[wp-trac] [WordPress Trac] #63387: Native UI to Manage robots.txt Content from WordPress Admin

[WordPress Trac]

#63387: Native UI to Manage robots.txt Content from WordPress Admin
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 Reporter:  samahjoob12         |      Owner:  (none)
     Type:  feature request     |     Status:  assigned
 Priority:  normal              |  Milestone:  Awaiting Review
Component:  General             |    Version:
 Severity:  normal              |   Keywords:
  Focuses:  ui, administration  |
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 WordPress automatically generates a virtual robots.txt file if one does
 not physically exist. However, there is no built-in interface to manage or
 customize its contents.

 This enhancement proposes a simple native UI in the WordPress admin (e.g.,
 under Settings > Reading) to allow users to view and optionally override
 the default virtual robots.txt output.

 Proposed Behavior:

 If no physical robots.txt exists, WordPress will continue to serve a
 virtual version — but users can edit its content via the new UI.

 If a physical robots.txt is found in the root directory, display a notice
 and provide options:

 View current content (read-only)

 Delete and switch to virtual + editable version

 Optional: basic syntax check or linter to prevent common formatting errors

 Benefits:

 Improves UX for users who want better SEO control without using plugins or
 FTP.

 Encourages safer and more transparent management of crawler rules.

 Bridges a long-standing gap between virtual behavior and user
 expectations.

 Makes the default robots.txt output editable — a much-requested feature.

 Why this belongs in Core:

 It's a light, low-risk enhancement that doesn’t interfere with existing
 plugin functionality.

 Fits the WordPress philosophy of empowering users while keeping things
 simple.

 Many popular plugins (like Yoast, RankMath) already implement this — core
 should offer a basic version.

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Ticket URL: <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/63387>
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