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How do i retain specific cookies and delete the rest when closing firefox

  • 12 cavab
  • 8 have this problem
  • 4 views
  • Last reply by Dunk

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Hello,

I have a home page set up that requires me to configure certain options to go to the proper place when it opens. The link of this site does not change as I configure it but keeps cookies.

In Firefox/Tools/Options/Privacy Tab/, I have checked off clear history when firefox closes, and set up under settings When I quit firefox it should automaticlly clear all: Browsing History - Checked Download History - Checked Active Logins - Checked Cache - Checked Saved Passwords - Checked Offline Website Data - Checked

Form and Search History - Unchecked Site Preferences - Unchecked

If I check Cookies, It clears ALL the cookies, Both the one I want and all the others I don't want.

If I uncheck cookies, It leaves all the cookies (The ones I want and the ones I don't)

How do I retain only the ones I want and clear the rest?

The site that creates the cookies I want to keep is http://www.titantv.com/


My firefox version is 3.6.18, Win XP Pro Sp3

Thanks Alf

Hello, I have a home page set up that requires me to configure certain options to go to the proper place when it opens. The link of this site does not change as I configure it but keeps cookies. In Firefox/Tools/Options/Privacy Tab/, I have checked off clear history when firefox closes, and set up under settings When I quit firefox it should automaticlly clear all: Browsing History - Checked Download History - Checked Active Logins - Checked Cache - Checked Saved Passwords - Checked Offline Website Data - Checked Form and Search History - Unchecked Site Preferences - Unchecked If I check Cookies, It clears ALL the cookies, Both the one I want and all the others I don't want. If I uncheck cookies, It leaves all the cookies (The ones I want and the ones I don't) How do I retain only the ones I want and clear the rest? The site that creates the cookies I want to keep is http://www.titantv.com/ My firefox version is 3.6.18, Win XP Pro Sp3 Thanks Alf

All Replies (12)

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Here's what I do. Under

Tools > Options > Privacy

choose "Use custom settings for history". Under cookies, choose "Keep until 'I close Firefox'". Then set an exception in the Exceptions dialog on that same tab to "Allow" from titantv.com.

With those settings, any cookies not marked Allow in the Exceptions list will be cleared when you close Firefox.

Does that accomplish what you want?

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Thanks for the quick reply. I tried setting it up as you suggested but it still doesn't work. Here's what is set up

Tools > Options > Privacy

Use Custom settings for history

Unchecked-Automatically start firefox in private browsing mode

Unchecked-Remember browsing History 0 days

Unchecked-Remember download history

Unchecked-Remember search and form history

Checked-Accept cookies from sites and (exceptions button-See below)

Unchecked-Accept third party cookies

Keep until they expire (Show cookies button)

Checked-Clear history when Firefox closes (Settings Button-see below)

Exceptions:

www.titantv.com Allow

titantv.com Allow

Setting buttons

HISTORY

Checked-browsing history

Checked-download history

Unchecked-Form & search history

Checked-Cookies

Checked-Active logins

Checked-Cache


DATA

Checked-Saved passwords

Checked-Offline Website Data

Unchecked-Site Preferences


What I did was:

The first cleared cookies but I had to re-configure.

Opened firefox:

It brought Titantv.com as Homepage. I configured zip code etc

Did Tools/Options/Privacy/Show cookies. Verified only cookies were Titantv

Put Titantv.com and www.titantv.com in exceptions list as allow

Went into Settings and verifed cookies was checked.

Closed firefox

The second did not clear cookies but configuration was kept

Opened firefox-I had to reconfigure Titantv again

I went to morningstar to so a cookie would be generated

Went to Tools/Options/Privacy/Settings – UNCHECKED Cookies

Closed Firefox

Opened firefox. TITANTV was all set up.

Went to Tools/Options/Privacy/Show cookies – but both morningstar and Titantv remained

When I setup exceptions, it looks like the cookies to be allowed or blocked pertain to where the site can used them rather than use whats on the list to exclude them from being cleared. Just my thought

Any other ideas??

Thanks Alf

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That's a little hard to read... did you change from

"Keep until 'they expire'"

to

"Keep until 'I close Firefox'"?

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yea I know its hard to read but Firefox messes it up. It's actually indented. If you have firefox, you could see it clearer if you opened your tools/option/privacy tab. The options are listed in the order I typed them in. Anyway

I just tried changing KEEP UNTIL THEY EXPIRE" to KEEP UNTIL I CLOSE FIREFOX" and retried it but I still have to reconfigure.

