🕒 Recording Date and Time for Each Command in Bash History

By default, the Bash history command shows:

• The command number

• The command itself

⛔ Missing: Timestamp of when the command was executed
✅ Solution: Use the HISTTIMEFORMAT environment variable

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✅ Enable Timestamps in History

Set the following variable in your shell:

CopyHISTTIMEFORMAT="%d/%m/%y %T "

📌 Breakdown of the format:

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🧪 Test It Out

CopyHISTTIMEFORMAT="%d/%m/%y %T "
history

✔️ You'll now see the date and time for each command listed.

❗ Note:

• Commands before setting HISTTIMEFORMAT will show the same timestamp (the moment you set the variable).

• Bash didn’t record execution times earlier, so it can’t retroactively apply them.

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🛠️ Make It Persistent

To ensure the setting survives logout or reboot, add it to your ~/.bashrc file:

Copyecho 'HISTTIMEFORMAT="%d/%m/%y %T "' >> ~/.bashrc

Then reload your shell:

Copysource ~/.bashrc

🔍 Verify:

Copycat ~/.bashrc

→ The last line should contain your HISTTIMEFORMAT setting.