diff --git a/docs/ENVIRONMENT.md b/docs/ENVIRONMENT.md
index c340e01d016..ab2d6795190 100644
--- a/docs/ENVIRONMENT.md
+++ b/docs/ENVIRONMENT.md
@@ -297,6 +297,9 @@ All tools:
   first existing unit listed in the environment variable, and
   `timedatectl set-ntp off` disables and stops all listed units.
 
+* `$SYSTEMD_ETC_ADJTIME` - override the path to the hardware clock setting.
+  The default is `/etc/adjtime`.
+
 `systemd-sulogin-shell`:
 
 * `$SYSTEMD_SULOGIN_FORCE=1` — This skips asking for the root password if the
@@ -779,3 +782,24 @@ Tools using the Varlink protocol (such as `varlinkctl`) or sd-bus (such as
   `systemd.factory_reset=` kernel command line option: if set to false,
   requesting a TPM clearing is skipped, and the command immediately exits
   successfully.
+
+`systemd-timedated`, `systemd-firstboot`:
+
+* `$SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALTIME` - override the path to the timezone symlink. The
+  default is `/etc/localtime`.
+
+`systemd-hostnamed`, `systemd-firstboot`:
+
+* `$SYSTEMD_ETC_HOSTNAME` - override the path to local system name
+  configuration. The default is `/etc/hostname`.
+
+* `$SYSTEMD_ETC_MACHINE_INFO` - override the path to the machine metadata. The
+  default is `/etc/machine-info`.
+
+`systemd-localed`, `systemd-firstboot`:
+
+* `$SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALE_CONF` - override the path to the system-wide locale
+  configuration. The default is `/etc/locale.conf`.
+
+* `$SYSTEMD_ETC_VCONSOLE_CONF` - override the path to the virtual console
+  configuration. The default is `/etc/vconsole.conf`.
diff --git a/src/basic/hostname-util.c b/src/basic/hostname-util.c
index 7159473b582..51594e96ece 100644
--- a/src/basic/hostname-util.c
+++ b/src/basic/hostname-util.c
@@ -160,13 +160,21 @@ bool is_localhost(const char *hostname) {
                 endswith_no_case(hostname, ".localhost.localdomain.");
 }
 
+const char* etc_hostname(void) {
+        return secure_getenv("SYSTEMD_ETC_HOSTNAME") ?: "/etc/hostname";
+}
+
+const char* etc_machine_info(void) {
+        return secure_getenv("SYSTEMD_ETC_MACHINE_INFO") ?: "/etc/machine-info";
+}
+
 int get_pretty_hostname(char **ret) {
         _cleanup_free_ char *n = NULL;
         int r;
 
         assert(ret);
 
-        r = parse_env_file(NULL, "/etc/machine-info", "PRETTY_HOSTNAME", &n);
+        r = parse_env_file(NULL, etc_machine_info(), "PRETTY_HOSTNAME", &n);
         if (r < 0)
                 return r;
 
diff --git a/src/basic/hostname-util.h b/src/basic/hostname-util.h
index 4c5abe760f0..6138e61d742 100644
--- a/src/basic/hostname-util.h
+++ b/src/basic/hostname-util.h
@@ -40,4 +40,7 @@ static inline bool is_dns_proxy_stub_hostname(const char *hostname) {
         return STRCASE_IN_SET(hostname, "_localdnsproxy", "_localdnsproxy.");
 }
 
+const char* etc_hostname(void);
+const char* etc_machine_info(void);
+
 int get_pretty_hostname(char **ret);
diff --git a/src/basic/time-util.c b/src/basic/time-util.c
index fcbedf9e9d1..a6a56a014f5 100644
--- a/src/basic/time-util.c
+++ b/src/basic/time-util.c
@@ -1605,19 +1605,27 @@ bool clock_supported(clockid_t clock) {
 }
 
 int get_timezone(char **ret) {
-        _cleanup_free_ char *t = NULL;
+        _cleanup_free_ char *t = NULL, *link_dir = NULL, *abspath = NULL;
         int r;
 
         assert(ret);
 
-        r = readlink_malloc("/etc/localtime", &t);
+        r = readlink_malloc(etc_localtime(), &t);
         if (r == -ENOENT)
                 /* If the symlink does not exist, assume "UTC", like glibc does */
                 return strdup_to(ret, "UTC");
         if (r < 0)
                 return r; /* Return EINVAL if not a symlink */
 
-        const char *e = PATH_STARTSWITH_SET(t, "/usr/share/zoneinfo/", "../usr/share/zoneinfo/");
+        r = path_extract_directory(etc_localtime(), &link_dir);
+        if (r < 0)
+                return r;
+
+        abspath = path_make_absolute(t, link_dir);
+        if (!abspath)
+                return -ENOMEM;
+
+        const char *e = path_startswith(abspath, "/usr/share/zoneinfo/");
         if (!e)
                 return -EINVAL;
         if (!timezone_is_valid(e, LOG_DEBUG))
@@ -1626,6 +1634,10 @@ int get_timezone(char **ret) {
         return strdup_to(ret, e);
 }
 
