Manage sitemaps and indexing with Windsurf
Managing sitemaps and indexing with Windsurf means asking Cascade, the agent panel in Cognition's editor, to read which Shopify resources StoreSEO leaves out of the sitemap or marks noindex, change those flags one resource at a time and set up the HTML sitemap page.
Last updated: October 2026
Set up Windsurf for StoreSEO
Skip this if Windsurf is already connected. The full guide, with the alternatives, is on the Windsurf page.
- 1
Add StoreSEO to mcp_config.json
In the Cascade panel, open the ... menu and click the Open MCP config file icon in the MCPs section. Add the entry under mcpServers and save. Remote servers use serverUrl.
JSON{ "mcpServers": { "storeseo": { "serverUrl": "https://mcp.storeseo.com/mcp" } } } - 2
Sign in to your store
Windsurf supports OAuth for remote servers. When it asks you to sign in to storeseo, a browser window opens: pick your Shopify store and approve access. Then ask this to confirm the connection.
PromptUse StoreSEO to show me my store's SEO score breakdown.
How does this work in Windsurf?
You work in the Cascade panel, usually with the theme repository open beside it, and type a request such as which pages are set to noindex. Cascade calls storeseo_start first, because every StoreSEO tool needs the conversation id it returns, and then storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps for the resource type you named: products, collections, pages or articles. It can filter the listing to rows where the sitemap flag, noindex or nofollow is on, so a question about a stray noindex on a collection comes back as a short list rather than the whole catalog. Each call shows in the panel, and all of them are reads.
Changing a flag is where the order matters. A noindex flag removes a page from search results, so Cascade should name the resource, say which of the three flags it will set and wait for your yes before it calls storeseo_update_resource_sitemap. Windsurf's MCP page does not describe a tool-approval prompt, so read each proposal in the chat before you accept it. After the write, ask Cascade to list that resource again, because the flags can also be changed in the StoreSEO app and an earlier listing may be stale. The same session handles the HTML sitemap: storeseo_get_html_sitemap_settings first, then storeseo_update_html_sitemap, then storeseo_list_sitemap_menus for the menu edit links.
The editor setting helps here. Cascade can open the theme's footer or header section in the same window while you decide where the sitemap link should live, and you add the link in Shopify admin yourself, since no tool does it. The sitemap tools work on every active plan, and the whole server's 44 tools fit under Cascade's cap of 100, so you do not need to switch anything off to run this job.
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You: Is the Holiday Bundle collection set to noindex? If it is, I want it indexed again.
- storeseo_start read-only
- storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps read-only
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Windsurf: Holiday Bundle has noindex on and is left out of the sitemap. I can turn noindex off and put it back in the sitemap, which makes the page eligible for search results again. Apply that change?
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You: Yes, do both.
- storeseo_update_resource_sitemap needs approval
- storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps read-only
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Windsurf: The re-listing shows noindex off and the sitemap flag cleared for Holiday Bundle.
What to ask Windsurf
Use StoreSEO to list my collections that are set to noindex or excluded from the sitemap. Read only.
Exclude the product Gift Card Test from the sitemap and set it to noindex. Tell me what you will change and wait for my yes.
Set up the HTML sitemap with StoreSEO, then list my menus and show me which edit link to open in Shopify admin.
- 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 Windsurf 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 Windsurf
Windsurf's MCP page says its configuration applies to the legacy Cascade agent, and the Devin Local agent, the default for new tabs, reads Devin CLI configuration files instead. If the StoreSEO sitemap tools do not appear, check which agent your tab is using before you edit mcp_config.json again. The page also does not describe Cascade's approval behavior for MCP tools, so for a noindex change treat StoreSEO's confirmation as an instruction the agent follows and read the proposed resource and flags before you accept the call.
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 Windsurf's Cascade change noindex on several products at once?
The StoreSEO tool sets flags on one resource per call. Cascade can run it for each product you name, but it should list the products and wait for your yes first, because a noindex flag removes a page from search results.
Does Cascade add the HTML sitemap link to my menu?
No. Cascade generates the HTML sitemap and lists your menus with their edit links, and you add the link to a menu in Shopify admin. After that you can ask Cascade to mark setup complete.
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 Windsurf guides