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Nosey search engines


jseaman

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Yesterday, I needed to make available some files to someone I've been exchanging emails with. I was uncomfortable sending these rather large files via email so I created a new directory on my TNG website and uploaded the files to that area. I set the directory so just browsing to it would display a list of the contents - easier than providing links to each individual file!

So today I was just messing around and happened to look at my server logs - Google had already found the newly created directory and taken a look at every file in it! HOW?

The name of this directory does not exist anywhere as a link except in the email I sent to my friend. How did Google find the directory? It is located off my main TNG directory so a index file was present in its parent directory.

I had thought the only way the search engines could find a directory (or file) was if there was a link to it somewhere in universe. (assuming the parent directory wasn't browseable).

For that matter ... where does Google find the link to tngrss.php? I don't see one anywhere on my site!

Ideas?

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I really wish I could give you a good answer on that...

Maybe it's because Google's power is beyond our understanding :lol:

The only thing I can think of is if your parent directory structure can be browsed, then Google will pick up it up.

Rush

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  • 3 weeks later...

Yesterday, I needed to make available some files to someone I've been exchanging emails with. I was uncomfortable sending these rather large files via email so I created a new directory on my TNG website and uploaded the files to that area. I set the directory so just browsing to it would display a list of the contents - easier than providing links to each individual file!

So today I was just messing around and happened to look at my server logs - Google had already found the newly created directory and taken a look at every file in it! HOW?

The name of this directory does not exist anywhere as a link except in the email I sent to my friend. How did Google find the directory? It is located off my main TNG directory so a index file was present in its parent directory.

I had thought the only way the search engines could find a directory (or file) was if there was a link to it somewhere in universe. (assuming the parent directory wasn't browseable).

For that matter ... where does Google find the link to tngrss.php? I don't see one anywhere on my site!

Ideas?

J,

I have to questions.

1 Have you created a robot.txt file?

2 Do you have an .htaccess file?

If you don't have either of these then the robots have free reign of you site. If you have a .htaccess file, you may need to deny access to the robots to that folder.

Russ

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