IndexNow Settings

IndexNow is a real-time URL submission protocol that lets your store instantly notify search engines when content changes. Version 3.6.0 introduces a complete IndexNow implementation with an event-driven queue, cron-based processing, and a full queue management dashboard.

New to IndexNow? Read Why IndexNow | Bing Webmaster Tools

Basic Settings

Queue & Retry Settings

Step 1: Generate and Validate Your API Key

1. Click Auto Generate Key — a cryptographically random hex key is generated.
2. Click Save to store the key.
3. Click Validate Key — the extension checks that the key file is accessible at yourstore.com/{key}.txt.

The key file is automatically written to your web root during the first cron run. If validation fails, check that your web root is writable and that your domain is publicly accessible.

Step 2: Set Up the Cron Job

IndexNow submissions are processed asynchronously by a cron job. The cron URL is displayed in the admin panel:

https://yourstore.com/index.php?route=extension/hbseo/index_now/cron&key={your-cron-key}

Add to your server crontab (run every 5 minutes):

bash

*/5 * * * * curl -s "https://yourstore.com/index.php?route=extension/hbseo/index_now/cron&key=YOUR_CRON_KEY" > /dev/null

Or using wget:

bash

*/5 * * * * wget -q -O /dev/null "https://yourstore.com/index.php?route=extension/hbseo/index_now/cron&key=YOUR_CRON_KEY"

⚠️ Important: Use the Cron Secret Key in the cron URL, not the IndexNow API key. These are two separate keys.

If your host doesn’t allow crontab, use a cron service like EasyCron or cron-job.org to call the URL every 5 minutes.

Step 3: Run Initial Sync

When you first enable IndexNow, your existing products, categories, and pages are not yet in the queue. Use Sync All in the dashboard to queue all existing URLs for initial submission.

The sync runs in chunks of 100 records at a time and shows progress in the admin panel. Run it once after setup.

Event Hooks — Automatic Queue Population

The extension registers OpenCart admin event hooks that fire whenever you save or delete content. When an event fires, the URL is automatically added to the IndexNow queue.

Events covered:

• Product: add, edit, delete
• Category: add, edit, delete
• Manufacturer/Brand: add, edit, delete
• Information page: add, edit, delete

You can enable or disable individual hooks from the IndexNow dashboard panel without disabling IndexNow entirely. For example, if you bulk-import products via a third-party script, you might temporarily disable the product hooks and queue them manually via Sync All.

IndexNow Queue Manager

Navigate to the IndexNow → Queue Manager to view and manage all queued submissions.

Filter by: type, status, store, language, or search by ID/title/response

Status values:

Queue actions:

Auto-Disable Protection

If the system detects a high failure rate (above your configured threshold) or too many consecutive failures, it automatically:

1. Disables the cron runtime
2. Sends an email alert to the store admin

To re-enable after fixing the issue:

1. Resolve the underlying problem (verify the API key, check server connectivity)
2. Click Retry Failed in the admin panel — this resets failed rows and re-enables the cron

Dashboard Statistics

The IndexNow section of the Dashboard tab shows:

• Pending / Sent / Failed queue counts
• Last cron run timestamp
• Consecutive failures count
• 24-hour activity chart (success vs. failed per hour)
• Overall success vs. failed totals