files-community / files-community/Files

Feature: Show decimal places for relative timestamps

Open
#18,055 4 comments 1 reaction 0 assignees View on GitHub
Dominant language
C#
Stars
45.4k
Forks
2.9k
PR merge metrics
PR metrics pending

Description

### Description

When viewing the same folder in two File Explorer windows (one with dark theme, one with light), the "Date Modified" column shows **inconsistent timestamps**:

- In the **dark-themed window**, times are shown as **relative** (e.g., "8 hours ago", "20 hours ago").
- In the **light-themed window**, times are shown as **absolute** (e.g., "12/1/2026 12:50 μμ").

However, the relative times do **not match** the absolute ones. For example:
- A file modified at **12:50 μμ** is shown as "**8 hours ago**", even though the current time is **21:22**, which should be **8.5 hours ago**.
- Another file modified at **12:47 μμ** is shown as "**20 hours ago**", which is clearly incorrect.

Relative timestamps should accurately reflect the difference from the current system time and match the absolute timestamps.

Relative timestamps are inconsistent and misleading — they do not correspond to the actual modification time.

This may be related to:
- Dropbox metadata handling
- File Explorer's "Friendly Dates" feature
- System time sync or locale formatting

Image

### Steps To Reproduce

- Open the same folder in two File Explorer windows.
- Ensure one shows relative time and the other absolute time (e.g., by toggling "Friendly Dates").
- Compare the "Date Modified" column for the same files

### Files Version

4.0.24.0

### Windows Version

Windows 11 25h2

### User ID

_No response_

### Log File

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Assessment

This issue has not been assessed yet.

Get new issues in your inbox

A short digest of beginner-friendly GitHub issues.