Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

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phkhgh
Posts: 845
Joined: January 25th, 2007, 2:49 pm
Location: So. U.S.A.

Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by phkhgh »

There aren't that many "cookie manager" addons yet for web extension. Of those, several have weak descriptions and / or few screen shots.
I'm looking for one w/ a few specific features, that I haven't seen in web extension cookie managers.

1. ability to block all cookies / all 3rd party by default, & ability to allow a single site just by clicking the addon's toolbar icon - menu option.

2. extending feature #1, from the toolbar icon, the option to allow only "temporary" cookies per site, so that site cookie exception will be deleted when browser closes, or when the site's tabs close. When I must allow (temporary) cookies on unknown sites, I'd rather not have to remember to manually delete them when I close the tab (I'll forget) & not wait till Fx closes to clear them.

3. From the toolbar icon menu, option to add a permanent session cookie exception, when on a given site. (that one's negotiable)

4. Ability to view cookies and / or exceptions for the active site or for all sites with cookies set; ability to delete one, a few or all currently set cookies from the toolbar icon.

Cookie Monster had these options & more, but the dev has just pulled it from AMO. Self Destructing Cookies had many of these options (more complicated than CM), but AFAIK -per SDC dev's reply - it has no concept of a "temporary exceptions."

The relatively new https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefo ... src=search has some of these features, but like Self Destructing Cookies, appears the Gray List ( ~ "temporary"?) doesn't delete them until browser closes. For multiple sites with single owner or cooperating sites - all with temporary or gray list cookies, a lot of tracking can occur before closing the browser.

I'd appreciate other suggestions. May take 2 or more addons to get the features Cookie Monster had.
lithopsian
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Joined: September 15th, 2010, 9:03 am

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by lithopsian »

Last time I checked, WebExtensions didn't have any API for controlling cookie permissions, so what you want would be impossible. Mozilla might entertain a request for a new API, but don't hold your breath. There isn't even any way to know if Firefox will allow or block particular cookies, short of waiting for them at appear (or not).

Any WebExtensions addon for controlling cookies would have to implement their own filtering on the assumption that Firefox itself will allow them (not sure it is possible at the moment, even seeing cookies in incoming requests has problems). That's why WebExtensions addons such as Cookie AutoDelete don't actually attempt to control cookies, just to delete them at some point.
phkhgh
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Joined: January 25th, 2007, 2:49 pm
Location: So. U.S.A.

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by phkhgh »

You don't really think that future Firefox (itself) will have no way to block or allow cookies? Webext. or not.
Anything's possible, but blocking cookies isn't "affecting Firefox internals." Which is what Mozilla says is one main reason for moving to web extensions. So other than they just haven't written an API for it, what would be reasons they wouldn't allow addons to block cookies?
That's why WebExtensions addons such as Cookie AutoDelete don't actually attempt to control cookies, just to delete them at some point.
Not exactly - not according to my conversation w/ C-AD's dev. The option to block all cookies upfront wasn't left out of C-AD because it's impossible (it may not be possible w/ webext., at this point).
It just wasn't something he thought about adding. But he said he will check to see if it's possible.

I assume Fx 57 will still have some cookie manager, where you can still block all cookies, or store exceptions. And that someone will write an addon to access the native cookies and exceptions UI from a toolbar button.
That is, unless Mozilla is set on losing a large % of their remaining users, by forcing them to accept cookies on all sites. That's a little 1984-ish.
lithopsian
Posts: 3664
Joined: September 15th, 2010, 9:03 am

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by lithopsian »

Firefox 57, nightly at least, still has the same preferences panel for controlling cookie permissions, as well as the dialogs for displaying cookies and site exceptions. These dialogs are half-abandoned at present, don't work in some situations, private browsing for example, and don't support other features such as temporary permissions (probably going to get dropped at some point) and 1st party only exceptions (no idea if they want to keep that, first party isolation might make it redundant). There are bugs to fix various problems, and they haven't been rejected, but there has been no progress for years. I'm hoping that the containers project will help to push this along. My guess is that the underlying mood is for a cookie control mechanism that is much more black-box and less visible to end users, but nobody has a real clue how to achieve that.

