File Last Modified

File Last Modified shows the last modified date for files in VS Code using Explorer badges, status bar timestamps, hover details, and Git commit dates. It helps you see which files were edited recently, which files are stale, and which code paths are still active without leaving the editor.

Overview

The extension adds last modified and file timestamp information directly inside VS Code:

• Status Bar: Displays the last modified date of the active file.
• File Explorer: Shows how many days ago each file was modified.

Hovering over the status bar also shows the number of days since the last change, the local file timestamp, and the local Git timestamp or commit date.

It works by reading local file metadata and, when available, local Git history for the current file. If the repository is hosted on GitHub, the extension can also use GitHub commit data to improve the last modified signal.

Why This Extension Exists

This extension was created while cleaning large repositories with many similarly named files. Determining which files were current versus older versions often required repeatedly checking file details or Git history.

File Last Modified keeps that information visible inside the editor so developers can quickly identify newer files and older code.

Features

Status Bar

Displays the last modified date of the active file in the VS Code status bar and changes color based on how recent the file is.

File Explorer

Shows the number of days since each file was last modified, for example 2d or 45d, making it easy to scan folders and identify newer versus older files in the VS Code Explorer.

Explorer filename labels are tinted by default using the file age colors. If you prefer badge-only decorations, disable fileLastUpdated.colorizeExplorerLabels.

If Explorer badges or colors are disabled in VS Code, the extension will offer to enable the required settings the first time it runs. You can also trigger this manually with the File Last Modified: Enable Explorer Decorations command.

Hover Tooltip

Hovering over the status bar reveals:

• Days since last modification
• Local and Git timestamps
• Commit metadata when available
• A click hint so the Last Modified status bar item can be refreshed directly

Timestamp Detection

The extension can determine modification time using:

• Local file metadata
• Git commit history
• GitHub commit history for GitHub-backed repositories

Performance

File Last Modified is lightweight and fast. It checks only the active file and required metadata rather than scanning the entire workspace, keeping the editor responsive.

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Install

Install from the Visual Studio Marketplace or from a .vsix package.

Command

• File Last Modified: Refresh
• File Last Modified: Enable Explorer Decorations

License

All rights reserved. See LICENSE.txt.