diff --git a/features/step_definitions/file.rb b/features/step_definitions/file.rb
index afffa6e836..e6b572d30a 100644
--- a/features/step_definitions/file.rb
+++ b/features/step_definitions/file.rb
@@ -34,15 +34,27 @@
 
 Given /^I get time difference using "(.+)" and "(.+)" in (.+) file$/ do  |s1, s2, filename|
   ##This isn't a generic step-definition yet & specific to logs of machineset-controller##
-  split1 = File.open(filename){ |f| f.read }.split(s1)[0].split("Watching")[0]
-  split2 = File.open(filename){ |f| f.read }.split(s2)[0].split(s1)[2].strip
+  log_content = File.read(filename)
+
+  # Extract timestamp from line containing the marker
+  # Log format: YYYY/MM/DD HH:MM:SS Message
+  # Example: 2026/06/16 08:36:17 Registering Components.
+  match1 = log_content.match(/(\d{4}\/\d{2}\/\d{2}\s+\d{2}:\d{2}:\d{2})\s+#{Regexp.escape(s1)}/)
+  match2 = log_content.match(/(\d{4}\/\d{2}\/\d{2}\s+\d{2}:\d{2}:\d{2})\s+#{Regexp.escape(s2)}/)
+
+  raise "Could not find timestamp for '#{s1}' in log" unless match1
+  raise "Could not find timestamp for '#{s2}' in log" unless match2
+
+  split1 = match1[1]
+  split2 = match2[1]
 
   #Calculating time difference in seconds
   time_start = DateTime.parse split1
   time_end = DateTime.parse split2
   time_difference = ((time_end - time_start)* 24 * 60 * 60).to_i
+
   if time_difference > 30
-    raise ("Upgrade can cause issues for new machinesets")
+    raise ("Upgrade can cause issues for new machinesets (#{time_difference}s > 30s)")
   end
 end
 # This step is used to delete lines from file. If multiline match is needed,