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Guide

Create Your First Runbook

Build a runbook that is specific enough to help during a real incident and simple enough to trust.

Before you start

  • Pick one repeated workflow you actually run during incidents.
  • Decide which systems, functions, environments, tags, or teams the runbook should target.

Do this

  1. Open Runbooks and create a new runbook.
  2. Name the runbook after the job it does, not the team that wrote it.
  3. Add a short description so responders know when to use it.
  4. Set the target systems, functions, environments, tags, or teams the runbook should match.
  5. Add the steps in the order responders expect them to happen.
  6. Keep the first version short and focused on one operational outcome.
  7. Save the runbook and leave it inactive until the steps and dependencies look right.
  8. Activate it only when the runbook is ready to launch during a live incident.

Check it worked

  • The runbook appears in the library with the expected targets.
  • Each step shows as ready instead of blocked.
  • The runbook is easy to scan and does not ask responders to do unrelated work.

If it does not work

  • If the runbook is too long, split it into smaller runbooks by job.
  • If steps are blocked, fix the integration or replace the step before you activate the runbook.
  • If responders would not know when to use it, rewrite the name and description first.

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