In the past, it was possible to set the cookie file to be read-only. This allowed all cookies to be flushed at the end of a browser session (emulating the firefox "session only" cookie feature). When this was done, the browser behaved normally. Unfortunately, safari now requires the cookie file to be writable *during* the browser session. Apparently it is attempting to save it's in-memory cookie info to disk and then re-reads this data. Since it was not written, upon re-reading the cookie info disappears. To reproduce: 1. on OSX, any modern version 2. Set cookie file to be read-only using info panel or terminal. 3. Attempt to log in to orkut.com 4. Click on any link after successfully logging in. 5. Note that you are no longer logged in.
WebKit does not handle cookies itself. It relies on underlying system frameworks (Foundation and CFNetwork) to provide this functionality. Bug reports about functionality these frameworks provide should be filed at http://bugreport.apple.com/. This bug will be closed as INVALID per our policy for handling bugs that are outside of WebKit.
<rdar://problem/5994040 >