Question about construction of our sitemap URL in robots.txt file
-
Hi all,
This is a Webmaster/SEO question. This is the sitemap URL currently in our robots.txt file:
http://www.ccisolutions.com/sitemap.xml
As you can see it leads to a page with two URLs on it. Is this a problem? Wouldn't it be better to list both of those XML files as separate line items in the robots.txt file?
Thanks!
Dana
-
Hi Jarno,
Thanks so very much! I have to say I am really liking the A1 generator. How awesome of you to follow up. I really appreciate that. Yes, if you want to send me the complete sitemap via PM that would be awesome. I certainly hope I can return the favor Happy Holidays!
Dana
-
Yes, we definitely use XENU, but I think I like Screaming Frog a bit better (although our IT Director swears it's broken).
-
Hi Christopher,
Thanks for the update. Yes, I looked at it too and other than it not being "pretty" XML, the data seemed to be okay. The one thing the A! generator did that we couldn't do was assign the values for importance and frequency specific pages are modified. If that data is accurate, that's pretty cool. I'm just not sure, although it seems it did identify pages that are modified more frequently correctly. I have 30 days to play with the free trial, but so far I think I like it a lot.
Dana
-
Dana,
It just finished scanning here are the results:
Internal Sitemap URL's:
- Listed found: 5248
- Listed deduced: 5301
- Analyzed content: 3110
- Analyzed references: 3176
External URL's:
- Listed found: 700
When i look at the overview of the result i see a number of 301 redirects, canonical redirects (when tested again the get code 200 OK). But I see a lot op pages.
When i build the sitemap it generates one file (no idea why not more then one) with all the links in the document. Google's sitemap protocol states it should be like the schema at sitemaps.org which it does. The entire protocol of sitemap.org states that a sitemap can not hold over 50,000 links and should be smaller then 10 MB in filesize.
The one I just build for you is only 1 MB and contains less url's then 50,000 and thus is it allowed by Google.
http://www.sitemaps.org/protocol.html
I can send you the entire version of the sitemap if you'd like in a personal message or through e-mail?
Hope this helps you further.
kind regards
Jarno
-
i started the scan and it's still busy:
2500 analyzed references so far.
Let you know how it turns out.
Jarno
-
Thanks Jarno. I really appreciate that. Yes, I had it selected to just scan for images (as prompted when I attempted to create an image sitemap). Let me know what you see? I am wondering if it is going around in circles?
Dana
-
Dana,
sometimes that happens. Are you scanning for images or are you scanning the site?
i will check your site tomorrow with my full version and see what it does.
Sometimes with some websites you'll get things like this but it can be loads of things. 3500 pages should not take 2 hours but only a couple of minutes. I'll check it first thing tomorrow. A1 is not installed on my laptop..
Let you know tomorrow.
Kind regards
Jarno
-
A1 Sitemap does 2 things:
1 ) It builds a file names sitemap.xml which contains all files on the website (not conform the google requirements
-
It builds a number of files listed in sitemap-index.xml for every 100 pages in one sitemap. So if you're website contains 2800 pages You'll get loads of files: 28 sitemap-1.xml etc and 1 sitemap-index.xml file. Which does meet the Google standards. Afterwards you can do 2 things in Google webmasters:
-
enter the sitemap-index.xml file as a sitemap -> Google will follow everything and come to the grand total of 2800 pages.
-
Enter each sitemap separately.-> same result but you can pinpoint better where you have a 100 pages and google only indexes fewer (can happen).
Hope this helps
-
-
Hi again Jarno,
Is it normal for A1's sitemap generator's "Scan website" function for images to take over two hours? Our site is about 3,500 URLs. So far it has under "Internal 'sitemap' URLs" Listed found: 82076 (and climbing every few seconds).
I am wondering if there isn't something wrong? (I don't have any frame of reference since I've never used it before). Thanks!
