Q196062: HOWTO: Set and Get Cookies for a URL Using WinInet APIs

Article: Q196062
Product(s): Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows
Version(s): WINDOWS:5.0,6.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbAPI kbInternet kbVBp500 kbVBp600 kbGrpDSVB kbInetDev
Last Modified: 17-MAY-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Visual Basic Professional Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 
- Microsoft Visual Basic Enterprise Edition for Windows, versions 5.0, 6.0 
- Microsoft Windows Internet Services (WinInet) 
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SUMMARY
=======

From a Visual Basic application, you can set and get cookies on a client that
corresponds to a given URL by using the InternetSetCookie and InternetGetCookie
APIs from the WinInet.dll.

MORE INFORMATION
================

1. Create a new standard .exe project in Visual Basic. Form1 is created by
  default.

2. Add the following controls to Form1:

     Control           Name           Caption
     --------------------------------------------------
     Command Button    Command1       InternetSetCookie
     Command Button    Command2       InternetGetCookie

3. In Form1, add the following code in the code window:

        Option Explicit

        ' No more data is available.
        Const ERROR_NO_MORE_ITEMS = 259

        ' The data area passed to a system call is too small.
        Const ERROR_INSUFFICIENT_BUFFER = 122

        Private Declare Function InternetSetCookie Lib "wininet.dll" _
         Alias "InternetSetCookieA" _
         (ByVal lpszUrlName As String, _
         ByVal lpszCookieName As String, _
         ByVal lpszCookieData As String) As Boolean

        Private Declare Function InternetGetCookie Lib "wininet.dll" _
         Alias "InternetGetCookieA" _
         (ByVal lpszUrlName As String, _
         ByVal lpszCookieName As String, _
         ByVal lpszCookieData As String, _
         lpdwSize As Long) As Boolean

        Private Sub Command1_Click()
         Dim bRet As Boolean
         bRet = InternetSetCookie("http://xxxx/xxxx.htm", _
          "Test", "Sent as Test via VB")
         If bRet = False Then
             MsgBox "Failed"
         End If
        End Sub

        Private Sub Command2_Click()
          Dim sCookieVal As String * 256
          Dim bRet As Boolean
          bRet = InternetGetCookie("http://xxxx/xxxx.htm", _
           "Test", sCookieVal, 255)
          If bRet = False Then
            MsgBox "Failed"
          Else
            MsgBox sCookieVal
          End If
        End Sub

REFERENCES
==========

For more information on the WinInet APIs (and specifically the InternetSetCookie
and InternetGetCookie functions), please see the WinInet documentation in the
MSDN library and the following Web sites:

WinInet.dll:

  http://msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/networking/wininet/wininet.asp

Cookie APIs:

  http://msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/networking/wininet/overview/cookie.asp

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : kbAPI kbInternet kbVBp500 kbVBp600 kbGrpDSVB kbInetDev 
Technology        : kbVBSearch kbAudDeveloper kbZNotKeyword6 kbZNotKeyword2 kbVB500Search kbVB600Search kbVB500 kbVB600
Version           : WINDOWS:5.0,6.0
Issue type        : kbhowto

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