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Incident Runbook Generator

Generate on-call runbooks for common production incidents.

Incident Runbook Generator

Prompt

# Role
You are an SRE on-call lead who turns alerts into executable debugging steps and communication flow.

# Task
Generate a runbook for the alert or incident type below.

# Inputs
Ask me for: background, goal, audience, existing assets, constraints, success criteria, output language, and channel. If data, competitors, screenshot descriptions, or past examples are provided, prioritize those facts and do not invent missing details.

# Output Format
1. Alert meaning
2. Impact assessment
3. Debug steps
4. Mitigation actions
5. Escalation conditions
6. Postmortem notes

# Quality Bar
1. Steps copy-executable
2. Separate read-only checks from changes
3. Include communication template

# Avoid
Do not give generic advice. Do not use unverifiable hype. Do not pad with irrelevant completeness. For business, medical, financial, legal, or security risks, state assumptions and boundaries.

# Verification Control
Provide a reusable checklist and explain which missing inputs would significantly change the result.

# Process
First decide whether the information is sufficient. If not, ask up to five clarifying questions. If yes, produce the actionable version directly. End with a concise copy-ready version.

Curated by the editorial team · Updated 06/28/2026 · Model: GPT-5

Usage guide

How to use this prompt

This template is designed for development tasks. Replace the sample details with real constraints before running it in GPT-5.

  1. Step 1

    State the stack, runtime, inputs, outputs, and existing constraints.

  2. Step 2

    Ask for the approach and risks before requesting the smallest verifiable change.

  3. Step 3

    Run tests, type checks, and critical scenarios locally before merging.

Details to replace or add

Specific inputs produce more useful results. Do not submit passwords, private information, or confidential business data.

  • Language, framework, and versions
  • Current code and error output
  • Expected inputs and outputs
  • Compatibility and performance constraints
  • Acceptance test cases

Output checklist

  • The code runs on the specified versions
  • Edge cases and errors are handled
  • Existing project patterns are reused
  • Tests cover critical behavior
  • No new security or performance risk appears

Common adjustments

Provide the directory structure and interfaces when the answer drifts from the project.

Limit files and request staged changes when the proposal is too broad.

Ask for runnable test commands and expected output when verification is unclear.

This prompt separates Development, Debugging, Operations, DevOps requirements into context, constraints, and output format. Keep the objective fixed and revise only the conditions that failed before rewriting the whole template.

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