We have an account-level pipeline template used by many repos. That pipeline template is composed of multiple step group templates (for example: curate inputs, initialize pipeline, centralized selector, pants/native test/build groups, GraphQL groups). Consumer repos define a linked pipeline.yaml and pass templateInputs.variables only for values they explicitly want to override. Our goal is: Keep consumer pipeline.yaml files lean (only intentional overrides). Let template defaults apply when variables are omitted. Still allow per-pipeline overrides later by adding a variable in the consumer pipeline. Avoid reconciliation repeatedly adding/injecting many defaulted fields into consumer YAML. What we observed in testing: If template variable is fixed literal: Omit from consumer: works (template default applies). Add in consumer as override: not allowed / reconciled away (expected, since not an input contract). If template variable is set with <+input>.default(...).executionInput(): Override works. But reconciliation materializes those runtime-input fields in linked pipelines, which makes consumer YAML less lean. We are looking for a better way to override these template variables without having to constantly reconcile the entities calling the templates.