+const char* etc_localtime(void) {
+        return secure_getenv("SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALTIME") ?: "/etc/localtime";
+}
+
 int mktime_or_timegm_usec(
                 struct tm *tm, /* input + normalized output */
                 bool utc,
diff --git a/src/basic/time-util.h b/src/basic/time-util.h
index 14d660ee7e9..c403832cb10 100644
--- a/src/basic/time-util.h
+++ b/src/basic/time-util.h
@@ -176,6 +176,7 @@ bool clock_supported(clockid_t clock);
 usec_t usec_shift_clock(usec_t, clockid_t from, clockid_t to);
 
 int get_timezone(char **ret);
+const char* etc_localtime(void);
 
 int mktime_or_timegm_usec(struct tm *tm, bool utc, usec_t *ret);
 int localtime_or_gmtime_usec(usec_t t, bool utc, struct tm *ret);
diff --git a/src/core/manager.c b/src/core/manager.c
index 36217ead14a..2b560461f97 100644
--- a/src/core/manager.c
+++ b/src/core/manager.c
@@ -428,7 +428,7 @@ static int manager_read_timezone_stat(Manager *m) {
         assert(m);
 
         /* Read the current stat() data of /etc/localtime so that we detect changes */
-        if (lstat("/etc/localtime", &st) < 0) {
+        if (lstat(etc_localtime(), &st) < 0) {
                 log_debug_errno(errno, "Failed to stat /etc/localtime, ignoring: %m");
                 changed = m->etc_localtime_accessible;
                 m->etc_localtime_accessible = false;
@@ -465,7 +465,7 @@ static int manager_setup_timezone_change(Manager *m) {
          * Note that we create the new event source first here, before releasing the old one. This should optimize
          * behaviour as this way sd-event can reuse the old watch in case the inode didn't change. */
 
-        r = sd_event_add_inotify(m->event, &new_event, "/etc/localtime",
+        r = sd_event_add_inotify(m->event, &new_event, etc_localtime(),
                                  IN_ATTRIB|IN_MOVE_SELF|IN_CLOSE_WRITE|IN_DONT_FOLLOW, manager_dispatch_timezone_change, m);
         if (r == -ENOENT) {
                 /* If the file doesn't exist yet, subscribe to /etc instead, and wait until it is created either by
diff --git a/src/firstboot/firstboot.c b/src/firstboot/firstboot.c
index cd72f543969..d8130c82147 100644
--- a/src/firstboot/firstboot.c
+++ b/src/firstboot/firstboot.c
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@
 #include "hostname-util.h"
 #include "kbd-util.h"
 #include "libcrypt-util.h"
+#include "locale-setup.h"
 #include "locale-util.h"
 #include "lock-util.h"
 #include "main-func.h"
@@ -400,7 +401,7 @@ static int process_locale(int rfd) {
 
         assert(rfd >= 0);
 
-        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, "/etc/locale.conf",
+        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, etc_locale_conf(),
                                        CHASE_AT_RESOLVE_IN_ROOT|CHASE_MKDIR_0755|CHASE_WARN|CHASE_NOFOLLOW,
                                        &f);
         if (pfd < 0)
@@ -417,7 +418,7 @@ static int process_locale(int rfd) {
                 return log_error_errno(r, "Failed to check if directory file descriptor is root: %m");
 
         if (arg_copy_locale && r == 0) {
-                r = copy_file_atomic_at(AT_FDCWD, "/etc/locale.conf", pfd, f, 0644, COPY_REFLINK);
+                r = copy_file_atomic_at(AT_FDCWD, etc_locale_conf(), pfd, f, 0644, COPY_REFLINK);
                 if (r != -ENOENT) {
                         if (r < 0)
                                 return log_error_errno(r, "Failed to copy host's /etc/locale.conf: %m");
@@ -507,7 +508,7 @@ static int process_keymap(int rfd) {
 
         assert(rfd >= 0);
 
