Procedures and runbooks

Cue procedures turn team knowledge into executable runbooks. Instead of describing a task on a page and leaving each person to interpret it, a procedure presents typed steps, records outcomes, and applies explicit safeguards where an action needs care.

Build with typed steps

Cue provides 28 executor types. They cover local actions, scripts, checks and validations, along with steps that connect a run to other parts of the development workflow. Choose the executor that represents the work rather than hiding an entire procedure inside one large script.

Checks and validations make expectations visible during the run. Scripts require explicit confirmation before they execute. This gives the person running the procedure a clear point to review what will happen rather than treating code execution as an automatic side effect.

Route a run with decisions

A Decision step asks the person running the procedure a question. Each answer can route the run in one of three ways:

• Continue to the next step.
• Jump forward to a later step.
• End the run.

Decision branches are useful when a runbook has valid paths that depend on the current situation. Keep the question concrete and make each answer describe the path it selects. A branch only jumps forward, which keeps the run understandable and prevents an accidental loop.

Pause and resume safely

A procedure does not need to lose its place when work is interrupted. Safe resume retains a controlled checkpoint so the run can continue without guessing which steps already completed. Before resuming, review the current step and any external state that may have changed while the run was paused.

Production-sensitive steps require explicit confirmation and are recorded. Use these safeguards for actions where the operator should stop and confirm the target or impact before proceeding. The activity ledger records who ran what, giving the team a trace of procedure execution.

Connect pipelines and specialist tools

An Azure DevOps step can trigger a real pipeline and follow it through completion. The token used for the integration is stored encrypted. Keep pipeline work in the pipeline, while Cue controls where it belongs in the wider runbook.

Hand-off steps can open Riff, Echo or Harmony when one of those tools is better suited to the next task. The runbook stays the guide, but the specialist product performs the work it was designed for.

Design a dependable procedure

Start with a task the team performs repeatedly. Break it into observable steps, use checks before actions, reserve scripts for work that benefits from automation, and add confirmations to sensitive boundaries. Add a Decision step only where the answer genuinely changes the remaining path. Finally, run the procedure from beginning to end and verify that a paused run has a safe place to resume.

For reusable setup procedures, continue to the environment setup guide. For workspace ownership and activity protection, see the teams and sync guide.