Release history

This release history traces how Éclair has evolved, from version 1.0.0 on October 28 and 29, 2026 to version 1.8.0 on November 1, 2026. For each version: what changed and what it gives you. The update procedure, which is the same whatever version you start from, is summarized at the end of the page.

The release history at a glance

Version 1.8.0 (November 1, 2026): art directions

This is the current version.

• 12 art directions: Nocturne, Gallery, Clay, Botanical, Poster, Riviera, Chambers, Neon, Gentle, Worksite, Playtime and Press. Each one can be adjusted: 5 colors, 18 heading fonts, case, heading size, corners, spacing, cards, banner, features, sections and icons. The 6 classic themes stay identical down to the byte.
• Imagine my direction with AI: from a description of your business, the AI suggests 3 genuinely different directions, for about $0.03 with Claude Sonnet 5.5. The method is adapted from Impeccable, by Paul Bakaus (Apache 2.0 license).
• Design score: a third ring in the Analysis tab, next to SEO and GEO; the tab's score is the average of the three.
• Guaranteed contrast: text at 7:1, and secondary text, links and buttons at 4.5:1, including on tinted backgrounds. The rule was checked against 20,000 randomly generated palettes.
• Self-hosted font: the heading font is downloaded once from Fontsource, stored in media/fonts/ and served by your site, with no third-party service for your visitors.
• Lighthouse 100 in all four categories with four directions (Nocturne, Riviera, Press and Poster), measured locally; a CLS of 0 and an LCP of 0.78 to 0.89 s on simulated mobile.
• 480 KB archive, which stays under 1 MB once unzipped: the admin screens are now compressed, and the PHP zlib extension becomes required.
• 550 automated checks.

To explore these new features: Art directions and Design score.

Version 1.7.0 (October 31, 2026): Visual mode

• Visual mode: at the top of the editor, the Blocks / Visual switch displays the page with the site's real theme and makes it editable right there. Widths of 390 px, 768 px or full width, undo with Ctrl+Z up to 50 steps, 3.3 KB compressed with no library. Public pages stay identical down to the byte.
• Create with AI: in a new piece of content, the AI composes a complete draft (banner, features, FAQ, call to action, SEO title and description) in a single call, for about $0.08 with Claude Sonnet 5.5. The draft opens in Visual mode; anything missing is flagged with a “To complete” placeholder, which the analysis counts as long as it remains.
• The MCP connector can also compose a page in sections.
• 502 automated checks.

How to use them: Visual mode and Create a page with AI.

Version 1.6.0 (October 31, 2026): PayPal and Revolut Business

• PayPal and Revolut Business payment links, in addition to Stripe. Éclair recognizes these links and shows “Secure payment with PayPal” or “with Revolut” under the buy button.
• The product reference is only added to Stripe links: give each PayPal or Revolut link a clear name so you can recognize your orders.
• 460 automated checks.

Version 1.5.0 (October 30, 2026): custom CSS

• A Custom CSS field in Settings › Appearance, stored with your data (data/custom-css.php): updates, which replace app/ and assets/, no longer touch it.
• Added after the theme on every page, it takes precedence over it; the /*dark*/ … /*/dark*/ markers work; 64 KB at most, and the < character and @import rules are removed.

How to use it: Custom CSS.

Version 1.4.0 (October 30, 2026): the MCP connector

• MCP connector: Claude and ChatGPT read your site, write drafts and prepare changes using your subscription, with no API key and no cost for the site. URL /_eclair/mcp, OAuth 2.1 with PKCE, approval given after logging in, revocable tokens.
• Choice of AI in the assistant: with both keys saved, a Claude or ChatGPT selector appears, and your choice is remembered for your account.
• Security review of the connector: password asked for again after 15 minutes, HTTPS required on its URLs, 5 connections at most per person. Image creation was removed from it, so the connector never costs the site anything.

How to use it: Understanding the MCP connector.

Version 1.3.0 (October 30, 2026): themes and shop

• 6 themes (Éclair, Editorial, Atelier, Studio, Shop, Contrast) with a live preview on desktop or mobile, plus a centered header and a list layout for post lists.
• Lightweight shop: product pages (price, compare-at price, availability, photos, variants without JavaScript, Google Shopping identifiers), Stripe payment links, catalog, product categories, Products block, Product and Offer structured data, and a /products.xml feed for Google Merchant Center. The shop only opens once a legal notice and terms of sale are published.
• 367 automated checks.

Version 1.2.0 (October 29, 2026): the AI assistant

• AI assistant: a live conversation with Claude or ChatGPT using your own API key; it searches, reads, creates drafts and suggests changes, without ever publishing.
• Images with GPT Image 2.5, FLUX 3 or Ideogram 3, an editorial profile, a monthly budget and a daily quota, with keys encrypted and excluded from backups.
• Team block, text touch-ups in the editor and the Ctrl+J shortcut.
• Admin translations compiled into compressed files, for 6 languages besides French.
• 402 KB archive, 299 automated checks.

Version 1.1.0 (October 29, 2026): the admin in German

• Admin translated into German. With Italian, Portuguese (Brazil) and Chinese added the same day, it's available in 7 languages.
• 315 KB archive.

Version 1.0.0 (October 28 and 29, 2026): the first version

• A PHP CMS with no database: a static cache served without loading the application, CSS inlined in the page, responsive WebP images.
• Built-in SEO: JSON-LD structured data, a sitemap with images and hreflang, an RSS feed, automatic 301 redirects, live analysis.
• Built-in GEO: llms.txt, llms-full.txt, a Markdown version of every page, an AI bot policy, the GEO score.
• Security shaped by an offensive review: 17 vulnerabilities found and fixed, 13 attack scenarios replayed against the fixed version. Argon2id, two-factor authentication and backup codes, brute-force protection, CSRF tokens, a strict CSP, an integrity check, FTP recovery (data/reset.php).
• Block editor, media library, menus, categories, messages, administrator and editor roles.
• Setup wizard and starter content in French, Spanish and English; admin in French, English and Spanish.

How do you update Éclair?

The official guide's procedure applies to every version in this release history. Allow a few minutes.

1. Make a backup: Security › Download a backup.
2. Download the latest archive and unzip it.
3. Via FTP, delete the app/ and assets/ folders from your site.
4. Upload the app/ and assets/ folders from the new version, along with index.php and .htaccess.
5. Don't touch data/ (content, settings, accounts, custom CSS) or media/ (images).
6. In the admin: Settings › Advanced › Clear cache.

Deleting first avoids leaving old files behind, which the integrity check would flag. Run it afterwards: Security › File integrity › Scan now.

Maintenance details are in Advanced security and maintenance.