Robo-FTP User's Guide > Script Programming > Script Commands > All Script Commands > FILECOMPAREFROM

Syntax:	FILECOMPAREFROM	[ file name ]
Arguments:	[ file name ]	Variable or string defining a file name on the remote site.
Options:	/tz=xx	Timezone adjustment (in hours) between the local PC and the remote site; value is expressed as a positive or negative integer; used when local and server file’s time/date stamps are compared. This option is functionally equivalent to calling the TIMEZONE command so this adjustment persists after the execution of the current line of script. This option is deprecated in favor of the TIMEZONE command.

This command compares the size and date/time stamp of a specified file on the remote site with a file of the same name in the current folder on the local PC.

The results of the comparison are saved in two internal script variables: size result is saved in %comparesize and date/time result is saved in %comparedate. These variables may then be tested using the IFSIZE and IFDATE commands respectively. (Do not use the IFERROR command.)

Consider the following example where a file on the FTP site is compared to a correspondingly named local file and a conditional branch is taken if the files are the same size.

FILECOMPAREFROM "server_file"

IFSIZE $ERROR_FILES_SAME_SIZE GOTO save_this_file

If you are not using the TIMEZONE script command, you may specify the /tz option to account for differences in timezones between Robo-FTP and the remote site. This is important for accurate file date and time stamp comparisons. For example, if you are using Robo-FTP in the Central U.S. timezone and the remote site is located in the Eastern U.S. timezone there may be a one-hour difference between the file system times of Robo-FTP’s PC and the FTP site. To allow for this in the FILECOMPAREFROM command, the command would look like the following which indicates that the FTP site is one hour ahead:

FILECOMPAREFROM "server_file" /tz=+1

IFDATE $ERROR_LOCAL_FILE_OLDER GOTO download_file

IFDATE $ERROR_NO_LOCAL_FILE_EXISTS GOTO download_file

Further, if the FTP site is located in the Pacific U.S. timezone there may be a two-hour difference the other way between the file system times of Robo-FTP’s PC and the FTP site. To allow for this, the command would look like the following which indicates that the FTP site is two hours behind:

FILECOMPAREFROM "server_file" /tz=-2

FILECOMPAREFROM populates the value of %comparesize as follows:

$ERROR_FILES_SAME_SIZE	1234	Local and FTP site files identical in size
$ERROR_LOCAL_FILE_LARGER	1235	Local file is larger
$ERROR_LOCAL_FILE_SMALLER	1236	Local file is smaller
$ERROR_NO_LOCAL_FILE_EXISTS	1239	Local file does not exist
$ERROR_LOCAL_FILE_EMPTY	1240	Local file exists but length equals 0

FILECOMPAREFROM populates the value of %comparedate as follows:

$ERROR_LOCAL_FILE_NEWER	1232	Local file is newer
$ERROR_LOCAL_FILE_OLDER	1233	Local file is older
$ERROR_NO_LOCAL_FILE_EXISTS	1239	Local file does not exist
$ERROR_FILES_SAME_DATETIME	1241	Local and FTP site files share same date/time

Important

The success of this command depends on Robo-FTP's ability to automatically read and understand the directory listings returned by the remote site. Most HTTP/HTTPS sites do not return listings in a supported format and many return no raw directory listings in response to HTTP GET requests based on slash-terminated URLs. Some respond to HEAD requests and are partially compatible. Some supported HTTP listing types like APACHE_DEFAULT include file sizes rounded to the nearest megabyte or kilobyte and are therefore not fully compatible with this command. Contact technical support if you have an urgent need related to a raw directory listing format that is currently unsupported.

Related command(s): IFSIZE, IFDATE, FILECOMPARETO, SYNC, FTPDIFF