Manage sitemaps and indexing with OpenClaw
Managing sitemaps and indexing with OpenClaw means asking the self-hosted agent runtime, from a chat app or the terminal, to read StoreSEO's sitemap, noindex and nofollow flags for your Shopify resources, change them on request and run a read-only check of those flags on a schedule.
Last updated: October 2026
Set up OpenClaw for StoreSEO
Skip this if OpenClaw is already connected. The full guide, with the alternatives, is on the OpenClaw page.
- 1
Add StoreSEO to OpenClaw
Run this on the installation that owns the connector. The --auth oauth flag marks the server as an OAuth server, which is what openclaw mcp login needs.
Terminalopenclaw mcp add storeseo \ --url https://mcp.storeseo.com/mcp \ --transport streamable-http \ --auth oauth
- 2
Sign in to your store
The login prints an authorization URL. Open it in a browser, pick your Shopify store and approve access. OpenClaw captures the redirect and saves the credentials.
Terminalopenclaw mcp login storeseo
- 3
Check the connection
The probe opens a live connection and reports the tools the server offers. A saved server entry proves nothing until the probe passes.
Terminalopenclaw mcp doctor storeseo --probe
How does this work in OpenClaw?
OpenClaw is the one client here where the same job can start in two places. In a chat or the CLI you ask which products are set to noindex, and the agent calls storeseo_start, then storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps for the resource type, filtered to rows with noindex on. The answer comes back in the channel you asked in. Because the connector lives on the installation that owns it, a message from your phone reaches the same StoreSEO session as one typed at the machine, and openclaw mcp doctor storeseo --probe tells you the connection works before you rely on it.
Changes stay conversational. A noindex flag removes a page from search results, so StoreSEO tells the agent to name the resource and the flag and wait for your yes before storeseo_update_resource_sitemap. OpenClaw also has its own approval setting for the server, set with openclaw mcp configure storeseo --approval, and that is the hard stop if you want the client to refuse a write rather than rely on the instruction. After a change, ask for the listing again; the flags can be edited in the StoreSEO app too. The HTML sitemap follows the usual order of storeseo_get_html_sitemap_settings, then storeseo_update_html_sitemap, then storeseo_list_sitemap_menus.
Scheduling is what OpenClaw adds. An automation made with openclaw automations create can run weekly in an isolated session and announce the result in a channel, which suits a check that nothing important slipped into noindex after a bulk edit. Write the prompt as a report: list the resources with noindex or the sitemap flag on and say nothing else. A scheduled run has nobody to answer a question, so it must not ask for changes.
-
You: Which of my pages are noindex right now?
- storeseo_start read-only
- storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps read-only
-
OpenClaw: Three pages have noindex on: Thank You, Staff Login and Old Shipping Policy. I can turn noindex off for Old Shipping Policy if that page should appear in search again. Do you want that?
-
You: Yes, only Old Shipping Policy.
- storeseo_update_resource_sitemap needs approval
- storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps read-only
-
OpenClaw: Old Shipping Policy is no longer noindex. Thank You and Staff Login are unchanged.
What to ask OpenClaw
Use StoreSEO to list every product and collection that is noindex or excluded from the sitemap. Read only.
Exclude the product Gift Card Test from the sitemap and set it to noindex. Name the resource and ask me before you write.
Create a weekly automation that lists noindex and nofollow flags on my pages and articles and announces the list in this chat. Reads only.
- Which of my products are set to noindex or excluded from the sitemap?
- Exclude the product Gift Card Test from the sitemap and set it to noindex.
- Set up an HTML sitemap for my store and tell me which menu to add it to.
- Are any of my blog posts set to nofollow?
- Remove noindex from the page About Us.
What StoreSEO does: sitemaps and indexing
StoreSEO controls two things here: per-resource sitemap flags (left out of the XML sitemap, noindex, nofollow) and an HTML sitemap page. The agent lists flags, changes them one resource at a time and walks you through the HTML sitemap setup.
- 1
List the flags
The agent lists products, collections, pages or articles with their sitemap, noindex and nofollow flags, filtered as you ask.
- 2
Change one resource
After your yes it sets the flags on one resource, which writes the matching Shopify metafields.
- 3
Re-read before reporting
Flags can also change in the StoreSEO app, so the agent re-lists before telling you the current state.
- 4
Create the HTML sitemap
It reads the HTML sitemap settings, then generates and enables the page.
- 5
Add it to a menu
It lists your navigation menus with their edit links; you add the sitemap link to a menu in Shopify admin, then the agent marks setup complete.
Sitemaps and indexing reference
| Flags per resource | Excluded from sitemap, noindex, nofollow |
|---|---|
| Resource types | Products, collections, pages and articles |
| Where flags live | Shopify metafields on the resource |
| HTML sitemap steps | Generate and enable, add the link to a menu yourself, mark complete |
| HTML sitemap settings | Replaced wholesale on update; read first |
| Menus | Listed with edit links; the menu you choose is not stored |
| Plan | Every active plan |
Rules OpenClaw follows
- A noindex flag removes a page from search results, so the agent names the resource and waits for your yes.
- The agent re-lists flags in the same turn before telling you their current state.
- Adding the sitemap link to a menu is a step you do in Shopify admin; no tool does it.
- HTML sitemap settings are read before every update, because an update replaces them.
In OpenClaw
A scheduled OpenClaw automation runs in an isolated session with nobody to say yes, so a sitemap automation must be report-only: ask it to list flags, never to change them, and do not word the prompt as a fix. A noindex change should happen in a message you can answer. If you want the client itself to refuse writes from unattended runs, set the server's approval mode with openclaw mcp configure storeseo --approval to something other than the mode that skips the check, since StoreSEO's confirmation is an instruction the agent follows rather than a lock.
What runs without asking. Reads such as SEO scores, store listings, settings and Google reports run straight away. Generating a preview spends AI credit but writes nothing, and StoreSEO tells the agent to say what a generation will cost before it runs one. Applying content, optimizing images, changing settings, publishing llms.txt or agents.md, writing a product description and deleting anything wait for your yes in the conversation. That yes is an instruction the agent follows, not a lock on the server, so your client's own tool-approval setting is the hard stop.
Questions
Can an OpenClaw automation switch pages to noindex on its own?
It should not. A scheduled run has nobody to answer StoreSEO's confirmation, so keep the prompt to listing flags and set OpenClaw's approval mode for the server so a write cannot slip through unattended.
How do I get a weekly list of noindex pages in my chat channel?
Create an automation with openclaw automations create, a cron expression and a prompt that asks StoreSEO for the resources with noindex on, then add the announce option and your channel. It runs in an isolated session and posts the result.
What is the difference between excluding a page from the sitemap and noindex?
Excluding a resource leaves it out of your XML sitemap, so crawlers are not pointed at it. Noindex tells search engines not to show the page in results even if they find it. StoreSEO sets each flag separately per resource.
Can the agent add the HTML sitemap to my menu?
No. The agent generates the HTML sitemap and lists your menus with their edit links, and you add the sitemap link to a menu in Shopify admin. Then the agent can mark setup complete.
Do sitemap tools need a paid plan?
No. The sitemap tools work on every active StoreSEO plan.
Why does the agent check the flags again before answering?
Sitemap flags can also be changed in the StoreSEO app outside the conversation, so an earlier listing may be stale. Re-reading in the same turn keeps the answer accurate.
Keep going
Sitemaps and indexing with other agents
More OpenClaw guides