Role Scoper version 1.3 is now available as a stable release - the first such update since early July.  It contains extensive performance enhancements over version 1.2.7, full support for custom post types and taxonomies and dozens of bug fixes.

WordPress 3.0 is the minimum version requirement for Role Scoper 1.3 and for all new development moving forward.  However, Role Scoper 1.2.9 is also available as a stable release for WP 2.7 to 3.0.1.  It contains most the the features and bug fixes introduced in version 1.3.

See the full change log below:

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Updated Role Scoper Release Candidates (1.2.9.RC6 and 1.3.RC6) are available.  1.3.RC6 adds one new feature:  menu-specific Nav Menu Manager role assignments.  Note that users will also need the edit_theme_options capability in their WordPress role.

A number of bugs in the previous RC code are also fixed:

• BugFix (1.3 only) : Hidden Content Teaser blocked all posts if "hide private posts" option not enabled

• BugFix : Hidden Content Teaser was not applied to single view for pages and other non-post types

• BugFix (1.3 only): File Attachments were not protected based on restriction of Reader role (but were protected based on private post visibility)

• BugFix (1.3 only): Non-administrators could not view file attachments to private content (including images), even if they can read the post

• BugFix : Display of edit link in Edit Posts/Pages listing did not reflect capability requirements imposed by other plugins

• BugFix : With "Users CSV Entry" enabled (default for sites with over 100 users), new roles could not be assigned to users

• BugFix : With "Users CSV Entry" enabled, checkboxes for existing role assignments were not displayed in some cases

Role Scoper version updates (1.2.9.RC5 and 1.3.RC5) are available to address the following issues:

• BugFix : For non-Administrators, Edit Posts listing showed all as Uncategorized

• BugFix : In Roles > Categories, could not assign roles for "sub-categories" or "selected and sub-categories"

• BugFix : In Roles > Categories and Restrictions > Categories, category links were not displayed hierarchically

• BugFix : With Multisite, some Default Site Options could not be modified

• Change : Auto-flush the persistent cache more aggressively on role / restriction modification

Anyone using the new Role Scoper 1.3 release candidate code on a multi-editor site should grab version 1.3.RC4 to avoid page editing frustrations.  The earlier 1.3.RC versions prevented non-Administrators from saving new top-level pages.

The full change log:

• BugFix (1.3 only) : Non-administrators could not save new top-level pages

• BugFix : On Multisite installations, could not save changes to Default Sitewide Options

• Compat : Store persistent cache to a subdirectory to avoid clashing with other plugin use of wp-cache (Multisite usage was wiping WP Super Cache .htaccess file)

• Lang : updated .pot file

Revised Role Scoper Release Candidates (1.2.9.RC3 and 1.3.RC3) are available to address the following issues.  Read the descriptions below to determine if you need these updates; most RC users can continue with the RC2 versions.

• BugFix : On WP 3.0 Multisite installations, all files in wp-content/cache get deleted, clashing with other plugins such as WP Super Cache

• BugFix (in 1.2.9 only) : On WP 3.0 installations with custom post types but no custom taxonomies, fatal error on plugin activation

The following updated release candidate versions are now available for manual installation:

Revisionary 1.1.RC2 - a required update for those running 1.1.RC

Role Scoper 1.3.RC2- a required update for those running Revisionary + RS 1.3.RC.  Other users, check the change log below to determine whether the bug fixes affect you.

Role Scoper 1.2.9.RC2 - parallel version for sites running a WordPress version older than 3.0.

Revisionary Change Log:

• BugFix : Listed revisions in Revision Editor were not linked for viewing / editing (since 1.1.RC)

Role Scoper change log:

• BugFix : Fatal Error when editing a post with a Contributor and a non-default blog-wide role requirement is specified in Roles > Options > Advanced > Limited Editing Elements

• Compat : When Revisionary plugin is also active, Contributor / Revisors can publish posts directly without editor review

• Compat : Pending Revisions (from Revisionary plugin) were not included in Edit Posts listing for non-Administrators when editing access to published post is affected by category-specific roles or restrictions (since 1.0)

• BugFix (in 1.2.9.RC only) : PHP Warning for "element is not an array"

New Role Scoper and Revisionary Release Candidates are available via http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/

To install these pre-release versions, click on the "other versions" link on either plugin directory page.

An updated version of Role Scoping for NextGEN Gallery is also available.

I'll further document the extensive improvements and bug fixes within the next few days.  Much of it is related to custom post types and taxonomies.  For now, see the change log in the readme.txt contained in any download.

Role Scoper versions 1.2.9.RC and 1.3.RC differ mainly in that 1.3 requires WordPress 3.0+.  It also has some additional code refactoring to reduce memory usage.

Role Scoper 1.2.8 Beta 2 is available to address the following issues.  Since most changes pertain to custom post types support and/or other new WP 3.0 features, I would appreciate some testing feedback before I mark this as the stable release.