-        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, "/etc/vconsole.conf",
+        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, etc_vconsole_conf(),
                                        CHASE_AT_RESOLVE_IN_ROOT|CHASE_MKDIR_0755|CHASE_WARN|CHASE_NOFOLLOW,
                                        &f);
         if (pfd < 0)
@@ -524,7 +525,7 @@ static int process_keymap(int rfd) {
                 return log_error_errno(r, "Failed to check if directory file descriptor is root: %m");
 
         if (arg_copy_keymap && r == 0) {
-                r = copy_file_atomic_at(AT_FDCWD, "/etc/vconsole.conf", pfd, f, 0644, COPY_REFLINK);
+                r = copy_file_atomic_at(AT_FDCWD, etc_vconsole_conf(), pfd, f, 0644, COPY_REFLINK);
                 if (r != -ENOENT) {
                         if (r < 0)
                                 return log_error_errno(r, "Failed to copy host's /etc/vconsole.conf: %m");
@@ -604,13 +605,13 @@ static int prompt_timezone(int rfd) {
 
 static int process_timezone(int rfd) {
         _cleanup_close_ int pfd = -EBADF;
-        _cleanup_free_ char *f = NULL;
+        _cleanup_free_ char *f = NULL, *relpath = NULL, *link_dir = NULL;
         const char *e;
         int r;
 
         assert(rfd >= 0);
 
-        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, "/etc/localtime",
+        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, etc_localtime(),
                                        CHASE_AT_RESOLVE_IN_ROOT|CHASE_MKDIR_0755|CHASE_WARN|CHASE_NOFOLLOW,
                                        &f);
         if (pfd < 0)
@@ -629,7 +630,7 @@ static int process_timezone(int rfd) {
         if (arg_copy_timezone && r == 0) {
                 _cleanup_free_ char *s = NULL;
 
-                r = readlink_malloc("/etc/localtime", &s);
+                r = readlink_malloc(etc_localtime(), &s);
                 if (r != -ENOENT) {
                         if (r < 0)
                                 return log_error_errno(r, "Failed to read host's /etc/localtime: %m");
@@ -650,9 +651,15 @@ static int process_timezone(int rfd) {
         if (isempty(arg_timezone))
                 return 0;
 
-        e = strjoina("../usr/share/zoneinfo/", arg_timezone);
+        r = path_extract_directory(etc_localtime(), &link_dir);
+        if (r < 0)
+                return r;
+        e = strjoina("/usr/share/zoneinfo/", arg_timezone);
+        r = path_make_relative(link_dir, e, &relpath);
+        if (r < 0)
+                return r;
 
-        r = symlinkat_atomic_full(e, pfd, f, /* make_relative= */ false);
+        r = symlinkat_atomic_full(relpath, pfd, f, /* make_relative= */ false);
         if (r < 0)
                 return log_error_errno(r, "Failed to create /etc/localtime symlink: %m");
 
@@ -699,7 +706,7 @@ static int process_hostname(int rfd) {
 
         assert(rfd >= 0);
 
-        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, "/etc/hostname",
+        pfd = chase_and_open_parent_at(rfd, etc_hostname(),
                                        CHASE_AT_RESOLVE_IN_ROOT|CHASE_MKDIR_0755|CHASE_WARN,
                                        &f);
         if (pfd < 0)
@@ -1215,12 +1222,12 @@ static int process_reset(int rfd) {
                 return 0;
 
         FOREACH_STRING(p,
-                       "/etc/locale.conf",
-                       "/etc/vconsole.conf",
-                       "/etc/hostname",
+                       etc_locale_conf(),
+                       etc_vconsole_conf(),
+                       etc_hostname(),
                        "/etc/machine-id",
                        "/etc/kernel/cmdline",
-                       "/etc/localtime") {
+                       etc_localtime()) {
                 r = reset_one(rfd, p);
                 if (r < 0)
                         return r;
diff --git a/src/hostname/hostnamed.c b/src/hostname/hostnamed.c
index d9ec55455fb..44299ebb768 100644
--- a/src/hostname/hostnamed.c
+++ b/src/hostname/hostnamed.c
@@ -122,7 +122,7 @@ static void context_read_etc_hostname(Context *c) {
 
         assert(c);
 
-        if (stat("/etc/hostname", &current_stat) >= 0 &&
+        if (stat(etc_hostname(), &current_stat) >= 0 &&
             stat_inode_unmodified(&c->etc_hostname_stat, &current_stat))
                 return;
 
@@ -155,7 +155,7 @@ static void context_read_machine_info(Context *c) {
 
         assert(c);
 
-        if (stat("/etc/machine-info", &current_stat) >= 0 &&
+        if (stat(etc_machine_info(), &current_stat) >= 0 &&
             stat_inode_unmodified(&c->etc_machine_info_stat, &current_stat))
                 return;
 
@@ -168,7 +168,7 @@ static void context_read_machine_info(Context *c) {
                       (UINT64_C(1) << PROP_HARDWARE_VENDOR) |
                       (UINT64_C(1) << PROP_HARDWARE_MODEL));
 
