Version 1.2.9 – AI referrals (human traffic from AI tools)

- NEW: AI referrals tracking (referrer + short-lived session cookie) to see which pages AI tools send visitors to.

- NEW: AI Analytics panel showing top AI referrers, top landing pages, and recent referral sessions.

- NOTE: Prompts/keyphrases are not available – AI tools generally do not pass the user’s query to websites.

Version 1.2.8 – Prevent settings from overwriting sitemap

- FIX: Saving LLMS.txt Manager settings no longer resets Robots.txt Manager settings (including the configured sitemap URL).

- FIX: Sitemap URL now persists correctly across tabs, preventing false 404s and rebuild failures caused by accidental resets.

Version 1.2.7 – Test Mode + Sitemap fetch hardening

- NEW: Test mode toggle (administrators can generate crawl-path analytics using their own browser).

- FIX: Sitemap fetch/validation is now more tolerant of redirects/CDN/security layers (browser-like UA, redirects, accepts 2xx/3xx).

- FIX: URL index rebuild now supports both sitemapindex and direct urlset sitemaps, and tolerates www/non-www host variants.

Version 1.2.6 – UI tidy + Sitemap diagnostics fix

- FIX: Custom sitemap URL now saves correctly when entered as a relative path (e.g. "sitemap_index.xml"), so File Diagnostics shows the right configured sitemap and validation status.

- TIDY: Removed the extra Plugin Hub banner so the admin header is cleaner.

Version 1.2.5 – Crawl Paths + Health Score

- NEW: Crawl Paths tracking (captures paths before/after /llms.txt for AI bots).

- NEW: Per-bot Crawl Paths report in AI Analytics (top before/after paths).

- IMPROVED: Health score now includes last regenerated timestamp plus llms/robots/sitemap checks.

- FIX: Corrected Health score computation call.

- TECH: Logging format now includes URI + EVT (backwards compatible parser).

Version 1.2.4 – Admin tabs + Robots Manager

- Renamed Settings tab to “LLMS.txt Manager”.

- Added new “Robots.txt Manager” tab and moved robots.txt controls/preview there.

- Licence client version now aligned with plugin version.

## 1.2.3

- NEW: Optional footer link on all pages to /llms.txt (editable label in Settings).

=== Expressive LLMS Assistant - Changelog ===

= Version 1.2.2 - 2026-01-30 (INFO UPDATE + COPYRIGHT) =

IMPROVEMENTS:

* Updated “Important information” tab to reflect current features (Important Content sync, diagnostics, sitemap + robots.txt tools, analytics logging).

* Added a clear copyright + licensing statement in the plugin UI.

TECHNICAL:

* Version bump to 1.2.2.

= Version 1.2.1 - 2025-01-30 (BUG FIX + BRANDING) =

CRITICAL FIXES:

* Fixed Important Content fields not appearing in llms.txt file

* Fixed sync function to properly pull Important Content data

* Important Content now takes priority over legacy custom block text

* Automatic sync when Important Content tab is saved

NEW FEATURES:

* Added branded Plugin Hub header to all admin pages

* Quick access "My account" button (links to plugin-hub.co.uk/my-account)

* Quick access "Visit Plugin Hub" button (links to plugin-hub.co.uk)

* Professional branding matching AI SEO Auditor style

IMPROVEMENTS:

* Better visual consistency across Expressive Design plugins

* Enhanced navigation to Plugin Hub ecosystem

* Cleaner admin interface with branded header

* Hook added to sync Important Content on save

TECHNICAL:

* Added update_option_expressive_llms_important_content hook

* Enhanced ed_llms_sync_custom_block_from_settings() function

* New CSS styles for Plugin Hub header

* Responsive header layout

WHAT WAS BROKEN:

Users who filled in Important Content fields were not seeing that content appear

in their llms.txt file. This was because the sync function only looked at the

legacy "custom_block_text" field and ignored the Important Content fields entirely.

NOW FIXED:

Important Content is properly pulled via expressive_llms_get_important_content_block()

and synced to llms.txt whenever the Important Content form is saved.

