View source for Moodle 2.9 release notes

[[Releases]] > {{FULLPAGENAME}}

Release date: Monday, 11th May 2015
 
Here is [https://tracker.moodle.org/secure/IssueNavigator!executeAdvanced.jspa?jqlQuery=project+%3D+mdl+AND+resolution+%3D+fixed+AND+fixVersion+in+%28%222.9%22%29+ORDER+BY+priority+DESC&runQuery=true&clear=true the full list of fixed issues in 2.9].

See our [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/New_features New Features page] for a more user-friendly introduction to Moodle 2.9 with screenshots.

If you are upgrading from previous version, make sure to read the [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Upgrading Upgrading] documentation. 

==Server requirements==

These are just the minimum supported versions. We recommend keeping all of your software up-to-date.

* Moodle upgrade:  Moodle 2.2 or later (if upgrading from earlier versions, you must upgrade to 2.2.11 as a first step)
* PHP version: minimum PHP 5.4.4 (always use latest PHP 5.4.x or 5.5.x on Windows - http://windows.php.net/download/), PHP 7 is NOT supported
* Ghostscript should be installed for pdf annotation.

=== Database requirements ===

Moodle supports the following database servers. Again, version numbers are just the minimum supported version. We recommend running the latest stable version of any software.

{| class="nicetable"
|-
! Database
! Minimum version
! Recommended
|-
| [http://www.postgresql.org/ PostgreSQL]
| 9.1
| Latest
|-
| [http://www.mysql.com/ MySQL]
| 5.5.31
| Latest
|-
| [https://mariadb.org/ MariaDB]
| 5.5.31
| Latest
|-
| [http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/server-cloud/products/sql-server/ Microsoft SQL Server]
| 2008
| Latest
|-
| [http://www.oracle.com/us/products/database/overview/index.html Oracle Database]
| 10.2
| Latest
|}

==Client requirements==

=== Browser support ===

{| class="nicetable"
|-
! Browser
! Minimum version
! Recommended version
! Notes
|-
| [https://www.google.com/intl/en_au/chrome/browser/ Google Chrome]
| 30.0
| Latest
|
|-
| [http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/ Mozilla Firefox]
| 25.0
| Latest
|
|-
| [http://www.apple.com/safari/ Apple Safari]
| 6
| Latest
|
|-
| [http://windows.microsoft.com/en-AU/internet-explorer/download-ie Microsoft Internet Explorer]
| 9
| Latest
| Version 10 is required for drag-and-drop upload of content from outside the browser into Moodle
|}

==Major features==

===Navigation improvements===

One of the biggest project was improvements in Navigation and Users pages, see also MDL-45774. It includes:

* MDL-45894, MDL-49634 - [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Overview_report Grades page] listing all my courses, and all courses I am teaching in one place (linked from User Menu) 
* MDL-48936 - My Home is now  [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Dashboard Dashboard]
* MDL-48932, MDL-45898 - Redesign [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/User_profiles profile page], make it pluggable 
* MDL-45895 - New [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Preferences Preferences] page (linked from user menu) 
* MDL-45896 - Consistent header for user pages 
* MDL-48931 - Consistent header for user sub pages 
* MDL-48935 - Consistent bread crumbs for user pages 
* MDL-49635 - Remove redundant nodes from nav tree
* MDL-49983 - Improve consistency of the use of the word "My" in navigation

===User interface improvements===

* MDL-43996 - Drag and drop image into [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Text_editor Atto editor] inserts it as a file 
* MDL-19670 - Teacher can post the same forum question to all groups at once 
* MDL-47172 - “You have assignments that need attention” in the [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Course_overview_block course overview block] displays relevant information for teachers 
* MDL-48933 - Ajax interface for [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Messaging messaging] 
* MDL-23296 - Provide search function for [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Server_files_repository Server files area] in the file picker
* MDL-48937 - Don't show the category in the breadcrumb if there is only one category
* MDL-26226 - Section names in the navigation can link to the sections
* MDL-49694 - Overview report shows the full course name
* MDL-47527 - Allow access to overview report for users who can view all grades
* MDL-36009, MDL-46662 - Grader report accessibility improvement
* MDL-47562 - UI Fixes and improvements for SingleView report
* MDL-47434 - Do not display 'General' section in navigation block if it's empty

