Fill in the blank: The primary function of a robots.txt file is_______________.
- to prevent pages from appearing in search results
- to tell search engines about which of your site’s pages you’d like them to crawl
- to prevent your site from being overloaded with requests by crawlers
- to control exactly which pages appear in search results
Explanation: The primary function of a robots.txt file is to prevent your site from being overloaded with requests by crawlers. This file serves as a communication tool between website owners and web crawlers, also known as spiders or bots, informing them about which parts of the website they are allowed or not allowed to crawl. While it does not directly prevent pages from appearing in search results, its main purpose is to manage crawl traffic efficiently to prevent servers from being overwhelmed by excessive requests from crawlers. By specifying directories or pages that should not be crawled in the robots.txt file, website owners can control crawl behavior and allocate server resources effectively. This helps prevent performance issues, such as slow loading times or server crashes, which may occur when crawlers generate a high volume of requests. Therefore, the primary function of a robots.txt file is to regulate crawler access and prevent the site from being overloaded with requests, ensuring optimal website performance and availability.