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21.5 What Good Is a File's Last Access Time?

UNIX keeps three times for each file: last modification, last inode change, and last access. Here are some things you can do with the last-access time:

NOTE: Some UNIX systems, including versions of BSD and SunOS, do not update the access time of executable files (programs) when they're executed. To test yours, use ls -lu on a pure-executable file (not a shell script) before and after you run it.

- JP


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