Changelog

Forms, and a home for every site

Any form on your site can now deliver to your inbox, with no backend and no third-party service. Each site also gets its own page for messages, form settings and site settings, and the editor gains a drag-and-drop Library and a Structure panel.

• FeatureSite forms — point a form at /__hh/form (or drop one in from the Library) and visitors' messages are saved to your dashboard and emailed to you. Replies go straight to the visitor. Works with or without JavaScript.
• FeatureMessages inbox — read, mark as spam and export form messages to CSV, per site or across all sites. Pro accounts can accept file attachments (up to 3 files, 25 MB per message).
• FeatureForm recipients — invite other people to receive a site's messages (1 on Free, up to 10 on Pro). They confirm by email first, and every email has a one-click unsubscribe.
• FeatureAfter-submit settings — choose whether visitors see a confirmation message or go to a page on your site (like /thanks), plus a custom error message. Set a default for the whole site in its Forms tab, or override it for one form by right-clicking it in the editor → Form Settings.
• FeatureSite pages — every site now has its own page with Overview, Messages, Forms and Settings tabs. Open it from the ⚙ Manage site button in your dashboard, now also on mobile.
• FeatureLibrary panel — drag ready-made sections and elements (buttons, forms, inputs, media, embeds and more) onto your page. They pick up your page's existing styles, so they look like part of your site.
• FeatureStructure panel — an outline of the page you can click to select elements, with the same right-click actions as the preview.
• Featurehtmlhost agents (CLI 2.5.0) — teach your own AI coding tool (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot) how htmlhost hosting and forms work. It writes the instructions into your project's AGENTS.md; clone adds them automatically, deploy keeps them current, and they're never deployed. Also at htmlhost.co/agents.md.
• ImprovementThe AI knows how forms work: ask it to add a contact form, send visitors to a thank-you page, change the confirmation text or style the success message. In Discuss mode it can explain form settings.
• ImprovementBuilt-in spam protection for forms: a hidden honeypot, a fill-time check, per-visitor rate limits, and refusal of password and card-number fields to prevent phishing.
• FixThe editor and preview now fill the whole window instead of leaving an empty band at the bottom.

Sign in without leaving the editor

Publishing now requires an account, and signing in no longer takes you away from your work.

• BreakingAnonymous publishing has been retired. Sign in with Google, GitHub or an email link to publish; existing sites are unaffected.
• FeatureSign-in window — sign in from a popup while you edit. The editor picks up your account as soon as you're signed in, with no reload and nothing lost.
• ImprovementClearer pages for sign-in errors and for checking your email after requesting a sign-in link.
• FeatureEmail preferences — one-click unsubscribe from marketing emails, respected across all our lifecycle emails.

CLI pull, clone & upload

Keep a local folder and your live site in sync from the terminal, and get clearer help when connecting a custom domain.

• Featurehtmlhost pull and htmlhost clone — download a published site to a local folder, edit it in your own tools, and deploy it back.
• Featurehtmlhost upload — upload media straight to your library from the terminal, with automatic retries. The CLI now also tells you when an update is available.
• ImprovementCustom domains — DNS setup now shows recommended records for your DNS provider and checks that HTTPS is working on your domain.
• FixChanges to sites on custom domains now show up immediately, instead of waiting for a cache to expire.

New AI models & more precise visual editing

• FeatureNew models — Claude Opus 5 and Sonnet 5, GPT 5.5 and Gemini 3.1 Pro, shown with friendly names throughout the editor. Some built-in models are available on Pro.
• ImprovementClicking an element in multi-file projects now finds its source in the right file and switches to it, and locates the right element even among many similar ones.
• FixYour selected element stays selected when the preview refreshes or you switch pages.
• FeatureDownload as ZIP — get every file from a transfer, or every result from the image tools, in one archive.
• ImprovementColor palette generator — insert new colors anywhere in a palette.

Clipboard & direct transfers

Move text, links and files between your devices, directly or through the cloud.

