Ghost Release: 5.10.0

TL;DR

Ghost v5.10.0 introduces several new features including member attribution tracking, audit logs, and cardless trials with expiring complimentary subscriptions. The update also brings significant performance improvements to image caching and email sending, along with UI enhancements for tiers and offers. Multiple bug fixes address issues with the editor, comments, and email functionality. This release lays groundwork for better analytics and administrative controls while improving the overall user experience.

Highlight of the Release

• New member attribution tracking system to understand where members come from
• Audit log feature (behind labs flag) for tracking user actions across the platform
• Cardless trials with expiring complimentary subscriptions
• Signup and conversion counts for posts to track content performance
• Improved caching architecture for better performance

Migration Guide

Member Attribution System

If you enable the member attribution alpha flag, the system will begin tracking how members discover your site. No migration steps are required, but be aware that this feature stores user navigation history in localStorage.

Mailgun SDK Update

The release switches from mailgun-js to mailgun.js SDK. If you have custom code that interacts with the Mailgun integration, you may need to update it to match the new SDK's API.

Cache Architecture Changes

If you have custom code that interacts with Ghost's caching system, particularly for image sizes, you may need to update it to work with the new adapter-based approach.

No database migrations requiring manual intervention are included in this release.

Upgrade Recommendations

This is a feature release with significant enhancements and bug fixes. Upgrade is recommended for all users, especially those who:

1. Want to track where members are coming from with the new attribution system
2. Need better administrative oversight with the audit log feature
3. Want to offer cardless trials through expiring complimentary subscriptions
4. Have experienced issues with emojis in the editor or line breaks in email cards
5. Have encountered problems with comments or email preferences links

The release includes performance improvements that benefit all installations. As always, make a backup before upgrading.

Bug Fixes

Editor Fixes

• Fixed an issue where emojis would display as square boxes in the editor when using Safari
• Fixed line breaks not persisting when used inside email cards

Comment System Fixes

• Fixed comments not being visible in the activity feed
• Fixed an error that occurred when deleting posts with comment replies
• Fixed broken email preferences links in comment notification emails

UI and Form Fixes

• Fixed tier card price display issues
• Fixed odd behavior when saving complimentary members
• Fixed tier card dropdown link bug where buttons were clickable even when the dropdown was closed

New Features

Member Attribution System

A new member attribution system has been added (behind alpha flag) that tracks how members discover and interact with your site. This feature stores a history of page visits in localStorage and uses this data to attribute member signups and subscriptions to specific content.

Audit Log

A new audit log feature (behind labs flag) provides administrators with a detailed history of actions performed across the platform. The log shows who did what and when, including actions performed by both users and integrations.

Cardless Trials with Expiring Complimentary Subscriptions

Administrators can now create complimentary subscriptions with an expiry date, effectively enabling cardless trials. A daily job automatically cleans up expired complimentary subscriptions.

Post Signup & Conversion Metrics

Posts now include signup and conversion counts (behind alpha flag), allowing content creators to see which content drives member growth and paid conversions.

Search Helper

A beta implementation of a {{search}} helper has been added that outputs a pre-styled icon to trigger search functionality on the site.

Security Updates

No significant security fixes were included in this release.

Performance Improvements

Improved Caching Architecture

• Refactored the image size cache to use dependency injection
• Moved from a simple Map-based cache to a more flexible adapter-based approach
• Added support for both synchronous and asynchronous cache implementations
• Prepared the groundwork for using Redis-based caching in the future

Email Sending Optimization

• Fixed batch size when sending bulk emails, which was accidentally set to 1 instead of 1000
• This significantly improves the performance of newsletter sending

Test Environment Optimization

• Disabled members migrations in the test environment to reduce test execution time
• Removed approximately 27 seconds of idle time from E2E tests

Impact Summary

Ghost v5.10.0 represents a significant step forward in analytics and administrative capabilities. The new member attribution system provides valuable insights into how members discover your site, while the audit log feature enhances security and accountability by tracking user actions.

The addition of cardless trials through expiring complimentary subscriptions gives site owners more flexibility in their membership offerings. Content creators will benefit from the new signup and conversion metrics for posts, helping them understand which content drives growth.

Performance improvements to the caching architecture and email sending process should result in a more efficient system, particularly for sites with large member bases. The various bug fixes address pain points in the editor, comment system, and UI that were affecting the user experience.

Overall, this release balances new features with important infrastructure improvements and bug fixes, making it a worthwhile upgrade for all Ghost users.

Full Release Notes