Why FTP File Dates May Display the Wrong Year

  • 7022035
  • 21-Apr-1999
  • 26-Sep-2018

Environment

Reflection FTP Client version 14.1 (or higher)
Reflection for the Web 2014 (or higher) FTP Client

Situation

Under certain circumstances, the Reflection FTP Client may display the wrong year for FTP server files.

The Reflection FTP Client may exhibit the following symptoms:

  • The year is displayed incorrectly at certain times
    • On the last or first day of the calendar year
    • During a portion of each day
  • The year is always displayed incorrectly

Resolution

The following sections describe each of these symptoms and their causes.

The Year Displays Incorrectly at Certain Times

When the PC and the FTP server are in different time zones, the years they display will not match until both computer clocks have rolled over to the new day or new year. This problem can occur during any day or any year rollover.

This problem occurs only if the PC and the FTP server are in different time zones, and the FTP server is configured to generate directory listings in UNIX format.

The Year Displays Incorrectly on the Last or First Day of the Calendar Year

Between December 31 and January 1 of any given year, dates of recently-modified files on the FTP server may be displayed with the incorrect year in the Reflection FTP Client.

If the PC is in a time zone that is later than (east of) the time zone of the FTP server, the year shown in the FTP client may be one year later than the actual modification date. If the PC is in a time zone that is earlier than (west of) the FTP server time zone, the year shown may be one year earlier than the actual modification date.

For example, suppose an FTP server is located in New Jersey (US eastern time) and has files created in October 2013. A system running the Reflection FTP Client in California connects on December 31, 2013. At 11:00 p.m. (US Pacific time), the files will display dates of October 2012 (one year earlier). After midnight (US Pacific time), the file dates will display correctly as December 2013.

The Year Displays Incorrectly at the Same Time Each Day

During a portion of each day, there is a segment of time when the date differs from the PC time zone to the server time zone. During this time period, dates of recently modified files on the FTP server may be displayed with the incorrect year in the Reflection FTP Client.

If the PC is in a time zone that is earlier than (west of) the time zone of the FTP server, the year shown in the FTP client may be one year earlier than the actual modification date.

For example, suppose a file is created May 8, 2013 (eastern time) on an FTP server in New Jersey. A PC in California viewing the file with the Reflection FTP Client between 9:00 p.m. and 12:00 a.m. (pacific time) will display a file date of May 8, 2012. After midnight in California (pacific time) the file date will display correctly as May 8, 2013.

Recommendations

If you connect to FTP servers located in different time zones, exercise appropriate caution when viewing server file dates or performing date-sensitive operations.

If you have a custom program or script that utilizes the Object.FileDate property of the Reflection FTP OLE Automation API, you can modify the program or script to avoid date-handling problems, or you can avoid using the program or script during rollover periods. You do not need to modify programs or scripts that do not connect to an FTP server in a different time zone.

The Year Is Always Displayed Incorrectly

This problem occurs if the FTP server or workstation running the Reflection FTP Client is configured for the incorrect year, if the FTP client does not recognize the FTP server's date format, or if the FTP client is using the incorrect column for server date information.

If your server or workstation is configured for the incorrect date, change the system date.

If the FTP client does not recognize the FTP server's date format or appears to be reading the incorrect column for file date information, capture a Reflection FTP Client session log (see KB 7021983 for details) and contact Attachmate technical support for further help. For more information on contacting Attachmate support, see https://support.microfocus.com/contact/.

Cause

The standard FTP protocol does not provide a method for determining the server time zone. When files are viewed using the Reflection FTP Client, file dates are sent from the FTP server to the FTP client. FTP servers that use a UNIX directory structure do not include year information for files modified within the last 6-12 months.

When the Reflection FTP Client receives a file date that does not include a year, it appends the PC clock year to the file date before displaying it in the FTP client window or reporting it via the Object.FileDate property of the Reflection FTP OLE Automation API.

Additional Information

Legacy KB ID

This article was originally published as Attachmate technical note 1397.