• FeatureClipboard — a personal clipboard that syncs across your devices. Pin items, search and filter by type, and paste with one tap on mobile. Links are clickable.
• FeatureDirect transfers — send files browser-to-browser with no upload and no size limit. Pair devices with a short code, see the connection route, and cancel at any time.
• FeaturePassword-protected transfers, and pasting files straight into a transfer from your clipboard.
• ImprovementTransfer size limits now follow your plan, with file-type icons and a refreshed background.
• ImprovementImage tools — zoom and pan in the cropper, and batch upload and remove images in the cropper and resizer.

Password-protected sites & faster publishing

• FeaturePassword protection (Pro) — lock any site behind a password, with an optional hint for visitors.
• FeatureSites now live on their own subdomain (your-site.htmlhost.co). Old links redirect automatically.
• ImprovementPublishing uploads files straight to storage with live progress, so large sites and big assets publish reliably. Unchanged files are skipped on re-publish.
• ImprovementSites with an active custom domain no longer expire, and expired sites have a 30-day grace period in which Pro users can restore them.
• ImprovementCustom domains — we detect your DNS provider and show setup steps for it, and Pro domain connections can be renewed from the dashboard.
• ImprovementClearer error pages for missing, expired and suspended sites, plus a way for anyone to report an abusive site.
• ImprovementPro media library storage raised to 10 GB.

AI Chat sidebar

A full-featured chat panel inside the editor — discuss your project, ask questions, and execute edits in one place. Includes thread history, @-mention file context, and two interaction modes.

• FeatureAI Chat sidebar — a dedicated panel docked to the right of the editor for conversational AI. Ask questions about your code, request explanations, and get suggestions without leaving the editor.
• FeatureDiscuss & Execute modes — toggle between 'Discuss' (read-only Q&A) and 'Execute' (apply edits to your project) to control whether the AI talks or acts.
• FeatureThread history — conversations are saved per-project in localStorage. Switch between threads, start fresh, or pick up where you left off from the history panel.
• FeatureAI clarification questions — when the AI needs more info before making an edit, it asks structured QUESTION blocks with selectable options, displayed inline in the chat.
• FeatureConversational apply toasts — when AI edits are applied, the toast now shows extracted conversational context from the AI explaining what was changed.
• ImprovementChat bubbles use gradient user messages and bordered assistant messages with smooth entry animations and a typing indicator.
• ImprovementModel preference persistence — your last-selected AI model is saved to localStorage and restored on next visit.

AI file operations & @-mentions

The AI can now create, delete, and rename files in multi-file projects — and you can @-mention any file to give the AI read-only context before asking a question or requesting an edit.

• FeatureAI file operations — the AI can create new pages (HTML, CSS, JS), delete files, and rename them using a directive protocol. File ops are validated, capped, and applied atomically with a single undo step.
• Feature@-mention file context — type @ in the AI prompt to open a file picker. Referenced files are inlined as read-only context so the AI understands your full project, not just the current page.
• FeatureProject manifest — a compact inventory of all pages, CSS/JS files, and assets is automatically sent to the AI so it knows what exists before creating or editing files.
• FeatureAdd-section affordance — a floating composer appears between sections in the preview, letting you describe a new section for the AI to insert inline.
• ImprovementPrompt caching — identical prompts for the same element are cached and replayed instantly without another API call.
• ImprovementDedicated search/replace engine — AI edit application moved to a standalone module with improved whitespace tolerance and fuzzy matching.
• ImprovementAI prompt logic extracted to a shared library with unit tests, ensuring consistent behaviour across BYO-key and built-in AI paths.
• ImprovementGranular AI error handling — upstream failures now map to specific, human-readable error messages with status codes instead of generic errors.
• FixLegacy Anthropic model IDs are now remapped automatically so existing saved configs keep working after model retirements.

Performance & reliability

Faster site delivery with ETag caching and streaming assets, automatic favicon extraction, dashboard pagination, and several stability fixes.