===Course creation improvements===

* MDL-10405 - Added button to quickly delete a whole section on the [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Course_homepage course homepage]
* MDL-31500 - Allow backup and restore on the front page
* MDL-5583 - Fields in database module can be set as required 
* MDL-28526 - Glossary can export/import embedded images and attached files 
* MDL-49006, MDL-49101 - Removed default requirement of activity description and substituted with a single setting
* MDL-13831 - Grade to pass can be set by editing activity without going to gradebook 
* MDL-46960 - Completion status is updated immediately for student when activity is graded
* MDL-27074 - Display group name for group events in the calendar
* MDL-48969 - New [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Activity_results_block activity results block]
* MDL-18177 - Add option to choose whether groups and/or groupings are included in a back up
* MDL-20053 - Database activity: create ##userpicture## tag to allow the user's profile picture to be displayed
* MDL-49543 - Add a WYSIWYG field to Badges which is displayed on the criteria page
* MDL-46416 - Possible to change / remove picture from group
* MDL-49687 - Adding a single person to multiple groups at the same time
* MDL-21724 - The course edit page needs a way to redirect to some page other than the main course page after saving
* MDL-47628 - When grouping is selected for the activity display a button to quickly create access restriction (helps users who were used to groupmembersonly)
* MDL-23178 - Allow indenting again for activities in the Main Menu block
* MDL-46238 - Add a simple way to go back from enrol/users.php page to the course

===Administrator features===

* MDL-15187 - Assign global roles using CSV upload
* MDL-30937 - Backup report again links to the individual course backup summaries
* MDL-32547 - Configure temporary file deletion, to avoid moodledata/temp/backup filling up the filesystem
* MDL-49684 - Replace custom Moodle timezone stuff with standard PHP date/time code
* MDL-25763 - CLI version of admin/replace.php
* MDL-44874 - Per-request temp directories
* MDL-46064 - Drop support for MyISAM
* MDL-49298 - Make tgz backups standard
* MDL-47834 - New option for restriction of concurrent logins in [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Managing_authentication managing authentication]
* MDL-47800 - Logout user when somebody changes their password
* MDL-47830 - Add password rotation restrictions
* MDL-48559 - Web CRON should be disabled by default
* MDL-48080 - Never send mail to domains ending in .invalid
* MDL-48595 - Log exports no longer fails because of memory limit
* MDL-28513 - Allow specification of admin user email in CLI installer
* MDL-49842 - Allow specification of front page summary in CLI installer
* MDL-47803 - New page that shows all [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Browser_sessions browser sessions] of current user
* MDL-34684 - New health check to detect incorrect category path order and/or missing parent categories
* MDL-48493 - Automatically detect the plugin type when installing from ZIP
* MDL-48894 - [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Site_registration Site registration] page states if site is registered
* MDL-18183 - Option to verify peer and host of MNet peer using HTTPS

===Files and repositories===

* MDL-42616 - New admin tool for [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Working_with_files adding custom file types]
* MDL-43752 - [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Amazon_S3_repository Amazon S3 repository] allows an endpoint to be set

===Authentication, enrolments and access===

* Several improvements to meta enrolments, such as: populate groups from courses MDL-17929, sorting courses alphabetically MDL-35696, button to quickly add a new method MDL-49439
* MDL-26017 - Keyholder capability in self-enrolment plugin
* MDL-20365 - Salted Crypt passwords option for external database authentication
* MDL-49380 - Chose "Create new group" when synchronising cohort enrolment with a group
* MDL-49677 - Improvement of Custom welcome message in self-enrolment plugin
* MDL-43415 - Custom profile fields should be syncable with external DB auth
* MDL-49638 - reCAPTCHA should be moved below custom profile fields during self registration

===Quiz===

* MDL-40988 - Add section headings to quiz
* MDL-40992 - Option for teachers to allow students to redo a finished question within a quiz attempt
* MDL-40990 - Teachers can require students to complete Question 1 before they can see Question 2
* MDL-25721 - The question bank can be sorted by date
* MDL-348 - Printer-friendly option for quizzes 
* MDL-6340 - force unique/unseen questions in  retakes
* MDL-35280 - quiz_reset_userdata does not have an option to remove user/group overrides
* MDL-48898 - Quiz time period setting should use admin_setting_configduration

===Lesson===

* MDL-48803 - support for groups  
* MDL-48715 - moving “time spent” from prerequisite to the proper completion rule  
* MDL-43387 - UI for grading essays 
* MDL-48244 - Lessons with no questions show completed after the first page is viewed
* MDL-47587 - Make progress bar available on the very last page of a lesson.
* MDL-49642 - Give time/date extensions to users and groups in lesson
* MDL-40286 - non-editing teacher should see Grade analysis in Lesson
* MDL-48473 - Lesson shortanswer question: add fill in the blank option
* MDL-48984 - Lesson content page jump descriptions, numerical and shortanswer questions answers allow rich html but should be plain text
* MDL-18553 - Removing grade info from lesson pages if lesson grade is 0
* MDL-26689 - in order to prevent interactivity references from being broken move the "Dependent on" feature to the completion/availability subsystem
* MDL-49183 -  Page creation, update and delete events added
* MDL-48883 - Content page viewed, Question page viewed and Question page answered events added

