Welcome to our November 2026 release notes!
It’s been an exceptionally productive month for Virto Commerce, with major updates across the Platform and Frontend. We’ve introduced the new Admin Shell, unveiled Frontend Next, released Stable 16, and added a range of new modules bringing fresh capabilities to the ecosystem.
- New stable 16: First bundle designed to support agent-assisted upgrades.
- Platform Admin Shell: An independent, replaceable module.
- Frontend Next theme: A new Vue-based Frontend theme with a redesigned UI, developed alongside the existing theme
- New sign-in modules:
- OTP (One-Time Password)
- MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication)
- Passkeys
Stable 16 bundle released
The Stable 16 bundle has been released! It is the first bundle designed to support agent-assisted upgrades. Its module kit is machine-readable and can be used as context by AI coding agents such as Claude Code to analyze upgrade impacts and help upgrade custom modules, one module per branch. An end-to-end check on a running stack with BackgroundJobs installed (for example, using vc-testing-module), followed by a regular PR review, completes the workflow.
Stable 16 adds five modules to the stable line for the first time:
- BackgroundJobs 3.1052.0: A new background job engine replacing Hangfire for indexing, export and recurring jobs.
- UCP 3.1010.0: The Universal Commerce Protocol, letting AI agents search products, build carts and hand checkout off to the storefront.
- OpenTelemetry 3.1002.0: Exports platform traces and metrics to external monitoring systems.
- WhiteLabeling 3.1005.0: Per-organization storefront branding: logo, colors, favicon, footer.
- XPickup 3.1008.0: A GraphQL pickup API (BOPIS) for finding and choosing a pickup location at checkout.
Detailed Stable 16 description
Frontend Next: a redesigned theme, built alongside the original
Virto Commerce is now developing a second Frontend theme, vc-frontend-next, in parallel with the existing vc-frontend theme:
We continue to maintain the original theme, delivering new features, improvements, and fixes for existing client projects. There is no forced migration or redesign.
vc-frontend-next carries a redesigned UI for new clients and is a good starting point for new projects and demos, as well as for projects looking to adopt the new design.
We are also working to make UI/UX customization easier, so you can adapt the interface to your project’s needs while continuing to receive updates and new features from Virto Commerce.
It is still evolving: consult the Virto Commerce team before switching a project onto it.
Admin UI moves into its own module, with a choice of UI modes. Platform 3.1092.0 + Admin AngularJS 3.1092.0 + 
Admin Shell 3.1000.0
The admin UI is now separated from the Platform core and delivered as an independent, replaceable module. This change allows Virto Commerce to develop and release new admin UI implementations independently while continuing to maintain the existing AngularJS UI. It also gives partners and clients the flexibility to build and release custom admin UIs tailored to their projects.
The existing AngularJS admin UI has moved out of the Platform core into its own module, VirtoCommerce.AdminAngularJs, which is part of the Commerce bundle and installs automatically when the Platform starts for the first time. Existing setups continue to work as before. The Platform package is now 37 MB, down from 58 MB (about 36% smaller). If the module is missing, the Platform displays a message in place of the admin UI rather than failing.
The first alternative implementation is Admin Shell, a new Vue-based admin UI currently available in preview. It hosts the back office at /apps/admin-shell/ and uses a strangler pattern: modules can gradually move their screens to Vue, where they appear in a server-built menu. Screens that have not yet been migrated continue to run inside the shell in an embedded frame, so users can work with both types of screens in one interface. Admin Shell is intended for testing and demos, not yet as a replacement for the existing Backoffice. More than a dozen modules have already added Admin Shell screens
The admin shell layout correctly adapts to both LTR and RTL languages:
The split also introduces configurable admin UI modes, allowing projects to choose which admin UI implementations to enable:
- No admin UI (API only).
- AngularJS only.
- Admin Shell only.
- AngularJS by default, with Admin Shell also available.
- Admin Shell by default, with AngularJS available as a fallback for modules that have not yet migrated.
Virto Start is configured to use Admin Shell by default, with AngularJS as a fallback.
OTP sign-in by email. OTP 3.1000.0 + Frontend 2.59.0
A returning customer can now sign in with a one-time code emailed to them instead of only a password, and a store admin turns OTP sign-in on or off per store from the store’s settings. The Platform picked up supporting grant-type infrastructure in the same window (3.1075.0).
OTP overview
Enabling OTP sign-in
Signing in to the Frontend
Passkey sign-in, no password needed. Passkeys 3.1000.0 + Frontend 2.61.0
A shopper can register a passkey (WebAuthn) on their device. Passkeys are a safer alternative to passwords. They use cryptographic keys linked to the legitimate website: the private key stays securely on the user’s device and is never shared with the website. This means a passkey cannot be captured by a fake login page or reused by an attacker on another website, providing strong protection against phishing and credential theft.