• FeatureAutomatic favicon extraction — when you publish a site, its favicon URL is detected and stored. The dashboard now shows real favicons for every site.
• FeatureDashboard pagination — the site list now paginates client-side, keeping the dashboard responsive even with hundreds of sites.
• FeatureServer-side caching — site resolution and asset lookups now use tag-based caching with immediate invalidation on publish, significantly reducing database queries.
• ImprovementETag caching for site delivery — browsers cache pages and assets using content-based ETags, eliminating redundant downloads on repeat visits.
• ImprovementStreaming R2 assets — media files are now streamed directly from R2 instead of buffered, reducing memory usage and time-to-first-byte.
• ImprovementBatch site deletions — deleting multiple sites now runs in parallel for faster cleanup.
• ImprovementBlog images optimised with Next/Image, and ISR enabled for blog pages to reduce server load.
• ImprovementReduced font weights across the app — only necessary weights are loaded, shaving ~200 KB off the initial page load.
• ImprovementURL cloning gated to Pro — the hero section's clone-from-URL flow now requires a Pro subscription.
• FixFixed media asset 404s caused by proxy rewrite intercepting /m/ routes.
• FixFixed URL corruption during cloning when asset URLs contained the origin hostname.
• FixFixed preview pane updating for binary assets — non-renderable files now show a type indicator instead of a blank frame.
• FixFixed a Date mutation bug in webhook expiry calculation that could corrupt Pro subscription timestamps.

Docs content audit

Corrected stale CLI documentation across the docs, homepage, and pricing pages to reflect changes introduced in v2.0.0.

• FixRemoved the non-existent `htmlhost upload` command from the CLI reference and media library sections — the command was removed in v2.0.0.
• FixRemoved the `--pages` flag from all CLI examples and documentation. Deploying a directory is now the default behaviour; no flag is required.
• FixFixed the `htmlhost deploy` description — it deploys the entire current directory as a multi-page site, not just index.html.
• FeatureAdded `htmlhost open <slug>` to the CLI reference — opens a deployed site in the default browser.
• FixCorrected the deploy heading from `[file]` to `[file|dir]` and added the `--json` flag to the options table.
• FixFixed inconsistency in the pricing comparison table: custom domains now correctly show as unavailable on the Free plan (was previously listed as 'Add-on').

Updated plan limits

We've adjusted free and anonymous site limits and made collaborators a Pro feature. Existing sites and collaborators are unaffected.

• BreakingSite limits updated — anonymous accounts can host up to 2 sites and free accounts up to 3. Pro remains unlimited. Sites you've already published stay live.
• BreakingAdding collaborators is now a Pro feature. Collaborators already on your sites keep their access; inviting new ones requires Pro.
• ImprovementReaching a plan limit now offers a one-click path to upgrade, so you can keep working without hunting for the billing page.

URL Cloner

Clone any public website into a fully self-contained htmlhost project — CSS, JS, images, and fonts included. Now with Vite SPA support.

• FeatureClone from URL — paste any public URL and get a fully self-contained clone with all assets (CSS, JS, images, fonts) downloaded, rewritten, and inlined automatically.
• FeatureVite SPA support — single-bundle module scripts (common in Vite/React SPAs) are now detected as self-contained and inlined correctly, instead of being skipped.
• FeatureRecursive CSS asset discovery — fonts, background images, and nested @imports referenced inside CSS files are automatically followed, downloaded, and rewritten.
• ImprovementSmart URL input — bare domains like 'example.com' are auto-prefixed with https:// so you don't need to type the protocol.
• ImprovementClone summary — after cloning, a summary alert shows how many assets were discovered, fetched, and uploaded as media files.
• ImprovementRobust asset limits — up to 500 assets per clone, 20 MB per asset, 50 MB total, with retry logic for rate-limited servers.
• FixICO favicons are now correctly downloaded and uploaded during cloning.

Email Signature Builder

Design professional HTML email signatures with live preview, multiple templates, and one-click copy.

• FeatureEmail Signature Builder tool — create professional HTML email signatures with a visual form. Supports name, title, company, phone, email, website, and social links.
• ImprovementTools dropdown in navigation now shows a maximum of 8 tools with a 'View All Tools' link for the rest.

Developer Tools expansion

Eight new free tools — CSS gradients, color palettes, image compression, cropping, resizing, favicons, meta tag previews, and more.

