Using Firefox or Mozilla, how do I view and control cookies?

How you view your cookies depends upon your operating system as well as your browser. To view your cookies and control your browser's cookie settings using Firefox or Mozilla, follow the appropriate directions below:

Firefox 3

Note: To ensure the safest and most reliable browsing experience with Firefox, UITS recommends upgrading to Firefox 3.

1. From the Tools menu, select Options.
   
   
2. At the top of the window that appears, click Privacy.
   
   
3. From the "Cookies" tab, choose the action you wish to take:
   
   
   • To view the cookies stored on your computer, click Show Cookies. In the window that appears, you can view the cookies on your computer, search for cookies, and remove any or all of the listed cookies.
   • To allow sites to set cookies on your computer, select Accept cookies from sites. To specify which sites are always or never allowed to use cookies, click Exceptions.
   • In the drop-down menu next to "Keep until:", select the time period you wish to keep cookies on your computer.
   • If you wish to specify how the browser should clear the private data it stores, click the Settings button in the "Private Data" section at the bottom of the window. You can specify the items to be cleared as well as the settings used to clear them.
   • To remove all cookies stored on your computer, click Clear Now in the "Private Data" section.
   
   
4. Click OK until you return to the Firefox window.

Mozilla

To view your cookies using Mozilla for Windows, search for the file cookies.txt on your hard drive. For help in finding files, see In Windows, how do I locate a file if I know its name or its contents?

In Mozilla for Mac OS or Mac OS X, open the Finder, and from the File menu, select Find... . Then search for the file MagicCookie. To view the file contents, open the MagicCookie file in BBEdit, Alpha, or another text editor.

To change your cookie settings:

1. From the Edit menu, select Preferences... . In Mozilla for Mac OS X, from the Mozilla menu, select Preferences... .
   
   
2. In the left pane, under "Privacy & Security", select Cookies.
   
   
3. On the right side of the Preferences window, choose the action you wish from the list below:
   
   
   • Select the appropriate radio button to disable cookies, enable all cookies, or to enable cookies only from the originating web site. This means that your browser will not accept cookies from third-party or advertising companies.
   • To remove all cookies stored on your computer, click Manage Stored Cookies. In the Cookie Manager window that opens, you can remove cookies, as well as view information about each cookie.

Also see:

• For Mac OS and Mac OS X, what text editors are available?
• What are cookies?
• In Microsoft Internet Explorer for Windows, how do I view and control cookies?