-        r = parse_env_file(NULL, "/etc/machine-info",
+        r = parse_env_file(NULL, etc_machine_info(),
                            "PRETTY_HOSTNAME", &c->data[PROP_PRETTY_HOSTNAME],
                            "ICON_NAME", &c->data[PROP_ICON_NAME],
                            "CHASSIS", &c->data[PROP_CHASSIS],
@@ -749,14 +749,14 @@ static int context_write_data_static_hostname(Context *c) {
         s = &c->etc_hostname_stat;
 
         if (isempty(c->data[PROP_STATIC_HOSTNAME])) {
-                if (unlink("/etc/hostname") < 0 && errno != ENOENT)
+                if (unlink(etc_hostname()) < 0 && errno != ENOENT)
                         return -errno;
 
                 TAKE_PTR(s);
                 return 0;
         }
 
-        r = write_string_file("/etc/hostname", c->data[PROP_STATIC_HOSTNAME], WRITE_STRING_FILE_CREATE|WRITE_STRING_FILE_ATOMIC|WRITE_STRING_FILE_LABEL);
+        r = write_string_file(etc_hostname(), c->data[PROP_STATIC_HOSTNAME], WRITE_STRING_FILE_CREATE|WRITE_STRING_FILE_ATOMIC|WRITE_STRING_FILE_LABEL);
         if (r < 0)
                 return r;
 
@@ -782,7 +782,7 @@ static int context_write_data_machine_info(Context *c) {
          * already, even if we can't make it hit the disk. */
         s = &c->etc_machine_info_stat;
 
-        r = load_env_file(NULL, "/etc/machine-info", &l);
+        r = load_env_file(NULL, etc_machine_info(), &l);
         if (r < 0 && r != -ENOENT)
                 return r;
 
@@ -795,14 +795,14 @@ static int context_write_data_machine_info(Context *c) {
         }
 
         if (strv_isempty(l)) {
-                if (unlink("/etc/machine-info") < 0 && errno != ENOENT)
+                if (unlink(etc_machine_info()) < 0 && errno != ENOENT)
                         return -errno;
 
                 TAKE_PTR(s);
                 return 0;
         }
 
-        r = write_env_file_label(AT_FDCWD, "/etc/machine-info", NULL, l);
+        r = write_env_file_label(AT_FDCWD, etc_machine_info(), NULL, l);
         if (r < 0)
                 return r;
 
@@ -1596,7 +1596,7 @@ static int build_describe_response(Context *c, bool privileged, sd_json_variant
         (void) vsock_get_local_cid(&local_cid);
 
         (void) load_os_release_pairs(/* root= */ NULL, &os_release_pairs);
-        (void) load_env_file_pairs(/* f=*/ NULL, "/etc/machine-info", &machine_info_pairs);
+        (void) load_env_file_pairs(/* f=*/ NULL, etc_machine_info(), &machine_info_pairs);
 
         r = sd_json_buildo(
                         &v,
diff --git a/src/locale/localed-util.c b/src/locale/localed-util.c
index d43ee48e12f..d22a9477a8b 100644
--- a/src/locale/localed-util.c
+++ b/src/locale/localed-util.c
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ int vconsole_read_data(Context *c, sd_bus_message *m) {
                 c->vc_cache = sd_bus_message_ref(m);
         }
 
-        fd = RET_NERRNO(open("/etc/vconsole.conf", O_CLOEXEC | O_PATH));
+        fd = RET_NERRNO(open(etc_vconsole_conf(), O_CLOEXEC | O_PATH));
         if (fd == -ENOENT) {
                 c->vc_stat = (struct stat) {};
                 vc_context_clear(&c->vc);
@@ -170,7 +170,7 @@ int vconsole_read_data(Context *c, sd_bus_message *m) {
         x11_context_clear(&c->x11_from_vc);
 
         r = parse_env_file_fd(
-                        fd, "/etc/vconsole.conf",
+                        fd, etc_vconsole_conf(),
                         "KEYMAP",        &c->vc.keymap,
                         "KEYMAP_TOGGLE", &c->vc.toggle,
                         "XKBLAYOUT",     &c->x11_from_vc.layout,
@@ -286,6 +286,7 @@ int x11_read_data(Context *c, sd_bus_message *m) {
 }
 
 int vconsole_write_data(Context *c) {
+        const char* vconsole_conf_path;
         _cleanup_strv_free_ char **l = NULL;
         const X11Context *xc;
         int r;
@@ -294,7 +295,9 @@ int vconsole_write_data(Context *c) {
 
         xc = context_get_x11_context(c);
 
-        r = load_env_file(NULL, "/etc/vconsole.conf", &l);
+        vconsole_conf_path = etc_vconsole_conf();
+
+        r = load_env_file(NULL, vconsole_conf_path, &l);
         if (r < 0 && r != -ENOENT)
                 return r;
 
