/publishers
Description
Returns an array of os-clock-sync-state, ptp-clock-class-change, and lock-state details for the cluster node. The system generates notifications when the relevant equipment state changes.
-
os-clock-sync-statenotifications describe the host operating system clock synchronization state. Can be inLOCKEDorFREERUNstate. -
ptp-clock-class-changenotifications describe the current state of the PTP clock class. -
lock-statenotifications describe the current status of the PTP equipment lock state. Can be inLOCKED,HOLDOVERorFREERUNstate.
Example API response
[
{
"id": "0fa415ae-a3cf-4299-876a-589438bacf75",
"endpointUri": "http://localhost:9085/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/dummy",
"uriLocation": "http://localhost:9085/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/publishers/0fa415ae-a3cf-4299-876a-589438bacf75",
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/sync/sync-status/os-clock-sync-state"
},
{
"id": "28cd82df-8436-4f50-bbd9-7a9742828a71",
"endpointUri": "http://localhost:9085/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/dummy",
"uriLocation": "http://localhost:9085/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/publishers/28cd82df-8436-4f50-bbd9-7a9742828a71",
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/sync/ptp-status/ptp-clock-class-change"
},
{
"id": "44aa480d-7347-48b0-a5b0-e0af01fa9677",
"endpointUri": "http://localhost:9085/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/dummy",
"uriLocation": "http://localhost:9085/api/ocloudNotifications/v1/publishers/44aa480d-7347-48b0-a5b0-e0af01fa9677",
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/sync/ptp-status/lock-state"
}
]
You can find os-clock-sync-state, ptp-clock-class-change and lock-state events in the logs for the cloud-event-proxy container. For example:
$ oc logs -f linuxptp-daemon-cvgr6 -n openshift-ptp -c cloud-event-proxy
Example os-clock-sync-state event
{
"id":"c8a784d1-5f4a-4c16-9a81-a3b4313affe5",
"type":"event.sync.sync-status.os-clock-sync-state-change",
"source":"/cluster/compute-1.example.com/ptp/CLOCK_REALTIME",
"dataContentType":"application/json",
"time":"2022-05-06T15:31:23.906277159Z",
"data":{
"version":"v1",
"values":[
{
"resource":"/sync/sync-status/os-clock-sync-state",
"dataType":"notification",
"valueType":"enumeration",
"value":"LOCKED"
},
{
"resource":"/sync/sync-status/os-clock-sync-state",
"dataType":"metric",
"valueType":"decimal64.3",
"value":"-53"
}
]
}
}
Example ptp-clock-class-change event
{
"id":"69eddb52-1650-4e56-b325-86d44688d02b",
"type":"event.sync.ptp-status.ptp-clock-class-change",
"source":"/cluster/compute-1.example.com/ptp/ens2fx/master",
"dataContentType":"application/json",
"time":"2022-05-06T15:31:23.147100033Z",
"data":{
"version":"v1",
"values":[
{
"resource":"/sync/ptp-status/ptp-clock-class-change",
"dataType":"metric",
"valueType":"decimal64.3",
"value":"135"
}
]
}
}
Example lock-state event
{
"id":"305ec18b-1472-47b3-aadd-8f37933249a9",
"type":"event.sync.ptp-status.ptp-state-change",
"source":"/cluster/compute-1.example.com/ptp/ens2fx/master",
"dataContentType":"application/json",
"time":"2022-05-06T15:31:23.467684081Z",
"data":{
"version":"v1",
"values":[
{
"resource":"/sync/ptp-status/lock-state",
"dataType":"notification",
"valueType":"enumeration",
"value":"LOCKED"
},
{
"resource":"/sync/ptp-status/lock-state",
"dataType":"metric",
"valueType":"decimal64.3",
"value":"62"
}
]
}
}
19.8.6.6. /api/ocloudnotifications/v1/<resource_address>/CurrentState
HTTP method
GET api/ocloudNotifications/v1/cluster/node/<node_name>/sync/ptp-status/lock-state/CurrentState
GET api/ocloudNotifications/v1/cluster/node/<node_name>/sync/sync-status/os-clock-sync-state/CurrentState
GET api/ocloudNotifications/v1/cluster/node/<node_name>/sync/ptp-status/ptp-clock-class-change/CurrentState
Description
Configure the CurrentState API endpoint to return the current state of the os-clock-sync-state, ptp-clock-class-change, or lock-state events for the cluster node.
-
os-clock-sync-statenotifications describe the host operating system clock synchronization state. Can be inLOCKEDorFREERUNstate. -
ptp-clock-class-changenotifications describe the current state of the PTP clock class. -
lock-statenotifications describe the current status of the PTP equipment lock state. Can be inLOCKED,HOLDOVERorFREERUNstate.
