> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.libnova.com/libnova/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.libnova.com/libnova/what-changed-recently/libsafe-v1.8.0-whats-new-may-2026.md).

# Libsafe v1.8.0 – What's New (May 2026)

<table><thead><tr><th width="280">Release date</th><th>Version</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>06 / May / 2026</td><td>v.1.8.0</td></tr></tbody></table>

## What's new at a glance <a href="#whats-new-at-a-glance" id="whats-new-at-a-glance"></a>

<table><thead><tr><th width="280">Area</th><th>What changed</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><a href="#id-1.-ocfl-archive-restore-a-specific-version-of-an-archived-object">Object restoration (OCFL Archive)</a></td><td>You can now select and restore a specific version of an archived object directly from the interface.</td></tr><tr><td><a href="#id-2.-cold-hot-storage-change-the-storage-class-of-your-files">Cold/Hot Storage</a></td><td>You can now change the storage class of your files (Standard ↔ Glacier) to manage costs and access needs.</td></tr><tr><td><a href="#id-3.-accessibility-improvements-wcag-2.1-aa">Accessibility</a></td><td>Tables, tabs, pagination controls, charts, dropdown menus, and Integration forms are now fully keyboard- and screen-reader-operable.</td></tr><tr><td><a href="#id-5.-performance-faster-permission-operations">Performance</a></td><td>Permission operations are faster and generate fewer cloud service calls.</td></tr><tr><td><a href="#bug-fixes">Bug fixes</a></td><td>Twelve issues fixed across configuration, content operations, accessibility, PREMIS, and mirroring.</td></tr></tbody></table>

***

## New features and improvements <a href="#new-features-and-improvements" id="new-features-and-improvements"></a>

### OCFL Archive – restore a specific version of an archived object <a href="#id-1.-ocfl-archive-restore-a-specific-version-of-an-archived-object" id="id-1.-ocfl-archive-restore-a-specific-version-of-an-archived-object"></a>

{% hint style="info" %}
**Who this affects:** customers using the **OCFL Archive** module (long-term preservation storage). If your instance does not include the OCFL Archive, this section does not apply to you.
{% endhint %}

Libsafe now lets you restore a specific historical version of an archived OCFL object and work with its files directly in your Workspace.

**What you can do**

* When browsing archived objects in Content Search, each object now shows the list of available versions.
* Select the version you need and start the restoration process with a single action.
* Once restored, the files of that version appear in the destination Workspace container and can be searched by file name and path.

**How to restore a version**

1. Go to **Content Search → Archive**.
2. Find the object you want to restore and expand its version history.
3. Select the version you need and click **Restore**.
4. Choose the destination Workspace container and confirm.
5. The restored files will appear in the destination container once the process completes.

{% hint style="info" %}
The restore functionality is available when your instance has it enabled. If you do not see the restore option, contact your administrator.
{% endhint %}

***

### Cold/Hot Storage – change the storage class of your files <a href="#id-2.-cold-hot-storage-change-the-storage-class-of-your-files" id="id-2.-cold-hot-storage-change-the-storage-class-of-your-files"></a>

{% hint style="info" %}
**Who this affects:** administrators and users managing containers with **Cold/Hot Storage** (AWS Glacier or equivalent) enabled.
{% endhint %}

You can now move files between storage classes directly from Libsafe. This lets you balance between lower storage costs (cold/archive tiers) and faster access (standard tier) depending on how frequently you need the files.

**What you can do**

* Change individual files or groups of files from Standard (hot) to Glacier (cold), or from Glacier back to Standard temporarily.\
  The file can be viewed and downloaded through the interface, similar to HOT storage. However, its actual class remains Glacier Deep Archive (COLD), and after 15 days, it will automatically transition back to COLD storage without requiring manual intervention.
* The change is scheduled and processed automatically in the background — you do not need to wait for it to complete.
* Once complete, the current storage class of each file is updated and visible in the file details.

**How to change the storage class**

1. Open the container and navigate to the files you want to move.
2. Select the file(s) and open the **Actions** menu.
3. Choose **Change Storage Class** and select the target class (Standard or Glacier).
4. Confirm the action. The transition will be processed in the background.

**Things to keep in mind**

* Files in cold storage (Glacier) require a retrieval step before they can be downloaded. Retrieval times depend on the storage tier selected.
* The storage class shown in Libsafe reflects the actual class of the file. If you change the class directly in S3 outside of Libsafe, note that this update is not automatically reflected in Libsafe in v1.8.0 — this is corrected in v1.9.0.

***

### Accessibility improvements (WCAG 2.2 AA) <a href="#id-3.-accessibility-improvements-wcag-2.1-aa" id="id-3.-accessibility-improvements-wcag-2.1-aa"></a>

Version 1.8.0 delivers a significant set of accessibility improvements, making it easier to use Libsafe with a keyboard alone or with a screen reader. The following areas have been updated:

#### **Tables**

All data tables across the application can now be navigated with a keyboard:

* Use  **`↑`   /  `↓`  /  `←`  /  `→`** to move between cells.
* Use **`Tab`  /  `Shift` + `Tab`** to reach interactive elements inside cells (buttons, links).
* Column and row headers are announced correctly by screen readers.

