The XLS Padlock changelog offers a detailed, chronological history of all published versions. Each entry lists new features, enhancements, bug fixes, and other significant changes. The most recent version is always at the top.
Version 2025.2 #
This version introduces compatibility with the latest Windows 11 update, resolves critical issues with the Web Update and Save As features, and includes several internal component updates for enhanced performance and security.
- Windows 11 25H2 Compatibility: Full support and testing for the upcoming Windows 11 Version 25H2 update.
New Languages: Added full localization for Italian, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese.
Upgraded key internal components for improved performance, stability, and security.
Web Update Improvements: The web update has been improved, particularly with Universal EXE files.
- Save As Dialog Path: Fixed a regression where the “Save As” dialog would incorrectly default to a previously used directory, ignoring the path optionally specified via the
SetSecureWorkbookFilenameVBA function. - Runtime File Cleanup: Old runtime DLLs are now removed from the AppData location.
- EXE Version Info: Fixed a bug where the
CompanyNameandInternalNamefields in the EXE’s version information were not being set correctly during compilation. - Revamped Documentation: The entire documentation has been overhauled. It is still available online, as an offline help file, and as a downloadable PDF guide.
- Internal update for Enky CT and LC dongles.
- Minor Improvements.
Version 2025.1 #
This release focuses on performance improvements, new language support, and fixing several user-reported bugs for better stability and user experience.
New Features
- New Languages: Added Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese localization files (.SIL) for compiled applications.
- Improved Compression: The compression algorithm has been switched to Zstandard for faster compilation and execution.
Enhancements & Improvements
- Component Update: The internal spreadsheet engine has been updated for improved compatibility and performance.
- The compilation process will now correctly stop if an error (such as an incorrect password) occurs while protecting the original workbook, preventing the creation of a non-functional application.
- Added a check at compile time to prevent the use of duplicate companion file names.
- Stability: The multithreading loop has been optimized for increased overall application stability.
- Improved progress bar behavior during compression.
Bug Fixes
- Fixed a regression where a protected workbook could no longer be opened directly from Windows Explorer (via double-click or file association) in some cases.
- Resolved a conflict where the deactivation prompt could not appear when the “Save changes automatically” option was enabled.
- Fixed a focus-stealing issue where the application would switch to another window after saving a file.
- The PE (Portable Executable) checksum calculation has been fixed.
- Fixed an issue that could prevent the correct EXE format from being selected when creating a new project.
Version 2025.0 #
This is a landmark update packed with significant new capabilities, security enhancements, and a refined user experience to provide greater flexibility and protection for your Excel applications.
New Features
- Comprehensive Multilingual Support:
- The main XLS Padlock interface is now multilingual. It auto-detects your Windows display language or can be set manually.
- Compiled applications now support multilingual user interfaces (dialogs, messages).
- Current languages include: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, German, and Arabic (with RTL support).
- New Standalone Package Format:
- We introduced a new standalone executable format using robust 7z compression. This results in smaller .exe files and significantly reduces antivirus false positives compared to the previous UPX-based method.
- Enhanced Cloud Code Signing Support:
- Added support for modern, cloud-based code signing certificates.
- Includes built-in integration for Microsoft Azure Trusted Signing.
- Integrates with Microsoft’s SignTool.exe, allowing the use of certificates stored on hardware tokens or in the cloud.
Enhancements & Improvements
- Modernized UI: The XLS Padlock interface has been given a fresh look, and UI control resizing issues have been resolved.
- Updated Help System: Documentation is now delivered in a modern help viewer, and the context-sensitive help (F1 key) has been improved.
- Simplified Bundle App Format: The 64-bit loader is now a distinct, digitally signed .bin64 file for improved recognition by security software.
- Upgraded Signature Security: Dropped support for outdated SHA-1 signatures. XLS Padlock now relies exclusively on SHA-256 signatures as per Microsoft guidelines.
- Improved OneDrive Handling: The software now provides clearer warnings when working with cloud-only OneDrive files.
- Smoother Web Updates: Fixed the application restart logic after a web update when the “Allow one instance” option is active.
- Refined Localization: Addressed untranslated text elements and improved overall language file handling.
Bug Fixes
- Fixed issues related to sheet protection.
- Fixed bugs affecting interaction with locked cells.
- Resolved an issue related to certificate deactivation.
- Fixed problems with the creation of universal icons for applications.
- General stability improvements and various other minor fixes.
Deprecated / Removed
- Support for EnkySL dongles has been discontinued.
- UPX compression is no longer used for creating executables.
- Support for SHA-1 code signing has been removed.
