How Internet Explorer for Macintosh Manages Cookies

This article describes the purpose of cookies, where they are stored by Internet Explorer, and how you can remove them from your hard disk.

Cookies are bits of information written to your computer about you and your visits to Web pages. Cookies can include the following types of information:

Custom Pages

The Microsoft Network custom page (The MSN) is an example of a large cookie. After you select the options you want for your Web page, the server writes that information to your cookie to retrieve when you visit the page at a later time.

Shopping

If you visit a site that features a "shopping cart" of items you want to purchase, a cookie can keep track of what you put in your cart. If you need to leave the Web page, the items your shopping cart will be exactly as you left it when you return. This keeps you from having to fill the "shopping cart" again.

Tracking Visits

A webmaster can give you a cookie to track repeat visits to a Web page.

Cookies Locations

Cookies are stored in different locations depending on the version of Internet Explorer you are running.

Internet Explorer Versions 2.0 and 2.1:

Cookies are stored in the System Folder:Preferences:Explorer:Cookies.txt file. To remove any unwanted cookies, you can either delete the Cookies.txt file, or you can edit the file with a text editor and remove any cookies you do not want. Note that you may want to make a backup copy of the Cookies.txt file before you delete it.

Internet Explorer Version 3.0:

Cookies are stored in the System Folder:Preferences:Internet Preferences file. To remove any unwanted cookies, delete the Preferences file. This file is also used by Internet Config and may contain preferences used by other Internet-based programs (mail programs, news readers, ftp programs, and so on). Do not delete this file unless you are sure you have written down all of the settings.

Internet Explorer Version 3.01a:

Cookies are stored in the System Folder:Preferences:Internet Preferences file. To remove any unwanted cookies, follow these steps:

1. On the Edit menu, click Preferences.
2. Click Cookies under Receiving Files, and then click the cookie you want to delete under Cookies Settings.
3. Click Delete, and then click OK.

Internet Explorer Version 4.0, 4.01, and 4.5:

Cookies are stored in the System Folder:MS Preference Panels:Cookies file.

To remove any unwanted Cookies, follow these steps:

1. On the Edit menu, click Preferences.
2. Click Cookies.
3. Click the Cookie that you want to delete, and then click Delete.
4. Click OK

In Internet Explorer versions 2.0, 2.1, and 3.0, you do not have the option to decline cookies, nor do you have the option to be warned before cookies are downloaded to your computer. In Internet Explorer 3.01a and 4.0, you have the following options for handling cookies: