How to retain slide layout configuration when replacing slides

This article explains how to retain existing slide layout configuration when replacing a slide collection or an individual slide in a Document Agent.

Retaining configuration reduces the need to manually reconfigure slides and shapes when making updates to an existing slide collection.

How to update a slide collection while retaining configuration

1. Download the slide collection from the slide layouts tab that you intend on replacing.
2. Open the downloaded slide collection in PowerPoint.
3. Make the required changes to the existing slides and shapes.
4. Replace the existing slide collection with the updated file.
5. Review and configure any new slides or shapes that were added.

Existing configuration is retained for slides and shapes that originated from the downloaded slide collection.

How to replace an individual slide while retaining configuration

The same behavior applies when replacing an individual slide.

1. Locate the slide you want to update in its slide collection.
2. Download the slide you intend on editing.
3. Make the required changes directly to the existing slide and its existing shapes.
4. Replace the individual slide in the agent.
5. Review and configure any new shapes added to the slide.

The existing slide and shape configuration is retained as long as the original objects are used.

Changes that retain existing configuration

You can modify existing slides and shapes without losing their configuration, provided the original objects are not deleted or recreated.

For example, you can:

• Change the existing content within a shape.
• Move or resize existing shapes.
• Change the formatting or styling of existing shapes.
• Make design changes to an existing slide.
• Add new shapes to an existing slide.
• Add new slides to the slide collection.

When adding new slides or shapes, existing objects continue to retain their configuration. The newly added objects must be configured manually.

Changes that do not retain existing configuration

Configuration is not retained when an existing object is replaced by a newly created object.

This includes:

• Deleting and recreating a slide: The recreated slide is recognized as a new slide.
• Copying a slide: The copied slide is recognized as a new slide and does not inherit the configuration of the original.
• Deleting and recreating a shape: The newly created shape is recognized as a new object and must be configured manually.

Deleting an existing slide or shape also removes the configuration associated with that object.

Configuration that is retained

Configuration retention applies to all supported shape types.

For existing configured shapes, the following settings are retained:

• Content type
• Formatting settings
• Keep existing content, when enabled

For text shapes, configuration in the Content guide, including content configured using the rich text editor, is also retained.

For existing slides, the slide Name and Use case are retained.