I think that option only applys if accpet 3rd party cookies (Which I don't) It's one of the options that's indented

Thanks Alf

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Hmmm, I see the same problem now.

If I visit www.apple.com, it sets a persistent cookie that is not cleared at shutdown.

If I start Firefox up to a new profile with the same "until I close Firefox" setting and visit www.apple.com, then all cookies are set as session cookies.

If I start in my regular profile in Safe Mode (add-ons disabled), I get a persistent cookie. So there is something else in my profile that is causing this. Considering that this profile has been migrated since about Firefox 0.9, I think it could be quite difficult to track down. But necessary...

---

Upon further review, it's a false alarm: I had set Allow for metrics.apple.com, which I didn't notice among the hundreds of domains in the Exceptions dialog. After removing that exception, the "until I close Firefox" setting forces all apple.com cookies to session cookies as desired.

Modified by jscher2000 - Support Volunteer

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You can't use "Clear Recent History" to clear the cookies if you want to keep some.
If you use Clear Recent History to delete cookies then you delete all the cookies, including the ones with a exception.

Remove at least the cookies from that setting and do as jscher2000 wrote above and let the cookies expire if you close Firefox.

  • Tools > Options > Privacy > Cookies: "Keep until": "I close Firefox"
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That works-Thanks.

I have included below a summary of the settings I used so anyone else seeking assistance in doing this may have some reference.

Summary


Tools > Options > Privacy

Use Custom settings for history

Unchecked-Automatically start Firefox in private browsing mode

Checked-Remember browsing History 0 days

Unchecked-Remember download history

Unchecked-Remember search and form history

CHECKED-Accept cookies from sites (EXCEPTIONS button at right-See below)

Unchecked-Accept third party cookies

KEEP UNTIL: I CLOSE FIREFOX (Show cookies button at right)

CHECKED-Clear history when Firefox closes (Settings Button at right-see below) Cookies is deselected

EXCEPTIONS: www.titantv.com Allow

titantv.com Allow

Setting buttons

HISTORY

Checked-browsing history

Checked-download history

Unchecked-Form & search history

UNCHECKED-Cookies

Checked-Active logins

Checked-Cache


DATA

Checked-Saved passwords

Checked-Offline Website Data

Unchecked-Site Preferences

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I have done the same settings listed by AlfLinus, but in Firefox 5.0, and my cookies do not stay on my computer. If someone could post a walk-through for v5.0, that'd be helpful.

Also, this should be a very intuitive process, and it is not. You'd think that simply by marking "www.amazon.com" as an exception with the "allow" setting, the cookies would stay, but they don't. This is very frustrating.

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@Dunk, first, can you confirm that the cookie is set with a future expiration? Right-click the page, View Page Info > Security > View Cookies. Some may naturally expire at the end of the session, but if none are set to persist, then none will be there after you restart Firefox.

If that is correct, then a clearing process would be the next suspect. Either Firefox's "Clear Recent History" feature or a third party security product (whether as a Firefox add-on or external).

Check the third section of this article for the "Clear Recent History" settings: Clear Recent History | How to | Firefox Help.

As for add-ons and external software, we don't have any information on what you have installed...

Modified by jscher2000 - Support Volunteer

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I have checked the cookies and they are set to expire in 20 years, thereabouts. So, they should be staying on my computer.

As for add-ons, I have Ad-Block plus, Download Statusbar, and NoScript (The website in question is an allowed site for NoScript).

My Firefox is set to "Clear history when Firefox closes". Is this the problem? In AlfLinus' post, he has that checked and says that his cookies are behaving.

I have Norton Security Suite 5.1 installed. Could that be deleting my precious cookies?

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@Dunk,

I am not familiar with Firefox 5 but in my Firefox (3.6.18) after I had got the setting above working, I also had to alter my CCLEANER app (Cleans cache, cookies and other apps). I had to deselect the cookies option so that cookies don't get deleted. I don't run this app often but it does clean cookies if selected.

Also (in firefox) I just wanted to mention that when I check off "Clear history when Firefox closes" there is a "SETTINGS" button to the right. I go to it and DESELECT COOKIES.

Good luck

Alf

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"Also (in firefox) I just wanted to mention that when I check off "Clear history when Firefox closes" there is a "SETTINGS" button to the right. I go to it and DESELECT COOKIES."

This did it. Success! Thanks to both of you for your help.