WordPress 6.9 Field Guide

Updates to Field APIAPI An API or Application Programming Interface is a software intermediary that allows programs to interact with each other and share data in limited, clearly defined ways., DataViews and DataForms Components

This release also comes with upgrades to the Field API as well as the DataViews and DataForms components.

In the Field API the field type has been expanded to include more than 10 new field types, 11+ edit controls that support validation, over 16 filterFilter Filters are one of the two types of Hooks https://codex.wordpress.org/Plugin_API/Hooks. They provide a way for functions to modify data of other functions. They are the counterpart to Actions. Unlike Actions, filters are meant to work in an isolated manner, and should never have side effects such as affecting global variables and output. operators and user-input filters in filterBy, readOnly options to disable field editing, and so much more. Updated DataViews functions include improvements to modals and text-based actions, infinite scroll, and the ability to build custom layouts with children that leverage DataViews’ internal state management and data handling logic. DataViews also now persists via @wordpress/views while DataForms now has an improved panel, new card and row layouts, and revamped controlled validation.

Improved Editing Tools and Architecture

WordPressers can now drag and drop blocks more easily, hide blocks with a click, and use the new WP_Block_Processor class to convert documents into a block structure, while page architecture is improved with the continued integration of iframes.

Iframeiframe iFrame is an acronym for an inline frame. An iFrame is used inside a webpage to load another HTML document and render it. This HTML document may also contain JavaScript and/or CSS which is loaded at the time when iframe tag is parsed by the user’s browser. Integration in Post Editor

As part of an ongoing initiative to move the post editor into an iframe, a few changes have been made to help with this transition:

1. The block.json schema now only allowsapiVersion 3 for new or updated blocks.
2. A warning will be displayed in the browser console when a block is registered usingapiVersion 1 or 2. 

These changes aim to help developers migrate their blocks to use apiVersion 3 with the plan to fully place the editor within an iframe in WordPress 7.0. While this change has been researched and tested at length, additional testing is needed by block and pluginPlugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party developers to make any necessary improvements in future releases.

New Blocks and Block Improvements

An expanded block library with new and upgraded blocks is bundled into 6.9, which includes a new math block, new accordion block, terms query block, comments link and comments count blocks, and improved heading and time to read blocks. This release also contains modified text editing abilities with fitText block support that enables automatic font size adjustment to fit text within its container boundaries (and much more).

Perform Calculations using π in the Math Block

The new Math block adds support for MathML and LaTeX renderers to display math in either block or inline mode, which can be added in any rich text field including tables, headings, and lists.

Collapsible Content with the new Accordion Block

The new Accordion Block in 6.9 supports custom styling and pattern capabilitiescapability A capability is permission to perform one or more types of task. Checking if a user has a capability is performed by the current_user_can function. Each user of a WordPress site might have some permissions but not others, depending on their role. For example, users who have the Author role usually have permission to edit their own posts (the “edit_posts” capability), but not permission to edit other users’ posts (the “edit_others_posts” capability).. Learn how to style accordion blocks here.

Heading Block CSSCSS Cascading Style Sheets. Specificity Fix

6.9 includes a refined CSS selector for padding in headings that have a background, which now targets headings with both.wp-block-heading and.has-background classes to ensure padding customizations affect only the intended block.

Meet the Abilities API

The Abilities API enables WordPress Core, plugins, and themes to register their functionality in a unified, standardized, machine-readable format. The Abilities API is part of the broader AI Building Blocks for WordPress initiative to build the tools needed for extenders to integrate AI tools into WordPress in a native way.

Updates to Interactivity API

In WordPress 6.9 the Interactivity API now offers a standardized way to assign unique IDs to Interactivity API directives, allowing website elements to be given multiple similar directives without conflicts. The getServerState() and getServerContext() functions have been updated, and a new algorithm optimizes script and stylesheet handling, enhanced support for router regions in interactive elements, and adds a new attachTo property that acts as a CSS selector pointing to the parent element for router rendering.

Updates to HTML API

The HTML API has been refined in 6.9, with multiple bugbug A bug is an error or unexpected result. Performance improvements, code optimization, and are considered enhancements, not defects. After feature freeze, only bugs are dealt with, with regressions (adverse changes from the previous version) being the highest priority. fixes and enhancements. The WP_HTML_Processor::serialize_token()is now public, extending the safety of the HTML API to outside code modifying and combining HTML, while set_modifiable_text() now rejects SCRIPT element contents that could disturb its normal closing.

