Can't add blocks in templates — is this a new problem?

All of a sudden, I can't add additional blocks to a template. No "+" on hover or teardrop.

Is anyone else having this problem? It's driving me crazy, and I can't figure out why we're being given templates if we can't modify them. Would mean creating everything from scratch. I've never seen this before, the other sites I've built aren't having this problem, and I've been using Squarespace for years. What am I missing?

Auto layout sections don't allow editing them by adding blocks as traditional sections.

You can identify which sections are Auto layout by the little badge in the upper right corner.

You can of course add non Auto layout sections above and below and add blocks there with caveats.

Auto layout sections are like Gallery sections, Store pages, and Portfolio pages. You can't add blocks to the actual gallery, store, or portfolio sections but can add new sections above and below as above.

Thanks. Appreciate your time, and customer support told me as much.

However, this all started when I went to create a new page, selected layouts, and added “services.” There was nothing here with that “i” — so that sent me down the rabbit hole of not being able to edit the section. Here’s a screenshot.

So I’m not crazy…there were not indicators that these were auto. Not until you get to adding a block — list, headline, or people, do you see it.

I sure wish this was more clearly spelled out, so I didn't have to waste a couple of hours hunting down an answer. This is a big shift from what was before.