Supported authenticators include:
- Face ID
- Touch ID
- Windows Hello
- Android
- FIDO2 key
Users can sign in with it instead of typing a password, including through the browser’s autofill on the login field for a one-tap sign-in:
A verified passkey satisfies MFA on its own, so the OTP step is skipped. Shoppers add, rename, and delete their passkeys from Account → Security, where each one shows its last-used date, and a store admin turns passkey sign-in on or off per store and separately for the Backoffice. It is on by default for both. Every passkey sign-in is logged, and failed attempts count toward the account’s lockout threshold.
Multi-factor authentication for store and backoffice. MFA 3.1000.0 + Frontend 2.61.0
A password sign-in can now be followed by a one-time code sent by email as a second factor, for both the Frontend and the Backoffice. The Platform added matching extension points for two-factor sign-in in the same window.
Every return decision now reaches the buyer in-app. Returns 3.1003.0 + Frontend 2.59.0
A buyer can now request a return of all or some order items.
Then they are notified in-app when their return request is approved or declined, including the reason for a decline.
Submitting returns via the Frontend
In the Platform, managers can approve the return, in full or partially, or decline it.
Managing returns via the Platform
Organization maintainers see every return in their organization. Returns 3.1005.0 + Frontend 2.60.0
An organization maintainer now has a read-only Organization returns tab next to My returns, listing every return a colleague in the organization has filed, filterable by status the same way as My returns.
AI agent’s checkout. UCP 3.1006.0 + Frontend 2.59.0
When the buyer asks AI agent to use their account, the agent signs them in and builds the cart under their identity.
- AI agent calls link_buyer_identity; the buyer signs in on the Virto Platform page.
- B2B buyers get their organization’s contract prices and assortment.
- An anonymous cart merges into the account cart.
• AI agent returns a signed continue_url; checkout and payment stay in the Frontend.
• Identity comes only from the Platform token; spoofed buyer IDs get a 403
Barcode scanner improved. Catalog 3.1046.0 + Frontend 2.59.0
The barcode scanner search mode can be configured:
- Full-text search treats a scan as an regular keyword search.
- Exact match on selected fields matches the scanned value only against the fields you specify, such as address, SKU, or GTIN.
Configuring barcode scanner search
Share list with several customers, with your message saved. Sales Rep 3.1012.0 + Frontend 2.59.0
A sales rep can now share one list with several customers at once from a multiselect picker, instead of sharing it one customer at a time. A custom message added to a share is now saved and shown again when the share dialog is reopened and edited.
Lists management on the Frontend
Sales rep tasks get a cleaner layout. Frontend 2.60.0
The Calendar segment has been renamed to the Tasks in the Sales Rep Hub section. now matches the rest of the hub: the task list is a zebra table and status chips follow the same style used on Orders.
Tasks management on the Frontend
Activity summary. Sales Rep 3.1015.0 + Frontend 2.61.0
A sales rep can now see their activity for their customers directly in the Sales Rep Hub, through a new Activities page. The page also shows their searches, logging attempts, and products viewed.
Asset Library improved. Page Builder 3.1035.0
The search through the Assets library covers the whole current folder, not its sub-folders. A folder loads 20 files at a time. The paginator has been added to the bottom to move between pages.
Assets search and sorting options have been added to the UI:
Managing assets in Page Builder
Multi-language pages. Page Builder 3.1039.0
A content manager can now build a page once and link a translation per language instead of maintaining a separate page per locale: a Multilanguage Page can be published or archived as a set, converted from an existing Landing page, and flags a linked translation as outdated when the source page changes.
Sanity indexing hardened against replay and leaked keys. Sanity 3.1004.0
The Sanity CMS integration now validates its incoming webhook by signature instead of a key embedded in the URL, rejects replayed requests, resolves secrets by name instead of storing them in the database, and validates input before it reaches a GROQ query. It also now supports indexing multiple Sanity document types.
Platform caches now report hit and miss rates. Platform 3.1082.0
The platform now counts every cache hit and miss and reports it to OpenTelemetry, so a cache whose key never matches is visible instead of silently behaving like a working one.
Caching overview
OpenTelemetry
Sales Rep Hub ships as the first Module Federation plugin. Frontend 2.60.0
The Sales Rep Hub is the first module to ship its own storefront UI as a Module Federation plugin instead of living inside the Frontend theme itself, loaded only when the module is installed and the store setting is on, at zero bundle cost when it’s off. Future modules can follow the same pattern.