Table 19.8. Query parameters
| Parameter | Type |
|---|---|
|
| string |
Example lock-state API response
{
"id": "c1ac3aa5-1195-4786-84f8-da0ea4462921",
"type": "event.sync.ptp-status.ptp-state-change",
"source": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/sync/ptp-status/lock-state",
"dataContentType": "application/json",
"time": "2023-01-10T02:41:57.094981478Z",
"data": {
"version": "v1",
"values": [
{
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/ens5fx/master",
"dataType": "notification",
"valueType": "enumeration",
"value": "LOCKED"
},
{
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/ens5fx/master",
"dataType": "metric",
"valueType": "decimal64.3",
"value": "29"
}
]
}
}
Example os-clock-sync-state API response
{
"specversion": "0.3",
"id": "4f51fe99-feaa-4e66-9112-66c5c9b9afcb",
"source": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/sync/sync-status/os-clock-sync-state",
"type": "event.sync.sync-status.os-clock-sync-state-change",
"subject": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/sync/sync-status/os-clock-sync-state",
"datacontenttype": "application/json",
"time": "2022-11-29T17:44:22.202Z",
"data": {
"version": "v1",
"values": [
{
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/CLOCK_REALTIME",
"dataType": "notification",
"valueType": "enumeration",
"value": "LOCKED"
},
{
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/CLOCK_REALTIME",
"dataType": "metric",
"valueType": "decimal64.3",
"value": "27"
}
]
}
}
Example ptp-clock-class-change API response
{
"id": "064c9e67-5ad4-4afb-98ff-189c6aa9c205",
"type": "event.sync.ptp-status.ptp-clock-class-change",
"source": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/sync/ptp-status/ptp-clock-class-change",
"dataContentType": "application/json",
"time": "2023-01-10T02:41:56.785673989Z",
"data": {
"version": "v1",
"values": [
{
"resource": "/cluster/node/compute-1.example.com/ens5fx/master",
"dataType": "metric",
"valueType": "decimal64.3",
"value": "165"
}
]
}
}
19.8.7. Monitoring PTP fast event metrics
You can monitor PTP fast events metrics from cluster nodes where the linuxptp-daemon is running. You can also monitor PTP fast event metrics in the OpenShift Container Platform web console by using the pre-configured and self-updating Prometheus monitoring stack.
Prerequisites
-
Install the OpenShift Container Platform CLI
oc. -
Log in as a user with
cluster-adminprivileges. - Install and configure the PTP Operator on a node with PTP-capable hardware.
Procedure
Check for exposed PTP metrics on any node where the
linuxptp-daemonis running. For example, run the following command:$ curl http://<node_name>:9091/metrics
Example output
# HELP openshift_ptp_clock_state 0 = FREERUN, 1 = LOCKED, 2 = HOLDOVER # TYPE openshift_ptp_clock_state gauge openshift_ptp_clock_state{iface="ens1fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 1 openshift_ptp_clock_state{iface="ens3fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 1 openshift_ptp_clock_state{iface="ens5fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 1 openshift_ptp_clock_state{iface="ens7fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 1 # HELP openshift_ptp_delay_ns # TYPE openshift_ptp_delay_ns gauge openshift_ptp_delay_ns{from="master",iface="ens1fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 842 openshift_ptp_delay_ns{from="master",iface="ens3fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 480 openshift_ptp_delay_ns{from="master",iface="ens5fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 584 openshift_ptp_delay_ns{from="master",iface="ens7fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 482 openshift_ptp_delay_ns{from="phc",iface="CLOCK_REALTIME",node="compute-1.example.com",process="phc2sys"} 547 # HELP openshift_ptp_offset_ns # TYPE openshift_ptp_offset_ns gauge openshift_ptp_offset_ns{from="master",iface="ens1fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} -2 openshift_ptp_offset_ns{from="master",iface="ens3fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} -44 openshift_ptp_offset_ns{from="master",iface="ens5fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} -8 openshift_ptp_offset_ns{from="master",iface="ens7fx",node="compute-1.example.com",process="ptp4l"} 3 openshift_ptp_offset_ns{from="phc",iface="CLOCK_REALTIME",node="compute-1.example.com",process="phc2sys"} 12-
To view the PTP event in the OpenShift Container Platform web console, copy the name of the PTP metric you want to query, for example,
openshift_ptp_offset_ns. - In the OpenShift Container Platform web console, click Observe → Metrics.
- Paste the PTP metric name into the Expression field, and click Run queries.
Additional resources