Re-apply a Parent without duplicating Primary Text Frame?

[turner111]

Once a page is edited, its Primary Text Frame "detaches" from the Parent, or, otherwise, is editable.

However, if the Parent page is re-applied, it creates an additional text frame.

Is there a way to avoid this?

TIA

[Mike Witherell]

Re-apply is like starting over. Learn the subtle difference between an over-ride and a detach.

https://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/using/parent-pages.html

Override or detach parent items

When you apply a parent page to a document page, all objects on the parent, called parent items, appear on the document page. Sometimes you want a specific page to be only slightly different from a parent. In this situation you don’t need to re-create the parent layout on the page or create a new parent. You can override or detach the parent item, and other parent items on the document page will continue to update with the parent.

Note the difference between overriding and detaching parent items on a document page:

Override parent item attributes

Overriding a parent item puts a copy of it on the document page without breaking its association with the parent page. Once the item itself is overridden, you can selectively override one or more attributes of the item to customize it. For example, you can change the fill color of the local copy. After that, changes to the fill color on the parent page itself will not update to the local copy. However, other attributes, such as size, will continue to update because they have not been overridden on the local copy. Overrides can be removed later to make the object match the parent.

Attributes you can override for a parent page object include strokes, fills, contents of a frame, and any transformations (such as rotating, scaling, shearing, or resizing), corner options, text frame options, lock state, transparency, and object effects.

Detach items from their parent

On a document page, you can detach (disassociate) a parent item from its parent. The item must be overridden on the document page, creating a local copy, before you can detach it. A detached item does not update with the parent because its association with the parent page is broken.

[rob day]

Hi @turner111 , Can you share a sample InDesign file where that is happening?

[Robert at ID-Tasker]

@turner111 

You CAN'T move / resize Primary Text Frame on the normal page.

[rob day]

Make sure your running text is actually in the Primary Text thread and you have’t inadvertently created a new text thread that is not cntrolled by the Parent.

Check for the Primary Text icon when the text frames are selected—if your page’s text thread is not showing this icon the thread in not primary:

The reapplied Parent: