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hope you're doing well. I have a question regarding the behavior of the Moz crawler and a concern related to crawling issues on my website.

I've observed that the Moz crawler initiates its sessions with the HTTP/1.1 version. Could you please provide insights into why this is the case? I'm curious about whether this is a standard protocol for the Moz crawler and if there are any implications for website owners.

Additionally, I'm experiencing crawling issues with my website, CFMS BILL STATUS. Despite my efforts to optimize crawlability, I continue to encounter challenges. The website seems to have difficulty being effectively crawled by Moz.

Could you offer guidance or suggestions on how to address these crawling issues and ensure that CFMS BILL STATUS is properly indexed by the Moz crawler?

I'll provide a comprehensive response to the prompt, aiming for clarity and incorporating insights from Moz's best practices:

Understanding Crawl Depth and the Issue:

Crawl depth refers to the number of clicks (or links) it takes a crawler to reach a specific page from the starting point (usually the homepage).
In this case, Moz's crawler is reporting a crawl depth of 0 for the non-secure HTTP version of the homepage (http://www.example-domain.com), while the secure HTTPS version (https://www.example-domain.com) has a crawl depth of 2. This discrepancy suggests a potential issue with how the site is configured or how the crawler is interpreting it.
Potential Reasons for the Discrepancy:

Redirect Configuration:

If http://www.example-domain.com redirects to https://www.example-domain.com, the crawler might initially treat the non-secure version as the starting point (crawl depth = 0) and the secure version as a secondary page (crawl depth = 2).
Canonical Tags:

If the canonical tag on https://www.example-domain.com points to http://www.example-domain.com, Moz might prioritize the non-secure version.
Sitemap and Internal Linking:

Ensure your sitemap lists the https version of URLs and that internal links use https URLs consistently.
Crawler Settings:

Some tools allow specifying which version (http or https) to prioritize. Check for such settings in Moz Pro.
Historical Data:

If the site recently migrated from http to https, historical data might influence crawl behavior.
Resolving the Issue:

Review Redirects:
Ensure redirects are set up correctly to prioritize https.
Check Canonical Tags:
Verify that canonical tags point to the https version.
Update Sitemap and Internal Links:
Use https URLs consistently.
Adjust Crawler Settings:
If possible, prioritize https in Moz Pro's settings.
Contact Moz Support:
If the issue persists, seek guidance from Moz support.

@AKCAC When using Moz Pro's Site Crawl for your website and encountering a situation where the non-secure (http) version of your domain is reported as having a crawl depth of zero, while the secure (https) version shows a greater crawl depth, there are several potential reasons and implications to consider:

1. Redirect Configuration: The most common reason for this is how redirects are set up on your site. If http://www.example-domain.com is the primary address that Moz encounters due to your server's configuration, and it redirects to https://www.example-domain.com, Moz might initially treat the non-secure version as the starting point (crawl depth = 0) and the secure version as a secondary page (thus a greater crawl depth).

2. Canonical Tags: Check your canonical tags. If the canonical tag on your https pages points to the http version, Moz (and other search engines) might treat the http version as the primary page.

3. Sitemap and Internal Linking: Ensure that your sitemap lists the https version of your URLs and that internal linking on your site uses https URLs. If your internal links or sitemap reference the http version, crawlers may initially prioritize these.

4. Crawler Settings: In some tools, including Moz, you can specify which version of the site (http or https) to prioritize in a crawl. Check if such a setting is influencing the crawl behavior.

5. Historical Data: If your site recently migrated from http to https, and Moz has historical data from previous crawls, it might temporarily reflect the older structure until it fully updates its index with the new configuration.

6. DNS and Server Configuration: Verify your DNS and server settings to ensure that they correctly redirect all http traffic to https and that the https version is set as the primary endpoint.

7. Robots.txt File: Make sure your robots.txt file doesn't unintentionally block or deprioritize https URLs.

Steps to Resolve the Issue:

• Ensure Consistent Redirects: All http URLs should 301 redirect to their https counterparts.
• Update Canonical Tags: Canonical tags on all pages should point to the https versions.
• Verify Sitemap and Internal Links: Both should consistently use and reference https URLs.
• Re-crawl the Site: After making changes, re-run the Moz Site Crawl to

Moz Crawler, like many web crawlers, typically starts with the HTTP/1.1 version because it is a widely accepted and supported protocol for communication between web clients and servers. HTTP/1.1 is the latest version of the HTTP protocol at the time of Moz Crawler's implementation, offering improvements over its predecessor, HTTP/1.0. It provides features such as persistent connections, chunked transfer encoding, and the ability to pipeline multiple requests, enhancing the efficiency of data transmission. Starting with HTTP/1.1 allows Moz Crawler to leverage these features for more effective and streamlined interactions with web servers, optimizing the crawling process and ultimately enhancing its performance in retrieving information from websites. For More Info Visit Now.

@AKCAC

The crawl depth reported by tools like Moz Pro is determined by the level of clicks it takes to reach a particular page from the homepage or root domain. It's not solely based on whether the page is HTTP or HTTPS.

In your scenario, if Moz Pro is reporting that the HTTP version (http://www.example-domain.com) has a crawl depth of 0, it means that this page is directly accessible from the root domain. On the other hand, if the HTTPS version (https://www.example-domain.com) is reported as having a crawl depth of 2, it implies that it takes two clicks (or two levels deep) from the homepage to reach this particular HTTPS page.

There could be various reasons for such a situation, such as the site structure, internal linking, or redirects. It's not uncommon for websites to have different versions (HTTP and HTTPS) of their pages, and the crawler may follow links or redirects differently, leading to variations in crawl depth.

To further investigate, you may want to examine your site's internal linking structure, make sure that there are no unexpected redirects or canonicalization issues, and ensure that your preferred version (HTTPS in this case) is correctly configured and prioritized in your website settings and sitemap. Additionally, Moz Pro may provide more detailed insights into the specific reasons for the reported crawl depth if you review the crawl report or log files.