fix: block LLM/search crawlers on branch deploy subdomains#2122
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fix: block LLM/search crawlers on branch deploy subdomains#2122
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Updated this to be branch-aware instead of a manual-revert hack.
So when we cut |
Add robots.txt to main branch that disallows all crawlers. Branch deploys (e.g., main.docs.pomerium.com) were returning 404 for robots.txt, allowing LLM scrapers to freely index stale content. Production (0-32-0 branch) is unaffected — it has its own permissive robots.txt. Fixes ENG-3768
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nickytonline
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Mar 30, 2026
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Summary
robots.txtbranch-aware instead of relying on a manual revert when the next release branch is cutrobots.txtfor numbered release branches like0-33-0Problem
*.docs.pomerium.comwildcard DNS routes branch deploys through Netlify, so branch builds are publicly fetchable unless we actively block crawlers.The first draft of this change hard-coded
static/robots.txttoDisallow: /onmain, which would have required a manual undo when the next stable release branch is cut. That is exactly the kind of thing we forget.Approach
This PR keeps the checked-in fallback safe (
Disallow: /) and adds a small Docusaurus post-build plugin that writes the allow template only when the build is for a numbered release branch.Behavior:
deploy-preview/branch-deployonmainor any other non-release branch:Disallow: /0-33-0: write the normal permissiverobots.txtPOMERIUM_DOCS_ROBOTS_MODE=allow|disallowThis means we do not need to remember a revert when we cut
0-33-0; the release branch will emit the right file automatically.Verification
Verified locally with full builds:
HEAD=main BRANCH=main CONTEXT=branch-deploy yarn build->build/robots.txtisDisallow: /HEAD=0-33-0 BRANCH=0-33-0 CONTEXT=branch-deploy yarn build->build/robots.txtis the normal allow templateFixes ENG-3768