Index Of Files Updated
Improve user experience by adding a header note in Apache:
HeaderName /header.html
ReadmeName /footer.html
Then create header.html with:
<div style="background: #eef;">
<strong>Index last updated:</strong> <?php echo date('Y-m-d H:i:s'); ?>
</div>
Not all indexes are created equal. Here is how major servers handle the "updated" column: index of files updated
| Server | Default Index Style | Sorting "Updated" | Visibility |
| :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- |
| Apache | Styled table with clickable headers | Yes (?C=M;O=D) | Clear "Last modified" column |
| Nginx | Basic plain text (autoindex on) | No (requires external module) | Shows date, no sorting via click |
| IIS | Customizable HTML | Yes (if configured) | Moderate | Improve user experience by adding a header note
For Nginx users frustrated by the lack of sorting, tools like fancyindex module add sorting capabilities, including the crucial "sort by updated" feature. Then create header
location /files
autoindex on;
autoindex_exact_size off; # Human-readable sizes
autoindex_localtime on; # Use server local time
autoindex_format html; # Default
To sort by modification time in Nginx? You cannot natively—you’d need a helper script (PHP/Python) to call scandir() and sort by filemtime().