Audit registration and actual rendered usage together. A block absent from post content can still appear in a shared template.
Select present and absent examples
Choose one page with the custom block and one that appears not to use it. Record frontend asset requests in clean sessions. Inspect header, footer, patterns and dynamic sections before declaring absence. A post-content search alone can miss blocks rendered through shared templates or server-side components.
Identify registration and dependencies
Ask the block owner to review its block.json fields and server registration against the current handbook. Distinguish editorScript, shared script/style and frontend view assets. Conditional behavior depends on the registered asset type, rendering and installed platform support. Do not promise that one metadata field automatically prevents every unnecessary request in every theme.
Find unconditional enqueues
Look for maintained plugin or theme code that loads the bundle globally in addition to block registration. Compare the request’s owner and handles before removing anything. A shared library may serve another visible component. Removing the duplicate or broad load should preserve dependencies needed by other blocks and avoid silently breaking the editor.
Test scoped delivery on staging
Implement the owner’s supported loading correction in source, then regenerate any build output. Compare the absent and present pages again. Test a template that renders the block indirectly and a page containing two instances. Avoid a simplistic content-string detector that overlooks nested patterns or dynamic output.
Verify behavior beyond transfer
Operate the block on a cold load, navigate with the keyboard and check repeat visits. Confirm the editor still offers configuration controls. Measure the removed requests under the same conditions and record what remains shared. Restore the prior registration if indirect usage breaks; the acceptance test is correct scoped functionality, not an empty script list.
Symptom-to-cause worksheet
| What you observe | What to investigate | Next check |
|---|---|---|
| Asset on apparently absent page | Shared template or global enqueue | Inspect rendered component and owner |
| Only indirect instance breaks | Presence detection incomplete | Test template/pattern rendering |
| Editor fails after frontend cleanup | Editor dependency removed | Separate asset roles |
Worked investigation scenario
Illustrative investigation, not a measured Velonic result. Suppose a testimonial block’s bundle loads on a plain article because the theme enqueues it globally. Before removing that enqueue, inspect the footer, which also contains the block. If only some templates omit it, test supported scoped loading across both cases. Verify the indirect footer instance and editor controls after the change; a post-body-only condition would miss the real dependency.
Put it into practice
- Inspect the rendered page, including templates.
- Review metadata and global enqueue code.
- Test indirect and multiple block instances.
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