---
title: Working with the Last Access Time plugin
description: Use the Last Access Time plugin to record the timestamp of the last activity targeting an entry. The plugin updates the ds-last-access-time attribute of the entry when accessing it using an ADD, BIND, COMPARE, MODIFY, MODIFY DN, or SEARCH operation.
component: pingdirectory
version: 11.0
page_id: pingdirectory:pingdirectory_server_administration_guide:pd_ds_last_access_time_plugin
canonical_url: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingdirectory/11.0/pingdirectory_server_administration_guide/pd_ds_last_access_time_plugin.html
revdate: September 13, 2023
section_ids:
  before-you-begin: Before you begin
  about-this-task: About this task
  steps: Steps
---

# Working with the Last Access Time plugin

Use the Last Access Time plugin to record the timestamp of the last activity targeting an entry. The plugin updates the `ds-last-access-time` attribute of the entry when accessing it using an `ADD`, `BIND`, `COMPARE`, `MODIFY`, `MODIFY DN`, or `SEARCH` operation.

## Before you begin

Consider the following before using this plugin:

* An updated `ds-last-access-time` attribute value is replicated like any other change to an entry.

* The `ds-last-access-time` attribute is not returned from a search, unless included in the attributes list explicitly, or given the "+" specification for operational attributes.

* The `ds-last-access-time` value format is `yyyyMMddHHmmss.SSS'Z'`, which provides millisecond-level accuracy, such as `20131207144135.821Z`.

* The `ds-last-access-time` attribute can be indexed with a local database index. The ordering index type is the most relevant, but might require a higher index entry limit (default is 4000) to accommodate searches for entries that are not accessed for a long period of time. The ordering index type with a short time range or high index entry limit results in indexed search results for requests, such as `(ds-last-access-time>=20131207144135.821Z)`.

## About this task

Use the plugin with the Directory Server Uncached Attribute Criteria or any application that needs to determine the last access time of an entry. The plugin also enables defining request criteria to limit the scope of tracking the last access time. The `max-search-result-entries-to-update` property also prevents mass updates of `ds-last-access-time` when searches contain many results, but might not reflect end-user access.

## Steps

* Enable the plugin on all servers that have the same configuration.

  |   |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      |
  | - | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
  |   | For deployments earlier than version 4.5 that use the Last Access Time plugin, disable the plugin before upgrading, and then re-enable it after the update is complete. If servers are running different versions, the `last-access-time` updates might occur with a higher frequency than intended. |