@@ -303,18 +306,18 @@ int vconsole_write_data(Context *c) {
                 return r;
 
         if (strv_isempty(l)) {
-                if (unlink("/etc/vconsole.conf") < 0)
+                if (unlink(vconsole_conf_path) < 0)
                         return errno == ENOENT ? 0 : -errno;
 
                 c->vc_stat = (struct stat) {};
                 return 0;
         }
 
-        r = write_vconsole_conf_label(l);
+        r = write_vconsole_conf_label(vconsole_conf_path, l);
         if (r < 0)
                 return r;
 
-        if (stat("/etc/vconsole.conf", &c->vc_stat) < 0)
+        if (stat(vconsole_conf_path, &c->vc_stat) < 0)
                 return -errno;
 
         return 0;
diff --git a/src/shared/env-file-label.c b/src/shared/env-file-label.c
index 5917b6377f3..a0c0163c19f 100644
--- a/src/shared/env-file-label.c
+++ b/src/shared/env-file-label.c
@@ -20,14 +20,14 @@ int write_env_file_label(int dir_fd, const char *fname, char **headers, char **l
         return r;
 }
 
-int write_vconsole_conf_label(char **l) {
+int write_vconsole_conf_label(const char* vconsole_conf_path, char **l) {
         int r;
 
-        r = mac_selinux_create_file_prepare("/etc/vconsole.conf", S_IFREG);
+        r = mac_selinux_create_file_prepare(vconsole_conf_path, S_IFREG);
         if (r < 0)
                 return r;
 
-        r = write_vconsole_conf(AT_FDCWD, "/etc/vconsole.conf", l);
+        r = write_vconsole_conf(AT_FDCWD, vconsole_conf_path, l);
 
         mac_selinux_create_file_clear();
 
diff --git a/src/shared/env-file-label.h b/src/shared/env-file-label.h
index 5ba45e40057..3cd772a626b 100644
--- a/src/shared/env-file-label.h
+++ b/src/shared/env-file-label.h
@@ -7,4 +7,4 @@
 
 int write_env_file_label(int dir_fd, const char *fname, char **headers, char **l);
 
-int write_vconsole_conf_label(char **l);
+int write_vconsole_conf_label(const char* vconsole_conf_path, char **l);
diff --git a/src/shared/hostname-setup.c b/src/shared/hostname-setup.c
index af89f92bdc4..6c761d022c8 100644
--- a/src/shared/hostname-setup.c
+++ b/src/shared/hostname-setup.c
@@ -142,7 +142,7 @@ int read_etc_hostname(const char *path, bool substitute_wildcards, char **ret) {
         assert(ret);
 
         if (!path)
-                path = "/etc/hostname";
+                path = etc_hostname();
 
         f = fopen(path, "re");
         if (!f)
diff --git a/src/shared/locale-setup.c b/src/shared/locale-setup.c
index 5c4580cffff..85d05e5a6ce 100644
--- a/src/shared/locale-setup.c
+++ b/src/shared/locale-setup.c
@@ -64,7 +64,7 @@ static int locale_context_load_conf(LocaleContext *c, LocaleLoadFlag flag) {
         if (!FLAGS_SET(flag, LOCALE_LOAD_LOCALE_CONF))
                 return 0;
 
-        fd = RET_NERRNO(open("/etc/locale.conf", O_CLOEXEC | O_PATH));
+        fd = RET_NERRNO(open(etc_locale_conf(), O_CLOEXEC | O_PATH));
         if (fd == -ENOENT)
                 return 0;
         if (fd < 0)
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ static int locale_context_load_conf(LocaleContext *c, LocaleLoadFlag flag) {
         c->st = st;
         locale_context_clear(c);
 
-        r = parse_env_file_fd(fd, "/etc/locale.conf",
+        r = parse_env_file_fd(fd, etc_locale_conf(),
                               "LANG",              &c->locale[VARIABLE_LANG],
                               "LANGUAGE",          &c->locale[VARIABLE_LANGUAGE],
                               "LC_CTYPE",          &c->locale[VARIABLE_LC_CTYPE],
@@ -196,7 +196,7 @@ int locale_context_save(LocaleContext *c, char ***ret_set, char ***ret_unset) {
                 return r;
 
         if (strv_isempty(set)) {
-                if (unlink("/etc/locale.conf") < 0)
+                if (unlink(etc_locale_conf()) < 0)
                         return errno == ENOENT ? 0 : -errno;
 
                 c->st = (struct stat) {};
@@ -208,11 +208,11 @@ int locale_context_save(LocaleContext *c, char ***ret_set, char ***ret_unset) {
                 return 0;
         }
 
-        r = write_env_file_label(AT_FDCWD, "/etc/locale.conf", NULL, set);
+        r = write_env_file_label(AT_FDCWD, etc_locale_conf(), NULL, set);
         if (r < 0)
                 return r;
 
