> File Name : P:\sw\Python\Lib\cgi.pyc > > python_access_ts: 05/31/2007 07:17 PM > win_access_ts : 05/31/2007 06:35 PM > > File Name : P:\sw\Python\Lib\code.pyc > > python_access_ts: 05/30/2007 07:59 PM > win_access_ts : 05/30/2007 07:22 PM
I have analyzed these cases in more detail, and found that Windows (dir and Explorer) indeed reports incorrect last-access times. This is documented in http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/fsutil_behavior.mspx?mfr=true In essence, there are two places where the last-access time is stored: In the file itself, and in the directory. While the stamp in the file is constantly updated, the stamp in the directory is only updated if the difference exceeds one hour. This is done for performance reasons. Python 2.5 reports the true last access time, whereas dir, Explorer, and Python 2.4 report an access time that isn't quite the *last* access time. To see this for yourself, you can open a file, and watch the last-access time as reported by Windows not change, whereas Python reports a recent access (if the time stamp changes indeed, wait a few minutes, and access the file again - if the file hasn't been accessed for more than one hour, the first access will always update the time stamp right away). Regards, Martin -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