===Other modules===

* MDL-48221 - Make forum subscription combinations less confusing with different combinations
* MDL-48822 - Find last visual post in a discussion
* MDL-46755 - Allow teachers to configure the number of discussions displayed using the social course format
* MDL-49069 - Ability to specify default values for Forum RSS
* MDL-48159 - For users without group prevent submissions instead of using "Default team" in group assignments
* MDL-47777 - Convert assignment maximum files per submission maximum to global setting
* MDL-45848 - Possible to assign Marker on a marking guide or rubric assignment without giving a grade
* MDL-49220 - Allow preview of Choice options before activity is opened for submission
* MDL-34375 - Choice module should display information in "Course overview" block
* MDL-43770 - Exclude inactive users' responses from Choice report (with an option to include)
* MDL-32285 - Added "Continue" button under Error notification message (IMS CP)
* MDL-49730 - Workshop: use full page width when displaying contents
* MDL-36874 - Text navigation for Books
* MDL-49563 - Allow glossary entry to be updated from glossary navigation

===Various===

* MDL-46763 - Save user images as JPEG if uploaded in that format.
* MDL-48760 - MathJax library updated to 2.5
* MDL-47232 - Course completion: "Activities to be completed" should not require passing grade
* MDL-48437 - Make Visible/All [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Groups groups] selector show own groups first
* MDL-47501 - Add an indication that the [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Grade_letters grade letters] have been overridden
* MDL-47159 - Link plugin in Atto should add <nowiki>'http://'</nowiki> prefix when necessary
* MDL-9443 - Run *.xhtml file through the text filters
* MDL-48616 - Add Macrons in Atto character map
* MDL-46665 - ID number filter added to [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Browse_list_of_users Browse list of users]
* MDL-48499 - Show which users have not received messages in bulk messaging
* MDL-49333 - Return additional information in WebService core_get_site_info

==Security issues==
 
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313681 MSA-15-0018] Quiz manual-grading is an XSS risk, but does not declare that
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313682 MSA-15-0019] Possible phishing when redirecting to external site using referer header
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313683 MSA-15-0020] User fullname disclosure through account confirmation link
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313684 MSA-15-0021] Any authenticated user can subscribe to site-wide event monitor rules
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313685 MSA-15-0022] Potential XSS risk when returning text entered by student from Web Services
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313686 MSA-15-0023] Suspended user is able to login when confirming email
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313687 MSA-15-0024] User with suspended enrolment can see sections in the navigation tree
* [https://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=313688 MSA-15-0025] Capability to manage own files is not respected in Web Services

==For developers==
 
* MDL-49046 - Support for Asynchronous Module Definition formatted javascript modules. Developer docs: [[Javascript Modules]]
* MDL-49163 - Support for calling webservice functions directly from javascript. Developer docs: [[AJAX]]
* MDL-49152 - Support for implementing renderers as mustache templates (php and javascript). Developer docs: [[Templates]]
* MDL-44874 - A new per-request directory API has been added, and should be used instead of make_temp_directory wherever possible.
* MDL-49604 - Support for in browser caching (localstorage) of strings and templates 
* MDL-49650 - [https://docs.moodle.org/29/en/Template_library Template Library] - tool for displaying templates in the current theme 
* MDL-48887 - New auth hook to intercept code before login page is shown. 
* MDL-48177 - Allow plugin environment checks to work without defining explicit versions of Moodle
* MDL-46728 - WOFF2 fonts are supported in themes.
* MDL-39752, MDL-49456 - Behat tests runs in parallel
* MDL-49163 - Unified Ajax script handler. Developer docs: [[AJAX]]
* MDL-27548 - The comments table contains the component
* MDL-49269 - Add an AMD log module
* MDL-49534 - Delete pear/HTTP/WebDav
* MDL-48212 - Introduces a new class \core\message\message that should be used instead of \stdClass for creating messages.
* MDL-37477 - html_table API supports caption tag
* MDL-49643 - Deprecate inconsistent API to extend the navigation by local plugins
* MDL-49361 - Ability to provide alternate strings manager
* MDL-44642 - Implemented backend to keep session alive 
* MDL-45725 - User preferences for flexible tables can be set persistent across sessions
* MDL-49306 - When copying block instances the instance data is also copied
* MDL-47915 - Theme layout "embedded" uses id='page-content' rather than 'content' to be consistent with other layouts
* MDL-48212 - Implement new message api to support specific text only on a given handler
* MDL-49262 - Delete the yui versions of the bootstrap plugins
* MDL-40864 - Use div.logo instead of a.logo in Bootstrapbase / Clean / More home links
* MDL-48160 - For theme developers: changes to block region layouts when coded for RTL

[[Category:Release notes]]
[[Category:Moodle 2.9]]
 
[[fr:Notes de mise à jour de Moodle 2.9]]
[[es:Notas de Moodle 2.9]]