If you see "robots.txt" appearing frequently in your AWStats or Webalizer reports, that's normal. Search engine bots (Googlebot, Bingbot, etc.) check your robots.txt file before crawling your site. Every visit from a bot generates a hit on robots.txt. This is expected behavior and not a problem.
This Is Normal
Robots.txt hits in your stats come from search engine crawlers checking your crawl rules. This is healthy - it means search engines are indexing your site.
- Every search engine bot checks robots.txt before crawling
- High robots.txt hits = active crawling = good for SEO
- Not consuming meaningful bandwidth or resources
01. What Is robots.txt
Robots.txt is a text file in your website's root directory (public_html/robots.txt) that tells search engine bots which pages they should and shouldn't crawl. Before a bot crawls any page on your site, it checks robots.txt first.
If you don't have a robots.txt file, bots will look for it anyway (getting a 404), and you'll still see it in your stats. Creating one gives you control over what gets indexed.
02. Creating a Basic robots.txt
Create a file called robots.txt in your public_html directory with this content:
User-agent: *
Allow: /
Sitemap: https://yourdomain.com/sitemap.xmlThis tells all bots they can crawl everything, and points them to your sitemap. WordPress generates a sitemap automatically (usually at /wp-sitemap.xml), or you can use a plugin like Yoast SEO to create one.
For blocking bots from specific directories or for blocking abusive crawlers, see our Resource Limit guide which covers bot blocking techniques.
03. Understanding Your Web Stats
cPanel includes two web statistics tools in the Metrics section:
- AWStats - detailed traffic reports with visitor counts, bandwidth, referrers, and search engine activity
- Webalizer - simpler visual reports with monthly traffic graphs
Both tools count robots.txt hits. This inflates your total "hits" count but does not affect your actual visitor count or bandwidth in any meaningful way. For more accurate visitor analytics, use Google Analytics (free), which only tracks real human visitors.
Status Codes in Your Stats (200, 304, 404)
Your stats and raw access logs show an HTTP status code next to each request. The common ones are normal, not errors:
- 200 OK - the file was served successfully.
- 304 Not Modified - the visitor's browser already had the file cached, and the server confirmed the cached copy is still current, so nothing was re-sent. A 304 saves bandwidth and is a good sign, not an error.
- 404 Not Found - a requested file does not exist. Usually a bot probing for files, or a broken link on your site.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does robots.txt appear so often in my web stats?
It is normal. Search engine bots like Googlebot and Bingbot request your robots.txt before crawling, so every bot visit logs a hit on that file. Seeing frequent robots.txt hits in AWStats or Webalizer is expected, not a problem.
What is robots.txt?
robots.txt is a small text file in your site root that tells search engine crawlers which parts of your site they may or may not crawl. Bots check it first, which is why it shows up repeatedly in your stats.
Do I need a robots.txt file?
It is optional but useful. A basic robots.txt lets you allow or disallow crawling of specific paths and point to your sitemap. If you do not have one, bots simply crawl normally; adding one gives you control over what they index.
Are the robots.txt hits in my stats a security concern?
No. They are routine crawler activity, not attacks. Legitimate search bots fetch robots.txt before crawling, and the hits just reflect normal indexing of your site.
Concerned About Bot Traffic?
If bots are consuming excessive resources (not just showing up in stats), see our resource limit guide for blocking techniques, or open a ticket.
Open a Support TicketLast updated November 2026 · Browse all SEO articles
