How do I install the Runbook skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add anthropics-knowledge-work-plugi/runbook in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Runbook safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: docs only. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Runbook?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Runbook free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Runbook?

anthropics (@anthropics-knowledge-work-plugi) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Runbook by anthropics-knowledge-work-plugi

Name: Runbook
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: anthropics

Runbook

Create or update an operational runbook for a recurring task or procedure. Use when documenting a task that on-call or ops needs to run repeatably, turning tribal knowledge into exact step-by-step commands, adding troubleshooting and rollback steps to an existing procedure, or writing escalation paths for when things go wrong.

anthropics Updated Sep 9, 2026

File contents

/runbook

If you see unfamiliar placeholders or need to check which tools are connected, see CONNECTORS.md.

Create a step-by-step operational runbook for a recurring task or procedure.

Usage

/runbook $ARGUMENTS

Output

## Runbook: [Task Name]
**Owner:** [Team/Person] | **Frequency:** [Daily/Weekly/Monthly/As Needed]
**Last Updated:** [Date] | **Last Run:** [Date]

### Purpose
[What this runbook accomplishes and when to use it]

### Prerequisites
- [ ] [Access or permission needed]
- [ ] [Tool or system required]
- [ ] [Data or input needed]

### Procedure

#### Step 1: [Name]

[Exact command, action, or instruction]

**Expected result:** [What should happen]
**If it fails:** [What to do]

#### Step 2: [Name]

[Exact command, action, or instruction]

**Expected result:** [What should happen]
**If it fails:** [What to do]

### Verification
- [ ] [How to confirm the task completed successfully]
- [ ] [What to check]

### Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix |
|---------|-------------|-----|
| [What you see] | [Why] | [What to do] |

### Rollback
[How to undo this if something goes wrong]

### Escalation
| Situation | Contact | Method |
|-----------|---------|--------|
| [When to escalate] | [Who] | [How to reach them] |

### History
| Date | Run By | Notes |
|------|--------|-------|
| [Date] | [Person] | [Any issues or observations] |

If Connectors Available

If ~~knowledge base is connected:

Search for existing runbooks to update rather than create from scratch
Publish the completed runbook to your ops wiki

If ~~ITSM is connected:

Link the runbook to related incident types and change requests
Auto-populate escalation contacts from on-call schedules

Tips

Be painfully specific — "Run the script" is not a step. "Run python sync.py --prod --dry-run from the ops server" is.
Include failure modes — What can go wrong at each step and what to do about it.
Test the runbook — Have someone unfamiliar with the process follow it. Fix where they get stuck.

---name: runbookdescription: Create or update an operational runbook for a recurring task or procedure. Use when documenting a task that on-call or ops needs to run repeatably, turning tribal knowledge into exact step-by-step commands, adding troubleshooting and rollback steps to an existing procedure, or writing escalation paths for when things go wrong.--- # /runbook > If you see unfamiliar placeholders or need to check which tools are connected, see [CONNECTORS.md](../../CONNECTORS.md). Create a step-by-step operational runbook for a recurring task or procedure. ## Usage ``` /runbook $ARGUMENTS ``` ## Output ```markdown ## Runbook: [Task Name] **Owner:** [Team/Person] | **Frequency:** [Daily/Weekly/Monthly/As Needed] **Last Updated:** [Date] | **Last Run:** [Date] ### Purpose [What this runbook accomplishes and when to use it] ### Prerequisites - [ ] [Access or permission needed] - [ ] [Tool or system required] - [ ] [Data or input needed] ### Procedure #### Step 1: [Name] ``` [Exact command, action, or instruction] ``` **Expected result:** [What should happen] **If it fails:** [What to do] #### Step 2: [Name] ``` [Exact command, action, or instruction] ``` **Expected result:** [What should happen] **If it fails:** [What to do] ### Verification - [ ] [How to confirm the task completed successfully] - [ ] [What to check] ### Troubleshooting | Symptom | Likely Cause | Fix | |---------|-------------|-----| | [What you see] | [Why] | [What to do] | ### Rollback [How to undo this if something goes wrong] ### Escalation | Situation | Contact | Method | |-----------|---------|--------| | [When to escalate] | [Who] | [How to reach them] | ### History | Date | Run By | Notes | |------|--------|-------| | [Date] | [Person] | [Any issues or observations] | ``` ## If Connectors Available If **~~knowledge base** is connected: - Search for existing runbooks to update rather than create from scratch - Publish the completed runbook to your ops wiki If **~~ITSM** is connected: - Link the runbook to related incident types and change requests - Auto-populate escalation contacts from on-call schedules ## Tips 1. **Be painfully specific** — "Run the script" is not a step. "Run `python sync.py --prod --dry-run` from the ops server" is. 2. **Include failure modes** — What can go wrong at each step and what to do about it. 3. **Test the runbook** — Have someone unfamiliar with the process follow it. Fix where they get stuck.

Frequently asked questions