Sitemap generates 404, cannot be read by Google

#41820
  • Resolved Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Hello! I have a problem with sitemaps generating 404 and pages not being indexed by Google. See image attached. Pages that were previously indexed now no longer can be reached by Google – but they are live and without issues in the browser. The theme is MyListing.

    I have tried deactivating and rolling back plugins. I’ve also saved permalinks and sitemap settings in RankMath. Tried switching to theme Twenty Twenty. Tried different php-version. None of these resolved the issue. Any other ideas what could be causing the problem?

    Thanks in advance for any tips!

    ____________________________________
    FIXED! Rank Math Sitemap only shows the posts which are marked as index and whose canonical URL matches with the post URL. Also check for http vs. https in the canonical! > That did the trick!
    ____________________________________

    • This topic was modified 4 years ago by Todd. Reason: Added a screenshot
Viewing 14 replies - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)
  • Todd
    Rank Math free

    Hi Cheryl,

    Thanks for getting in touch with us.

    The error message you are getting is outdated and it is likely that Google hasn’t updated it recently.

    I have shared a screenshot with you in the sensitive data section that clearly shows that the URL you shared has been correctly indexed by Google.

    Please disregard the outdated error, everything’s working fine on your website.

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Hi Todd!

    Thanks for getting back to me!

    I see that the page still shows up in search results – but could it be that this has not yet been “updated” by Google? Might still be in cache?
    I just checked the URL again (and I have several others too) but it returns errors and cannot be indexed or viewed live in Google Search Console.

    The sitemaps also returned another error when last checked yesterday.

    See screenshots attached.

    Best regards,
    Cheryl

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Hello,

    I have updated the sensitive data as requested. Can you please check further?

    Thank you.

    Todd
    Rank Math free

    Hi Cheryl,

    I see that the page still shows up in search results – but could it be that this has not yet been “updated” by Google? Might still be in cache?

    Yes, it is a very common reason for getting this message.

    In your case, it seems like your website has issues – especially the page you are seeing issues with:
    https://gtmetrix.com/reports/www.ecoco.bio/8qwtRe3t

    That might explain why Google is having trouble accessing your page at times. You need to talk to your web hosting provider about this.

    This is all I see:
    null

    Let us know how it goes.

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Hi Todd,

    I am sorry but I’m totally lost. I’ve checked through everything and not found the problem.

    The web hosting provider says there is no problem on the server. He pointed to possible PHP issues – I tried a different version (again) and deactivating boost, but no change. It’s running on 7.3 now, without boost. Should be fine, right?

    I also can’t see any issues under the link you sent for GTMetrix – could you point me in the right direction please? Where exactly does it show a problem? I must be missing something…

    Have you perhaps heard of anyone else having this issue and how they were able to resolve it? I’d really appreciate any tip!

    Thanks in advance,
    Cheryl

    Michael Davis
    Rank Math pro

    Hello,

    Thank you for contacting Rank Math today.

    I have just tested the page but I only get a white screen which suggest that there could be misconfiguration on your WP or your theme.

    Would it be possible to share some temporary FTP and WP-admin access so that we can help with the investigation?

    Please edit the first post on this ticket and include your WP logins in the designated Sensitive Data section.
    Sensitive Data Section

    It is completely secure and only our support staff has access to that section. If you want, you can use the below plugin to generate a temporary login URL to your website and share that with us instead:

    https://wordpress.org/plugins/temporary-login-without-password/

    You can use the above plugin in conjunction with the WP Security Audit Log to monitor what changes our staff might make on your website (if any):

    https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-security-audit-log/

    We really look forward to helping you.

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Hello,

    I have updated the sensitive data as requested. Can you please check further?

    Thank you.

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Hi Michael,

    I hope the white screen was only temporary? The site seems to be working fine on my site.

    Thanks for offering to take a closer look! Much appreciated! I’m really lost on this one…

    I’ve added the access details to the secure info. Let me know if you need anything further.

    All the best,
    Cheryl

    BTW: just checked the error log and it looks pretty clean. The last entry was yesterday and I think it’s something related to Updraft and only appears while the daily update is being processed. FYI:
    13.04.2020 10:11:57 ecoco.bio [client 192.168.48.0] End of script output before headers: wp-cron.php
    13.04.2020 10:17:37 ecoco.bio [client 192.168.48.0] End of script output before headers: wp-cron.php
    13.04.2020 10:20:43 ecoco.bio [client 192.168.48.0] AH01215: mysqldump: Error 2020: Got packet bigger than ‘max_allowed_packet’ bytes when dumping table wp_postmeta at row: 2185: /home/strato/http/power/rid/60/07/59426007/htdocs/wp-cron.php
    13.04.2020 10:23:53 ecoco.bio [client 192.168.48.0] End of script output before headers: wp-cron.php
    13.04.2020 10:34:23 ecoco.bio [client 192.168.48.0] End of script output before headers: wp-cron.php
    13.04.2020 10:40:28 ecoco.bio [client 192.168.48.0] End of script output before headers: wp-cron.php

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    … another thought that just occurred to me… I’ve already been through all plugins and also deactivated all – but the only ones that can’t be deactivated are Elementor and Woocommerce because they’re used by the MyListing theme. Now I was just thinking: perhaps the issue is somehow related to the recent big Woocommerce upgrade? …

    Todd
    Rank Math free

    Hi,

    Did you check my screenshot?
    https://i.rankmath.com/jdIlwY

    It clearly shows that the URL you have mentioned isn’t getting indexed is actually indexed.

    With that said, whenever I try to turn the troubleshooting mode on your website, I get a blank screen. We cannot troubleshoot like that.

    This also suggests there is an underlying issue with the website due to which it doesn’t work properly.

    If you determine there is an issue with Rank Math – please let us know.

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Hi Todd,

    yes, I saw your screenshot and thought I’d replied.
    It still shows in Google searches, but I assumed this might not have been updated yet. Because when I went into search console it still gave me the indexing error. Not in the index and not able to submit for indexing. So eventually I expect the page to disappear from search results too, or not?

    Thanks for looking at the site. I have no idea what the problem could be. We shall do some more digging…

    All the best,
    Cheryl

    Todd
    Rank Math free

    Hi Cheryl,

    Yes, you should wait a few days until Google removes it from the search results.

    If you do have another question in the future, please feel free to create a new forum topic, and it will be our pleasure to assist you again.

    Thank you.

    Cheryl
    Rank Math free

    Thanks, Todd! 🙂

    Michael Davis
    Rank Math pro

    Hi Cheryl,

    I am going ahead to mark this as closed.

    We are here should you seek any other help 🙂

Viewing 14 replies - 1 through 14 (of 14 total)

The ticket ‘Sitemap generates 404, cannot be read by Google’ is closed to new replies.