Name
FileDateTime Function
Class
Microsoft.VisualBasic.FileSystem
Syntax
FileDateTime(pathname
)
-
pathname
(required; String) The filename, along with an optional drive and path
Return Value
A Date containing the date and time at which the specified file was created or last modified (whichever is later)
Description
Obtains the date and time at which a particular file was created or last modified (whichever is later)
Rules at a Glance
If you don’t specify a drive or folder with
pathname
, the file is assumed to be in the
current drive or folder.
Programming Tips and Gotchas
Use the File.Exists method (in the System.IO namespace) to determine that the file exists before calling FileDateTime. If
pathname
does not exist, your application generates runtime error 53, “File not found.”If a file has not been modified, its creation date and last modified date will be identical. However, if the file has been modified since its creation, the FileDateTime function returns only the last modified date. To obtain the file’s creation date, you have to resort to using the Window’s API. The GetFileTime API call returns not only the date last modified, but the file’s creation date and last access date as well.
You can also use FileDateTime on hidden files.
See Also
Get VB.NET Language in a Nutshell, Second Edition now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
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