I have a system that allows for pooling of request files. The request files are read and the data contained in them informs activation of a relational database system. This system already allows for specification of overnight processing, priority setting and node targeting. I have the idea that it would be nice to allow the setting of the earliest time period that the request can be read.

I have the idea that there could be two approaches to this. Either a tree structure of folders could be created, whereby the upper node is year and branches form the months and then the days and then hour. Or separate folders could tag all the time details in the folder name. If I use this second approach what convention do I use? Do I need to consider any Perl modules that use specific time specification string conventions?

I also need to consider the efficiency of the algorithm. I don't want my program to have to repeatedly check the same folder for a whole year. Maybe I need a combination of the two aforementioned methods, where folders get copied across on the day of processing.


Update: To codify the problem:

foreach ( @directories ) # foreach of the time stamped directories
 {
    $directory_name = $_;   # I need to take the directory name here

    #  I need to process the directory name here to give me a time tha
+t the directory is labelled with
    
    my $date_time =    ;  # .... and to assign a value to $date_time 
    my $now = ;  Not sure how to get this value
    
    if ($date_time => $now )   # If the date has been passed
      {
       
        my $directory_to_move = $input_directory_CC."".$directory_name
+;
    
        return $directory_to_move;
  }
}
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