• BugFix : Custom-defined WP Nav menus were not filtered for RS restrictions / roles

• BugFix : Hidden Content Teaser was not applied to sticky posts

• BugFix : Hidden Content Teaser could not be enabled for custom post types

• BugFix : In admin menus, "Add New" was not properly suppressed in some configurations

• BugFix : File Attachment Filter was inactive for installations upgraded to WP 3.0 multisite and still using wp-content/uploads folder

• BugFix : On failed direct file access attempt, any page / term listings on 404 page were not filtered for RS restrictions / roles

• BugFix : XML-RPC submissions failed for users lacking blog-wide edit_posts capability

• BugFix : Category Roles, Category Restrictions bulk admin forms had invalid category edit links

• BugFix : Implicit role ownership (indicated by coloring in role metaboxes) was not indicacted correctly under some configurations

• Change : Suppress scroll links in Term Roles / Restrictions bulk admin form if terms total over 300

Role Scoper 1.2 Beta 2 is now available.  Changes in this version apply mainly to sites that are experiencing problems with File Filtering (for protecting direct URL access to images and attachments).  Here's the full change log:

• BugFix : File Filtering did not work on WP 3.0 Multisite

• BugFix : File Filtering did not work on new MU blogs until plugin re-activation or File Filtering re-enable

• BugFix : If redundant Page / Post / Category roles were stored to database, they could only be deleted one at a time (giving the appearance and effect of a failed role deletion)

• BugFix : Javascript error in Page Edit form, failed to set tooltip caption for Page Role checkboxes

• BugFix : PHP Warning on RS version upgrade if previous installation never customized RS options

If you already running RS 1.2 Beta 1 and the above bugs don't affect you, there is no need to upgrade.

Role Scoper 1.2 Beta 1 is now available.  This version adds WordPress 3.0 compatibility along with the following bug fixes and features:

WordPress 3.0 Compatibility

• Compat : WP 3.0 elimination of page.php, edit-pages.php, page-new.php broke many aspects of page filtering
• Compat : Support RS Roles, Restrictions for Custom Post Types created via WP 2.9 / 3.0 framework
• Compat : Support RS Roles for Custom Taxonomies created via WP 2.9 / 3.0 framework
• Compat : WP 3.0 Multisite menu items had invalid link

New Features

• Feature : Ajax interface for group membership selection
• Feature : Group membership requests
• Feature : Group membership recommendations (2-tier membership moderation)

Major Bug Fixes

• BugFix : RS Restrictions and Roles were not applied to Sticky Posts
• BugFix : File Filtering was not imposed based on Post/Page Restrictions or Default Category Roles (also required Private visibility)
• BugFix : With File Filtering enabled, attachment filenames with spaces, parenthesis and other special chars caused corrupt or ineffective .htaccess (possibly resulting in Internal Server Error)
• BugFix : Last blog paging link sometimes hidden when Hidden Content Teaser enabled (also caused WP-PageNavi conflict)
• BugFix : With Revisionary (or possibly other plugins) enabled, posts are inappropriately forced into default category in logged user cannot post there.
• BugFix : Custom calls to wp_dropdown_pages (in template or other plugin code) were sometimes filtered inappropriately

Minor Bug Fixes

• BugFix : When previewing a post, non-editors didn't see Page or Post listings in sidebar / topbar
• BugFix : Recent Comments widget included comments on unreadable posts, with WP 2.9
• BugFix : Custom WP_PLUGIN_DIR was not supported
• BugFix : In Bulk Object Roles Edit forms, links to edit roles of individual object were broken
• BugFix : RS addition to wp-admin footer forced horizontal scroll bar in IE7
• BugFix : Role Basis settings (User Roles and Group Roles enable / disable) were hidden and unalterable
• BugFix : If Page Reader is enabled as an "Additional Object Role", Private Page Reader also remains captioned as "Page Reader"
• BugFix : If Post Reader is enabled as an "Additional Object Role", Private Post Reader also remains captioned as "Post Reader"
• BugFix : Bad edit link on User Profile where user is a Group Manager for specific group(s)
• BugFix : When scanning Posts/Pages for unregistered attachments, File Attachment Utility did not distinguish broken links

Plugin Compatibility

• Compat : WP-PageNavi - conflict with paging links, see above
• Compat : Amember - PHP Warning (array_diff_key) after importing users
• Compat : QTranslate - unparsed page titles in Page Parent dropdown
• Compat : Simple Section Nav - children of excluded pages bubbled up to the page menu
• Compat : Reveal IDs plugin wiped out "Groups" column in Edit Users page
• Compat : Role Scoper potentially wiped out other plugin custom columns on Edit Users page

Other Changes

• Change : Apply Excerpt Teaser Prefix,Suffix whenever excerpt, pre-more, or first X chars replace content, if SCOPER_FORCE_EXCERPT_SUFFIX is defined.
• Perf : Don't load and initialize Role Scoper on asynchronous dashboard feed calls (WP dev blog, etc.)

Thanks to all the clients and forum users who pushed these features and fixes.