Add Support for Right-Aligned Timestamp Printed After Command Execution

[stefmf]

Code of Conduct

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What would you like to see added?

Feature Request: Right-Aligned Timestamp Printed After Command Execution (Post-Command, Scrollback-Persistent)

Summary

I'd like to request a feature that enables a timestamp to be printed right-aligned on the same line as the just-executed command, immediately after the command runs and before the next prompt is drawn.

This is not a traditional right_prompt or transient_prompt feature request. Instead, it's a proposal for a behavior where the timestamp is written directly to the terminal output, simulating a right-aligned transient prompt enhancement, without modifying the user’s actual prompt configuration or affecting long command lines.

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What I’m Looking For

Visual Example

When I run a command like:

❯ cd ~/projects

The terminal would immediately display something like:

❯ cd ~/projects                      Sep 21 02:45

Then the next prompt appears as usual.

This printed timestamp becomes part of the scrollback and looks like it was “always there”; creating a persistent log of command execution times.

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Why This Matters

When I work in long terminal sessions (often for hours), I frequently want to:

• See when each command was run
• Understand the timing between events
• Troubleshoot or track workflow history visually

Currently, prompts disappear via transient_prompt, and right_prompt is not scrollback-persistent, so I lose all temporal context once the prompt collapses.

This feature would:

• Add meaningful context to every command line
• Help users analyze terminal sessions over time
• Enable better debugging, journaling, and situational awareness
• Complement (not replace) existing transient prompt behavior

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Why Not Use right_prompt or transient_prompt?

• right_prompt only renders visually, and disappears when a new command is run; not helpful for scrollback.
• transient_prompt collapses the prompt (which I want), but currently doesn’t support right-aligned content.
• Even if it did, long commands would collide with any right-aligned segment placed in the template.

This request avoids all of that by treating the timestamp as a post-command echo, written after the command runs, using actual output (not a prompt template).

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Technical Proposal (Rough Idea)

This could be implemented using a post-command hook (like precmd) that:

• Captures the cursor position
• Calculates terminal width
• Prints a timestamp right-aligned on the same line as the previous command
• Respects prompt length, possibly only activating if the command was short enough
• Does not affect the actual prompt rendering

This would be completely optional and opt-in.

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Edge Case Considerations

• Commands that span multiple lines (or have long arguments) might not leave room for a timestamp, this could be detected and skipped.
• Users should be able to configure:
  • Time format
  • Minimum space required
  • Enable/disable logic

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Final Thoughts

This idea blends the best of both worlds:

• The clean UI and collapsing behavior of transient prompts
• The persistent, useful context of timestamped command logs

It doesn’t clutter the prompt itself, and it doesn’t rely on template hacks or risky terminal overlays. It's simply a post-execution write that feels like part of the prompt, but isn’t; which makes it reliable and flexible.

Thanks for considering this. I’d love to see this make its way into Oh My Posh. It would be a powerful yet minimal enhancement for users who care about long-session context without sacrificing terminal clarity.