What Goes Here vs Product Docs

Context

The most important design decision for The Runbook is knowing what NOT to put in it. Duplicating product documentation creates drift, confusion, and maintenance burden. This page defines the boundary.

Current State

The Litmus Test

Ask: "Would a Turbot customer find this useful?"

Answer	Where it goes
Yes — it applies to any Turbot customer	Product docs (turbot.com/guardrails/docs, etc.)
No — it's specific to how Turbot HQ operates	The Runbook

Examples

Topic	Product Docs	The Runbook
How to install a Guardrails mod	✅	❌
Which mods are installed in Launchpad workspaces and why	❌	✅
Guardrails workspace setup guide	✅	❌
How Project Launchpad workspaces are structured internally	❌	✅
Calculated policy syntax	✅	❌
The tag management template we use and the infinite loop fix we applied	❌	✅
EventBridge integration docs	✅	❌
The org-level CloudTrail bug we hit and how we resolved it	❌	✅
AWS Organizations onboarding	✅	❌
Our constellation naming convention and OU structure	❌	✅

Product Docs Links

Product	Docs URL
Turbot Guardrails	https://turbot.com/guardrails/docs
Steampipe	https://steampipe.io/docs
Flowpipe	https://flowpipe.io/docs
Powerpipe	https://powerpipe.io/docs
Pipes	https://pipes.turbot.com/docs
Tailpipe	https://tailpipe.io/docs

Decisions & Rationale

This boundary was established to ensure The Runbook remains lean, non-duplicative, and genuinely useful. A second-rate copy of product docs that drifts out of date is worse than no documentation at all. The Runbook's value is in capturing decisions, context, and tribal knowledge — not in re-explaining how products work.

Last Updated

2026-04-04 — Venu