@@ -13,6 +13,29 @@ export const metadata = {
 
 Welcome to the documentation page for the AR.IO gateway release notes. Here, you will find detailed information about each version of the AR.IO gateway, including the enhancements, bug fixes, and any other changes introduced in every release. This page serves as a comprehensive resource to keep you informed about the latest developments and updates in the AR.IO gateway. For those interested in exploring the source code, each release's code is readily accessible at our GitHub repository: AR.IO gateway [change logs](https://github.com/ar-io/ar-io-node/blob/main/CHANGELOG.md). Stay updated with the continuous improvements and advancements in the AR.IO gateway by referring to this page for all release-related information.
 
+## [Release 49] - 2025-09-07
+
+This is an optional release that significantly improves the ClickHouse ETL pipeline with better performance, reliability, and Apache Iceberg metadata support. While optional for most users, this release is important for anyone experimenting with Parquet exports and ClickHouse integration.
+
+### Added
+
+- **Apache Iceberg Metadata Generation**: Added `generate-iceberg-metadata` script to create Apache Iceberg table metadata for exported Parquet datasets, enabling compatibility with query engines like DuckDB and Spark. Controlled by new `ENABLE_ICEBERG_GENERATION` environment variable (default: false). **Note: Iceberg metadata generation is still under active development and currently incomplete.**
+- **HyperBEAM Sidecar Support**: Added optional HyperBEAM container configuration with `.env.hb.example` template for running AO processes alongside the gateway.
+- **ETL Configuration Documentation**: Documented existing ClickHouse auto-import environment variables in `.env.example`:
+  - `CLICKHOUSE_AUTO_IMPORT_SLEEP_INTERVAL` - interval between import cycles (default: 3600 seconds)
+  - `CLICKHOUSE_AUTO_IMPORT_HEIGHT_INTERVAL` - batch size in blocks (default: 10000)
+  - `CLICKHOUSE_AUTO_IMPORT_MAX_ROWS_PER_FILE` - Parquet file size limit (default: 1000000)
+
+### Changed
+
+- **ETL Pipeline Architecture**: Refactored the ClickHouse ETL pipeline for improved reliability and modularity:
+  - Implemented staging-based workflow to prevent data corruption
+  - Changed from API-based triggering to direct script execution
+  - Made L1 transaction export the default behavior
+  - Changed default export location from `data/parquet` to `data/datasets/default`
+- **Performance**: Greatly improved query performance through better index usage in the refactored pipeline
+- **Stability**: Fixed issue where the 'core' service would occasionally crash due to long-running SQLite queries
+
 ## [Release 48] - 2025-09-02
 
 This is an optional release that introduces Turbo root transaction ID lookups, DNS resolution for preferred chunk nodes, and automatic data item resolution from chunks. These features continue the network's journey toward complete independence from legacy infrastructure while improving retrieval performance and reliability.