Internal documentation is a collection of content that lives within an organization. This content is designed specifically for internal teams—like developers, platform engineers, and product managers. Unlike external (or customer-facing) documentation, which targets end-users and customers, internal documentation serves the people building and maintaining the platform. It’s the team roadmap, covering everything from technical specs to operational procedures.
Internal documentation includes things like:
- Code comments and technical notes embedded within your codebase.
- Runbooks and playbooks for handling critical operations like outages.
- System architecture diagrams showing how components interact.
- API documentation for internal services.
- Onboarding guides to train new team members quickly.
The primary goal is to ensure that anyone working on the platform—whether they're developers, SREs, or product managers—has easy access to the critical information they need to do their jobs effectively.
How internal documentation differs from customer-facing docs
While both internal and customer-facing documentation aim to make information accessible, the audiences they target and the types of information they cover are different:
- Audience: Customer-facing documentation is for external users who need to understand how to use a tool or service. These are things like user guides, FAQs, or knowledge-base articles. Internal documentation, on the other hand, is tailored to internal teams who are responsible for building, maintaining, or expanding the platform.
- Complexity: Customer-facing docs are designed to simplify processes and guide users through interactions with a product. Internal documentation can go deeper into technical details, covering the architecture of the platform, troubleshooting steps, and specific operational workflows.
- Purpose: External docs focus on product usability and troubleshooting. Internal docs are about enabling developers and engineers to collaborate effectively, fix issues quickly, and onboard new team members.
For platform engineering, internal documentation becomes even more essential as it aligns with the principles of creating a standardized, reusable infrastructure that streamlines developer productivity and operational efficiency.
Internal documentation and platform engineering
In the context of platform engineering, internal documentation is not just a reference—it’s the engine that powers efficient workflows and self-service capabilities. Platform engineering aims to provide developers with a well-built, reusable internal platform that enables them to deploy, manage, and scale applications with minimal friction. The goal is to remove the barriers that slow down development, giving teams the tools they need to do their best work. Here's how internal documentation plays into this:
- Knowledge hub: In platform engineering, internal documentation serves as a single source of truth. It houses all the important information about tools, systems, and processes, making it easier for developers to navigate the platform's complexities.
- Enhanced developer experience: Well-documented platforms reduce cognitive load, allowing developers to focus on what matters—writing code. Internal documentation gives them the context they need to use platform services without wasting time figuring things out.
- Enforcing standards: Internal documentation ensures consistency across teams by providing standardized workflows, security guidelines, and operational practices. This alignment ensures everyone is building and maintaining the platform in the same way, regardless of team or role.
Types of internal documentation in platform engineering
The kinds of internal documentation used in platform engineering vary depending on the needs of the organization but often include:
- Platform service documentation: Detailed instructions on using the internal tools and services provided by the platform, like CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure as code, or monitoring tools. This documentation enables developers to integrate platform services into their workflows effectively.
- System architecture diagrams: Visual representations of the platform’s structure, including data flows, dependencies, and service interactions. These diagrams help engineers understand the relationships between different components.
- Runbooks and playbooks: Step-by-step guides for managing operational tasks like scaling services, handling outages, or deploying changes. These are particularly valuable in time-sensitive situations and are often integrated into an IDP for quick access.
- API documentation: Comprehensive guides to internal APIs outlining endpoints, authentication requirements, and request/response formats. This documentation ensures that developers can confidently integrate platform services into their applications.
- Configuration management documentation: Guides that explain how to configure platform services, including environment settings, resource allocation, and security controls. Consistent documentation ensures repeatability and avoids discrepancies across teams.
- Incident postmortems: Records of past incidents outlining what happened, why it occurred, and how it was resolved. These documents provide lessons learned to avoid similar issues in the future.
Best practices for creating and maintaining internal documentation
Creating internal documentation requires a structured approach to ensure it’s usable and relevant. Here’s how to create documentation supporting your platform engineering goals:
- Update regularly: Outdated documentation is a common pitfall. Ensure all documents are up-to-date and accurate by assigning ownership and conducting regular reviews. Keep a changelog for visibility on updates.
- Prioritize clarity: Avoid unnecessary jargon and keep content concise. Use diagrams, flowcharts, and screenshots to illustrate complex processes, making them easier to understand.
- Automate documentation creation: Automating parts of the documentation process can save time and ensure accuracy. For example, tools like Swagger can automatically generate API documentation from code, while CI/CD integration can update configuration guides as the platform evolves.
- Encourage continuous contributions: Promote an inclusive culture where everyone can contribute to documentation. Incorporate version control and collaborative editing to ensure documentation evolves with the platform.
- Audit documentation: Regular audits are critical to ensuring that your documentation remains relevant and useful. Gather feedback from developers and engineers to spot gaps and areas for improvement.
Tools for effective internal documentation
The right tools can make documentation easier to manage and more effective for platform engineering teams:
- Internal developer portals: Portals, such as Port, provide a centralized interface where internal documentation can be accessed easily, improving usability and discoverability. Using a portal also lets you create a maturity scorecard to track if documentation is up-to-date and includes all relevant information.
- Confluence: A widely-used documentation platform that integrates with Jira, allowing teams to manage both project details and documentation in one place.
- MkDocs & Sphinx: Static site generators that help teams host documentation with a clean, navigable interface, perfect for technical reference materials.
- Swagger: This tool automatically generates API documentation from your code, ensuring that it stays accurate and up-to-date as services evolve.
- Notion: A flexible knowledge-sharing platform that’s great for building rich knowledge bases with embedded content, ideal for collaborative internal documentation.
By investing in robust internal documentation and integrating it into a portal, platform engineering teams can enhance operational efficiency, support collaboration, and improve the overall developer experience. Keeping documentation clear, accessible, and regularly updated ensures that developers have what they need to solve problems, onboard quickly, and continue building high-quality software.