The following screens are not yet covered by this update (they will be addressed in a future release): Containers by Archive Structure, Archival Structure, Administrator Profile notifications table, and Content Search Simple/Archive views.

#### **Tabs**

All tab controls now follow the ARIA Tabs Pattern. The following screens are affected:

* Content Search
* Containers → Containers by Archive Structure
* Containers → file Properties panel
* All Reports
* Administration → Events & Actions
* Administration → Logs
* Configuration → Functions (Add/Edit)

#### **Pagination controls**

Pagination buttons across all list views now have accessible labels, indicate the current page, and are fully navigable by keyboard. Affected areas include Content Search (Simple, Containers, Archive) and all other paginated tables.

#### **Charts and graphs**

Charts now include text descriptions or alternative data tables so screen readers can convey the information they contain. Affected screens: Home, Container Details, Container Events, Data Analytics → Performance Diagnostics, Data Analytics → Storage in use.

#### **Navigation menus**

The main navigation menu and the Content Tags colour selector now announce their open/closed state and can be operated fully with a keyboard:

* **Tab / Shift+Tab** — move through menu options.
* **Enter** — activate an option.
* **Esc** — close the current menu or submenu.

#### **Integration forms**

All form fields in the Integrations section now have visible labels or accessible descriptions. Every field is reachable by Tab and correctly announced by screen readers.

***

### Performance – faster permission operations <a href="#id-5.-performance-faster-permission-operations" id="id-5.-performance-faster-permission-operations"></a>

Operations involving user permissions and storage policies (creating users, adding containers, assigning permissions) are now faster and more efficient. The improvement is transparent — you do not need to change how you work. You may notice that these operations complete more quickly, especially in instances with a large number of users or containers.

***

### Bug fixes <a href="#bug-fixes" id="bug-fixes"></a>

<table><thead><tr><th width="280">Area</th><th>What was fixed</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Configuration – Metadata Categories</td><td>Editing the name of a metadata category was not possible after the accessibility changes introduced in this release. This has been resolved.</td></tr><tr><td>Configuration – Metadata (Workflows, Container Metadata, Object Metadata, Pipeline Metadata)</td><td>Form fields in the metadata configuration sections could not be edited — clicking a field had no effect. This is now fixed.</td></tr><tr><td>Bulk PREMIS Rights Editor</td><td>The editor screen failed to load after passing the initial filter step in Advanced Search. It now loads correctly.</td></tr><tr><td>Functions – Copy</td><td>Copying a folder containing objects to the same container returned an error. The copy function now works correctly.</td></tr><tr><td>Submission Area (LibSafe Go)</td><td>Accessing a Submission Area after creating it resulted in a blank page. This is now resolved.</td></tr><tr><td>Performance Diagnostics – Database sync service</td><td>The Database and indexes synchronisation service lost its consumers and did not recover automatically. The service now recovers correctly after an interruption.</td></tr><tr><td>Container Storage – Migrations action buttons</td><td>Action buttons (file links) were not displayed in the Migrations section of the Container Storage tab. They are now shown correctly.</td></tr><tr><td>Reports – Launch confirmation</td><td>Launching a report from a container did not show the expected confirmation message. The confirmation now appears as expected.</td></tr><tr><td>Navigation menu – Firefox</td><td>Configuration sub-menus did not display their options when using Firefox. This has been fixed.</td></tr><tr><td>Mirroring</td><td>Mirroring jobs finished with "OK with errors" and did not process objects that met the mirroring policy, due to an internal data type error. The underlying cause has been resolved.</td></tr><tr><td>PREMIS events – UUID</td><td>PREMIS events generated by system microservices (Hasher, VirusScanner, TikaMeta, etc.) were missing their UUID field. All PREMIS events now include a correctly assigned UUID.</td></tr><tr><td>PREMIS agent roles – Copy</td><td>When copying a file, the PREMIS event agent roles associated with the original were not copied to the new file. They are now copied correctly.</td></tr></tbody></table>

***

### Summary of changes by role <a href="#summary-of-changes-by-role" id="summary-of-changes-by-role"></a>

<table><thead><tr><th width="280">Role</th><th>Key changes to be aware of</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>End user</strong></td><td>You can restore specific versions of archived OCFL objects; tables, menus, and charts are keyboard-accessible; copy function and Submission Area work correctly.</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Administrator</strong></td><td>Submission Area (LibSafe Go) welcome text is now customisable; storage class can be managed from the interface; metadata configuration editing is fixed.</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Compliance / Audit</strong></td><td>PREMIS events now include correct UUIDs and agent roles are preserved when files are copied.</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Operations</strong></td><td>Permission operations are faster; the database sync service now self-recovers after interruptions.</td></tr></tbody></table>