Product configurations checklist. Frontend 2.60.0
On a configurable product, the Price widget now lists every configuration option by state (done, required, or optional). A buyer can see exactly why Add to cart is still disabled.
A file attached to a configurable product is now a clickable, downloadable link in the cart.
Beacon Analytics: markup-driven tracking for CMS blocks. Frontend 2.60.0
Product-list analytics events can now be declared directly in markup through a beacon tracking layer, so Page Builder content and plain HTML blocks report to Google Analytics without custom tracking code.
QA
Virto Commerce’s own test automation moved from pytest to Playwright and TypeScript this release, now covering REST, xAPI GraphQL, frontend and Page Builder tests in one framework instead of several.
The new framework runs 1,200-plus tests across four suites (REST API, xAPI, frontend, Page Builder), with 31 seeded data collections safe to rerun and no fixed sleeps. Every test waits for a real response instead of a timer. Sharing one language with the Frontend and VC-Shell means an API change now breaks a type check immediately instead of surfacing in a nightly run, and the suite runs against any Virto deployment from one .env file.
Marketplace
Vendors can now manage their own returns directly from the vendor portal, instead of routing every return through the marketplace operator:
The team also kept the vendor portal current with the latest Platform, module and Frontend releases.
For more information, request a demo
VC-Shell
- Right-to-left languages. VC-Shell 2.7.0 now supports Arabic, Hebrew, Persian and Urdu: the layout mirrors automatically when one of these languages is selected.
- Remember me on sign-in. As of VC-Shell 2.7.0, the login form gets a Remember me option, and session expiry is handled more reliably: users are signed out only when the session is really gone, and return to where they were after signing back in.
- Widget alerts and a customizable widget strip. As of VC-Shell 2.8.0, blade widgets can now flag what needs attention, and users can choose which widgets they see and in what order.
- Extending other modules’ screens. As of VC-Shell 2.8.0 modules can add toolbar buttons and widgets to another module’s blade by referring to it by name.
Explore the new features and capabilities
Knowledge hub
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Automotive Aftermarket B2B Commerce Playbook: ACES 5.0 / PIES 8.0
A 26-page PDF written with Reveation Labs. ACES 5.0 and PIES 8.0 came out in 2026, and the playbook explains what changed in them. It covers renamed fields, stricter validation and updated reference databases, and how each change affects the teams that publish data and the teams that consume it. It also covers what breaks when the two sides are on different versions and what a migration involves. There’s a self-assessment checklist and a walkthrough of a fitment accelerator, including vehicle selection, Best Fit / Possible Fit status and saved vehicles. The KW Parts example runs on a catalog of more than 4M parts.
Download needs a business email and company name -
Podcast: Scale Global B2B Without Breaking It
An episode of The Ecommerce Edge podcast on YouTube. Host Jason Greenwood talks with Ricardo López, Director of Client & Product Solutions at Virto Commerce, about running global B2B ecommerce at HEINEKEN across dozens of markets. Topics:- The range from EDI and PunchOut to self-service portals
- Portal functions beyond the cart: invoices, credit accounts and service requests
- PaaS vs. SaaS now that AI is involved
- Administering commerce through LLMs and MCP servers
- Where agentic AI and intent-based search are heading
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The Invisible Catalog: Can AI See Your B2B Catalog?
A 21-page field guide and checklist written with Prerender.io, for digital, SEO, IT and catalog owners. It explains two problems:- AI crawlers such as GPTBot, PerplexityBot and ClaudeBot read raw HTML without running JavaScript, so they miss pages that render client-side.
- Much B2B product data sits behind a login.
The guide includes a ten-minute self-test (ten buying-intent queries, three technical checks and one entity check). It also has a way to decide, attribute by attribute, what stays public and what stays behind login, a six-step plan with a decision flowchart, and a scored readiness checklist. Download needs a business email and company name
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Solution Configurator
An interactive tool on the website for putting together a Virto Commerce setup. You choose a deployment model (Virto Cloud, Cloud or On-prem) and a product (B2B Commerce Platform, Portal or Marketplace). Then you turn capability groups on or off, each with its own sub-features: catalog, pricing, cart and checkout, sales enablement, customer management, returns and more. The setup is saved in the page link, so you can share it. It works best on desktop and doesn’t require a login. -
Interactive Demo (updated)
A five-minute guided tour of Virto Commerce in the browser. It covers catalog management, AI-assisted product data, ordering, quotes and tools for sales reps. It’s free to use with no form or login. The demo page also links to the Solution Configurator, so you can go straight from the tour to building your own setup.