-        if (stat("/etc/locale.conf", &c->st) < 0)
+        if (stat(etc_locale_conf(), &c->st) < 0)
                 return -errno;
 
         if (ret_set)
@@ -292,3 +292,11 @@ int locale_setup(char ***environment) {
 
         return 0;
 }
+
+const char* etc_locale_conf(void) {
+        return secure_getenv("SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALE_CONF") ?: "/etc/locale.conf";
+}
+
+const char* etc_vconsole_conf(void) {
+        return secure_getenv("SYSTEMD_ETC_VCONSOLE_CONF") ?: "/etc/vconsole.conf";
+}
diff --git a/src/shared/locale-setup.h b/src/shared/locale-setup.h
index 537acc72df8..3f1cd6b88c2 100644
--- a/src/shared/locale-setup.h
+++ b/src/shared/locale-setup.h
@@ -27,3 +27,6 @@ void locale_context_take(LocaleContext *c, char *l[_VARIABLE_LC_MAX]);
 bool locale_context_equal(const LocaleContext *c, char *l[_VARIABLE_LC_MAX]);
 
 int locale_setup(char ***environment);
+
+const char* etc_locale_conf(void);
+const char* etc_vconsole_conf(void);
diff --git a/src/timedate/timedated.c b/src/timedate/timedated.c
index d14ff5e0e7e..eabc4298bd1 100644
--- a/src/timedate/timedated.c
+++ b/src/timedate/timedated.c
@@ -292,8 +292,9 @@ static int context_read_data(Context *c) {
 }
 
 static int context_write_data_timezone(Context *c) {
-        _cleanup_free_ char *p = NULL;
-        const char *source;
+        _cleanup_free_ char *p = NULL, *link_dir = NULL, *relpath = NULL;
+        const char *source, *link_path;
+        int r;
 
         assert(c);
 
@@ -306,22 +307,36 @@ static int context_write_data_timezone(Context *c) {
 
                 if (access("/usr/share/zoneinfo/UTC", F_OK) < 0) {
 
-                        if (unlink("/etc/localtime") < 0 && errno != ENOENT)
+                        if (unlink(etc_localtime()) < 0 && errno != ENOENT)
                                 return -errno;
 
                         return 0;
                 }
 
-                source = "../usr/share/zoneinfo/UTC";
+                source = "/usr/share/zoneinfo/UTC";
         } else {
-                p = path_join("../usr/share/zoneinfo", c->zone);
+                p = path_join("/usr/share/zoneinfo", c->zone);
                 if (!p)
                         return -ENOMEM;
 
                 source = p;
         }
 
-        return symlink_atomic(source, "/etc/localtime");
+        link_path = etc_localtime();
+
+        r = path_extract_directory(link_path, &link_dir);
+        if (r < 0)
+                return r;
+
+        r = path_make_relative(link_dir, source, &relpath);
+        if (r < 0)
+                return r;
+
+        return symlink_atomic(relpath, link_path);
+}
+
+static const char *etc_adjtime(void) {
+        return secure_getenv("SYSTEMD_ETC_ADJTIME") ?: "/etc/adjtime";
 }
 
 static int context_write_data_local_rtc(Context *c) {
@@ -330,7 +345,7 @@ static int context_write_data_local_rtc(Context *c) {
 
         assert(c);
 
-        r = read_full_file("/etc/adjtime", &s, NULL);
+        r = read_full_file(etc_adjtime(), &s, NULL);
         if (r < 0) {
                 if (r != -ENOENT)
                         return r;
@@ -382,7 +397,7 @@ static int context_write_data_local_rtc(Context *c) {
                 *mempcpy_typesafe(stpcpy(stpcpy(mempcpy(w, s, a), prepend), c->local_rtc ? "LOCAL" : "UTC"), e, b) = 0;
 
                 if (streq(w, NULL_ADJTIME_UTC)) {
-                        if (unlink("/etc/adjtime") < 0)
+                        if (unlink(etc_adjtime()) < 0)
                                 if (errno != ENOENT)
                                         return -errno;
 
@@ -394,7 +409,7 @@ static int context_write_data_local_rtc(Context *c) {
         if (r < 0)
                 return r;
 
-        return write_string_file("/etc/adjtime", w, WRITE_STRING_FILE_CREATE|WRITE_STRING_FILE_ATOMIC|WRITE_STRING_FILE_LABEL);
+        return write_string_file(etc_adjtime(), w, WRITE_STRING_FILE_CREATE|WRITE_STRING_FILE_ATOMIC|WRITE_STRING_FILE_LABEL);
 }
 
 static int context_update_ntp_status(Context *c, sd_bus *bus, sd_bus_message *m) {
diff --git a/test/units/TEST-45-TIMEDATE.sh b/test/units/TEST-45-TIMEDATE.sh
index 420ebefd017..8fe7c6cd5b7 100755
--- a/test/units/TEST-45-TIMEDATE.sh
+++ b/test/units/TEST-45-TIMEDATE.sh
@@ -403,6 +403,46 @@ EOF
     rm -f /run/systemd/network/ntp99.*
 }
 
