TechNote (Archived)

Understanding editable and noneditable regions in templates

Issue
Dreamweaver handles updates to editable and noneditable (locked) regions differently. Changes in the locked regions will be reflected in the updated pages, while changes in editable regions will not.

The only time that the template affects the content in the editable region of a template-based page is the first time the page is opened from the template (File > New from Template). After that point it is not possible to update the editable regions of this page globally. Doing so would erase the existing content in the editable region, so Dreamweaver does not allow it. To change this content in the editable region you must make the change in the page itself, rather than in the original template.

Explanation
Content in templates will be either in a locked region or in an editable region. A locked region contains content that will always be written to pages based on the template. This region cannot be selected or changed in the page itself; it must be changed in the original templateâ”thus the term "locked" is applied to noneditable regions. An editable region contains content that is editable in the pages based on this template. Due to this fundamental difference, the two regions work in different ways from one another:

	Locked regions
	Content in locked regions of a template will be written to all HTML pages based on this template. Changes to content in locked regions of a template will prompt an update to HTML pages that use this template. Once updated, HTML pages that use this template will show the content changed in the locked region of the template.
	Editable regions
	Content in editable regions of a template will only be written to another HTML page onceâ”when the new page is initially created. Content in editable regions of a template will not be written when choosing Modify > Templates > Apply Template to Page. This means that the only way to write editable content to a page is to choose File > New from Template. When pages are updated , locked regions will be updated but editable regions will not.

Examples
The following examples will illustrate these concepts in practical terms:

	Changes to editable regions
	A user enters the word "Hello" in the editable region of the original template. After updating the pages from this template, Dreamweaver does not update the editable regions in these pages. This means that the word"Hello" does not appear on the pages. This is because the region is editable, which means the content can be different in each individual page.
	Changes to locked regions
	A user enters the word "Hello" in a locked (noneditable) region of the original template. The user updates the pages from the template. After the update, all pages based on that template will contain the word"Hello" in the proper non- editable region.

Solution
Make changes to editable regions on individual pages. Make changes to locked regions in the original template itself.

Additional information
For further clarification on templates, consult the Dreamweaver documentation. For a comprehensive listing of the Macromedia TechNotes available on the subject of templates, see Important information to consider when using templates (TechNote 14627).