Better Messages – Live Chat, Chat Rooms, Real-Time Messaging & Private Messages

Changelog

2.13.0

• Added optional End-to-End Encryption (E2EE) for private and group conversations (WebSocket version only)
  • Can be enabled at the website level and optionally per conversation
  • Messages encrypted in user browsers — server never sees plaintext
  • AES-256-GCM encryption for messages and file attachments
  • Password-protected key backup for multi-device access
  • Key recovery if the user forgets an encryption password
  • Automatic key distribution for new conversation participants
• Added client-side image and video optimization for cross-browser compatibility and saving storage space
  • Automatic image conversion to WebP, AVIF, or JPEG before upload
  • Configurable image quality and max resolution
  • Metadata stripping for privacy
  • HEIC/HEIF automatic conversion for cross-browser compatibility
  • Video format conversion to MP4 for universal playback
• Added Compact Mode for Side Conversations List with auto and always compact options
• Renamed “Combined View” to “Side Conversations List”
• Fixed “Enable PeepSo Header at Messages Page” was not working after some updates
• Other minor bugfixes, improvements and optimizations

2.12.9

• Added optional feature to enable messages forwarding
• Reworked bulk messaging
  • Moved bulk messaging to a dedicated WP Admin screen
  • Added ability to attach files to bulk messages
  • Moved bulk messaging sending to a background process instead of frontend processing
  • Added ability to schedule bulk messages for later
  • Added ability to pause, resume and cancel bulk jobs
  • Added follow-up messaging to send additional messages into existing bulk conversations
  • Added activity filter to target users active within or inactive for a specified number of days
  • Added ability to send bulk messages as another user
  • Added ability to send bulk messages to specific users
  • Added ability to send bulk messages to group members (BuddyPress, PeepSo, Ultimate Member)
  • Added send rate (batch size) control
  • Added test/preview for bulk messages before sending
• Added initial integration with SureDash
• Removed jQuery dependency from inline scripts
• Fixed empty chat rooms to be properly shown in user inbox when user auto added to it
• Added Thread ID indication and View in inbox button to Chat Rooms settings page in WP Admin
• Other minor bugfixes, improvements and optimizations

2.12.5 – 2.12.6

• Added option to filter conversations list to show only unread conversations
• Migrated WC Vendors and WCFM Add-ons to the core plugin. WCFM and WC Vendors Add-ons are now deprecated and will be removed, please deactivate them in your website if you are using them.
• Updated OneSignal Integration code to support the latest OneSignal API changes
• Mentions search now supports searching usernames with whitespace
• Other minor bugfixes, improvements and optimizations

2.12.2 – 2.12.4

• Completely reworked Voice Recorder Add-on UX
• Added Attachments browser feature which allows browsing all uploaded files in the conversation information panel
• Added message draft autosave feature — unsent messages are automatically saved and restored when returning to a conversation, with a draft indicator shown in the conversations list
• Added voice message transcription powered by OpenAI (requires OpenAI API key)
• Added protect files with proxy feature to protect uploaded files from direct access with support for X-Sendfile, X-Accel-Redirect and LiteSpeed optimized serving
• Added resumable file uploads for improved reliability on slow or unstable connections
• Added option to switch between file upload method (Standard POST Upload or TUS (Resumable Upload)) as some hosting blocks TUS uploads with WAF
• Improved upload directory structure with per-thread unique subfolders to improve security and keep original filenames
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.12.0 – 2.12.1

• Added AI Content Moderation powered by OpenAI Moderation API
• Group Video & Audio Calls improvements:
  • Added moderator controls: lock room, mute all participants, broadcast mode
  • Added Promote to Speaker / Demote to Viewer controls in broadcast mode
  • Added Raise Hand / Lower Hand feature for viewers in broadcast mode
  • Added Lower All Hands button for moderators
  • Added option to restrict who can start group calls (anyone or moderators only)
  • Added default call mode setting (Participatory or Broadcast) in conversation settings
  • Added group call settings section in conversation information panel
  • Added visual speaker highlighting during group calls
  • Improved microphone and camera device switching reliability
• Replaced browser database engine with new lightweight custom solution for better performance and stability
• Browser database and WebSocket connection is now shared across browser tabs via SharedWorker, improving performance and real-time sync
• AI Moderation supports two modes: Hold for Review (messages require admin approval) and Flag Only (messages are sent but marked for admin review)
• AI Moderation includes configurable sensitivity threshold, content category selection, and role-based bypass
• AI Moderation supports image moderation in addition to text content
• AI Flagged messages appear in the moderation panel alongside user-reported messages
• Improved moderation notification emails with detailed reason information (AI moderation, first-time sender, blacklisted user)
• AI Chat Bots: Added support for OpenAI reasoning models (o-series, GPT-5)
• AI Chat Bots: Added Temperature, Max Output Tokens, and Reasoning Effort settings
• Added Chat Room block for WordPress Block Editor (Gutenberg) with full screen auto-open option
• Added option to hide participants count in chat room header
• Improved rendering performance of the messages list, reducing unnecessary updates when receiving new messages
• Improved auto-recovery when browser database is unexpectedly deleted
• Fixed calls not starting in some cases
• Fixed group video call crash when container has zero dimensions during initialization
• Fixed AI Chat Bot error “You cannot send messages to this user”
• Fixed scrollbar thumb direction in some browsers
• Compatibility update for WordPress 6.2+ by replacing deprecated get_page_by_title() usage during activation
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.11.0 – 2.11.1

