Each browser is limited cookies in two ways. The first is a per domain cookie limit that allows a single domain to only store x cookies before the oldest gets erased to make room for the new cookie. The second is an overall cookie limit which erases the oldest cookies when the limit is reached.
The maximum cookies per domain setting usually has impacts on large websites that store lots of cookies on the computer. Remember that domain means that cookies saved from the main domain name but also from all subdomains count towards the limit.
The second limit is not that much of a problem nowadays anymore. Firefox had a hard coded 300 cookie limit back in 2004 which caused some serious problems but most browsers support much more than that so that it’s unlikely that users will reach the limit.
Per Domain Cookie Limit:
Here is a test script to test your browser:
Firefox 2: 50 (can bet set between 0 and 65535 in network. cookie. maxPerHost)
Firefox 3: 50 (can bet set between 0 and 65535 in network. cookie. maxPerHost)
Internet Explorer 7: 50 (after applying a patch from Microsoft)
Opera 9: 30
Safari: No Limit(!)
Maximum Cookie Limit:
Firefox 2: 1000 (can bet set between 0 and 65535 in network. cookie. maxNumber)
Firefox 3: 1000 (can bet set between 0 and 65535 in network. cookie. maxNumber)
Internet Explorer: unknown
Opera: unknown
I’d say that I’m a heavy Internet user but I never scratched those limits. Did you experience problems with cookie limits before?
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If Safari’s Per Domain Cookie Limit is “No Limit(!)”, then by extension, the Maximum Cookie Limit would also HAVE to be “No Limit(!),” not “unknown”.
Semantics. There is always a limit and there is no maximum cookie limit defined. So you could say that the hard drive space is the limit instead.
Fact is, Apple has not set any hard cookie limit in Safari and that’s no limit for me.
Great minds think a like. I created a script and tested quite a few browsers recently. If anyones interested it is at http://myownplayground.atspace.com/cookietest.html