Timestamping archive with latest file date

[pol098]

Does anybody know a solution for this issue, either as Total Commander plugin or separate program?

I find it convenient to timestamp existing archives with the timestamp of the newest file archived. This can be done at creation time, but a downloaded archive, in particular, is stamped at the date downloaded. For example, I download today an archive containing files the newest of which is from 27/3/2009 at 14:37; it gets timestamped 18/6/2014 10:36 (now). I want the archive to be dated 27/3/2009.

In MS-DOS days I could do this easily with ARCLDS.COM -S, but there seems to be no new tool. I can (and do) always open the archive in TCMD, look at the dates of its contents, click File/Change attributes, and type in date (I always use time 0:0). Tedious. I can still use ARCLDS 9 beta 44, the last version; unlike earlier versions it supports long filenames, and will handle most ZIP and RAR files I come across. Will run under 32-bit, but not 64-bit, Windows. While it handles lots of file types, it doesn't do the new RAR version 5, or 7-zip. As it doesn't modify the file it should be unconditionally safe. (ARCLDS's main function is to list the files in an archive, which I don't find particularly useful.)

So, my question: is there a reliable tool to timestamp an existing archive with the date of the newest file contained?

And my partial answer, which may help others with the same problem: I created a button that invokes "<path>\ARCLDS.COM -S" with parameter %P%N (pathname of file).

By the way, I always manually set the time-of-day of redated archives to 0:0, which is my personal notifier that the archive date is the true file date.

Thanks

[sqa_wizard]

Just use SetFolderDate of van Dusen

It integrates perfect into TC and has a lot of options.
Works for folder and archives, single, multi select or recursive ...

[pol098]

... SetFolderDate of van Dusen ...

Many thanks for quick reply. I had spent a lot of time searching for such a tool (anywhere, not just for TCMD). SetFolderDate (SFD) does what I want, except for not recognising the newer RAR v5 archives. Advantages over ARCLDS (which is quite good): 64-bit-compatible; handles .EXE archives (possibly ARCLDS does, I hadn't thought to try); I think it can search all subdirectories in an archive, not just the top-level one. Also has lots of options to set timestamp from other sources than archive content dates, which I don't need at the moment.

For anybody downloading SFD: the downloaded .ZIP has no documentation, and I couldn't quickly find any. It seems designed to run with TCMD; you need to select the files to process in TCMD, then run SFD. I spent a frustrating time trying to use SFD as free-standing, with TCMD open but with nothing selected. Requires 7z.exe for redating archives rather than folders, and can use exiftool.exe for photographs. There may be more information, but that was enough for me, and I haven't searched.

P.S. I've now found a 4-page discussion (up to 2011) of this program:
http://www.ghisler.ch/board/viewtopic.php?t=16012&highlight=setfolderdate&sid=ef6e435c2abe537d9fe0b534ebbafd94

SFD uses 7zip for opening archives, and will not be able to handle RAR v5 until 7zip is updated (the 7zip author reports that this format is being added, but it isn't in even the alpha release yet).

[pol098]

I'll post anything further on this topic on the thread mentioned in my previous post; its current last page is
http://ghisler.ch/board/viewtopic.php?t=16012&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=45

I have just added there information on using WinRAR to handle RAR5 files from the command line.

Best wishes

[sta64]

I hope here ARCLDS means my Archive List and Date Stamper program (cannot post URL's at this moment). It's actively developed to this very day under the new name ArcList:
- a new DOS version,
- a 8086-compatible DOS version,
- a 32-bit Windows version, rewritten in portable (I hope) C instruction by instruction,
with identical functionality [*], but none of them has been released yet because they seriously need testing. Any volunteers, please, E-mail me.

([*] Compared to the original DOS version, the Windows version has 7-Zip and RAR5 support; the 8086 DOS version has no 64-bit file size support.)

handles .EXE archives (possibly ARCLDS does, I hadn't thought to try)

No, ARCLDS cannot read EXE files because 1) it recognizes archive formats according to the file extension and 2) it cannot find the beginning of the actual archive inside a container EXE.

ARCLDS's main function is to list the files in an archive, which I don't find particularly useful.

The point is that it can list the contents of different archive formats in the same way.

For fellow DOS users, I suggest to also try the LGFV archive viewer: it has a Norton Commander-style user interface and can uncompress several archive formats itself (no external archive program needed).

[pol098]

I hope here ARCLDS means my Archive List and Date Stamper program

Yes, I wasn't aware of anything newer than v0.94.4 beta of 17 April 2008. I had missed this post until today; thanks. I've looked for arclist, but haven't found it anywhere. If I have anything to add I'll post it in the other thread I mention in my previous comment. Best wishes