CookieContainer

CookieContainer is a class in the .NET Framework that manages cookies for an application. It provides a way to store, retrieve, and filter cookies sent between a client and a web server. When you make an HTTP request using classes like HttpClient, a CookieContainer can be associated with the request to automatically handle the cookies exchanged.

The CookieContainer stores cookies in a collection. You can add cookies to the container either manually or by associating it with an HttpClient or HttpWebRequest object. When an HTTP response is received, if it contains cookies, they are automatically added to the associated CookieContainer. Subsequently, when making further requests to the same domain, the CookieContainer will automatically send the relevant cookies back to the server in the request headers.

Key functionalities of CookieContainer include adding cookies, retrieving cookies based on criteria such as domain, path, and name, and removing cookies. It also allows for setting limits on the number of cookies and their size to prevent excessive memory usage. This class is fundamental for maintaining session state and user preferences across multiple web requests in applications that interact with web servers.