Dana
-
I'm not familiar with the A1 Sitemap generator, but regarding the sitemap protocol, there is a limit on the size of a single sitemap.xml file, so for large sites, the sitemap must be split into multiple sitemap.xml files. And, the protocol has a method for indexing these multiple sitemap.xml files. It's sort of like an index to an index. None of my sites exceed the sitemap file limit, so I don't know which sitemap generators use this approach, but I would guess many of them do.
Sitemap generators I have used include DMXZone which is a Dreamweaver plugin, and xml-sitemaps.com which includes a video sitemap generator.
Best,
ChristopherEDIT: PS: Your current sitemap looks fine to me.
-
Thanks Christopher,
Your answer took a noment to sink in, but I think I get it (I think I am coffee deprived this morning).
So, if I am using the A1 Sitemap generator that Jarno suggested, this sitemap index should automatically be generated based on the size of my generated sitemap. Is that correct?
-
Thanks Jarno,
I have downloaded and am trying the 30-day free trial of the A1 Sitemap Generator right now. Thanks for the tip. Can you comment on Christopher's remark below concerning sitemap indexes for larger sitemaps?
Can either you or Christopher give me more clarification on that. Is this what our IT director has attempted to do with the sitemap in our robots.txt file? If so, has it been done correctly?
Thanks!
-
There is a limit on the size of a sitemap and to allow for large sitemaps to be split into smaller sitemaps, the sitemap protocol includes a sitemapindex. See "Using Sitemap index files (to group multiple sitemap files)" here http://www.sitemaps.org/protocol.html. Of course, it's also possible to include the multiple sitemaps in the robot.txt file, but automated sitemap generators will likely use the sitemapindex feature so that the robots.txt file does not have to be modified as the size of the site changes.
Best,
Christopher -
Another tool to help generate a sitemap and even check broken links is called Xenu (weird logo, but good free product).
-
Dana,
the buildup of your sitemap.xml is very strange to me. I use an external program to build my sitemap.xml for me entire website.
You now have a link in your robots.txt file pointing to a sitemap which contains 2 files (both .xml) with een map of the site?
Why not use a program (free or paid like Microsys A1 (the one I use)) to build 1 sitemap.xml en point to this file from your robots.txt?
hope this helps
if you do have any questions, please let me know.
kind regards
Jarno
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Broken URL Links
Hi everyone, I have a question regarding broken URL links on my website. Late last year I move my site from an old platform to Shopify, and now have broken URL links giving out 4xx errors. When I look at Moz Pro>Campaigns>Insights>links, I can see the top broken URL links, however there is a difference if copy & paste URL directly from Moz Pro and by Export CSV file. For example below, If I copy and paste links direct from Moz Pro, it has the “http://” in front as below: http://www.thehairhub.com.au/WebRoot/ecshared01/Shops/thehairhub/57F3/1D8F/D244/C675/E27D/AC10/003F/35AD/manic-panic-colours.jpg But when I export the list of links as an CSV file, the http:// is removed. www.thehairhub.com.au/WebRoot/ecshared01/Shops/thehairhub/57F3/1D8F/D244/C675/E27D/AC10/003F/35AD/manic-panic-colours.jpg Another Example below: By copy & paste URL direct from Moz Pro
Technical SEO | | johnwall
http://thehairhub.com.au/Shop-Brands/Vitafive-CPR/CPR-Rescue By export CSV file.
thehairhub.com.au/Shop-Brands/Vitafive-CPR/CPR-Rescue Which one do I use to enter into the “Redirect From” field in Shopify URL Redirects? Do I need to have the http:// in front of the URL? Or is it not required for redirects to work? Kind Regards, John Wall
The Hair Hub0 -
Which product URL to include in Sitemaps?
