Incident Overview

Last updated on Jul 2, 2026

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Harness AI SRE's incident management system provides a comprehensive platform for tracking, coordinating, and resolving service disruptions. From incident creation to resolution, teams can manage the entire incident lifecycle with automated workflows, real-time collaboration, and intelligent response procedures.

Overview

Incidents in Harness AI SRE help you:

• Create and track service disruptions with standardized incident types
• Coordinate response efforts across teams and stakeholders
• Document incident timelines with automated event tracking
• Execute automated remediation steps through integrated runbooks
• Generate comprehensive post-mortems and action items
• Integrate with monitoring tools for automatic incident creation
• Manage escalation policies and on-call notifications

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Key features

Intelligent incident creation

• AI-powered problem description analysis and field auto-population
• Multiple creation methods: manual, alert-based, and monitoring integration
• Standardized incident types with pre-configured fields and workflows
• Quick Start functionality for rapid incident creation

Comprehensive incident management

• Real-time incident details page with editable fields
• Timeline tracking with automatic event logging
• Manual key event addition for important milestones
• Status updates and ownership management
• Integration with on-call schedules and escalation policies

Automated response procedures

• Runbook execution directly from incident interface
• Action item creation and assignment with due dates
• Automated workflow triggers based on incident type
• Integration with monitoring tools and alert systems

Collaboration and communication

• Timeline-based messaging and updates
• Structured status updates via email to service subscribers
• Team notifications and stakeholder communication
• Action item tracking and assignment
• Post-incident analysis and documentation

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Create an incident

Interactive Guide

Follow this interactive guide to create and manage incidents with AI-powered assistance and automated workflows.

Step by Step

Step 1: Access incident creation

Open the incident creation flow:

1. Navigate to Incidents from the left panel

   

2. Choose your creation method:

   • Click New Incident for a blank incident
   • Select an Incident Type from the dropdown next to "New Incident" for pre-configured templates

Step 2: Select incident type

Pick the incident type that matches the disruption:

1. Choose the appropriate Incident Type from the available options

   

2. This will pre-populate relevant fields and associate appropriate runbooks

3. Incident types ensure consistent data collection and response procedures

Step 3: Describe the problem

Give the AI enough context to populate the incident:

1. Use the Quick Start block to describe the problem
2. Provide a clear, concise description of the issue
3. The AI system will analyze your description and suggest field values
4. Include relevant details like affected services, symptoms, and impact

Step 4: Generate incident fields

Let AI SRE derive field values from your description:

1. Click the up arrow sign to process your description
2. AI will automatically populate incident fields based on your description
3. The system will suggest appropriate severity, priority, and other relevant fields

Step 5: Review and customize

Verify and adjust the generated values before saving:

1. Review all auto-generated field values
2. Manually change any field values that need adjustment:
   • Title and description
   • Severity and priority levels
   • Add Assignee
   • Add values to any custom fields added as per the Incident type
3. Click Save to create the incident

Step 6: Manage incident details

Review and edit the incident from its details page:

1. The Incident Details page will display with all incident information
2. Use the Edit icon to edit individual fields as needed
3. Click Edit to modify the Incident Summary
4. Click Save after making any changes

Step 7: Add key events

Document important milestones on the incident:

1. Click Add Key Event to manually document important milestones
2. Type the key event description in the text box
3. Include relevant details about actions taken or status changes
4. Click the check mark to save the key event
5. Remember to Save from the top right

Step 8: Monitor timeline activity

Track and post to the incident timeline:

1. Navigate to the Timeline tab
2. View all incident-related activity in chronological order
3. Post messages to the timeline by typing in the text field and pressing Enter
4. All automated actions and manual updates appear here

Step 9: Execute runbooks (optional)

Run automated response procedures from the incident:

1. Click the Runbooks tab
2. Click Execute Additional Runbook to link automated response procedures
3. Select the appropriate runbook from available options
4. Click Execute to perform the runbook actions
5. Monitor execution progress and results
6. Click Close when execution is completed

