Viewing Temp Internet Files

[Guest]

In the subdir for temp internet files and cookies, there is only one index
file (DAT) in each subdir that can't be opened. This is unlike older versions
of Windows, where all the files are displayed. How can I view the cookies and
temp internet files?

 

[M8RIX]

Where are you looking for the files?
The files are located at: C:\Documents and Settings\<userID>\Local
Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5.
Inside the Content.IE5 folder are randomly named folders that contain the
actual TIF's.
Note; Each user has their own unique set of TIF's.
Search for "Content.IE5" on your computer and explore each folder that is
found.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

To open YOUR cookies folder...
Start | Run | Type: cookies | Click OK

You do not have to *see* the Content.IE5 folder to delete its contents.

To delete *all* of your Temporary Internet Files...

1) Start | Run | Type: inetcpl.cpl | Click OK
Or right click the Internet Explorer icon on your Desktop
Or Start | Settings | Control Panel | Internet Options
Best to do this with all instances of Internet Explorer closed. Especially
if there are a large number of files. Also close OE.
2) On the General Tab, in the middle of the screen, click on Delete Files
3) Check the box Delete all offline content {This cleans >>
%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files
AND
%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5
and \Content.MSO (Created by an MS Office program)}
4) Click on OK and wait for the hourglass icon to stop after it deletes the
temporary internet files
5) You can now click on Delete Cookies and click OK to delete cookies that
websites have placed on your hard drive.
6) You can also click on the Clear History button to empty your History
folder.

If you want, try this: Open IE | Tools | Internet Options | Advanced tab |
scroll down to the bottom | check: Empty Temporary Internet Files folder
when browser is closed | click Apply | OK. Entirely up to you, but if you
want to be rid of this, it is done automatically. Deletes the content of
%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet
Files but not the Content.IE5 or Content.MSO folders.

Also: Start IE | Tools | Internet Options | General tab | Days to keep
pages in history: 0 | Apply | OK.
-----

To view:
%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files

Start | Run | Type: inetcpl.cpl | OK
Or right click the Internet Explorer icon on your Desktop.
Or: Start | Settings | Control Panel | Internet Options.
General tab | Settings button | View Files button

Or...

Start | Run | Paste this in the box:

%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files

Click OK.

To view:
%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet
Files\Content.IE5 AND \Content.MSO

Start | Run | Type: cleanmgr | OK | Highlight Temporary Internet Files |
View Files button

Or...

Start | Run | Type: %tmp% | Click OK |

You will probably have to click the Folders button on the Tool Bar.
Click: [+] Temporary Internet Files
Click: [+] Content.IE5
Click: Random named folders
View
You can also view Content.MSO

Or...

Start | Run | Paste this in the box:

%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5

Click OK.
You can also view Content.MSO

Or...
Start | Run | Paste this in the box:

%userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.MSO

Click OK.
-----

View index.dat files

1. Open a command prompt.
2. Type or paste the following line...

cd %userprofile%\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5

3. Hit your Enter key.

4. Type or paste the following line...

EDIT /75 INDEX.DAT

5. Hit your Enter key.

6. Use the Page Down key to scroll down to find meaningful looking URLs.
7. Then use Up or Down arrow keys to scroll slower.
8. To close Edit, Alt key + F for the File Menu, X key to select Exit.

Notes:
You can also use EDIT /16 index.dat or EDIT index.dat
EDIT opens the MS-DOS Editor (edit.com)
/75 = text 75 characters wide
/16 = text 16 characters wide
cd to whatever other folder to look at other index.dat files.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

 

[kaream]

Where are you looking for the files?
The files are located at: C:\Documents and Settings\<userID>\Local
Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5.
Inside the Content.IE5 folder are randomly named folders that contain the
actual TIF's.
Note; Each user has their own unique set of TIF's.
Search for "Content.IE5" on your computer and explore each folder that is
found.

My own experience has been that the Windows Explorer search function
will only return Content.IE5 for folders under Documents and Settings
such as NetworkService and LocalService, and for other user logons if
your computer is shared, but *not* for your own logon name -- this
folder remains hidden even when Search is set to look for hidden
folders. As Paul stated, this was not hidden in earlier versions of
Windows.

Actually, in XP the situation is a little more complicated, because
Paul is inquiring about both the cookies and the actual Temporary
Internet Files themselves. Essentially you have to trick XP into
displaying both kinds of files. I find it much more intuitive to work
through the My Computer (Windows Explorer) display than via Start | Run
[etc]. If you right-click Drive C: and choose Properties, then select
Disk Cleanup, highlight Temporary Internet Files, and select View
Files, a new window will open containing your own Content.IE5 with its
several (usually around 16-20) randomly-named subfolders.

The first window will display only the cookies and other pointers,
while the second window displays the actual files that had been
automatically downloaded from visited websites, but not cookies.
Index.dat resides in the main Content.IE5 folder in this second window.
If I double-click on index.dat it opens in Notepad, but this may be
just the way my computer is set up.

 

[Plato]

In the subdir for temp internet files and cookies, there is only one index
file (DAT) in each subdir that can't be opened. This is unlike older versions
of Windows, where all the files are displayed. How can I view the cookies and
temp internet files?

That is a feature of XP. By design.

 

[kaream]

I've subsequently seen a simpler way to access your own Content.IE5
folder with its subfolders, posted by Ramesh MS-MVP, as follows:

In Windows Explorer, open Folders view and click down through the tree
C: \ Documents and Settings \ [my logon name] \ Local Settings, and
click on Temporary Internet Files. This puts the path in the Address
bar. Now add to the path name "\Content.IE5" following the word
"Files", and hit Enter or click Go. This puts Content.IE5 and its
subfolders into the tree, with access to both the cookies and pointers
in the main TIF folder, and to the actual files in the randomly named
subfolders under Content.IE5, in a single window.

 

[kaream]

Note that Content.IE5 may not be the only folder that's hidden inside
the TIF folder. Frequently there's one or sometimes more OLK folders,
and possibly other folders. To view all of these you'll need to use
the Disk Cleanup two-window method, since you won't know what names to
append to the path in the Address bar.