Correct.

Thank you Ogmuk.

My data folder contains some 87 sitemap-x-.xml.gz now and googlebot just started downloading them. It has downloaded over 260 files though (duplicates). Is that normal?

Hello,

Our forum is stored on a subdomain: http://forum.mysite.com The forum is located inside its own directory: http://forum.mysite.com/vb

I installed this version like instructed by the manual. So, the .htacces goes to http://forum.mysite.com/vb and the whole vbseo_sitemap directory and contents to http://forum.mysite.com/vb. Folders are CHMOD 777. In the ACP VBSEO settings search engines are notified automatically.

I ran the sitemap script and sitemaps are generated and stored inside http://forum.mysite.com//vb/vbseo_sitemap/data/

According to the report list in the ACP, the search engines are notified (confusing again, because Yahoo has to be notified manually?). According to the sitemap download log, the files are downloaded by googlebot. They were downloaded more than once yesterday after having installed the hack (shouldn't that be just once?).

Today there still is not a single sitemap file in google webmasters tool.

I guess something is still wrong?

This also confuses me. In the ACP/VBSEO settings it reads:

By default the vBSEO Sitemap files will be located in your forum root. Use this field to specify a different location, for example, your site root: http://www.yourdomain.com

NOTE: You must edit the .htaccess file of the folder in which you want to locate your sitemap files. More information here. Leave this setting empty to use default vB url.

I thought the files are stored in http://forum.mysite.com//vb/vbseo_sitemap/data/ by default?

No. Why do you have all those duplicates? Updates to the sitemap should overwrite the old files, not create brand new ones.

:confused:

If you created a subdomain for your forum, why would you then create a subfilder in that subdomain to install it? It would seem far more logical to install the forum in the root. You're making things unnecessarily complicated.

Second, the instructions as to where to find the sitemap need to be in the root directory unless you otherwise specifiy where to find them using the sitemap declaration in a robot.txt file in the root directory. In your case, the root directory is forum.mysite.com/ not forum.mysite.com/vb/.

I believe that was only when Yahoo was using the text format. Now that they're using the XML format like everyone else, it's all automatic. I've never done a manual notification.

It depends on how often you run the sitemap generator. Check your cron files.

Any errors will be noted in your Webmaster Central account - check there to find out what's wrong.

They are. Ignore this part for now. You have enough to figure out already and you certainly don't want to complicate it any further by messing with that setting.

Hello djbaxter,

Thank you for replying.

It doesn't make duplicate files in the directory. The googlebot seems to download them several times (within an hour, so they are not updated ones).


Because I can't create subdomains myself. The host is doing that and I have only a few. So, I have to put several things on one subdomain to prevent a cluttering and clash of names.

Hmm, thus the .htaccess supplied with this hack needs to be in forum.mysite.com and not forum.mysite.com/vb? But how comes google seems to be downloading the sitemap?
And that means I have to change the .htaccess a bit from

RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule ^((urllist|sitemap).*\.(xml|txt)(\.gz)?)$ vbseo_sitemap/vbseo_getsitemap.php?sitemap=$1 [L]

to:

RewriteEngine On
RewriteRule ^((urllist|sitemap).*\.(xml|txt)(\.gz)?)$ vb/vbseo_sitemap/vbseo_getsitemap.php?sitemap=$1 [L]

Right?

Ok.

The default one, I recall it's once a day.

No errors are reported.

Ok, the problem is just with the location of the .htaccess I guess?

1. I don't understand how it's possible that Google is trying to download the sitemap, not shoiwing it as successful, and yet not reporting any errors... unless you already have a sitemap in the root for forum.mysite.com? Try deleting ALL existing sitemaps and the manually running the cron job again from your vBulletin Admin CP (after relocating the .htaccess file).

2. No, you don't change the rewrite rules/instructions. That is already set up in the vB ACP. Leave it as it is.

Hello djbaxter,

No, I don't have a sitemap in the root.

I recall having experimented with vbseo a year ago or so and I did edit the .htaccess in the root then (http://forums.mysite.com). That info is still there in the rewrite rules:

RewriteRule ^((urllist|sitemap).*\.(xml|txt)(\.gz)?)$ vb/vbseo_sitemap/vbseo_getsitemap.php?sitemap=$1 [L]

{{Aik, I'm starting to understand what went wrong this year: nothing was there.}}

So, I only have the default htaccess supplied by this hack in forums.mydomain.com/vb and I remove the line from the root .htaccess? But how does google then know it should look into forums.mydomain.com/vb? Through the robot.txt like you mentioned? What do I put there?

Nothing at all? Is the right url submitted to the searchengines when completing the creation through CRON or run?

Is this the edited version? or the version created when you installed vbseo_sitemap? Don't use the edited one.

No. I didn't say remove the lines from .htaccess in the root. I said remove any sitemap files currently in the root. You need the redirect lines in the root directory version of .htaccess because it will redirect Google spiders when they go there to access them. Leave the lines in an .htaccess file in the /vb/ folder as well (I don't know how you have things set up in Webmaster Central - having it in both places shouldn't hurt and it may help).

It should be unless you've messed up any of the settings. If worst comes to worst, uninstall and then reinstall vbseo_sitemap to get back to the proper settings and then follow the directions given to you during the installation or in the instructions for installation.

It's an edited line I appended to an existing .ht in http://forums.mydomain.com
I'm pretty sure vb/ needs to be added to the path, otherwise it points to the non-existing folder http://forums.mydomain.com/vbseo_sitemap It is http://forums.mydomain.com/vb/vbseo_sitemap ?



You mean in vb's ACP regarding VBSEO? The default values.

:confused:

How can it be both the "default values" and an "edited line"?

In any case, try what I've suggested so far. I don't understand a lot of what you're posting here, not the least of which is the statement that Webmaster Central is trying to download the sitemap, apparently not finding it, and yet not showing any errors. Either I'm missing something or you are - I don't see how that's possible.

If my suggestions don't work, you may need to wait for one of the vBSEO people to log in.