Find recently modified files
Read-only
What do risk levels mean?
- Read-only
- Inspects state without changing anything.
- Low risk
- Reversible with a routine follow-up command.
- Medium risk
- Changes state; undo path documented.
- Destructive
- Deletes or overwrites; confirmation required.
Lists files changed within the last N minutes — useful for spotting what an installer touched, which logs are active, or what you just edited.
filessearchfindmodified
Parameters
Directory to search under.
Look for files modified within this many minutes.
Commands
List files modified within the time window
find "." -type f -mmin -60Show the same files with timestamps, newest first
find "." -type f -mmin -60 -exec ls -lt {} +Verification
find "." -type f -mmin -60 | wc -lA count of recently modified files; zero means nothing changed in the window.
Undo
Not undoable
This recipe only reads file timestamps and changes nothing.
Pitfalls
- Modification time tracks content changes; permission or ownership changes update ctime instead (use -cmin).
- Some backup and sync tools preserve original timestamps, so restored files may not appear.