JCB 6.1.6, 5.1.6 & 4.1.5 - Progressive Engine, Stability Preserved, Maintenance Ensured

[lemuelvdm]

We are excited to announce the latest stable releases of Joomla Component Builder (JCB) across all supported major Joomla Versions.

This release cycle moves JCB forward in a very important way. The biggest progress is in JCB v6.1.6, where the JCB interface has been dramatically improved, the old UIkit dependency has been removed, and the main JCB interface has been migrated toward Bootstrap 5 and Joomla-native behavior.
At the same time, JCB v5.1.6 remains stable and actively maintained, while JCB v4.1.5 continues as a maintenance-supported version.

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✨ What Stands Out

🧭 Health Check Buttons Added

A new Health Check action has been added to the JCB Compiler and Component list views.

This helps users quickly verify whether their system PHP configuration is compatible with JCB. We have seen many support issues caused by incorrect PHP settings, so this tool should make it much easier to identify environment problems before they become compiler or runtime issues.

🎨 Major Joomla 6 Interface Improvement

The Joomla 6 version received the most visible improvement in this release cycle.

The primary JCB views and core interface areas have been refactored toward Bootstrap 5 and Joomla-native behavior. This includes important areas such as the compiler, search view, initialization areas, and shared interface structures.

This is a major step toward a cleaner, more modern JCB experience on Joomla 6.

🧹 UIkit Removed from Joomla 6 Auto-Loading

JCB 6 no longer automatically injects UIkit into custom admin views, site views, templates, or layouts.

This is an important architectural improvement. Libraries should only load when explicitly required, and Joomla 6 should no longer be tied to legacy UIkit behavior by default.

📦 Improved Library Loading

This release introduces stricter version-aware compilation for Joomla 6.

Libraries are now only included when explicitly defined for Joomla 6. This helps prevent legacy assets from being pulled into newer builds and gives developers better control over what is loaded.

⚙️ JavaScript Improvements

The JavaScript waiting spinner has been refactored to use stronger native JavaScript with improved page-loading handling.

This improves reliability and reduces dependency on older behavior during page transitions and loading states.

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🐳 Official Docker Images

Official Docker images are available for JCB and can be used for testing, development, and deployment workflows.

docker pull octoleo/joomengine

Official Docker documentation:

https://github.com/joomengine/docker/tree/master/docker

This provides a fast, consistent, and production-ready docker way to deploy JCB with the correct environment already configured.

📥 Download Releases

All Stable Releases

• https://git.vdm.dev/joomla/pkg-component-builder/releases

Joomla 6 (Recommended Production Version)

• https://git.vdm.dev/joomla/pkg-component-builder/releases/tag/v6.1.6

Joomla 5 (Stable)

• https://git.vdm.dev/joomla/pkg-component-builder/releases/tag/v5.1.6

Joomla 4 (Maintenance)

• https://git.vdm.dev/joomla/pkg-component-builder/releases/tag/v4.1.5

If you already have JCB installed, updates should be available automatically via the update server.

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🛠 Full Changelog

JCB 6.1.6 / 5.1.6 / 4.1.5

• Add Health Check buttons to the JCB Compiler and Component list view to verify system PHP configuration.
• Add the Toolbar Custom Buttons subform to the Global Subform settings for improved usability and presentation.
• Fix the Field edit view to ensure full compliance with Joomla 6 standards and updated UI/UX conventions.
• Begin migration from UIkit to Bootstrap 5 to align JCB with Joomla 6+ standards.
• Complete Bootstrap 5 refactor of all primary views and core UI.
• Continue phased removal of UIkit with full transition planned for upcoming releases.
• Fix deprecated JText usage in Admin Custom Tabs area for Joomla 5+ compatibility. #1302
• Fix snippet loading for Joomla 6, improving reliability and removing legacy UIkit dependencies during migration.
• Introduce strict version-aware compilation to ensure libraries are only included when explicitly defined for Joomla 6.
• Disable automatic UIkit injection for Joomla 6, preventing auto-loading across custom admin views, site views, templates, and layouts.
• Migrate Search view for Joomla 6 to use Bootstrap and Joomla-native HTML and JavaScript.
• Remove all manually linked Bootstrap v4 assets from the component.
• Improve subform ordering fields for clearer display and better readability.
• Refactor the JavaScript waiting spinner to use solid, native JavaScript with improved page-loading handling.

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🙌 Thank You

Thank you to everyone testing, reporting issues, building with JCB, and helping us move the project forward.

This release is an important step in preparing JCB for the future of Joomla development.