Improved Block Binding API

The updated Block Bindings interface in 6.9 focuses on usability, with the added ability to switch between sources, and bind or unbind attributes with a single click, while the new block_bindings_supported_attributes_{$block_type}filter facilitates customizing how a block’s attributes connect to a Block Bindings source.

Updated Query Cache Handling

The 6.9 release changes how cache keys are created when caching queries performed through WP_Query. While persistent object cache drop-ins should not be affected, developers and web hosts should make note of the changes and take advantage of the four new functions introduced.

Remove Support for Loading Assets Conditionally for IE

WordPress 6.9 removes support for enqueing scripts and styles with legacy conditional statements that target specific versions of Internet Explorer conditional. All remaining related checks have also been removed from the default themes, an effort that began in #56699. The code related to Genericons has also been updated for themes that included this webfont.

AccessibilityAccessibility Accessibility (commonly shortened to a11y) refers to the design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design ensures both “direct access” (i.e. unassisted) and “indirect access” meaning compatibility with a person’s assistive technology (for example, computer screen readers). (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accessibility) Updates

WordPress 6.9 includes 10 enhancements and 23 bug fixes focused on accessibility, offering new and improved screen reader notifications, improved semantics and focus management, and updated CSS generated content to prevent excess content from being read.

PHP 8.5 Support

WordPress 6.9 has added “betaBeta A pre-release of software that is given out to a large group of users to trial under real conditions. Beta versions have gone through alpha testing in-house and are generally fairly close in look, feel and function to the final product; however, design changes often occur as part of the process. support” for PHP 8.5, addressing all known incompatibilities, warnings, and notices while maintaining support for older PHP versions (currently 7.2 and up). As a reminder, “Beta support” is a label applied to versions of PHP that have less than 10% usage across all WordPress sites.

Miscellaneous Developer Changes

A range of additional developer-related updates improve both the user experience and the development experience. These changes span various areas of WordPress Core, including media, multisitemultisite Used to describe a WordPress installation with a network of multiple blogs, grouped by sites. This installation type has shared users tables, and creates separate database tables for each blog (wp_posts becomes wp_0_posts). See also network, blog, site, new hooksHooks In WordPress theme and development, hooks are functions that can be applied to an action or a Filter in WordPress. Actions are functions performed when a certain event occurs in WordPress. Filters allow you to modify certain functions. Arguments used to hook both filters and actions look the same., and browser interactions. While individually minor, they collectively reflect ongoing efforts to enhance usability in WordPress and provide a more predictable and flexible foundation for developers.

Updated Adminadmin (and super admin) Menu Search Query

In WordPress 6.9, the search query used by the admin menu has changed from $_SERVER['QUERY_STRING'] to $_GET. This makes the search behavior more predictable and avoids issues caused by depending on the raw query string. Extensions that override or inspect admin menu search behavior should review any assumptions about how the menu search value is retrieved.

Additional Support for HTTPSHTTPS HTTPS is an acronym for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure. HTTPS is the secure version of HTTP, the protocol over which data is sent between your browser and the website that you are connected to. The 'S' at the end of HTTPS stands for 'Secure'. It means all communications between your browser and the website are encrypted. This is especially helpful for protecting sensitive data like banking information. in URLURL A specific web address of a website or web page on the Internet, such as a website’s URL www.wordpress.org-escaping Functions

In WordPress 6.9, the esc_url(), esc_url_raw() and sanitize_url() functions can now be configured to prepend https:// to a URL that does not already contain a scheme by default when the first item in the $protocols array is 'https'.

Improved Email Handling and Inline Image Support

WordPress 6.9 introduces several updates that make the email system more reliable and more flexible for developers. The wp_mail() function now sets sender addresses in an extensibleExtensible This is the ability to add additional functionality to the code. Plugins extend the WordPress core software. way, protects encoding headers between calls, and leans more consistently on PHPMailer for content type handling. Many long standing bugs around headerHeader The header of your site is typically the first thing people will experience. The masthead or header art located across the top of your page is part of the look and feel of your website. It can influence a visitor’s opinion about your content and you/ your organization’s brand. It may also look different on different screen sizes. handling and message formatting have also been resolved.

This release also adds support for inline and embedded images in HTML emails, allowing developers to send richer message templates without relying on external image URLs. Email content that uses cid: based references can now render images directly inside the message, opening up cleaner options for branded notifications, transactional emails, and plugin generated workflows.

PHP AI Client

The new PHP AI Client SDK facilitates integration of AI abilities with plugins and PHP projects. The interface works with all AI providers, and developers can specify which AI abilities to include, which provider, and which model to use. Credentials are centrally managed and work across all compatible plugins.