Node.js

Get a Remote File's Creation Time

Demonstrates the Chilkat SFtp.GetFileCreateTimeStr method, which returns a remote file's creation date and time. The arguments are the remote path (or handle), whether symbolic links are followed, and whether the first argument is a handle.

Background: Creation time is the least universally available of the three timestamps: many Unix filesystems historically tracked only modified and accessed times, so a server may return nothing or a placeholder. Where it is supported it is genuinely useful — it does not change when a file is edited, unlike the modified time — but code should tolerate its absence rather than depend on it.

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Node.js

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function chilkatExample() {

    var success = false;

    //  Demonstrates the SFtp.GetFileCreateTimeStr method, which returns a remote file's creation date
    //  and time.  The 1st argument is the remote path (or handle), the 2nd selects whether symbolic
    //  links are followed, and the 3rd indicates whether the 1st argument is a handle.

    var sftp = new chilkat.SFtp();

    //  Connect, authenticate, and initialize the SFTP subsystem.
    var port = 22;
    success = sftp.Connect("sftp.example.com",port);
    if (success == false) {
        console.log(sftp.LastErrorText);
        return;
    }

    //  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.
    var password = "mySshPassword";

    success = sftp.AuthenticatePw("mySshLogin",password);
    if (success == false) {
        console.log(sftp.LastErrorText);
        return;
    }

    success = sftp.InitializeSftp();
    if (success == false) {
        console.log(sftp.LastErrorText);
        return;
    }

    //  The 2nd argument (bFollowLinks) selects whether a symbolic link is followed to its target.
    //  The 3rd argument (bIsHandle) is false here because the 1st argument is a path, not an
    //  open handle.
    var bFollowLinks = true;
    var bIsHandle = false;

    var createTime = sftp.GetFileCreateTimeStr("subdir/report.pdf",bFollowLinks,bIsHandle);
    if (sftp.LastMethodSuccess == false) {
        console.log(sftp.LastErrorText);
        return;
    }

    console.log("Created: " + createTime);

    //  Note: Not all servers and filesystems record a creation time.

    sftp.Disconnect();

}

chilkatExample();