Incident Classification
Severity levels and criteria for this incident type.
4.8
on G2
Free Process Template
Download a free incident response runbook template in Word, PDF, or Markdown. Or bring your notes, PDFs, or a recording and let Docsie AI fill in every section for you.
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Use this template to response procedures for [incident type].
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Category | Process |
| Owner | [Team or owner] |
| Version | [Version number] |
| Effective Date | [Date] |
| Review Cycle | [Monthly / Quarterly / Annual / Event-based] |
| Status | [Draft / In Review / Approved] |
Severity levels and criteria for this incident type.
| Item | Details | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
[Add context, assumptions, exceptions, evidence links, screenshots, calculations, or reviewer comments.]
How the incident is detected (alerts, monitoring, user reports).
| Item | Details | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
[Add context, assumptions, exceptions, evidence links, screenshots, calculations, or reviewer comments.]
First 15 minutes: triage steps, who to page, initial containment.
| Item | Details | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
[Add context, assumptions, exceptions, evidence links, screenshots, calculations, or reviewer comments.]
Diagnostic commands, log locations, and what to look for.
| Item | Details | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
[Add context, assumptions, exceptions, evidence links, screenshots, calculations, or reviewer comments.]
Steps to restore service with rollback procedures.
| Item | Details | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
[Add context, assumptions, exceptions, evidence links, screenshots, calculations, or reviewer comments.]
Stakeholder notification templates and escalation paths.
| Item | Details | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
[Add context, assumptions, exceptions, evidence links, screenshots, calculations, or reviewer comments.]
Post-mortem process and follow-up tasks. Use Markdown with code blocks. Write for an on-call engineer under pressure.
| Item | Details | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
| [Item or requirement] | [Describe the relevant detail, evidence, or decision] | [Owner] | [Open / Complete] |
[Add context, assumptions, exceptions, evidence links, screenshots, calculations, or reviewer comments.]
Document review conclusions, approvals, unresolved items, and next review date.
| Role | Name | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Preparer | [Name] | [Date] | [Notes] |
| Reviewer | [Name] | [Date] | [Notes] |
| Approver | [Name] | [Date] | [Notes] |
Template Structure
Use this process template as a starting point, then customize each section to match your internal workflow, evidence, and signoff needs.
Severity levels and criteria for this incident type.
How the incident is detected (alerts, monitoring, user reports).
First 15 minutes: triage steps, who to page, initial containment.
Diagnostic commands, log locations, and what to look for.
Steps to restore service with rollback procedures.
Stakeholder notification templates and escalation paths.
Post-mortem process and follow-up tasks. Use Markdown with code blocks. Write for an on-call engineer under pressure.
Write an Incident Response Runbook for a specific incident type. Structure with:
Severity levels and criteria for this incident type.
How the incident is detected (alerts, monitoring, user reports).
First 15 minutes: triage steps, who to page, initial containment.
Diagnostic commands, log locations, and what to look for.
Steps to restore service with rollback procedures.
Stakeholder notification templates and escalation paths.
Post-mortem process and follow-up tasks.
Use Markdown with code blocks. Write for an on-call engineer under pressure.
| Severity | Criteria |
|---|---|
| SEV-1 | p99 > 10s, error rate > 5% |
| SEV-2 | p99 > 5s or error rate > 2% |
| SEV-3 | p99 > 2s, no errors |
https://app.datadoghq.com/dashboard/api-healthkubectl exec -it deploy/api-server -- curl localhost:8080/healthz
/pd trigger platform-lead# Check slow query log
kubectl logs deploy/api-server --since=15m | grep "SLOW_QUERY"
# Check database connections
psql -c "SELECT count(*), state FROM pg_stat_activity GROUP BY state;"
# Check pod resource usage
kubectl top pods -l app=api-server
kubectl rollout restart deploy/api-serverSELECT pg_cancel_backend(PID);kubectl scale deploy/api-server --replicas=8Bring what you already have: meeting notes, an old PDF, a spreadsheet, a walkthrough recording. Docsie AI drafts every section of this incident response runbook template in the structure above, then exports to Word, PDF, or Markdown for review and signoff.
Free to try. The template above was itself generated by Docsie — see it work on real videos at /tutorials/.
Process for implementing [change] with rollback
Daily procedures for [system] maintenance
Security procedures for [threat] detection and response
Step-by-step process for [task]
Template FAQ
Common questions about downloading and generating a incident response runbook template.
Q: What is a incident response runbook template?
A: A incident response runbook template is a structured document for response procedures for [incident type].
Q: Is the incident response runbook template really free?
A: Yes. The incident response runbook template is completely free to download in Word (DOCX), PDF, and Markdown formats. No signup or credit card required to download.
Q: How do I turn a video into a incident Response Runbook?
A: Upload a process walkthrough, training recording, or screen capture to Docsie. The AI analyzes the video and generates a complete incident Response Runbook using this template's structure — every required field auto-filled from the footage.
Q: Can I edit the incident response runbook template after downloading?
A: Yes. The DOCX format opens in Microsoft Word or Google Docs. The Markdown format imports into Notion, Confluence, Docsie, or any markdown editor. Customize fields, add your branding, and adapt to your internal workflow.