Cookies are used to store information about a user's session or preferences. They are typically sent by a web server to a web browser and then sent back unchanged by the browser each time it accesses that server. Cookies are used for authentication, session management, and other purposes. They can also be used to track users across multiple sites.

cURL does not automatically send or save cookies. This is contrary to how a web browser works. Web browsers automatically send cookies to the server and save them for future use.

However, cURL does allow you to save cookies to a file and for use in future requests. Using these saved cookies with cURL enables you to effectively script interactions with web services and maintain session consistency across multiple requests. You can also manually edit the saved cookies file to suit your needs.

Related: How to use cookies in cURL requests
Related: How to manually create a cookie file for cURL

Steps to save cookies from cURL request:

  1. Open the terminal.
  2. Send a cURL request and save cookies to a file. 

    $ curl -c cookies.txt https://onlineweb.tools

    The -c or –cookie-jar option saves cookies to a file. If the file does not exist, it will be created. If the file already exists, it will be overwritten.

  3. Check the content of the saved cookies file. 

    $ cat cookies.txt
# Netscape HTTP Cookie File
# https://curl.se/docs/http-cookies.html
# This file was generated by libcurl! Edit at your own risk.

#HttpOnly_onlineweb.tools  FALSE / TRUE  0 DokuWiki  a1uvre6dbcc21ujgottgaa5bf0

    The file should contain details of all cookies set by the server during your cURL request.

  4. Use the saved cookies for a subsequent request. 

    $ curl -b cookies.txt https://onlineweb.tools/logindashboard

    The -b or –cookie option sends cookies from a file. If the file does not exist, it will be ignored.

  5. Further save cookies after the subsequent request if required. 

    $ curl -b cookies.txt -c cookies.txt https://onlineweb.tools/loginupdate-profile

    Use the -b and -c options together to ensure that cookies are saved after each request.

  6. Remove or move the cookies file if it contains sensitive information. 

    $ rm cookies.txt

    Always consider security when working with authentication or session cookies. Misuse or exposure can lead to unauthorized access.