laurent22/joplin · error · Error

Could not get lastModified date for resource

Error message

Could not get lastModified date for resource: ${JSON.stringify(resource)}

What it means

Thrown by statFromResource_() when a WebDAV file resource has no d:getlastmodified property. The driver tolerates missing dates for directories (some servers like Seafile omit them) but requires one for files, since without it the sync timestamp comparison is impossible.

Solutions

1. Switch to a more standards-compliant WebDAV server or enable its full property support (Nextcloud/ownCloud recommended).
2. Update the WebDAV server to a version that emits getlastmodified for all files.
3. If stuck on a non-compliant server, patch the driver to fall back to the current time and accept weaker timestamp accuracy.
4. Verify the resource is actually a file and not a virtual entry exposed by the server.

Example fix

// before
if (!lastModifiedString && !isDir) throw new Error(`Could not get lastModified date for resource: ${JSON.stringify(resource)}`);
// after - warn and degrade gracefully for non-conformant servers
if (!lastModifiedString && !isDir) {
  logger.warn('WebDAV server omitted getlastmodified; using current time:', resource);
  lastModifiedString = new Date().toString();
}

// Pre-validate server compliance by statting a known file via PROPFIND.
const probe = await fetch(`${baseUrl}/.joplin-test`, { method: 'PROPFIND', headers: { Depth: '0', ...auth } });
const body = await probe.text();
if (!body.includes('getlastmodified')) {
  throw new Error('WebDAV server does not return getlastmodified; pick another server.');
}

function resourceHasLastModified(resource: any): boolean {
  return !!resource && !!(resource?.['d:getlastmodified'] ?? resource?.['D:getlastmodified']);
}

try {
  return await driver.stat(path);
} catch (e) {
  if (/Could not get lastModified/.test(e.message)) {
    logger.warn('Non-compliant WebDAV; degrading timestamp accuracy for', path);
    return { path, updated_time: Date.now(), isDir: false };
  }
  throw e;
}

When it happens

Trigger: stat() or list() on a WebDAV server that does not return the getlastmodified property for a file element — non-compliant server or a resource type the server treats specially.

Common situations: Seafile or other non-conformant WebDAV implementation; a virtual/special file (e.g. an alias or shortcut) that the server exposes without standard properties; server bug after an update; custom WebDAV gateway (e.g. to S3) that strips properties.

Related errors

• href not in baseUrl nor relativeBaseUrl
• Invalid WebDAV resource format
• Invalid date
• 404
• Cannot initialise synchroniser.

AI-assisted analysis of laurent22/joplin@2654b33620 (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/3831c1780c5a7e11. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at packages/lib/file-api-driver-webdav.js:77

				}
			}
		}

		let lastModifiedString = null;

		try {
			lastModifiedString = this.api().resourcePropByName(resource, 'string', 'd:getlastmodified');
		} catch (error) {
			if (error.code === 'stringNotFound') {
				// OK - the logic to handle this is below
			} else {
				throw error;
			}
		}

		// Note: Not all WebDAV servers return a getlastmodified date (eg. Seafile, which doesn't return the
		// property for folders) so we can only throw an error if it's a file.
		if (!lastModifiedString && !isDir) throw new Error(`Could not get lastModified date for resource: ${JSON.stringify(resource)}`);
		const lastModifiedDate = lastModifiedString ? new Date(lastModifiedString) : new Date();
		if (isNaN(lastModifiedDate.getTime())) throw new Error(`Invalid date: ${lastModifiedString}`);

		return {
			path: path,
			updated_time: lastModifiedDate.getTime(),
			isDir: isDir,
		};
	}

	async setTimestamp() {
		throw new Error('Not implemented'); // Not needed anymore
	}

	async delta(path, options) {
		const getDirStats = async path => {
			const result = await this.list(path, { includeDirs: false });
			return result.items;

View on GitHub (pinned to 2654b33620)