+teardown_timedated_alternate_paths() {
+    set +eu
+
+    rm -rf /run/systemd/system/systemd-timedated.service.d
+    systemctl daemon-reload
+    systemctl restart systemd-timedated
+}
+
+testcase_timedated_alternate_paths() {
+    trap teardown_timedated_alternate_paths RETURN
+
+    mkdir -p /run/alternate-path
+    mkdir -p /run/systemd/system/systemd-timedated.service.d
+    cat >/run/systemd/system/systemd-timedated.service.d/override.conf <<EOF
+[Service]
+Environment=SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALTIME=/run/alternate-path/mylocaltime
+Environment=SYSTEMD_ETC_ADJTIME=/run/alternate-path/myadjtime
+EOF
+    systemctl daemon-reload
+    systemctl restart systemd-timedated
+
+    assert_in "Local time:" "$(timedatectl --no-pager)"
+
+    assert_eq "$(timedatectl --no-pager set-timezone Europe/Kyiv 2>&1)" ""
+    assert_eq "$(readlink /run/alternate-path/mylocaltime | sed 's#^.*zoneinfo/##')" "Europe/Kyiv"
+    assert_in "Time zone: Europe/Kyiv \(EES*T, \+0[0-9]00\)" "$(timedatectl)"
+
+    assert_in "RTC in local TZ: no" "$(timedatectl --no-pager)"
+    assert_rc 0 timedatectl set-local-rtc 1
+    assert_in "RTC in local TZ: yes" "$(timedatectl --no-pager)"
+    assert_eq "$(cat /run/alternate-path/myadjtime)" "0.0 0 0
+0
+LOCAL"
+    assert_rc 0 timedatectl set-local-rtc 0
+    if [[ -e /run/alternate-path/myadjtime ]]; then
+        echo "/run/alternate-path/myadjtime still exists" >&2
+        exit 1
+    fi
+}
+
 run_testcases
 
 touch /testok
diff --git a/test/units/TEST-71-HOSTNAME.sh b/test/units/TEST-71-HOSTNAME.sh
index f844ccfcdb0..d1eaa8106e3 100755
--- a/test/units/TEST-71-HOSTNAME.sh
+++ b/test/units/TEST-71-HOSTNAME.sh
@@ -278,6 +278,45 @@ test_wildcard() {
     hostnamectl set-hostname "$SAVED"
 }
 
+teardown_hostnamed_alternate_paths() {
+    set +eu
+
+    rm -rf /run/systemd/system/systemd-hostnamed.service.d
+    systemctl daemon-reload
+    systemctl restart systemd-hostnamed
+    if [[ -f /etc/hostname ]]; then
+        orig=$(cat /etc/hostname)
+        if [[ -n "${orig}" ]]; then
+            hostnamectl hostname "${orig}"
+        fi
+    fi
+}
+
+testcase_hostnamed_alternate_paths() {
+    trap teardown_hostnamed_alternate_paths RETURN
+
+    mkdir -p /run/alternate-path
+
+    mkdir -p /run/systemd/system/systemd-hostnamed.service.d
+    cat >/run/systemd/system/systemd-hostnamed.service.d/override.conf <<EOF
+[Service]
+Environment=SYSTEMD_ETC_HOSTNAME=/run/alternate-path/myhostname
+Environment=SYSTEMD_ETC_MACHINE_INFO=/run/alternate-path/mymachine-info
+EOF
+    systemctl daemon-reload
+    systemctl restart systemd-hostnamed
+
+    assert_rc 0 hostnamectl set-hostname heisenberg
+    assert_rc 0 hostnamectl chassis watch
+
+    output=$(hostnamectl)
+    assert_in "Static hostname: heisenberg" "$output"
+    assert_in "Chassis: watch" "$output"
+    assert_in "heisenberg" "$(cat /run/alternate-path/myhostname)"
+    assert_in "CHASSIS=watch" "$(cat /run/alternate-path/mymachine-info)"
+}
+
+
 run_testcases
 
 touch /testok
diff --git a/test/units/TEST-73-LOCALE.sh b/test/units/TEST-73-LOCALE.sh
index 0617bd0d51a..fbc6f7dad44 100755
--- a/test/units/TEST-73-LOCALE.sh
+++ b/test/units/TEST-73-LOCALE.sh
@@ -652,6 +652,53 @@ testcase_locale_gen_leading_space() {
     localectl set-locale en_US.UTF-8
 }
 
