Incorrect Cookie Behavior!

I am very confused about cookies in a way that IE 7 behaves: Suppose I am logged in to Yahoo! Mail on IE 7 using user name XYZ, on the same browser, I am able to logged in to Yahoo! Mail using user name KLM. How is it possible? If I try to do the same thing in IE 8 or Mozilla Firefox, then it logs me out from XYZ as soon as logged into Yahoo! Mail using KLM. Similarly, if I logged into Yahoo! Mail using XYZ on IE 7 and delete cookies, then also remain logged into IE7 using XYZ whereas doing this in IE 8/Firefox logs me out from Yahoo! Mail using XYZ. I know that this is because of cookies and IE 8/Firefox is doing correct. My query is regarding IE 7?

Sorry you haven't received a response as yet. Our volunteers read and research posted questions. When an answer or solution becomes available, it will be posted. Best Regards

Is it that tricky query?

Many problems seem "tricky" when there is a specific setting or selection required to perform a function in an application or browser. Sometimes it is "intuitive" (a user can logically figure it out) and sometimes it is an "arbitrary" required setting, that the user would not know, ….unless someone told them or they read the solution somewhere. _____________________________ Can we accurately presume that you are dealing with (2) two machines? –One with Internet Explorer 7 installed. –One with Internet Explorer 8 installed. ___________________________________ If that is the case, here is what I have done to investigate: I logged into Yahoo Mail using a system running XP Home with Internet Explorer 7 using yahoo account: Dougs username @ att.net ___________________________________________________ I then fired up a 2nd machine running Vista Ultimate and Internet Explorer 8 With that Vista machine I again logged into Yahoo Mail using yahoo account: Dougs other username @att.net ____________________________________________________ Result: No problems. I am presently logged in and able to use each/both _____________________________________________________ Let me know if your results are different, or if your manchine/internet problem continues to exist. Best Regards I logged into

I've tried a similar experiment. I go online with Internet Explorer… either 7 or 8. I log on to Yahoo. It asks for my username and password. Mail for the appropriate account becomes available. It appears that when I go to log into Yahoo, it defaults to the last username that I logged in with. Seems to work the same on either version. Not knowing how these things work… it appears to me to be a function of Yahoo, rather than the browser, deciding to guess which account I'm going to use.

I think I am not explaining things better. I will try once more. I have two machines: one with IE7 and one with IE8

Steps on machine with IE7:

1) Open a window of IE7
2) Go to http://mail.yahoo.com and log in to Yahoo! Mail (or any mail) using user name XYZ
3) Open other window of IE7
4) Go to http://mail.yahoo.com and login page appears, I am able to logged in to Yahoo! Mail using user name KLM.
5) I am able to simultaneously check my mails on both accounts XYZ and KLM using the same browser IE7

Steps on machine with IE8:

1) Open a window of IE8
2) Go to http://mail.yahoo.com and log in to Yahoo! Mail (or any mail) using user name XYZ
3) Open other window of IE8
4) Go to http://mail.yahoo.com and login page appears, I logged in to Yahoo! Mail using user name KLM.
5) Now, if I go to previous window in which I was logged into Yahoo! Mail from XYZ and refresh that window, I am automatically logged into Yahoo! Mail from KLM in that window as well.

How is the behavior different in both the browsers for same steps?


Another Query:

1) I logged into Yahoo! Mail using XYZ on IE 7
2) Delete cookies
3) Refresh the IE7 window in which I am logged in using XYZ
4) I remain logged into XYZ

Similarly, if I follow the same behavior using IE8, I am logged out of XYZ.

How is this possible? Behavior of IE8 looks correct to me.

I know that this is because of cookies and IE 8/Firefox is doing correct. My query is regarding IE 7?

This is like logging into multiple yahoo messenger with different accounts in a single machine at the same time (well, almost).

This may be due to how IE 7 handles sessions for the same application.

This discussion may help: http://software-testing-zone.blogspot.com/…nd-mozilla.html

For IE7,different windows corresponds to differenr sessions for same application but different tabs under the same window for same application corresponds to same session.

BTW, is this the same computer we are working on? http://forums.whatthetech.com/index.php?sh…mp;#entry684529

no inzanity, it is not the same computer that was infected. this behavior usually happens on all the computers.

@ Inzanity/Tomk, Have you tried the revised steps and then try to reproduce the issue here?

For IE7,different windows corresponds to differenr sessions for same application but different tabs under the same window for same application corresponds to same session.

The above cannot be the case as this is about tabbed browsing although it may seem similar but in my case, there is no tabbed browsing. I am talking about two different Yahoo! account opened in different windows of IE7 and IE8 behaving differently.

For what I understood on the first quote, it says there that there are different sessions or instances if you may for the same application when run it in different IE 7 browsers, hence the behavior that you are describing.
Exmaple, when you open Yahoo! Mail on IE 7 it assigns a unique value to Yahoo! Mail as a determining factor, like assigning a value 1 to it. Now, when you open another IE 7 instance and open Yahoo! Mail, it would then again assign another unique value, a value of 2 for example.

But this does not happen in IE 8 as it assigns only a single session value to the same application even if you open another instance of IE 8 and Y Mail in it.

This is only my understanding on the matter.

Yes, you are correct but isn't the behavior in ie7 is wrong if this case is viewed from the perspective of cookies? Do you think that the behavior in ie7 is correct if the definition of cookies is considered?

Any comments on my above reply?