Step 10: Manage action items

Create and assign follow-up tasks:

1. Navigate to the Action Items tab
2. Click Create Action Item to add follow-up tasks
3. Define the action item with:
   • Clear description of the task
   • Assignee responsible for completion
   • Due date for completion
4. Click the check mark to save the action item
5. Use the Edit icon to edit action item status as needed

Step 11: Finalize and save

Confirm everything is documented, then save:

1. Review all incident details, timeline events, and action items
2. Ensure all necessary information is documented
3. Click Save to finalize all changes
4. The incident is now ready for ongoing management and resolution

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Best practices

Incident creation and classification

• Choose appropriate incident types: Select the most specific incident type to ensure proper field configuration and runbook association
• Provide detailed descriptions: Use the Quick Start feature with comprehensive problem descriptions to enable accurate AI field population
• Verify auto-generated fields: Always review and adjust AI-suggested field values to ensure accuracy
• Set correct severity levels: Align severity with actual business impact and response time requirements

Incident response and management

• Acknowledge quickly: Respond to incidents promptly to minimize impact and meet SLA requirements
• Assess impact thoroughly: Evaluate affected services, user impact, and business consequences
• Execute relevant runbooks: Use associated runbooks for standardized response procedures
• Document all actions: Record every action taken in the timeline for audit trails and learning
• Update status regularly: Keep incident status current to inform stakeholders and trigger appropriate workflows

Timeline and event management

• Add key events: Document critical milestones, decisions, and turning points in the incident lifecycle
• Use timeline messaging: Communicate updates and coordination through the incident timeline
• Maintain chronological order: Ensure all events are properly timestamped and sequenced
• Include context: Provide sufficient detail in timeline entries for future reference and analysis

Action item management

• Create specific action items: Define clear, actionable tasks with specific outcomes
• Assign ownership: Ensure every action item has a designated owner and due date
• Track progress: Regularly update action item status and completion
• Follow up: Monitor action items through completion to prevent issues from recurring

Communication and collaboration

• Use structured communication: Follow incident communication templates and standards
• Update stakeholders regularly: Provide timely updates to affected teams and leadership
• Leverage integration channels: Use Slack, Teams, or other integrated communication tools
• Maintain professional tone: Keep all incident communication clear, factual, and professional

Post-incident activities

• Complete action items: Ensure all follow-up tasks are completed within specified timeframes
• Conduct reviews: Analyze incident response effectiveness and identify improvement opportunities
• Update documentation: Refine runbooks, procedures, and incident types based on lessons learned
• Share knowledge: Communicate insights and improvements with the broader team

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Benefits

Incident management in AI SRE delivers the following benefits:

• Streamlined response: AI-powered incident creation reduces time to response and improves accuracy
• Standardized processes: Incident types ensure consistent handling across all teams and services
• Automated workflows: Integrated runbooks and action items automate response procedures
• Complete visibility: Timeline tracking and event logging provide full incident lifecycle visibility
• Enhanced collaboration: Built-in communication tools facilitate team coordination and stakeholder updates
• Continuous improvement: Action item tracking and post-incident analysis drive process optimization
• Integration ready: Seamless connection with monitoring tools, alert systems, and communication platforms

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Next steps

Getting started

• Configure incident types: Standardize incident classification.
• Set up route alerts: Automatically create incidents from monitoring alerts.
• Configure on-call schedules: Ensure proper incident assignment and escalation.

Advanced configuration

• Customize incident fields: Capture specialized data.
• Set up incident workflows: Enable advanced automation.
• Configure incident templates: Standardize incident creation.
• Configure status updates: Communicate with stakeholders.
• Integrate monitoring tools: Generate incidents automatically.

Best practices resources

• AI SRE best practices guide: Review recommendations for running AI SRE.
• Incident response playbooks: Build runbooks for standardized response.
• AI SRE onboarding guide for administrators: Set up AI SRE for your organization.