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Build a Runbook

Create a comprehensive operational runbook by pulling in related documentation from your knowledge base and structuring it for quick reference during incidents.

When to use this

  • Setting up a new service and need operational documentation
  • Consolidating scattered tribal knowledge into a formal runbook
  • Preparing for on-call handoff

The workflow

Copy-paste prompt 
I need to create an operational runbook for [SERVICE/SYSTEM NAME].

Please follow these steps:

1. Search Lore DB for any existing documentation about this
 service: search_doc("[SERVICE NAME]")
2. Read the most relevant documents to understand the current state
3. Create a new document titled "[Service Name] — Operations Runbook"
 in the [LIBRARY] library with this structure:

 ## Overview
 - What this service does
 - Architecture diagram (if referenced in existing docs)
 - Key dependencies

 ## Health Checks
 - How to check if the service is healthy
 - Key metrics and thresholds
 - Monitoring dashboards

 ## Common Operations
 - Deployment steps
 - Rollback procedure
 - Configuration changes
 - Scaling up/down

 ## Troubleshooting
 - Common errors and resolutions
 - Debugging commands
 - Log locations

 ## Incident Response
 - Severity classification
 - Escalation contacts
 - Communication templates

 ## References
 - Links to related Lore DB documents
 - External documentation links

4. Fill in what you can from existing documentation
5. Mark sections that need human input with [TODO: ...]
6. After I review it, verify the document with verify_doc

Tips for good runbooks

  • Write for the 2 AM reader — Keep language simple, steps numbered, and commands copy-pasteable
  • Include the “why” — Don’t just say “restart the service” — say why this fixes the issue
  • Link, don’t duplicate — Reference other Lore DB documents rather than copying their content
  • Keep it focused — One runbook per service. If it gets too long, split into sub-runbooks

After creating the runbook, ask your AI to search for any related documents you might have missed: “Are there any other documents in Lore DB related to [service name] that should be referenced in this runbook?”