Surface WordPress update notices once in the desktop shell (with release artwork)

[mmtr]

Why

WordPress core shows the "a new version is available, please update" nag on every admin screen. In desktop mode each screen is its own window, so that one nag ends up repeated in every open window — cluttered and noisy. This makes the update surface once, in the shell, and turns it into something that fits the desktop.

What changes (from a user's point of view)

Screen.Recording.2026-07-14.at.17.54.46.mov

Screen.Recording.2026-07-14.at.17.53.34.mov

• No more repeats. The core update nag is hidden inside the windows.
• One notification, in the shell. When an update is available you get a single notification in the top-right.
• Two styles, chosen automatically:
  • Regular update → a clean notification: "WordPress X.Y.Z is available" with an Update now button.
  • A release that has cover art → an album-sleeve moment: the release's own artwork as a record sleeve with a vinyl sliding out, tinted to match the artwork. The message names the release (e.g. WordPress 7.0 "Armstrong") when you're moving up to a new major version, or shows the exact version for a point release.
• Artwork is live, not bundled. The release art is fetched from WordPress.org, so it works for past and future releases without shipping any images. The notification waits for the art to load, so it appears once — no placeholder flicker.
• Update now opens the Updates screen.
• Dismissible. A close button fades it away. Once dismissed it won't nag you again for that version — but a newer version will notify you again.
• Respects "reduced motion" (no animation) and only shows to users who can actually update.

How to test

WordPress can't be behind by default, so fake an available update.

1. Turn on desktop mode.

2. Add this as a must-use plugin (wp-content/mu-plugins/fake-update.php), then reload the desktop:

   <?php
   add_filter( 'pre_site_transient_update_core', function () {
       $item = (object) array(
           'response' => 'upgrade',
           'current'  => '7.0.9', // the version to advertise (see step 4)
           'locale'   => 'en_US',
           'url'      => 'https://wordpress.org/download/',
           'packages' => (object) array( 'full' => '' ),
       );
       return (object) array(
           'updates'         => array( $item ),
           'version_checked' => get_bloginfo( 'version' ),
           'last_checked'    => time(),
       );
   } );

3. Check the windows: open a few admin windows (Dashboard, Posts, Tools). The "update available" nag should not appear inside any of them.

4. Check the notification (top-right of the shell):

   • Set current to a higher patch of a real release line — e.g. 7.0.9 if a 7.0 exists (or 6.5.9 on/against a 6.5 line). You should see the album-sleeve / vinyl notification with that release's artwork.
   • Set current to a made-up version with no release — e.g. 9.9 — to see the plain notification fallback.
   • The first appearance may take a moment while the artwork loads; after that it's instant.

5. Update now: click it — the Updates screen opens in a window.

6. Dismiss: click the × — the notification fades out. Reload: it stays gone. Now change current to a newer version (e.g. 7.0.10) and reload — it notifies you again.

7. Remove the mu-plugin when you're done.

Tip: to force a specific release's artwork regardless of your installed version, set current to that release's version (e.g. 6.5.1). Codenames only appear when the update moves you up to a new major line.

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

[Copilot]

Pull request overview

This PR centralizes WordPress core update notifications so they appear once in the Desktop Mode shell (instead of repeating in every chromeless admin window), with an enhanced “release artwork” presentation when art can be resolved from WordPress.org.

Changes:

• Adds a server-side core update descriptor (coreUpdate) to the shell config and suppresses core’s per-window update/maintenance nags in chromeless requests.
• Introduces a shell-side update notice picker that resolves/caches release art client-side and shows either a vinyl-style release card or a persistent toast.
• Extends toast behavior to support persistent toasts and documents the new surfaces/hooks.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 19 out of 19 changed files in this pull request and generated 10 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
tests/phpunit/tests/updateNotice.php	Adds PHPUnit coverage for the core update descriptor and chromeless nag suppression.
src/update-notice.ts	Implements the shell-side update notification decision flow (release card vs persistent toast).
src/update-notice.test.ts	Adds Vitest coverage for update notice selection, dismissal keys, and “Update now” behavior.
src/ui/components/wpd-toast/wpd-toast.styles.ts	Tweaks toast styling (border/shadow) for better surface separation.
src/types.ts	Extends DesktopConfig with optional coreUpdate descriptor shape.
src/toast.ts	Adds persistent toast support (no auto-dismiss timer) and documents behavior.
src/release-card.ts	Implements the vinyl-style release card UI and accent extraction from cover art.
src/release-card.test.ts	Adds Vitest coverage for release-card DOM, update action, and dismissal persistence.
src/release-art.ts	Adds client-side resolver for release art + codename via WordPress.org news feed with caching.
src/release-art.test.ts	Adds Vitest coverage for parsing and caching behavior of release-art resolver.
src/i18n.ts	Extends sprintf fallback to support positional tokens (e.g. %1$s).
src/desktop.ts	Boots the update notice picker from shell init using config.coreUpdate.
includes/update-notice.php	Adds server-side core update descriptor computation and desktop_mode_core_update_notice filter.
includes/render/assets.php	Ships coreUpdate in the shell config payload.
includes/core/routing.php	Suppresses core update/maintenance nags inside chromeless admin requests.
docs/javascript-reference.md	Documents persistent toasts and the core-update notice behavior.
docs/hooks-reference.md	Documents desktop_mode_core_update_notice filter and core-update notice behavior.
desktop-mode.php	Loads the new includes/update-notice.php module.
assets/css/chromeless.css	Hides any update nags that slip past server-side suppression in chromeless windows.

---

💡 Add Copilot custom instructions for smarter, more guided reviews. Learn how to get started.

[epeicher]

Thanks @mmtr, this looks great! I have tested it, and it works as expected, I see the new upgrade toast, and it looks nice. The fallback toast also looks good, but I miss a dismissal icon there. Could it be added?

Upgrade toast	Default toast

I have also added a _fields query param as part of f6a2f72 to reduce the payload when getting the releaseArt artifact.

[mmtr]

The fallback toast also looks good, but I miss a dismissal icon there. Could it be added?

Nice suggestion! Done: