feat: add sort_by option to sort files by modification time (#1040)

Co-authored-by: Brandon Dwiel <bdwiel@apple.com>

doc/nvim-tree-lua.txt

@@ -83,6 +83,7 @@ function.
       auto_close           = false,
       auto_reload_on_write = true,
       open_on_tab          = false,
+      sort_by              = "name",
       hijack_cursor        = false,
       update_cwd           = false,
       hijack_unnamed_buffer_when_opening = false,
@@ -201,6 +202,12 @@ Here is a list of the options available in the setup call:
   type: `boolean`
   default: `false`
 
+*nvim-tree.sort_by*
+- |sort_by|: changes how files within the same directory are sorted. can be
+  one of 'name' | 'modification_time'
+  type: `string`
+  default: `"name"`
+
 *nvim-tree.hijack_unnamed_buffer_when_opening*
 - |hijack_unnamed_buffer_when_opening|: opens in place of the unnamed
   buffer if it's empty.

lua/nvim-tree.lua

@@ -339,6 +339,7 @@ local DEFAULT_OPTS = {
   ignore_buffer_on_setup = false,
   open_on_setup = false,
   open_on_tab = false,
+  sort_by = "name",
   update_cwd = false,
   hijack_directories = {
     enable = true,

lua/nvim-tree/explorer/node-builders.lua

@@ -5,6 +5,16 @@ local M = {
   is_windows = vim.fn.has('win32') == 1
 }
 
+local function get_last_modified(absolute_path)
+  local stat = uv.fs_stat(absolute_path)
+
+  local last_modified = 0
+  if stat ~= nil then
+    last_modified = stat.mtime.sec
+  end
+  return last_modified
+end
+
 function M.get_dir_git_status(parent_ignored, status, absolute_path)
   if parent_ignored then
     return '!!'
@@ -30,6 +40,7 @@ function M.folder(absolute_path, name, status, parent_ignored)
     name = name,
     nodes = {},
     open = false,
+    last_modified = get_last_modified(absolute_path),
   }
 end
 
@@ -49,6 +60,7 @@ function M.file(absolute_path, name, status, parent_ignored)
     extension = ext,
     git_status = M.get_git_status(parent_ignored, status, absolute_path),
     name = name,
+    last_modified = get_last_modified(absolute_path),
   }
 end
 
@@ -60,23 +72,17 @@ end
 function M.link(absolute_path, name, status, parent_ignored)
   --- I dont know if this is needed, because in my understanding, there isnt hard links in windows, but just to be sure i changed it.
   local link_to = uv.fs_realpath(absolute_path)
-  local stat = uv.fs_stat(absolute_path)
   local open, nodes
   if (link_to ~= nil) and uv.fs_stat(link_to).type == 'directory' then
     open = false
     nodes = {}
   end
 
-  local last_modified = 0
-  if stat ~= nil then
-    last_modified = stat.mtime.sec
-  end
-
   return {
     absolute_path = absolute_path,
     git_status = M.get_git_status(parent_ignored, status, absolute_path),
     group_next = nil,   -- If node is grouped, this points to the next child dir/link node
-    last_modified = last_modified,
+    last_modified = get_last_modified(absolute_path),
     link_to = link_to,
     name = name,
     nodes = nodes,

lua/nvim-tree/explorer/utils.lua

@@ -5,9 +5,10 @@ local utils = require'nvim-tree.utils'
 local M = {
   ignore_list = {},
   exclude_list = {},
+  node_comparator = nil,
 }
 
-function M.node_comparator(a, b)
+function M.node_comparator_name(a, b)
   if not (a and b) then
     return true
   end
@@ -20,6 +21,19 @@ function M.node_comparator(a, b)
   return a.name:lower() <= b.name:lower()
 end
 
+function M.node_comparator_modification_time(a, b)
+  if not (a and b) then
+    return true
+  end
+  if a.nodes and not b.nodes then
+    return true
+  elseif not a.nodes and b.nodes then
+    return false
+  end
+
+  return b.last_modified <= a.last_modified
+end
+
 ---Check if the given path should be ignored.
 ---@param path string Absolute path
 ---@return boolean
@@ -73,6 +87,7 @@ function M.setup(opts)
     filter_ignored = true,
     filter_dotfiles = opts.filters.dotfiles,
     filter_git_ignored = opts.git.ignore,
+    sort_by = opts.sort_by,
   }
 
   M.exclude_list = opts.filters.exclude
@@ -83,6 +98,12 @@ function M.setup(opts)
       M.ignore_list[filter_name] = true
     end
   end
+
+  if M.config.sort_by == "modification_time" then
+    M.node_comparator = M.node_comparator_modification_time
+  else
+    M.node_comparator = M.node_comparator_name
+  end
 end
 
 return M