= Version 1.2.0 - 2025-01-30 (FEATURE RELEASE) =

NEW FEATURES:

* Added robots.txt Management Tool - complete control over robots.txt file

* View current robots.txt content directly in settings (physical or virtual)

* Delete physical robots.txt file with confirmation dialog

* Generate new physical robots.txt with LLMS and Sitemap directives

* Visual status indicators showing LLMS and Sitemap presence

* Live robots.txt preview in admin interface

IMPROVEMENTS:

* Better handling of physical vs virtual robots.txt files

* Clear explanations of physical file precedence

* One-click solutions for common robots.txt issues

* Confirmation dialogs before destructive actions

* Success/error messages for all robots.txt operations

PROBLEM SOLVED:

This version solves the common issue where a physical robots.txt file (often created

by SEO plugins like Yoast) prevents the Expressive LLMS Assistant from adding its

directives to robots.txt. Users can now either delete the physical file or regenerate

it with the proper LLMS and Sitemap references.

USE CASES:

- View what search engines/AI crawlers actually see in robots.txt

- Fix physical file blocking plugin settings

- Regenerate robots.txt after configuration changes

- Create physical file with correct directives for your setup

= Version 1.1.1 - 2025-01-30 (HOTFIX) =

CRITICAL BUGFIX:

* Fixed settings save handler not processing sitemap_url field

* Fixed settings save handler not processing robots_sitemap_enabled field

* Sitemap URL now saves correctly and persists across page reloads

* Robots.txt sitemap checkbox now saves correctly

ISSUE RESOLVED:

Previously, when users entered a custom sitemap URL and clicked "Save Settings",

the value would not be saved and would revert to empty. This has been fixed.

= Version 1.1.0 - 2025-01-30 =

NEW FEATURES:

* Added customizable Sitemap URL field - now supports any sitemap filename or URL

* Added automatic Sitemap reference to robots.txt functionality

* Implemented real-time sitemap validation with visual feedback

* Added sitemap accessibility checking on settings page

* New diagnostic rows showing sitemap status and robots.txt configuration

IMPROVEMENTS:

* Enhanced robots.txt management - now handles both LLMS and Sitemap directives

* Better sitemap URL handling - supports relative paths, absolute URLs, and external CDNs

* Improved error messages - specific, actionable feedback instead of generic errors

* Enhanced settings interface - clearer organization and better visual indicators

* Better support for all major SEO plugins (WordPress Core, Yoast, Rank Math, etc.)

* Added validation indicators (✓/⚠) throughout admin interface

TECHNICAL CHANGES:

* Added ed_llms_get_sitemap_url() function for flexible sitemap URL retrieval

* Added ed_llms_validate_sitemap_url() function for real-time validation

* Enhanced ed_llms_robots_inject() to support multiple directives

* Updated ed_llms_get_settings() with new sitemap_url and robots_sitemap_enabled fields

* Modified ed_llms_rebuild_url_index() to use configurable sitemap URL

* Improved URL parsing to handle both relative and absolute paths

COMPATIBILITY:

* Maintains full backward compatibility with version 1.0.0

* No breaking changes - existing installations upgrade seamlessly

* Default behavior unchanged if new features not configured

* All existing settings preserved during update

SECURITY:

* Enhanced input sanitization with esc_url_raw() for all URLs

* Added timeout protection for sitemap validation requests

* Improved XML parsing error handling

* Better validation of user-submitted URLs

FIXES:

* Resolved hardcoded sitemap path limitation

* Fixed robots.txt generation to include sitemap reference

* Improved error handling for unreachable sitemaps

* Better handling of SSL certificate validation in development environments

DEVELOPER NOTES:

* Plugin version constant updated from 1.0.0 to 1.1.0

* Updated License Core plugin version declaration

* Added inline documentation for new functions

* Improved code comments throughout

KNOWN ISSUES:

* Physical robots.txt files (if present) are not modified by the plugin

* Sitemap validation requires outbound HTTP requests to be enabled

* SSL verification disabled for development environments only

UPGRADE NOTES:

* Simply replace the plugin files or update through WordPress

* No database changes required

* Settings are automatically migrated

* New options will appear in the Settings tab immediately

---

= Version 1.0.0 - Initial Release =

FEATURES:

* Basic llms.txt file generation and management

* Auto-logging of llms.txt access for analytics

* License key validation and activation

* AI Analytics dashboard (with valid license)

* Custom LLMS guidance block support

* URL index generation from sitemap_index.xml

* robots.txt integration for LLMS reference

* File diagnostics and health monitoring

* Important Content management tab

* Template reset functionality

---

For more information, visit: https://expressivedesign.co.uk

Support: https://plugin-hub.co.uk