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John64's avatar
John64
Explorer | Level 4
6 years ago

Preserving time-date stamps

When I download a file from my dropbox account, it gets a new time-date stamp. When I download a folder and extract the zipped folder, all the files get new time-date stamps. It's important for me to...
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  • Jay's avatar
    Jay
    6 years ago
    Hi John, when you’re downloading the files from the website, indeed with any site, the ‘date modified’ or ‘date created’ will be for that moment, since the file didn’t exist before that period.
     
    If you’re using the Dropbox desktop application, then when the files sync down to your machine the dates and times will remain as they were, though the date modified would be the last time someone has edited the files.
     
    Hope this helps to clarify matters!
Jay's avatar
Jay
Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
Hi John, when you’re downloading the files from the website, indeed with any site, the ‘date modified’ or ‘date created’ will be for that moment, since the file didn’t exist before that period.
 
If you’re using the Dropbox desktop application, then when the files sync down to your machine the dates and times will remain as they were, though the date modified would be the last time someone has edited the files.
 
Hope this helps to clarify matters!
jaresing's avatar
jaresing
Helpful | Level 6
6 years ago

That is sooooo upsetting. So I drag a folder into dropbox and the modified time is now! I then down load it five minutes from now and the modified time is also five minute from now. Is this true? Seems like it. Sorry, that is messed up. I wish I could stay, but that will never ever do.

  • Jay's avatar
    Jay
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
    6 years ago
    If you’re dragging a folder onto the Dropbox site, then technically you are creating those files online for the first time, hence the modification date would be now.
     
    If instead you moved the folder into the Dropbox folder, assuming you have the Dropbox desktop application installed, you’ll keep the original dates, like I mentioned above.
    • jaresing's avatar
      jaresing
      Helpful | Level 6
      6 years ago

      "technically you are creating those files online for the first time,"

      This is such a nonsense answer. It would be a side splitter if it weren't such a frustrating, untrue answer.  When I copy a file onto a memory stick or an exernal hard drive it manages to keep the date modified.  When I copy files from dropbox onto my computer it gets the date modified correct too. So why can't up load to dropbox and keep the correct modified dates....and no, don't tell me they that they are being created for the first time.

      I feel sorry for all those people who upload their picuters only to find that they now all have a date modified as today. What a blessed joke.

      • Rich's avatar
        Rich
        Icon for Super User II rankSuper User II
        6 years ago
        jaresing wrote:

        and no, don't tell me they that they are being created for the first time.

        Ok, I won't tell you that, but it's true.

        I feel sorry for all those people who upload their picuters only to find that they now all have a date modified as today.

        That's what the Date Taken field in a photo's EXIF data is for. The modified date of a file can change easily with many different file actions, none of which are restricted to Dropbox functionality. It's not the date you should be relying on for when a photo was taken.

    • jaresing's avatar
      jaresing
      Helpful | Level 6
      6 years ago

      I'm not allowed to use the dropbox application on my computer because the synchronization is unattended. I have another sync program that allows me to do the synchronization on demand. Unfortunately it has the same time stamp issue. Which means I either need a new third party sync program or need to go to a cloud storage site that my current sync app will work correctly with. I tested Google. It works. I probably should test one drive and amazon . I just need to figure out which of the big three I will regretfully go to.

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