I've been through the tutorials and searched online thoroughly, but I can't find any reference to this basic functionality, although it's possible I missed it somewhere.

How does one remove an object and have the patchcord "heal' after the device is gone, leaving the connection between the upstream & downstream devices intact?

Conversely, how does one insert an object into an existing patchcord without having to disconnect/reconnect one end, and add a new segment? I know about Paste/Replace, but that only works if an object already exists at the insert point.

What I'm talking about is the Alt-Click & drag functionality in Bidule. (Alt-click & drag duplicates objects in Max)

Surely this must exist in a "patchbay" app as mature as Max, but I'm just not finding it. Sorry if it's somewhere obvious, but really looked hard before posting such an obviously noob question.

Thanks for any direction.