[pkg-ntp-maintainers] Bug#606107: Bug#606107: ntp: handle empty ntp.conf gracefully (working around system-tools-backends bug)

[Peter Eisentraut]

On ons, 2010-12-08 at 13:40 +0000, Colin Watson wrote:
> > I don't really agree with these changes.  An empty ntp.conf is an error
> > and should not be masked.
> 
> What useful information can this state possibly convey?

That state that something is broken.

> > Why not just fix the GNOME side and let that be it?
> 
> Think of the user.  system-tools-backends has left the empty ntp.conf
> around, without any hint to the user about this; now installing the ntp
> package (which gnome-system-tools does for you behind the scenes if you
> ask it to set up time synchronisation, but might of course also happen
> by hand) incomprehensibly still leaves an empty ntp.conf, which as you
> say is an error.  In what way is this better than just dealing with the
> problem by removing the empty file so that a proper one can be put in
> place?  I don't see who this benefits.

Can't system-tools-backends clean up the file that it had erroneously
placed?