• Added ability to customize the email template for unread messages notifications in WP Admin
• Added ability to add unsubscribe link to email notifications
• Added ability to send test email notifications message from plugin settings page
• Added Pre-Moderated Messages feature, which allows moderating messages before they are delivered to recipients
  • Added ability to pre-moderate messages when the user did not have messages at website yet
  • Added ability to enable moderation of new conversation by user role in plugin settings
  • Added ability to enable moderation of new replies by user role in plugin settings
  • Added ability to whitelist users from moderation in the administration screen
  • Added ability to blacklist users, which enables force moderation of messages from them
  • Added ability to set email list which will receive notifications about new messages for moderated or new message reports
• Added options for admins to bypass words blacklist
• Added initial support for new Dokan Vendor Dashboard UI
• Removed Customizations tab from settings page, settings from that page moved to Messaging tab
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.10.0 – 2.10.4

• Performance optimizations for some database queries
• Added option to Use Full Space in FluentCommunity Messages Page, which allows to use all available space for messages area
• Added option to show page title in FluentCommunity Messages Page, like in other pages
• Added option to combine Mini Conversations & Mini Chats widgets
• Added missing translation strings for Image Lightbox
• Avoided FluentCommunity page reload when pressing private message button from user profile
• Added User Inbox Block for WordPress Block editor
• Added ability to upload custom notification sounds for incoming and outgoing messages, and for incoming and outgoing calls, in the plugin settings under the Notifications tab.
• Added subfolders for file uploads to prevent too many files in single folder (this will only affect new uploaded files)
• Fixed some php deprecation notices in new PHP versions
• Documented better_messages_css_customizations php filter for customizing
• Added new hook for developers better_messages_call_created
• Added new hook for developers better_messages_group_call_joined
• AI Chat Bots:
  • Rewrite of the AI Chat Bots to use new OpenAI Responses API for better performance and lower costs
  • Support for images generation tool which allow to generate or make modifications to images using gpt-image-1 or gpt-image-1-mini models
  • Support for uploading PDF files to conversation with AI Chat Bots
  • Support File Search tool which allows AI Chat Bots to search relevant information through your own uploaded files
  • Support for WebSearch tool which allows AI Chat Bots to search information from the web
  • Support for changing Service Tier in Chat Bot settings
• Updated Freemius SDK
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.9.0 – 2.9.17

• Fixed mobile menu entry in FluentCommunity integration when mobile menu is displayed outside of community
• Fixed reply area overlay on mobile devices in latest FluentCommunity versions
• Updated PeepSo Messages Popup to match new PeepSo design
• Used new messages icon in PeepSo integration
• Automatically switching between dark and light modes in new PeepSo Block Theme
• Reworked messages reactions selector to fit more icons nicely and better positioning in edge cases situations
• Added integration with Progressify PWA for push notifications
• Minor improvements for fullscreen pwa mode
• Added better_messages_attachments_random_file_name filter to allow developers to disable random file name generation for uploaded files
• Added thread_id_created_at_index database index to messages table to improve performance in some cases
• Added Android Mobile App (WebSocket version only)
• Fixed issue with file upload in AI Chat Bots conversations in some cases
• Search results on New Conversation screen does not have height limit anymore at desktop devices and contains more results if available
• Added new option which allows to send private message to user from message context menu in group conversations
• Added option to enable possibility to send replies to own messages
• Added New capability bm_can_administrate. This capability can be assigned to any user or role (via the User Role Editor plugin or similar) to grant moderator privileges. Users with this capability can view all conversations and messages on the site, as well as delete messages and entire conversations.
• Fix for scrolling broken in some cases in FluentCommunity at mobile devices
• Added Mobile App Splash Screen Background Color setting
• Added Mobile App Login logo height setting
• Fixed missed translations for Mobile App
• Minor fixes for functionality related to pasting links and screen snapshots from clipboard
• Removed request aborted error displaying in some cases
• Fixed admin settings does not save correctly in some cases because of conflict with other plugins
• Ensure that users with bm_can_administrate capability can not be blocked by regular users
• Fixed mini chats not working properly in some cases
• Updated 3rd party libraries to latest versions
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.8.0 – 2.8.16

