[windows] Filename timestamp in Windows CMD batch script getting truncated

I have a batch script that outputs a file, and I'm trying to ensure that each time the script is executed, no existing files are overwritten, so I'm trying to put a timestamp on it.

Currently I have this:

set  stamp=%DATE:/=-%_%TIME::=-%

But if the time is 1-9 AM, it gives something like:

13-06-2012_ instead of a full 13-06-2012_12-39-37.28

How can I fix this?

I'm using Windows 7, and the output of echo %date% %time% in a command line window is (my clock format for 'short date' is set to display 3-letter months):

03-Sep-12 9:06:21.54

Basically I want a solution that solves the issue regardless of what the clock format is set to.

Edit: Since no one likes to read past the title, I will explicitly state this question is about a truncation issue. And I found a solution.

I've been using the following timestamp for a good while now, works well.

set timestamp=%DATE:/=-%_%TIME::=-%
set timestamp=%timestamp: =%

It produced a timestamp like: 18-03-2013_13-37-43.26, by replacing / and : in %TIME% and %DATE%, then stripping white space. The whitespace was the problem in my original question, really.

See Stack Overflow question How to get current datetime on Windows command line, in a suitable format for using in a filename?.

Create a file, date.bat:

@echo off
For /f "tokens=2-4 delims=/ " %%a in ('date /t') do (set mydate=%%c-%%a-%%b)
For /f "tokens=1-3 delims=/:/ " %%a in ('time /t') do (set mytime=%%a-%%b-%%c)
set mytime=%mytime: =% 
echo %mydate%_%mytime%

Run date.bat:

C:\>date.bat
2012-06-14_12-47-PM

UPDATE:

You can also do it with one line like this:

for /f "tokens=2-8 delims=.:/ " %%a in ("%date% %time%") do set DateNtime=%%c-%%a-%%b_%%d-%%e-%%f.%%g

Windows batch log file name in 2018-02-08_14.32.06.34.log format:

setlocal
set d=%DATE:~-4%-%DATE:~4,2%-%DATE:~7,2%
set t=%time::=.% 
set t=%t: =%
set logfile="%d%_%t%.log"

ping localhost -n 11>%1/%logfile%
endlocal

In the past, I've used a .cmd script I found on the Internet. I hate the way localization normally messes with dates. Anytime you have dates in filenames (or anywhere else, if I may be so bold) I figure you want them in ISO 8601 format:

2015-02-19T14:54:51Z

or something else that has Y M D H M in that order, such as

2015-02-19 14:54

because it fixes the MDY / DMY ambiguity and because it's sortable as text.

I don't know where I got that .cmd script, but it may have been http://ss64.com/nt/syntax-getdate.html, which works beautifully on my YYYY-MM-DD Windows 8.1 and on a M/D/YYYY vanilla install of Windows 7. Both give the same format:

2015-02-09 04:43

BATCH/CMD FILE like DateAndTime.cmd (not in CMD-Console)

Code:

SETLOCAL EnableDelayedExpansion
(set d=%date:~8,2%-%date:~3,2%-%date:~0,2%) & (set t=%time::=.%) & (set t=!t: =0!) & (set STAMP=!d!__!t!)

Create output:

echo %stamp%

Output:

2020-02-25__08.43.38.90

Or also possible in for lines in CMD-Console and BATCH/CMD File

set d=%date:~6,4%-%date:~3,2%-%date:~0,2%
set t=%time::=.%
set t=%t: =0%
set stamp=%d%__%t%

"Create output" and "Output" same as above

The first four lines of this code will give you reliable YY DD MM YYYY HH Min Sec variables in XP Pro and higher, using WMIC.

@echo off
for /f "tokens=2 delims==" %%a in ('wmic OS Get localdatetime /value') do set "dt=%%a"
set "YY=%dt:~2,2%" & set "YYYY=%dt:~0,4%" & set "MM=%dt:~4,2%" & set "DD=%dt:~6,2%"
set "HH=%dt:~8,2%" & set "Min=%dt:~10,2%" & set "Sec=%dt:~12,2%"

set "datestamp=%YYYY%%MM%%DD%" & set "timestamp=%HH%%Min%%Sec%"
set "fullstamp=%YYYY%-%MM%-%DD%_%HH%-%Min%-%Sec%"
echo datestamp: "%datestamp%"
echo timestamp: "%timestamp%"
echo fullstamp: "%fullstamp%"
pause

Output example:

datestamp: "20200828"
timestamp: "085513"
fullstamp: "2020-08-28_08-55-13"
Press any key to continue . . .

for /f "tokens=2-8 delims=.:/ " %%a in ("%date% %time: =0%") do set DateNtime=%%c-%%a-%%b_%%d-%%e-%%f.%%g
echo %DateNtime%

Or, from the command line:

for /f "tokens=2-8 delims=.:/ " %a in ("%date% %time: =0%") do echo %c-%a-%b_%d-%e-%f.%g 

EDIT: As per bryce's non-standard time/date specs. (03-Sep-12 9:06:21.54)

@echo off
setlocal enabledelayedexpansion
for /f "tokens=1-7 delims=.:/- " %%a in ("%date% %time%") do (
  if "%%b"=="Jan" set MM=01
  if "%%b"=="Feb" set MM=02
  if "%%b"=="Mar" set MM=03
  if "%%b"=="Apr" set MM=04
  if "%%b"=="May" set MM=05
  if "%%b"=="Jun" set MM=06
  if "%%b"=="Jul" set MM=07
  if "%%b"=="Aug" set MM=08
  if "%%b"=="Sep" set MM=09
  if "%%b"=="Oct" set MM=10
  if "%%b"=="Nov" set MM=11
  if "%%b"=="Dec" set MM=12
  set HH=0%%d
  set HH=!HH:~-2!
  echo 20%%c-!MM!-%%a_!HH!-%%e-%%f.%%g
)
endlocal

Here's a batch script I made to return a timestamp. An optional first argument may be provided to be used as a field delimiter. For example:

c:\sys\tmp>timestamp.bat
20160404_144741
c:\sys\tmp>timestamp.bat -
2016-04-04_14-45-25
c:\sys\tmp>timestamp.bat :
2016:04:04_14:45:29

@echo off
SETLOCAL ENABLEDELAYEDEXPANSION
:: put your desired field delimiter here.
:: for example, setting DELIMITER to a hyphen will separate fields like so:
:: yyyy-MM-dd_hh-mm-ss
::
:: setting DELIMITER to nothing will output like so:
:: yyyyMMdd_hhmmss
::
SET DELIMITER=%1

SET DATESTRING=%date:~-4,4%%DELIMITER%%date:~-7,2%%DELIMITER%%date:~-10,2%
SET TIMESTRING=%TIME%
::TRIM OFF the LAST 3 characters of TIMESTRING, which is the decimal point and hundredths of a second
set TIMESTRING=%TIMESTRING:~0,-3%

:: Replace colons from TIMESTRING with DELIMITER
SET TIMESTRING=%TIMESTRING::=!DELIMITER!%

:: if there is a preceeding space substitute with a zero
echo %DATESTRING%_%TIMESTRING: =0%

It wants the full time in DD-MM-YYYY_HH-MM-SS.TT where TT is the ticks. The exception says it all.