File Timeline
See recent changes in your folders and find files by an earlier name.
Free trial · Full version €1.99 once
Windows 11 24H2 or later · x64
Start a file-activity timeline
Seven days from the first observation. No subscription. See trial details.
Watch the folders you choose
Start observing file activity in selected folders.
Find a file by its earlier name
Follow recorded moves and renames, and open a file when its current location is available.
Understand what changed
Read observed events without treating the history as a file backup.
Find a file after its name has changed
Search the name you remember and follow the recorded change to its current location.
- Open File Timeline from its icon near the Windows clock and search the old filename.
- Open the matching Renamed or Moved event and read Details.
- Choose Show in folder when the current location is available. File Timeline can find changes it observed after tracking began.
See File Timeline
Select an image for a closer look.
Before you choose
- Observation starts after setup. The app cannot reconstruct activity from before it was observing.
- The timeline stores file metadata, not file contents or recoverable backups.
- Only supported local NTFS locations can be observed. Gaps and unavailable locations are not evidence that nothing changed.
Try it with your own files
Try File Timeline free for seven days. The timer starts when observation first begins on a supported folder, not just when you install or open the app.
Once started, the seven-day period continues while observation is paused, the panel is hidden, or the app or PC is closed. At expiry, new observation stops; existing history remains readable until its normal retention period ends.
Buy the full version for €1.99 once, with no subscription. Microsoft Store must confirm full access. Your folders and saved history remain; choose Resume if requested. Activity missed during an interruption cannot be recovered from the trial.
File Timeline
See recent changes in your folders and find files by an earlier name.
€1.99 one-time purchase Your Store region determines the final price.
Version 1.0.1
More about File Timeline
Features and working limits
- Follow selected folders: Choose the folders to observe. Added, Updated, Renamed, Moved and Removed events appear when the app can detect those changes.
- Find an earlier name: Search retained names and paths. Historical locations stay separate from the file's verified current location.
- Keep the timeline close: Open the compact panel from the notification-area icon near the Windows clock. Observation can continue when the panel is closed.
Local data and network use
- Observed names, paths and activity records are stored locally.
- The observer does not read file contents, create thumbnails or copy your documents.
- Pause stops observation. Closing the panel is different from exiting the application. Neither pauses a started seven-day trial.
- History retention is adjustable from four hours to 90 days; the default is 30 days. Clearing history does not delete the observed files.
- Protected local trial records store the start/end and clock-check information. They are bound to the Windows user and device and have a separate user-profile copy. Clearing history, resetting the app or ordinary reinstall does not restart the trial. This is not account-wide or cross-device trial tracking.
- Microsoft Store services check trial or full access, handle purchases and discover or deliver updates. Buying or visiting the Store page does not unlock observation until the official full license is confirmed.
- Opening Support or the Store page opens an external service; the local file timeline is not uploaded as part of observation.
System requirements
Windows 11 version 24H2 (build 26100) or later; x64; supported local NTFS folders.