• FeatureCSS Gradient Generator — visual builder for linear, radial, and conic gradients with draggable color stops and live CSS output.
• FeatureColor Palette Generator — create harmonious color palettes with complementary, triadic, split-complementary, and analogous modes. Click any swatch for a detail modal with HEX, RGB, HSL, and CMYK values.
• FeatureImage Compressor — client-side image compression with adjustable quality slider. Supports JPEG, PNG, and WebP output.
• FeatureImage Cropper — visual crop tool with draggable handles, aspect ratio presets, and pixel-precise dimensions.
• FeatureImage Resizer — proportional image scaling with preset dimensions and custom sizing.
• FeatureFavicon Generator — create favicons from emoji, text, or uploaded images. Generates ICO, PNG, and Apple Touch Icon formats.
• FeatureMeta Tags Preview — see how your page looks on Google, Twitter/X, Facebook, and LinkedIn before publishing. Edit tags and copy the HTML.
• ImprovementRelated Tools component — each tool page now shows related tools at the bottom for easy discovery.
• ImprovementBreadcrumb navigation — all tool pages now have arrow-shaped breadcrumb segments for clear wayfinding.
• ImprovementMarkdown ⇄ HTML tool now supports file upload — drag or select a .md or .html file to load it instantly.

Blog CMS

A built-in blog with a rich text editor, AI content generation, and media management — used to power the htmlhost.co/blog.

• FeatureDatabase-backed blog with admin CMS — create, edit, and publish blog posts with a Tiptap WYSIWYG editor, raw HTML mode, and live preview.
• FeatureAI content generation — generate and refine blog post drafts with an integrated AI writing assistant.
• FeatureMedia picker modal with paste-to-upload — insert images directly into posts by pasting from clipboard or selecting from your media library.
• ImprovementFAQ component — reusable accordion FAQ section now available on landing and tool pages.

Editor overhaul

The editor gets a VS Code-inspired upgrade: file tree, drag-to-upload images, multi-file search & replace, keyboard shortcuts, and project import from ZIP.

• FeatureFile tree sidebar — multi-page projects now show a vertical split layout with a collapsible file tree. Per-type icons distinguish HTML, CSS, and JS files.
• FeatureProject import — upload a folder or ZIP file to create a multi-page project instantly. Assets are uploaded and paths rewritten automatically.
• FeatureDrag-to-upload images — drop an image onto the editor to upload it to your media library and insert the URL at the cursor position.
• FeatureClipboard paste images — paste a screenshot or copied image directly into the editor. It's uploaded and inserted inline.
• FeatureMulti-file search & replace (⌘⇧F) — search across all files in a multi-page project with find-and-replace support.
• FeatureCtrl+Click navigation — click on file paths in code to jump directly to that file in the editor.
• FeatureFile path autocomplete — Monaco suggests file paths from your project when typing href, src, or import references.
• FeatureRead-only Assets panel — the file tree now includes an 'Assets' section showing all media files referenced in your code.
• FeatureSite favicons — the My Sites dashboard now shows each site's favicon with an initial-letter fallback.
• Improvement⌘S keyboard shortcut to save, dirty-file indicators on tabs, and styled confirmation dialogs for unsaved changes.
• ImprovementVS Code-style tab closing — close tabs with middle-click, and closing the active tab selects the previously viewed tab.
• ImprovementCSS/JS changes now auto-refresh the live preview without a manual reload.
• ImprovementMedia library now shows distinct icons for non-image file types (fonts, audio, video, documents).
• FixDashboard now defaults to sorting by most recently updated.

Multi-page websites

Deploy entire directories as multi-page sites with clean URL routing. Your site can now have /about, /contact, /blog and more — all under one subdomain.

• FeatureMulti-page deploy via CLI — use `htmlhost deploy . --pages` to deploy all .html files as pages within a single site. File names map to URL paths: index.html → /, about.html → /about, blog/post.html → /blog/post.
• FeatureMulti-page API support — POST /api/sites now accepts a `pages` array with path/html pairs to create multi-page sites programmatically.
• FeatureCustom 404 pages — add a 404.html to your project and it will be served automatically when visitors hit a non-existent page on your multi-page site.
• FeatureClean URL routing — pages are served at their natural paths (e.g. yoursite.htmlhost.co/about) with no file extensions.
• ImprovementPlan-based page limits — Free plan supports up to 10 pages per site, Pro supports up to 100. Single-page sites are unaffected.
• ImprovementDashboard now displays a 'multi-page' badge on multi-page sites for clear visual distinction.
• ImprovementBackwards compatible — all existing single-page sites continue to work identically. Multi-page is opt-in via the --pages flag.