• Added ability to set Indent from bottom for mini widgets and mini chats
• Upgrading plugin to new generation of ReactJS 19
• Improved reply to specific message speed in WebSocket version
• Added option to select if unread counter should display number of unread messages or number of unread conversations
• Added setting to disable swipe back for mobile devices
• Improved compatibility with strict MySQL setups
• Fixed infinite loading when navigating to specific message in some cases
• Compatibility with CSS changes in FluentCommunity latest update
• Added ability to send message with Shift+Enter key combination when send on Enter is disabled
• FluentCommunity Integration: Added support for FluentCommunity Spaces allowing to disable messages in spaces
• Updated Freemius SDK to 2.12.1
• Fixed issue with Mini Chats not working properly in some cases
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.15 – 2.7.23

• Fixed guest registration button was not working when WordPress Permalinks settings was set to “Plain”
• Improved behaviour when links was not able to be paste if was copied mobile safari url bar
• Added few missed strings for translations in file uploader screen
• BuddyBoss Integration: Added support with new hover pop-ups introduced in BuddyBoss Platform Version 2.8.20
• PeepSo Integration: Added toggle to enable or disable group chat in PeepSo Group Settings (thanks to @jaworskimatt from PeepSo)
• PeepSo Integration: Displaying PeepSo VIP icons in usernames instead of verified badge
• PeepSo Integration: Do not allow to send messages when user is blocked in PeepSo
• PeepSo Integration: Ensure that messages popups in headers works the same way as PeepSo native popups
• Context menu on right click or long tap on messages now appear only when not clicked/tapped on selected text
• Clicking on error message automatically copy it to clipboard, which is useful for debugging purposes, when some issue arise
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.14

• Added option to show “Suggested conversations” in conversations list for new users when they do not have conversations yet
• Added warning banner to settings page if plugin detects that WP Cron is not working properly
• Open AI Chat Bots: Added support for Voice Models using Voice Messages add-on
• Voice Messages add-on:
  • Added duration and current play position of voice message
  • Auto play next voice message in chat when finished playing current one
• Ensure only friends mode to work only in private conversations
• HivePress Integration: Fixed send message button in booking add details screen
• Ensure guest names are unique
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.12

• Prevent scrolling of conversations list to top when pinning conversation and other actions
• Added option to automatically delete old messages from database which are older than specified amount of days
• Added automatic cleaning of old temp ids in messages table
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.11

• FluentCommunity: Fixed disappearing header in mobile view
• FluentCommunity: Properly handle email redirection to login page from email links
• FluentCommunity: Removing bottom menu at mobile when reply area is focused
• Tested up to WordPress 6.8

2.7.6 – 2.7.10

• Fixed FluentCommunity integration when community is used without slug
• Prevent mobile devices from going to sleep while listening audio message
• Fixed replies not worked if message was send from files uploader popup
• Fixed possible issue when conversation was not possible to recover after deleting
• Added/documented new possibilities for developers
  • set_user_unread_count_for_thread
• Removed switch camera button if camera is disabled in private call screen on mobile
• Fixed issue with playing voice messages in PWA after 2.7.6 update
• Reconfigured call servers connection logic to improve connection stability in some cases
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.5

• Improved displaying of messages, when user is not allowed to start a call
• Fixed issue when old messages in conversations was not displayed properly in some cases
• Fixed php notice about too early translations when using with BuddyBoss
• Added wp_http_validate_url check to the url parser to improve security
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.3 – 2.7.4

• Fixed not english characters was not working properly in black list of words
• Fixed errors was shown in some cases when it’s not supposed to be shown
• Launching video servers at multiple continents to improve calls connection quality and latency wolrdwide
• Group Video and Audio calls banner was not displayed when call is active, but there is only 2 participants in group chat
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.1 – 2.7.2

• Initial version of FluentCommunity integration
• Fixed double sound echoes twice when sharing screen in group call after latest update
• Added mobile application database tables to settings page
• Added AI Chat Bots as dedicated user role to Better Messages Restriction settings page
• Minimum required PHP version is now 7.4
• (2.7.2) Detecting the inability to play audio without user interaction in private and group calls and showing message with instructions to click on it to allow audio playback
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements

2.7.0

• Private & Group Video Calls review and improvements
• Added ability to pin participants in group video chats
• Increased max allowed participants in group video chats to 32
• Private calls now using same technology as group calls to improve connection stability and quality
• Added switch camera button to private video calls at mobile devices for easier camera switching
• Using OPFS Storage when possible better performance and stability
• Using Dedicated Worker for better performance and stability
• Changed authorization function from wp_authorize to custom implementation using wp_check_password for better compatibility with 3rd party plugins
• Removed option to not use random generated file names for uploaded files to improve security
• Added index.php file to uploads folder to prevent files listing when allowed in server configuration
• Updated Freemius SDK to latest version
• Guests now able to enter their display name when entering chat room
• Added automatic cleaner for bm_deleted_time messages meta_key
• Fixed infinite loading which could appear in some cases
• Other minor bugfixes and improvements