Updating Dawn theme removes custom liquid from template

Topic summary

Issue: After updating Shopify’s Dawn theme, a template’s Custom Liquid section (custom HTML/Liquid added as a section) disappears from the live template. The section file still exists in the code, but it’s no longer referenced in the template, requiring manual re‑addition each update.

Clarifications: Other participants note that theme updates install a fresh copy that does not include prior customizations in templates. This suggests the behavior is expected rather than a bug.

Follow‑up: Questions were raised about whether settings were hidden or tied to specific HTML, but the reporter confirmed the section is removed from the template after updating.

Official guidance: A staff response links documentation stating manual code changes are supported, but files/settings in the templates folder are not copied over during updates. If a custom templates folder was created, it won’t be migrated; manual handling is required.

Status/Actions: No automatic fix provided. Recommended to track and reapply template references after updates or adjust customization strategy to minimize template-level changes. Discussion effectively resolved as expected behavior; no automation/workaround detailed.

Summarized with AI on December 27. AI used: gpt-5.

Yes, my template has a section containing a liquid, let’s call it custom.liquid. After updating my Dawn theme, the liquid/section is removed from the template.