Files
The Sitemap Monitoring Files tab lists every sitemap file with its status, URL count and Googlebot reads, and checks each file against the official sitemap limits.
The Files tab of Sitemap Monitoring lists every sitemap file that VitalSentinel found. It shows if each file downloads, how many URLs it lists, and if it breaks an official sitemap limit. A file that VitalSentinel cannot read is the first thing to fix.
Before you start
Open Sitemap Monitoring in the sidebar and select the Files tab. The tab shows the files as soon as the first check found them, also before monitoring starts.
Files tiles
Two tiles at the top of the Sitemap Monitoring Files tab give the totals:
- Sitemap files: every sitemap file found, including the files that an index lists. If some files were not read, the tile shows "2 not read". Click the tile to see them.
- Googlebot last read: when Googlebot last asked for any of your sitemap files, from your server logs. An old date means that Google can miss new pages. Without server logs, the tile shows Needs Server Log Monitoring. If Googlebot did not read a file in 90 days, it shows No visit in 90 days.
The Files table
Each row of the Sitemap Monitoring Files table is one top-level sitemap file. An index file shows "Index of 12 sitemaps". Open it to see the sitemaps that it lists.
| Column | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Sitemap file | The address of the file. |
| Status | Read, Has errors, Couldn't download, Not read today or No longer checked. |
| URLs | The number of URLs, and the change since the compared check, for example "+120 / -4". |
| Found in | Where VitalSentinel found the file. See How Sitemap Monitoring finds your sitemaps. |
| Last read OK | The last successful download. |
| Googlebot read | When Googlebot last asked for the file. The bar is full at 30 days or more. Needs Server Log Monitoring. |
A column with the same value on every row is left out. Use the filter bar to find files by address, status, URL count or where they were found.
File statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Read | The file downloaded and was read. |
| Has errors | Part of the file could not be read. Its URLs are kept, never counted as removed. |
| Couldn't download | The file did not download. Its URLs are kept until it downloads again. |
| Not read today | Your server answered slowly, so this file waits for tomorrow. Its URLs are kept. |
| No longer checked | The file said "not found" for 7 days in a row, so VitalSentinel stopped checking it. |
When VitalSentinel stops checking a file, its URLs count as removed, unless another sitemap lists them.
File chips
- Over limit, Breaks a rule or Close to limit: the worst limit finding of the file. See Sitemap limits and rules.
- Dates differ: many URLs of the file have a sitemap date more than a day away from the page's own date. Google and Bing use a sitemap date only while it is right.
- +N elsewhere: URLs in the file that belong to other sites. VitalSentinel does not track them.
The file panel
Click a file in the Sitemap Monitoring Files tab to open its panel. It has these sections.
This file
- Our last check: the status of the file and since when. Why gives the reason if the file failed.
- Found in: where VitalSentinel found the file.
- URLs in our last check, or URLs when last read for a file that failed. Steady means that the count did not change. For an index file, Lists shows how many sitemaps it lists.
- URLs Google Search Console reported: the count from Search Console, on its own schedule.
- URLs with a date: how many entries have a
lastmoddate, and if the dates have the time of day. - Dates match the pages: for example "8% of 844 checked". This needs Site Health Monitoring.
- Language links (hreflang), Videos and News items, when the file has them.
- On other sites, not tracked: URLs in the file that belong to other sites.
- Same file at: other addresses of the same file.
Limits, history and downloads
- Limits: each limit finding of the file. See Limits in the file panel.
- URLs over time: the URL count at each daily check. It can also show the count from Google Search Console.
- Sitemaps listed in this file: for an index file, the sitemaps that it lists.
- Downloads: each download of the file, with Checked, Result, URLs and Size.
Sitemap files not read
The Sitemap files not read panel lists the files that the last check could not download. Open it from the See the N files not read button on the Overview, or from the Sitemap files tile.
The columns are Sitemap file, Why, Googlebot and Last read OK. The Googlebot column needs Server Log Monitoring. It tells you if Google can read the file:
- Reads it fine: Googlebot read the file. Only the VitalSentinel crawler is blocked. Allow it in your firewall. See Monitoring IPs.
- An error status: Googlebot also got the error, so Google cannot read the file either. Fix the file first.
- No visit: Googlebot did not ask for the file.
If every file downloaded, the panel shows "Every sitemap file downloaded fine".
Sitemap limits and rules
Sitemap Monitoring checks each sitemap file against the official rules of Google, Bing and sitemaps.org. The Files tab shows a chip for the worst finding of a file:
| Chip | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Over limit | The file breaks an official limit. Search engines can ignore all or part of it. |
| Breaks a rule | The file breaks an official rule. |
| Close to limit | The file is close to an official limit. |
Hover the chip to see the names of all findings of the file. The findings fall into these groups:
- Size limits, for example Over 50,000 URLs or Over 50 MB. A sitemap file can list up to 50,000 URLs and be up to 50 MB uncompressed.
- Address and entry rules, for example Not full URLs or Empty sitemap.
- Index rules, for example Index inside an index. A sitemap index can list only sitemap files.
- News, video, image and hreflang rules, for example Over 1,000 images on a page.
Limits in the file panel
The Limits section of the file panel lists each finding of the file. Each finding shows its name, its level chip and what is wrong in this file. Hover the info icon to read The rule. The links under a finding open the official rule at Google, Bing or sitemaps.org.
Recommendations and fixes
Sitemap Monitoring does not show recommendations (good practices that are not official rules) or the steps to fix a finding. Limit findings open the issue Sitemap files break a limit in Site Health Monitoring. Recommendations open the issue Sitemap recommendations. The issue tells you how to fix the problem. Findings for your whole site, for example a robots.txt that names no sitemap, are also Site Health issues.
Troubleshooting
Why does a sitemap file show Couldn't download?
Open the file in a browser. If it does not open, fix the file or the server. If it opens in a browser, your firewall can block the VitalSentinel crawler. Open Sitemap files not read and look at the Googlebot column. If Googlebot reads the file fine, allow the VitalSentinel crawler. See Monitoring IPs.
Why does a file show No longer checked?
The file said "not found" for 7 days in a row. If the file must exist, restore it. VitalSentinel finds it again from robots.txt, Search Console or a sitemap index.
Why is Googlebot last read old?
Google reads sitemaps on its own schedule. If the date is very old, submit the sitemap in Google Search Console. Make sure that Googlebot can download the file.
Related
- Overview - how Sitemap Monitoring works and what changed
- URLs - every URL in your sitemaps
- Site Health Monitoring issue types - the sitemap issues and how to fix them
- Server Log Monitoring - Googlebot's reads of your sitemap files
- Robots.txt Monitoring - the
Sitemap:lines in your robots.txt
URLs
The Sitemap Monitoring URLs tab lists every URL in your sitemaps, with broken, not indexed and not visited URLs, and a panel with each URL's history.
Overview
Robots.txt Monitoring reads your robots.txt every hour, explains each rule, marks errors, and records every change with its effect on your pages.
