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description: Rebrand a required theme without forking it — ship neutral logo/favicon as permanent managed files (they travel via core Default Content) and override via theme-settings; beware Canvas re-seeding brand strings from the theme's SDC examples. drupal_version: "11.x" tldr: Reuse a required theme unmodified while replacing its branded logo/favicon: ship neutral binaries as PERMANENT managed files under public://branding/ (core Default Content exports the file entities + binaries) and point <theme>.settings logo/favicon overrides at them (use_default: false). Theme untouched, no theme release. Beware: Canvas regenerates component-config default_value from the theme's SDC examples: on cache rebuild / component rediscovery (which routinely brackets an export or recipe-apply) — neutralize those upstream and patch post-export.

Rebrand a Required Theme Without Forking

What: To ship a template on a required theme whose default logo/favicon embed someone else's wordmark, override the brand assets at the template level: ship neutral binaries as permanent managed files and set them via <theme>.settings config. Do not edit or fork the theme.

Rationale: Editing the theme's SVGs (or forking/renaming the theme) has a high blast radius — it forces a theme re-tag/release and can regress every other consumer of that theme. Instead, keep the theme a read-only caret dependency and override only what's branded:

  • Managed-file assets travel via Default Content. Register the neutral logo-{light,dark}.svg / favicon as permanent file entities under public://branding/…. Core's Default Content exporter serializes managed-file entities and their binaries, so site:export carries the actual asset bytes into the package's content/. (A raw file dropped in the theme would require touching the theme; a managed file does not.)
  • Theme-settings override, not theme edit. Set <theme>.settings logo/favicon with use_default: false pointing at the shipped file. The theme's own files stay byte-identical — the "reused as-is" guarantee holds and no theme release is needed.

Beware the Canvas SDC-examples feedback loop: Canvas derives a component config's default_value from the first entry of the theme's SDC examples: block, and regenerates it on cache rebuild / component (re)discovery (hook_rebuild / module install) — which routinely brackets an export or recipe-apply. If the theme's author-byline SDC example still says Elena Martinez, that brand string is re-seeded into your canvas.component.* config whenever components are rediscovered. Handle it in two places: neutralize the examples: upstream in the theme (proper fix / upstream follow-up) AND keep a post-export patch until that lands.

When it applies: Any site template that requires a shared theme carrying brand identity in its logo/favicon/SDC examples, where the theme must remain unmodified (zero-diff, no release).

Example:

# 1. Neutral binaries as PERMANENT managed files so Default Content exports them
drush php:eval '\Drupal\file\Entity\File::create([
  "uri" => "public://branding/meridian-logo-light.svg", "status" => 1,
])->save();'   # status=1 (permanent); repeat for dark logo + favicon

# 2. Theme-settings override — theme files untouched
# config/<theme>.settings.yml
logo:
  use_default: false
  path: 'public://branding/meridian-logo-light.svg'
favicon:
  use_default: false
  path: 'public://branding/meridian-favicon.svg'

# 3. After a rebuild/re-export: neutralize brand re-seeded from the theme's SDC examples:
#    canvas.component.sdc.<theme>.author-byline default_value  ← re-patch post-export
#    upstream follow-up: fix examples: in the theme's author-byline.component.yml