However much you think it should and could, the WebExtensions API doesn't support controlling cookie permissions, not even a part of the API that is yet to be implemented. Maybe a new API for this would be accepted, but it would probably be much weaker than you'd expect so that it is generic enough going forward and doesn't constrain any changes to the cookie model in the future. I have no idea what C-AD's dev is thinking - possibly just the same refusal to accept that something so basic is missing; perhaps they've seen something I missed; or perhaps they plan on intercepting cookies with their own code (maybe bring back ask every time!).
Floyd77
Posts: 34
Joined: November 27th, 2012, 6:07 am

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by Floyd77 »

Have you found any good alternative to Cookie Monster?

This one looks interesting: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefo ... et_me_not/
White- and graylists can be defined

White: Always keep cookies for a domain
Gray: Keep cookies until browser restart
fxx90199
Posts: 1
Joined: December 24th, 2017, 12:38 pm

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by fxx90199 »

Terrible.

I've just upgraded to FF 57 and discovered that I've lost control over the cookies. I was used to Cookie Monster and now I see that the only way to block cookies by default is using private browsing mode, which implies I must loose every open window between sessions, which makes much more difficult to block each site/domain/web, and... well, I must say I'm looking for another browser. I've used Firefox for many many years, but I can't accept this way of forcing me to accept cookies from sites I don't trust at all.

IMHO such a BIG ERROR, Mozilla. I don't know what are you trying to do, but I don't like it.
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DanRaisch
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Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by DanRaisch »

OK, a couple of things.
A) We're not Mozilla. This forum is not run by or formally associated with Mozilla. We're an independent user-helping-user community. So your complaint is misdirected.

B) Have you set History to "Use Custom Settings" under menu path Tools->Options so that the built in controls for cookies are accessible?
mlippert
Posts: 2
Joined: August 26th, 2003, 2:17 pm

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by mlippert »

So at this time, the lack of a cookie manager addon (I'm running Cookie Monster) may be the only thing keeping me from upgrading Firefox to a 57+ release. My other addon losses I can work around or live without.

Does anyone know if Mozilla has plans to add a new API to enable an addon with Cookie Monster functionality (as detailed in the original post)?
Brummelchen
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Joined: March 19th, 2005, 10:51 am

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by Brummelchen »

We're not Mozilla. This forum is not run by or formally associated with Mozilla. We're an independent user-helping-user community.
--> http://support.mozilla.com/

thank you.
mlippert
Posts: 2
Joined: August 26th, 2003, 2:17 pm

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by mlippert »

Brummelchen wrote:
We're not Mozilla. This forum is not run by or formally associated with Mozilla. We're an independent user-helping-user community.
--> http://support.mozilla.com/

thank you.
If this was directed at my post:
Yes, I got that from the previous post and I wasn't addressing Mozilla, because I'm interested in what other users may have heard, or things that aren't official (even rumors) which means that Mozilla wouldn't respond. I'd take a link to an official response if someone happened to know of one, but I wasn't expecting that.

I was also interested in hearing if others in the user community have the same feelings about cookie management.

So it seems appropriate for a user-helping-user community.
Bard09
Posts: 1
Joined: October 12th, 2017, 9:34 am

Re: Cookie manager addon for Fx 57 with specific features

Post by Bard09 »

I'm in the same boat as you mlippert-- I've used Cookie Monster for ages and can't imagine upgrading to 57+ without it (well-- both Cookie Monster and Tab Mix Plus!).

The closest thing I've seen to an official response from Mozilla would be this thread with the Cookie Monster developer in 2016. https://mail.mozilla.org/pipermail/dev- ... 02094.html

It doesn't look like it's a priority at this time. Maybe there's some bugs we could vote on that'd improve the likelihood of a CM port and/or replacement?
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