CLI deploy safety fix

Single-file deploys no longer clobber multi-file .htmlhost link data — entries are merged instead of overwritten.

• FixRunning `htmlhost deploy` (single file) in a multi-file project now merges the entry into the existing .htmlhost sites map instead of replacing the entire file. Prevents accidental loss of other linked site slugs.
• ImprovementA warning is now shown when deploying a single file inside a multi-file project, suggesting `htmlhost deploy .` to deploy all files.

Live template previews

Template thumbnails now execute JavaScript for live-rendered hero animations, typed effects, and dynamic content.

• FeatureTemplate cards now support full JavaScript execution within sandboxed iframes, allowing typed-text animations and JS-driven elements to render correctly in the thumbnail gallery.
• ImprovementTighter lazy-loading thresholds to prevent unnecessary off-screen iframe loading and minimize memory footprint while scrolling through templates.

Developer Tools & Markdown ⇄ HTML

A new Tools section with the first utility: a two-way Markdown ⇄ HTML converter with live preview, theme-aware editors, and one-click deploy.

• FeatureNew /tools section — a growing collection of developer utilities, accessible from the main navigation for all users.
• FeatureMarkdown ⇄ HTML converter — bidirectional real-time conversion. Edit either side and changes flow to the other instantly.
• FeatureVisual preview mode — each editor panel has an independent code/preview toggle to render the output inline.
• FeatureDeploy HTML button — one click sends your converted HTML straight to the editor, pre-loaded and ready to publish.
• ImprovementTheme-aware editors — Monaco editors and preview panels now respect the app's light/dark theme toggle.
• ImprovementSession persistence — your markdown content is saved to sessionStorage and restored when navigating back to the tool.

Multi-file project support

The CLI now fully supports multi-file HTML projects — local CSS and JS are inlined into the HTML, while images, fonts, SVGs, and PDFs are uploaded to your media library with URLs rewritten automatically.

• FeatureCSS inlining — local stylesheets referenced via <link href> are read, their internal url() assets are uploaded, and the entire stylesheet is inlined as a <style> block.
• FeatureJS inlining — local scripts referenced via <script src> are inlined directly into the HTML as <script> blocks.
• FeatureNested CSS url() processing — images, fonts, and other assets referenced inside .css files are uploaded to the media library and URLs rewritten before the CSS is inlined.
• ImprovementSmart size threshold — CSS/JS files under 512 KB are inlined; larger files are uploaded to the media library to avoid HTML bloat.
• ImprovementExpanded file type support — AVIF images, OGG audio, TTF/OTF fonts, and ICO favicons are now accepted for media upload.

Pin, reorder & sort

Pin your most important sites to the top of the dashboard, drag them into any order, and click column headers to sort the rest.

• FeaturePin sites — click the pin icon on any site to lock it to the top of your dashboard list. Pinned sites persist across sessions.
• FeatureDrag-to-reorder — grab the handle on pinned sites and drag them into your preferred order. Custom order is saved automatically.
• FeatureColumn sorting — click any column header (Site, Status, Updated, TTL) to sort ascending or descending. Active sort is highlighted.
• ImprovementPinned sites have a distinct accent-tinted background and inline pin icon for clear visual separation.
• ImprovementMobile card view now includes pin/unpin buttons, up/down reorder controls for pinned cards, and accent-bordered styling.

Smarter AI editor

The AI editor now remembers your conversation, auto-retries failed edits, suggests actions based on what you selected, and understands vague prompts — 11 intelligence upgrades in total.

