During merge, replace the existing (target) value in the entity we are merging to with a new (original) value from the detached entity we are merging. For immutable objects, or null values, it is safe to simply return the first parameter. For mutable objects, it is safe to return a copy of the first parameter. For objects with component values, it might make sense to recursively replace component values.

Object Replace(
	Object original,
	Object target,
	Object owner
)

Function Replace ( _
	original As Object, _
	target As Object, _
	owner As Object _
) As Object

Object^ Replace(
	Object^ original, 
	Object^ target, 
	Object^ owner
)