+teardown_localed_alternate_paths() {
+    set +eu
+
+    rm -rf /run/systemd/system/systemd-localed.service.d
+    systemctl daemon-reload
+    systemctl restart systemd-localed
+}
+
+testcase_localed_alternate_paths() {
+    trap teardown_localed_alternate_paths RETURN
+
+    mkdir -p /run/alternate-path
+
+    mkdir -p /run/systemd/system/systemd-localed.service.d
+    cat >/run/systemd/system/systemd-localed.service.d/override.conf <<EOF
+[Service]
+Environment=SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALE_CONF=/run/alternate-path/mylocale.conf
+Environment=SYSTEMD_ETC_VCONSOLE_CONF=/run/alternate-path/myvconsole.conf
+EOF
+    systemctl daemon-reload
+    systemctl restart systemd-localed
+
+    if localectl list-locales | grep "^de_DE.UTF-8$"; then
+        assert_rc 0 localectl set-locale "LANG=de_DE.UTF-8" "LC_CTYPE=C"
+    else
+        skip_locale=1
+    fi
+
+    if localectl list-keymaps | grep -F "^no$"; then
+        assert_rc 0 localectl set-keymap "no"
+    else
+        skip_keymap=1
+    fi
+
+    output=$(localectl)
+
+    if [[ -z "${skip_locale-}" ]]; then
+        assert_in "System Locale: LANG=de_DE.UTF-8" "$output"
+        assert_in "LANG=de_DE.UTF-8" "$(cat /run/alternate-path/mylocale.conf)"
+    fi
+
+    if [[ -z "${skip_keymap-}" ]]; then
+        assert_in "VC Keymap: no" "$output"
+        assert_in "KEYMAP=no" "$(cat /run/alternate-path/myvconsole.conf)"
+    fi
+}
+
 # Make sure the content of kbd-model-map is the one that the tests expect
 # regardless of the version installed on the distro where the testsuite is
 # running on.
diff --git a/test/units/TEST-74-AUX-UTILS.firstboot.sh b/test/units/TEST-74-AUX-UTILS.firstboot.sh
index 79a9a77f8b1..3c1ee5ed163 100755
--- a/test/units/TEST-74-AUX-UTILS.firstboot.sh
+++ b/test/units/TEST-74-AUX-UTILS.firstboot.sh
@@ -18,6 +18,10 @@ at_exit() {
         rm -fr "$ROOT"
     fi
 
+    if [[ -d /etc/otherpath ]]; then
+        rm -rf /etc/otherpath
+    fi
+
     restore_locale
 }
 
@@ -282,3 +286,36 @@ rm -fv "$ROOT/etc/passwd" "$ROOT/etc/shadow"
 (! systemd-firstboot --root="$ROOT" --root-shell=/bin/nonexistentshell)
 (! systemd-firstboot --root="$ROOT" --machine-id=invalidmachineid)
 (! systemd-firstboot --root="$ROOT" --timezone=Foo/Bar)
+
+mkdir -p "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath"
+mkdir -p /etc/otherpath
+echo "KEYMAP=us" >/etc/otherpath/vconsole.conf
+echo "LANG=en_US.UTF-8" >/etc/otherpath/locale.conf
+ln -s "../$(readlink /etc/localtime)" /etc/otherpath/localtime
+
+SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALE_CONF=/etc/otherpath/locale.conf \
+SYSTEMD_ETC_VCONSOLE_CONF=/etc/otherpath/vconsole.conf \
+SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALTIME=/etc/otherpath/localtime \
+SYSTEMD_ETC_HOSTNAME=/etc/otherpath/hostname \
+systemd-firstboot --root="$ROOT" --copy-locale --copy-keymap --copy-timezone --hostname="weirdpaths"
+
+diff "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/locale.conf" "/etc/otherpath/locale.conf"
+diff "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/vconsole.conf" "/etc/otherpath/vconsole.conf"
+grep -q "weirdpaths" "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/hostname"
+
+[[ "$(readlink /etc/otherpath/localtime)" = "$(readlink "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/localtime")" ]]
+
+SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALE_CONF=/etc/otherpath/locale.conf \
+SYSTEMD_ETC_VCONSOLE_CONF=/etc/otherpath/vconsole.conf \
+SYSTEMD_ETC_LOCALTIME=/etc/otherpath/localtime \
+SYSTEMD_ETC_HOSTNAME=/etc/otherpath/hostname \
+systemd-firstboot --root="$ROOT" --force \
+                  --hostname="weirdpaths2" \
+                  --locale=no_NO.UTF-8 \
+                  --keymap=no \
+                  --timezone=Europe/Oslo
+
+grep -q "LANG=no_NO.UTF-8" "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/locale.conf"
+grep -q "KEYMAP=no" "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/vconsole.conf"
+grep -q "weirdpaths2" "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/hostname"
+[[ "$(readlink "${ROOT}/etc/otherpath/localtime")" = "../../usr/share/zoneinfo/Europe/Oslo" ]]