- 3 minutes to read

Templates

New 7.11

Standardize how a category of Article begins. A Template copies its content, content type, tags, and Custom Metadata into every new Article created from it — so a runbook, a design document, or an onboarding guide always starts from the same shape instead of a blank page.

  • ✅ Start new Articles from a consistent, pre-approved shape
  • ✅ Keep reusable macro placeholders in the Template body
  • ✅ Resolve Resource and C4 node macros from context when available
  • ✅ Trace every Article back to the Template it came from

Understanding Templates

A Template is a starting point for new Articles — its content, content type, tags, and Custom Metadata are copied into every Article created from it. Unlike a Snippet, a Template's content isn't included by reference: it's copied once, at creation, and the new Article is then free to diverge from it.

graph TD Template[fa:fa-clone Template: Incident Runbook] ArticleA[fa:fa-newspaper Article: DB Outage Runbook] ArticleB[fa:fa-newspaper Article: API Outage Runbook] Template -- Create From Template --> ArticleA Template -- Create From Template --> ArticleB ArticleA -- Based On Template --> Template ArticleB -- Based On Template --> Template

Two Articles created from the same Template. Each copy is independent after creation, but both remember their Source Template.

Concept Behavior
Copied at creation Content, content type, tags, and Custom Metadata
Independent afterward Editing the Template does not change Articles already created from it
Source Template Recorded on the new Article; visible in the reader and relationship views

Macros in Template-Based Articles

Templates can contain the same macros as regular Articles. Macro placeholders are kept in the content and resolved when the Article is displayed.

Macro group Example Resolution behavior
Date and time {{ today }}, {{ now.utc }} Resolved at display time
Article {{ article.title }}, {{ article.url }} Resolved from the current Article
Environment {{ environmentname }} Resolved from the active environment
Resource / C4 node {{ resource.name }}, {{ node.name }} Resolved when the Article is opened in the matching context

The editor's Template Guidance card summarizes how template content, Source Template tracking, and macro behavior work together.

Template Guidance card in the article editor (7.11)
Example of the Template Guidance card shown in the editor.

Create an Article From a Template

  1. Start creating a new Article
  2. Choose Create From Template
  3. Pick a Template from the list
  4. The Article's content, content type, tags, and Custom Metadata are copied in

Create From Template picker shown when creating a new Article (7.11)
Example of choosing a Template while creating a new Article.

Macro Resolution Context

Some macros need context from where the Article is opened:

  • Opening the Article from a Resource provides resource.* values
  • Opening the Article from a C4 diagram node provides node.* values

If that context is missing, those macros remain unresolved until the Article is viewed in a matching context.

An Article created from a Template remembers it. The reader and relationship views show Based On Template, linking back to the Template it came from — even after the Article's own content has since changed completely.

Next Step