Why does my crawl say preparing?

Why does my crawl say preparing?

If you see "Preparing" next to your Site Audit crawl, here are a few reasons why this might be happening and what you can do:

1. Just Started Crawls: When you initiate a new crawl, it will display as “Preparing…” for a few minutes before starting. No worries! If you have alerts turned on, you'll receive an email once the crawl begins.
2. Scheduled Crawls: If the crawl takes longer to start, it might be due to a schedule. Check the "Start Audit" tab on the left in your Site Audit Projects. Scheduling lets you choose specific hours and days for the crawl, helping to avoid peak hours or server load.
   

Note: If you click “Start Now” but set a different time in the scheduler, the crawl won’t start until the scheduled time arrives.

1. Schedule Misalignment: The "Preparing" status may also occur if the schedule isn't aligned with the crawl start time. As the screenshot illustrates, the scheduled start and the actual start date can be different. If you start a crawl today but the scheduled start is set for three days later, it will display as "Preparing" until the scheduled start date arrives.
   

Feel free to reach out to support@seoclarity.net if you need further assistance or have any more questions!