• FeatureConversation history — the AI remembers your last 5 prompts so you can say "now make it blue instead" without repeating context.
• FeatureSuggested prompt chips — context-aware quick actions appear when you select an element (e.g. "Add hover effect" for buttons, "Make responsive" for images).
• FeatureAuto-retry on SEARCH/REPLACE failures — failed edits are automatically re-attempted with error context before showing an error.
• FeatureIntent detection — prompts like "add a new section" automatically route to full-page editing, while "change this color" stays element-level.
• ImprovementPrompt enhancement — vague instructions like "make it look better" are expanded into detailed, actionable design directions.
• ImprovementComputed styles context — the AI now sees the element's rendered CSS (colors, fonts, spacing) for more accurate edits.
• ImprovementSmart temperature — precise edits (color changes, text) use low creativity; redesign prompts use high creativity. No manual slider needed.
• ImprovementTask-specific prompts — domain expertise for forms, responsive design, animations, SEO, accessibility, theming, and layouts is automatically injected.
• ImprovementOutput validation — edits are checked for structural integrity (preserved head/body, valid HTML) before applying.
• FixDuplicate prompt detection — submitting the same prompt for the same element replays the cached result instantly without burning an API call.

Directory deploy & changelog

Deploy entire directories of HTML files with a single command, plus a new changelog page and WAV upload support.

• FeatureDeploy all HTML files in a directory with `htmlhost deploy .` — each file becomes a separate linked site, updated in place on re-deploy.
• FeatureNew /changelog page with a versioned timeline, keyword search, and RSS feed.
• FeatureWAV audio files can now be uploaded to the media library.
• ImprovementShared asset cache across batch deploys — common CSS, JS, and images are uploaded once and reused across all HTML files.
• ImprovementAI-powered changelog generator script for streamlined release notes.

Automatic asset uploading

Deploy multi-file HTML projects with a single command. Local scripts, stylesheets, images, and fonts are automatically uploaded and rewritten to hosted URLs.

• FeatureCLI deploy now auto-detects local asset references (scripts, CSS, images, fonts, audio, video) in your HTML, uploads them to your media library, and rewrites the references to hosted URLs.
• FeatureNew --no-assets flag to skip automatic asset uploading when deploying.
• ImprovementFiles larger than 10 MB are automatically skipped during asset upload to prevent accidental storage depletion.

Platform polish

Security hardening, mobile responsiveness, and search improvements across the platform.

• FeatureRotating banner on the homepage and keyword search with text highlighting in documentation.
• FeatureSEO infrastructure: sitemap, robots.txt, and OpenGraph metadata for all pages.
• ImprovementResponsive design overhaul: horizontal tabs, mobile card tables, and stacked forms.
• ImprovementSecurity headers and restricted AI proxy access to authenticated users.
• FeatureMobile logout button added to the navigation menu.
• FixFixed mobile save button showing redundant checkmark and settings/docs grid breakpoint issue.

Media library & upload command

Upload images, fonts, and assets from the terminal. Get permanent CDN-backed URLs for use in your HTML.

• FeatureNew `htmlhost upload` command — upload files or entire directories to your media library.
• FeatureMedia library in the browser editor for managing uploaded assets.
• FeatureCustom domains for Pro users — connect your own domain via CNAME with automatic SSL.
• ImprovementREST API documentation added to the docs page.

Smart re-deploy & project linking

The CLI now remembers your project and can re-deploy in place or create a new site — your choice, saved per-project.

• FeatureProject linking via .htmlhost file — the CLI remembers which site a project is linked to.
• FeatureInteractive re-deploy prompt with 'always overwrite' and 'always create new' options.
• FeatureAI visual editing — click any element, describe the change, watch it update live.
• ImprovementAdded --new flag to force a fresh deploy and skip the .htmlhost link.

Initial release

htmlhost.co launches — deploy a single HTML file and get a live URL in seconds.

• FeatureBrowser-based editor with instant deploy and live preview.
• FeatureCLI tool (`htmlhost-cli`) for deploying from the terminal.
• FeatureREST API with Bearer token authentication.
• FeatureAnonymous hosting — up to 5 sites, no signup required.
• FeatureConfigurable TTL: 1d, 7d, 30d, or never (Pro).
• FeatureFree and Pro plans with storage and site limits.