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Create a PHP script that will notify Google about your updated sitemap. You can name this file ping_google.php.

Content of ping_google.php:

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<?php
// Replace with your actual sitemap URL
$sitemapUrl = 'https://www.example.com/sitemap.xml';

// Google Ping URL
$googlePingUrl = 'https://www.google.com/ping?sitemap=' . urlencode($sitemapUrl);

// Initiate a cURL session
$ch = curl_init();
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, $googlePingUrl);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);

// Execute the request
$response = curl_exec($ch);

// Check for errors
if ($response === false) {
    error_log('Error pinging Google: ' . curl_error($ch));
} else {
    error_log('Google ping successful: ' . $response);
}

// Close cURL session
curl_close($ch);

Place this script in your web server’s document root or a suitable directory accessible by your server.

Step 2: Create a Cron Job
A cron job is used to automate the execution of the script.

Steps to Set Up a Cron Job:
Access Your Server's Cron Tab: Open your server's terminal and enter:

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crontab -e

Add the Cron Job Entry: Add the following line to run the script periodically. For example, to run it every 15 minutes:

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*/15 * * * * php /path/to/your/ping_google.php > /dev/null 2>&1

Replace /path/to/your/ping_google.php with the full path to the script you created.

*/15 * * * *: Runs the script every 15 minutes.
> /dev/null 2>&1: Suppresses output to keep the cron logs clean.
Save and Exit: Save the changes to the crontab file and exit.

Step 3: Trigger Cron on New Post (Optional)
If you want to notify Google immediately after a new post is made (instead of periodic checks), you can integrate the ping script into phpBB's posting process.

Modify posting.php in phpBB:
Open the posting.php file in your phpBB installation directory.
Look for the section where the post is successfully submitted. For example, after the post is inserted into the database.
Add the following code to call your ping script:

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exec('php /path/to/your/ping_google.php > /dev/null 2>&1 &');

Step 4: Test Your Setup
Manually execute the script:

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php /path/to/your/ping_google.php

Ensure it runs without errors.

Wait for the cron job to run or post a new thread (if integrated). Check your server logs for any error messages or confirmation of successful pings.

Verify in Google Search Console that Google is crawling your sitemap.