Hi Does the product URL's in Sitemaps affect the sub-categories authority too? For example, if I have a product with 2 URL's and which have a canonical tag: **/brands/michael-kors/bags/**jet-set-double-zip-wallet/ **/women/accessories/wallets/**jet-set-double-zip-wallet/ If I make the main URL "/women/accessories/wallets/jet-set-double-zip-wallet/" and set that as the Canonical URL & list that URL in the XML Sitemap, will it also mean the "/women/accessories/wallets/" category will get more authority and increase it's power to rank? Thanks Frankie
Technical SEO | | Frankie-BTDublin0 -
Image sitemap
I work on a big eCommerce site with thousands of pages. We are talking about crating a separate image sitemap. Any idea example of an eCommerce site who has a separate image sitemap? I looked several and cant find one. Also, what are the best practices for creating a good image sitemap? thanks!
Technical SEO | | bizuH0 -
Question on URL wording and structure best practices
We're mapping out some URL structures and trying to figure out what would be best for separating folders for articles and videos regarding wording in the folder say: www.site.com/category/article/name-of-article/id#/ ---- www.site.com/category/video/name-of-video/id#/ vs. www.site.com/category/a/name-of-article/id#/ ---- www.site.com/category/v/name-of-video/id#/ Second option came about the ''shorter is better' way of thinking. Downside I see to it is if the link would be copied and pasted somewhere probably would be best for a user to make it clear they are clicking into an article or a video, don't think just an 'a' or a 'v' would be very telling in that scenario. Would it be better for search engines to make it clearer with the whole word in there? Any other pros and cons to each? Not sure what's the best route here.
Technical SEO | | SBRMarketing0 -
Robots.txt best practices & tips
Hey, I was wondering if someone could give me some advice on whether I should block the robots.txt file from the average user (not from googlebot, yandex, etc)? If so, how would I go about doing this? With .htaccess I'm guessing - but not an expert. What can people do with the information in the file? Maybe someone can give me some "best practices"? (I have a wordpress based website) Thanks in advance!
Technical SEO | | JonathanRolande0 -
Robots.txt not working?
Hello This is my robots.txt file http://www.theprinterdepo.com/Robots.txt However I have 8000 warnings on my dashboard like this:4 What am I missing on the file¿ Crawl Diagnostics Report On-Page Properties <dl> <dt>Title</dt> <dd>Not present/empty</dd> <dt>Meta Description</dt> <dd>Not present/empty</dd> <dt>Meta Robots</dt> <dd>Not present/empty</dd> <dt>Meta Refresh</dt> <dd>Not present/empty</dd> </dl> URL: http://www.theprinterdepo.com/catalog/product_compare/add/product/100/uenc/aHR0cDovL3d3dy50aGVwcmludGVyZGVwby5jb20vaHAtbWFpbnRlbmFjZS1raXQtZm9yLTQtbGo0LWxqNS1mb3ItZXhjaGFuZ2UtcmVmdWJpc2hlZA,,/ 0 Errors No errors found! 1 Warning 302 (Temporary Redirect) Found about 5 hours ago <a class="more">Read More</a>
Technical SEO | | levalencia10 -
Robots.txt file question? NEver seen this command before
Hey Everyone! Perhaps someone can help me. I came across this command in the robots.txt file of our Canadian corporate domain. I looked around online but can't seem to find a definitive answer (slightly relevant). the command line is as follows: Disallow: /*?* I'm guessing this might have something to do with blocking php string searches on the site?. It might also have something to do with blocking sub-domains, but the "?" mark puzzles me 😞 Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, Rob
Technical SEO | | RobMay0 -
When URL rewrite can lead to un pretty URLs
Hi Mozzers. I've a client that has done a little bit of mess rewriting the URLs of its site. In fact, also the data base driven URLs are rewritten, but the dev forgot to change the space with "-", so that now the 95% of the URLs are like this one: http://www.portalesardegna.com/search/Appartamenti e Residence/ Obviously not really a pretty URL. I am not so sure if this issue has an SEO consecuences (in fact, the site ranks pretty well also with those kind of url), but I am thinking more on usability issue. Could you suggest me any easy fix to this rewrite problem?
Technical SEO | | gfiorelli12