Change Created, Modified and Last Accessed Date Attributes of Files in Windows

When you create or copy a folder / file on a computer, it is automatically assigned a set of attributes such as date, size, and type. These attributes can be helpful when you want to search for a specific file. The date attributes show details of when the file was created, modified and last accessed. You may want to change the date attributes to synchronize file dates, hide track of your activities or for whatever other reason. This guide shows you the various ways of changing the date attributes of a folder or a file in Windows 10.

Related: How to find last updated date of a webpage?

How to View File / Folder Date Attributes?

Follow the below instructions to find the date attributes of any file or folder in Windows computer.

• Open the folder / file location right-click the folder or file and select “Properties”.
• Under the “General” tab, you will find the creation date.

• Alternatively, open the file explorer and navigate to where you have saved the file.
• Click the “View” menu and enable the “Details pane”.

• When you click the file, you will see the date attributes on the right-hand pane.

Now, let’s move on to changing the date attributes using different methods.

Method 1: Working Around the System Date

You can modify the file or folder creation date by adjusting the system time and then copy and save the file / folder afresh.

Step 1: Change the System Date and Time

• Right-click the date and time on the notification area and select “Adjust date/time” from the resulting menu.

• Slide the toggle switch to the left to switch off the “Set time automatically” option.
• Click the “Change” button to manually set the date and time. Adjust the date and
• Change the time to the preferred file or folder creation time and click the “Change” button to save the changes.

Step 2: Copy or Save File as New

• Now copy and rename the folder or open the file, go to the file menu and select “Save as” option to save the file as a new one.
• The date attributes of the newly copied folder will take the value of the current system date and time.
• Open the file properties to confirm that the attributes have been changed.
• You can now restore the correct system date and time.

Method 2: Change File / Folder Attributes in Windows PowerShell

You can modify the file attributes using commands in PowerShell.

Step 1: Show File Attributes

• Right-click the windows start button and select “Windows PowerShell (Admin) from the resulting menu.
• Type the following command in PowerShell and press enter:

Get-ItemProperty File_Path | Format-list -Property * -Force

• Remember to replace the file-path in the command with the actual path.
• This will display all the attributes for the file.

Step 2: Change the Date Attributes

• Run the following command in PowerShell

$(Get-Item File-name).creationtime=$(Get-Date "mm/dd/yyyy")

• Replace the File-name with the name of your file and the set your preferred creation date.
• List the attributes again to check whether the creation date has been changed.

• You can also change the last modified and last write time using the following two commands:

$(Get-Item File-Name).lastaccesstime=$(Get-Date "mm/dd/yyyy")
$(Get-Item  File-Name).lastwritetime=$(Get-Date "mm/dd/yyyy")

Method 3: Change Date Attributes Using Third-Party Apps

The above two methods are effective but are not easy for everyone. Fortunately, there are several third-party solutions that you can use to save time. In this guide we will explore two of such solutions which are free and work smoothly in Windows 10.

Solution 1: Using Change Timestamp Software

Change Timestamp is a free and a light app that you can use to modify the date and time properties of files and folders. The app is downloadable in a portable executable file.

Step 1: Download and Run Change Timestamp in Windows 10

• You can download Change Timestamp from this link and save the zip file in your computer.
• Extract the content of the zip file and run the .exe file to launch the tool.
• The tool opens in a small window that contains all the features you need to modify the file or folder attributes.

Step 2: Change the Created, Modified and Accessed Time

• Under the “New Date” and “New Time” sections, type in or use the arrows to set the preferred date and time.
• Below the date and time fields, you can tick the option to retain the original time or date.

• You can also right click anywhere on the interface and choose the option to set the date and time value to the current system date and time.
• Tick the appropriate box to change the “The file was created”, “Last Modified” and “Last Accessed for reading” timestamps.

Step 3: Applying the New Timestamp to Folder/File

• Once you are done setting the Timestamps on the interface, now you need to apply the changes to your target file or folder.
• To do so, open the folder / file location and then drag and drop the folder or file over the Change Timestamp window.
• The folder will automatically take the new date and time properties.

Solution 2: How to Modify File/ Folder Date Attributes Using BulkFileChanger (BFC)

BulkFileChanger (BFC) is another free utility that enables you to change created, modified and last accessed timestamps among other attributes of multiple files all at once.

Step 1: Download and Open the BFC Utility

• Visit the BFC Download page, scroll down and click the link to download the zip file with either the 64 bit or 32 bit version.
• Extract the downloaded zip file and double click “BulkFileChanger.exe” to launch the tool.
• No installations or any other software required and you are ready to go.

Step 2: How to Add Files to BFC?

There are several ways of loading files to the BFC utility:

• Navigate to the target files or folder copy and paste the files on the BFC window to add them to the tool.
• Another option is to select the files you want to add. Then drag and drop them on the interface.
• Alternatively, click the BFC “File” at the top-left corner and select the “Add files” option.
• Browse your PC and select the multiple files you want to add.
• Your added files will be listed on the BFC dashboard.

• You can right click a file and select “Properties” to view the current attributes.

• If you accidentally added a file, you can remove it by clicking it and then press the delete button.

Step 3: Modifying the File Attributes in BFC

• You can modify the properties of a single file or multiple files. Select the file(s) you want to modify or press “Ctrl + A” keys to select all added files.
• Click the “Actions” tab and select “Change file time / Attributes” options.
• On the resulting popup, you can edit “Accessed”, “Modified” and “Created” timestamps using the arrow for date and time fields.
• You can also modify time by adding or subtracting time to the current settings.
• Once you are done with the time settings, click the “Do it” button at the bottom of the window.

Wrapping Up

Time attributes enable you to search for files / folders by time they were created, modified or last accessed. If you want to change the timestamp for folders or files maybe to synchronize your files or for another reason, the above guide shows you the various ways of modifying file attributes in Windows 10.