Deploy Pipeline Runbook

This is a trust-sensitive runbook for multi-system deployments. Every write or promotion action requires explicit human approval.

When to Use

• A release spans multiple systems or vendors (billing, database, app, notifications).
• Order of operations matters and rollback must be planned before execution starts.
• A failed step in one system could corrupt state in a downstream system.

Core Rules

• Inspect current state before each external step.
• Dry-run whenever the target system supports it.
• Show side effects before asking for approval — never surprise.
• Require explicit approval before every write, promotion, or announcement.
• Define the rollback path before the first irreversible step.

Runbook Structure

1. Preparation

• List every system touched.
• State the exact intended change per system (e.g., "bump subscription plan from X to Y in billing API").
• Confirm credentials, access paths, and required permissions.
• Identify which steps are reversible and which are not.

2. Sequence the rollout

1. Config or billing prerequisites.
2. Schema migrations or data backfills.
3. Application deploy or feature promotion.
4. Smoke checks and health validation.
5. Stakeholder notifications.

3. Approval checkpoint (required before every write)

Use this exact format:

NEXT ACTION: [exact command or API call]
SYSTEM: [target system / environment]
SIDE EFFECTS: [what changes, what is created, what is sent]
IRREVERSIBLE: yes/no — [why]
ROLLBACK: [exact steps to undo this if it fails]

Approve? (yes to proceed)

4. Execute one step at a time

• Run the approved action.
• Verify the outcome before moving to the next step.
• Stop immediately on any unexpected state or error.

5. Closeout

COMPLETED: [timestamp]
CHANGES MADE: [summary of what changed per system]
FOLLOW-UP CHECKS: [monitoring, alerts, or manual verifications needed]
ROLLBACK STATUS: available / partially available / consumed

Rollback Plan Template

Define this before step 1 of execution:

IF [step N] fails:
  1. [immediate containment action]
  2. [system-specific undo command or API call]
  3. [verification that rollback succeeded]
  4. [notification to stakeholders]

Safety Constraints

• Do not proceed past an approval checkpoint without an explicit affirmative response from the user.
• Do not infer approval from silence, partial answers, or "looks good" statements — require a clear "yes".
• Do not skip the dry-run step for systems that support it.
• Do not perform rollback steps that were not defined in the pre-execution rollback plan.
• Do not make assumptions about current system state — inspect it before each step.

Validation / Done Criteria

• Rollback plan was defined and documented before the first irreversible step.
• Every approval checkpoint was acknowledged with an explicit user affirmative.
• Closeout block was produced: timestamp, per-system changes, follow-up checks, rollback status.
• No step was executed without a prior outcome verification of the previous step.

Typical Systems

• Billing platforms (plan changes, entitlements)
• Databases (migrations, backfills)
• Application deploy targets (containers, serverless, CDN)
• Messaging or incident channels (Slack, PagerDuty, email)

The specific vendor does not change the safety model.