Documenting Your Recovery Runbook
A runbook is the practical, step-by-step document your team follows to recover a system. During a real incident, stress is high and time is short — a clear runbook turns a panic into a checklist.
This article explains what a good recovery runbook contains and why keeping it current is as important as writing it.
What a Runbook Includes
It should be detailed enough that a competent person who did not build the system could follow it.
- Where backups are stored and how to access them.
- The exact commands or steps to restore each system.
- Who to contact and in what order.
- How to verify the system is working afterwards.
Keeping It Trustworthy
An out-of-date runbook can be dangerous. We review it after every significant change and during recovery drills, so it always matches reality.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where should the runbook live?
Somewhere accessible even if your main systems are down — an outage is exactly when you need it most.
If you need a hand with any of this, your Progressive Robot delivery team is ready to help. Raise a ticket from the Support area of your client portal or speak to your account manager and we will guide you through the next steps.