WordPress 5.6.1 Release Candidate 1 Now Available for Testing!

A quick update, WordPress 5.6.1 Release Candidate 1 is now available for download and you can start testing. This new update includes a total of 27 enhancements and fixes.

The current version of WordPress, WordPress 5.6 already has 18 million+ downloads.

In order to test 5.6. Release Candidate 1, you can either use the WordPress Beta Tester plugin (you’ll want to select the “point release nightlies” option) or you can also directly download the release candidate here (zip).

Among all 27 updates in WordPress 5.6.1 Release Candidate 1, 20 are bug fixes and small enhancements and 7 updates in the block editor.

WordPress 5.6.1 Release Candidate 1 Updates:

1. #51056: Fetch_feed parsing of permalinks triggers simplepie preg_match warnings
2. #52327: Requested updates to the PHP Update Alert
3. #51940: The schema for the taxonomy property of a term in the REST API should not include all taxonomies
4. #51980: App Passwords: ‘Add New Application Password’ submit button is hidden on mobile devices in ‘User Profile’ page
5. #51995: WordPress 5.6: Classic editor menu is not sticky
6. #52003: Undefined index: PHP_AUTH_PW /wp-includes/user.php on line 469
7. #52013: Duplicate wp_authorize_application_password_form actions
8. #52030: Media metaboxes return fatal error if no author metadata present
9. #52038: Issue in WooCommerce with wp_editor() after update to WP 5.6
10. #52046: The Distraction Free Writing setting on the old Edit Post screen may be reset after page reload
11. #52065: Media gallery: ‘Align’ and ‘Link To’ fields missing from ‘Insert from URL’
12. #52066: Application Passwords are unusable in combination with password-protected /wp-admin
13. #52075: Word Count on Classic Editor doesn’t update in real-time on Firefox unless saved
14. #52097: Site Health Loopback Test doesn’t send admin cookies
15. #52135: False positive on `WP_Site_Health_Auto_Updates`
16. #52196: wp_get_attachment_metadata() is broken if no first argument is passed in.
17. #52205: REST API: Plugins Controller single plugin route fatal errors on multisite
18. #52299: Exported user data can be listed with directory listing
19. #52351: missing echo function for translate method
20. #52391: Gutenberg Updates for 5.6.1
21. #27970: Fix editor crash when registering a block pattern without categories
22. #27733: Embed block: Add html and reusable support back
23. #27727: Add aria labels to box control component inputs/button
24. #27627: HTML Block: Fix editor styles
25. #27526: Core Data: Normalize _fields value for use in stableKey
26. #26705: Fix: Font size picker does not correctly handles big font sizes.
27. #26432: Edit Site: prevent inserter overscroll

Check out the original release post here.

Make sure you test this RC. If you think you’ve found a bug, please post to the Alpha/Beta support forum to help make the release of WordPress 5.6.1 as smooth as possible.

The official WordPress 5.6.1 will release on February 3, 2021, as per the schedule. The 5.6.1 release will depend on the issues after the RC1 release.