Why this matters
As a Platform Engineer, your docs and onboarding shape developer velocity. Clear, minimal, and accurate guides reduce tickets, cut cognitive load, and create repeatable success paths. Real tasks you will face:
- Publish a 15-minute Quickstart so any engineer can run a service locally.
- Provide a runbook that on-call can follow at 03:00 without guessing.
- Create a repeatable onboarding checklist for new engineers and new services.
- Capture decisions (why this tool? this standard?) to avoid repeated debates.
- Keep docs living with the code, reviewed in PRs, versioned, and testable.
Who this is for
- Platform Engineers and Back-end Engineers responsible for internal developer platforms, templates, or tooling.
- Team leads improving developer onboarding and operational readiness.
- Solo maintainers who need to scale knowledge transfer safely.
Prerequisites
- Basic Git and pull request workflow.
- Ability to run and read services (containerized or not) locally.
- Familiarity with your team’s incident response process and environments (dev/stage/prod).
Concept explained simply
Documentation and onboarding are the guardrails for your platform. They tell people the shortest safe path to value and what to do when things go wrong.
Mental model: Golden Path + Escape Hatches
Golden Path: the recommended, paved route that works end-to-end with least friction (templates, commands, examples). Escape Hatches: acknowledged alternatives or advanced paths, documented to prevent dead-ends. Keep the Golden Path short and obvious; link to escape hatches only when needed.
Documentation layers (keep each small)
- Quickstart: 5–15 minutes to run and succeed once.
- How-to Guides: tasks with a clear outcome (deploy X, add a secret).
- Reference: authoritative config, CLI flags, APIs.
- Runbook: incident-friendly steps for known failures.
- Decision Records: short notes explaining “why we chose X”.
- Onboarding Checklist: who to meet, what to read/run, access to request.
Core templates you can copy
Quickstart (template)
Title: Quickstart — <Service/Tool Name> Time: ~15 minutes Prereqs: <list tools/accounts> 1) Clone & configure - git clone ... - copy .env.example to .env and set: <KEYS> 2) Run - <single command> to start - verify at http://localhost:XXXX (expect: <message>) 3) Common errors - Symptom: X → Fix: Y 4) Next steps - Deploy to dev (link to how-to section) - Add your first endpoint (link)
Runbook (template)
Runbook — <Service Name> Owner: <team/contact> | On-call: <rotation> | Dashboards: <name> Alerts → Actions - <ALERT NAME>: What it means, immediate action, escalation Diagnose - Commands/queries: <copy-paste snippets> - Expected vs abnormal output Mitigate - Safe restart steps - Feature flags/toggles - Rollback steps Escalation - When to page <team> - Links to recent incidents Post-incident - Where to log learnings
Onboarding checklist (template)
Onboarding — <Team/Service> (1–5 days) People - Meet: manager, buddy, service owner Access - Request: repo, CI, cloud, secrets manager Do - Complete Quickstart and push a trivial change - Join on-call shadow (optional) Learn - Read the Runbook and Glossary - Review last 2 incident notes Confirm - Demo: run locally + one deploy to dev
Decision record (ADR-lite)
Decision: Choose <X> over <Y> Date / Status: <YYYY-MM-DD> / <Accepted|Superseded> Context: what problem we had Decision: what we chose Consequences: trade-offs to watch
Changelog snippet
# Changelog - YYYY-MM-DD: <change> – impact, action needed - YYYY-MM-DD: <change> – developer-facing note
Worked examples
Example 1 — Internal library Quickstart
Title: Quickstart — Payments SDK
Time: 10 minutes
Prereqs: Node 18+, npm, test API key
1) Install
npm install @company/payments-sdk
2) Configure
export PAY_API_KEY=... (use test key)
3) Run sample
node examples/create-payment.js
Expect: { status: "authorized" }
Common error
- 401 unauthorized → check PAY_API_KEY prefix is "test_"
Next steps
- See examples/refund.js
- How-to: Sandbox to Dev promotion
Example 2 — CI failure runbook entry
Alert: CI - Integration tests time out Meaning: Env secrets missing in CI Immediate Action: - Re-run with SSH enabled; cat .env.ci - Compare with .env.example; add missing VARS via CI settings Escalate: If secret unknown, ping Platform #secrets at <contact> Rollback: Temporarily skip job by setting CI_SKIP_INTEGRATION=true (max 24h)
Example 3 — Team onboarding slice (Day 1)
People: Meet buddy + service owner (30m) Access: Request repo + CI + Slack channels Do: Run Service A Quickstart; screenshot success Learn: Read Runbook highlights: alerts, safe restart Confirm: PR a doc typo fix (prove end-to-end flow)
Make docs part of the platform
- Repository layout: include README.md, docs/quickstart.md, docs/runbook.md, docs/adr/0001-...md, CHANGELOG.md, CONTRIBUTING.md.
