Java

Get an FTP Listing Entry's Creation Time

Demonstrates the Chilkat Ftp2.GetCreateTimeStr method, which returns the creation time of a cached directory-listing entry as an RFC 822 date-time string. The only argument is a zero-based index.

Background: Creation time is the least commonly reported of the timestamps — many servers and filesystems track only modification and access times — so expect it to be absent on some servers. When present it is genuinely useful because, unlike the modified time, it does not change when a file is edited. The RFC 822 format includes a timezone offset, making the moment unambiguous.

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import com.chilkatsoft.chilkat2.ChilkatException;
import com.chilkatsoft.chilkat2.Ftp2;

public class ChilkatExample {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Demonstrates the Ftp2.GetCreateTimeStr method, which returns the creation time of a cached
        // directory-listing entry as an RFC 822 date-time string.  The only argument is a zero-based
        // index.

        Ftp2 ftp = new Ftp2();

        ftp.setHostname("ftp.example.com");
        ftp.setUsername("myFtpLogin");

        // Normally you would not hard-code the password in source.  You should instead obtain it
        // from an interactive prompt, environment variable, or a secrets vault.
        ftp.setPassword("myPassword");

        try {
            ftp.connect();

            ftp.changeRemoteDir("public_html");
        } catch (ChilkatException e) {
            System.out.println(e.getLastErrorText());
            return;
        }

        // GetDirCount retrieves the directory listing on the first call and returns the number of
        // entries.  A negative return indicates failure.
        int n = ftp.getDirCount();
        if (n < 0) {
            System.out.println(ftp.getLastErrorText());
            return;
        }

        for (int i = 0; i < n; i++) {
            String name = ftp.getFilename(i);

            // The value is an RFC 822 string such as "Fri, 21 Nov 1997 09:55:06 -0600".  Not all servers
            // report a creation time.
            String createTime = ftp.getCreateTimeStr(i);
            System.out.println(name + "  created " + createTime);
        }

        try {
            ftp.disconnect();
        } catch (ChilkatException e) {
            System.out.println(e.getLastErrorText());
            return;
        }
    }
}