File explorer and date created/modified change when copying files/folders.

Anonymous
2024-02-17T14:09:45+00:00

Dear Microsoft Wizards,

I come to you with a tale of woe, a saga of time-displaced files and folders that have lost their way in the temporal vortex of Windows File Explorer. In an age where we can chat with AI, drive electric chariots, and binge-watch shows about dragons and spaceships, I find myself anchored to a mundane reality. In reality, copying files and folders in Windows File Explorer betrays their original timestamps, casting them adrift in the present, forgetting their noble past.

Imagine a world where one could copy a file or folder without the cruel hands of the present altering their date and time stamps. A world where digital artifacts remain untouched by the ravages of time, preserving their history as meticulously as a museum curator with a penchant for organization and accuracy.

"Why not use robocopy or other command prompt utilities?" I hear you ask, your voices echoing through the hallowed halls of Redmond. Ah, but here lies the rub! While these tools are mighty in their own right, they demand a saint's patience and a wizard's expertise. Delving into the command prompt is akin to stepping into an ancient crypt inscribed with arcane commands and cryptic parameters. It is a thrilling adventure for the occasional file or two, perhaps, but Herculean labor when faced with the task of preserving the timestamps of hundreds, nay, thousands of files and folders.

So, I pray that you, the noble scribes and engineers of Microsoft, bestow upon us, the humble users, a magical feature within the Windows File Explorer itself. A feature that allows us to copy our digital treasures while keeping their temporal essence intact – no spells, no incantations, and indeed no command line rituals required.

In this quest for temporal fidelity, I stand ready to champion this cause, armed with nothing but my wit and a profound desire for user-friendly file management. Together, let us forge a new path through the annals of digital file preservation, ensuring that our files and folders may travel through the vast expanse of directories without losing sight of their origins.

Yours in time-traveling solidarity,

Luis Martinez

******@outlook.com

P.S. If this feature comes to pass, future generations will look back on this moment as a turning point in history – the day we let our files journey through time, unaltered and proud, their timestamps shining like beacons of their actual age.

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Files, folders, and storage

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  1. Anonymous
    2025-01-16T02:04:24+00:00

    The original poster demonstrated great self control, an active imagination, and very good writing skills while still managing to express his frustration with hints of sarcasm. He managed to express my exact, long standing, concerns in a most entertaining and non-threatening way. I can only hope to be as calm on a topic that often moves me to anger.

    This ISSUE has occurred in previous versions of Microsoft Windows. It generally does not happen when copying from one MS Windows device to another as long as they are in the same domain. It does happen when copying from outside the current domain, when copying from an alien OS such as Linux to the MS Windows environment or when copying from a portable device such as an SD card.

    If this is supposed to be the normal behavior, why did it work in previous versions such as MS Windows XP and NT all the way back to version 3.1?

    It has reached the point that I have been forced to embed the date and time as part of my file naming convention for several years now in order to attempt to keep my files straight. I was just pondering this very issue a couple of days ago trying to decide if it had reached a point of forcing me to change my OS of choice to regain file integrity and give me back the hours I spend manually using something like RoboCopy or going back and cleaning up the mess left behind when I momentarily forget to take precautions.

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  2. Les Ferch 10,361 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2025-01-16T02:29:43+00:00

    It's not entirely clear from your message if you think I work for Microsoft, but for the record, I do not. I'm just another user trying to help. The most recent woes with file dates were in regards to KB5039212. After that update there were more scenarios where the modified date changed. The solution most often cited was to add the server involved to the local intranet zone. The only other suggestion I had was to install TeraCopy because it preserves files dates by default. It also integrates into Explorer so you won't have to worry about forgetting to use it.

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  3. Anonymous
    2025-01-16T11:42:50+00:00

    Thank you for your help.

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  4. Anonymous
    2025-01-21T00:19:58+00:00

    Bonjour,

    Je pense qu'il existe une solution très simple pour résoudre votre problème. Il suffit, sous l'explorateur de fichiers, dans la barre d'affichage des "Nom" "Modifié le" "Type" etc.. de faire un clic droit, puis de choisir l'option "Prise de vue" dans la liste qui s'affiche.

    Cette possibilité s'applique, bien sûr, pour les photos ou vidéos.

    La date d'origine de la prise de vue apparaît alors, et c'est tout simple de trier sur cette colonne !!!

    Bon, j'ai bien cherché quand même car j'avais le même souci.

    Une autre possibilité consiste à utiliser le logiciel "Q-DIR". Celui-ci permet de copier, ou de déplacer, les fichiers et les dates qui apparaissent après copie sont cependant modifiées avec la date de déplacement.

    Toutefois, très curieusement, si vous utilisez "Explorateur de fichiers" de Windows vous vous aperceverez que les dates qui apparaissent sont, en fait, les dates d'origine de la création des fichiers, ou de prise de vue des photos et vidéos.

    C'est, à mon avis, la solution la plus simple pour récupérer la date d'origine de vos documents, mais il y a des cas où cela ne marche pas, allez savoir pourquoi !!!

    Bonne journée.

    Francis

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  5. Anonymous
    2025-01-21T15:04:37+00:00

    Teracopy still has the 2-second granularity for modified times

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