- Pull Request template: require a "Docs updated?" checkbox and a short changelog entry when behavior changes.
PR template (copy)
## Why ## What changed ## How to test - [ ] Quickstart still works end-to-end - [ ] Runbook updated (if alerts/ops changed) - [ ] Changelog entry added
- Keep docs runnable: prefer single commands; include copy‑paste checks; show expected output and one common error with its fix.
- Version with code: update docs in the same commit as changes; treat docs as code.
Exercises
Do Exercise 1 below. Aim for a 15-minute, end-to-end success path and one high-signal runbook entry.
Exercise 1 — Create a one‑page Quickstart + Runbook (mirrors the exercise in the Exercises panel)
- Pick a service or tool you know (or invent one). Name it clearly.
- Write a Quickstart with: Time, Prereqs, 3 numbered steps, Common error, Next steps.
- Write one runbook entry for a realistic alert or failure.
- Add a tiny onboarding checklist (5–7 items) for a new engineer.
Self-check checklist:
- The Quickstart runs in 15 minutes or less with copy-paste steps.
- There is exactly one obvious command to start/run.
- Expected output is shown; at least one common error has a fix.
- Runbook includes "Meaning", "Immediate Action", and "Escalation".
- Onboarding checklist includes People, Access, Do, Learn, Confirm.
Common mistakes and how to self-check
- Too much theory in the Quickstart. Fix: move theory to reference; keep the path runnable.
- Missing expected output. Fix: show a short, exact example of success.
- Runbook assumes expert knowledge. Fix: include copy‑paste commands and thresholds.
- Onboarding checklist lacks confirmations. Fix: add a small demo or PR as proof.
- Docs drift from code. Fix: enforce PR checklist and update docs in the same commit.
Fast self-audit
- Ask a peer to follow the Quickstart cold. Time them. If over 15 minutes, remove steps or provide scripts.
- Simulate one alert and follow your runbook step-by-step. If you hesitate, the runbook needs more detail.
Practical projects
- Template Repo: Create a minimal service template that includes Quickstart, Runbook, ADR folder, and a PR template.
- Onboarding Pack: Build a team onboarding checklist and run it with a new joiner; capture improvements as an ADR.
- Incident Drill: Run a game day, follow the runbook, and update it with real outputs and screenshots.
Learning path
- Write one-page Quickstart and one runbook entry for a single service.
- Generalize into a reusable template and apply to 2–3 services.
- Automate: add PR checks and a short doc maintenance schedule (monthly review).
Mini challenge
Scenario: A new hire needs to deploy a feature flag to dev and verify it. Create a 6–8 step How‑to with commands, expected output, and a rollback step. Keep it under 5 minutes to read.
Next steps
- Take the Quick Test to validate your understanding.
- Then convert your best Quickstart into a shared team template.
Note: The test is available to everyone; only logged-in users will have progress saved.
Quick Test
Answer the questions below. Aim for 70% or higher to pass.