How to Use PHP fileatime() to Get a File's Last Access Time

In PHP, the fileatime() function retrieves the last access time of a file, which is the moment the file was last read using operations like readfile() or fread() . By calling fileatime() , you can obtain an accurate UNIX timestamp representing this access time.

The basic syntax of fileatime() is:

int fileatime ( string $filename )

Parameter Description:

$filename (required): The path to the file whose last access time you want to retrieve.

Return Value:

The function returns a UNIX timestamp (in seconds) indicating the file's last access time.

The following example demonstrates how to use fileatime() :

$file = 'example.txt';

// Get the file's last access time
$lastAccessTime = fileatime($file);

// Format the timestamp into a readable date-time string
$lastAccessTime = date('Y-m-d H:i:s', $lastAccessTime);

// Output the result
echo 'File last accessed at: ' . $lastAccessTime;

This script sets a file path, obtains its last access timestamp, converts it to a human‑readable format with date() , and prints the result.

Because fileatime() returns a UNIX timestamp, you often need to use date() or similar functions to present the time in a conventional format.

Beyond simply retrieving the timestamp, fileatime() can be used for file management decisions, such as determining whether a file has not been accessed for a long period and performing cleanup. The example below shows how to delete a file if it hasn't been accessed for more than 30 days:

$file = 'example.txt';

// Get the file's last access time
$lastAccessTime = fileatime($file);

// Check if the file has been idle for over 30 days
if (time() - $lastAccessTime > 30 * 24 * 60 * 60) {
    // Perform cleanup, e.g., delete the file
    unlink($file);
    echo 'File has been deleted';
} else {
    echo 'File was accessed recently';
}

This code compares the current time with the file's last access time; if the difference exceeds 30 days, the file is removed, otherwise a message indicating recent access is shown.

Summary

Using fileatime() , you can easily obtain a file's last access time and, together with functions like date() , convert it for display or use it in logic for file management and cleanup tasks; the function is a valuable tool for backend file handling.