I Was the Only IT Person for 3 Years: The Documentation I Wish I'd Written
The Call I Didn't Want to Get Three weeks after leaving my job as the only IT person at a mid-sized company, my phone rang. It was Mike, the guy they hired to replace me. "Hey, uh, do you remember that backup script you set up? The one that runs on Sundays? It's throwing an error and I can't find where it's configured." I helped him. Then he called again the next day about the VPN. Then about the…
The first time the narrator was contacted after leaving their sole IT position was three weeks later. Mike, the new IT personnel, asked about a backup script and the VPN configuration. This marked the beginning of a barrage of calls, totaling 47 in just one month. Despite having wiki pages, PDFs, and a handover document, the narrator realized their documentation was ineffective because it didn't capture crucial, undocumented knowledge.
This "invisible knowledge problem" arises when the only IT person accumulates unique insights about the system that aren't recorded elsewhere. When departing, this accumulated knowledge exits with them, creating a bus factor problem where a single person's absence renders the system vulnerable. The narrator's analysis of failed IT documentation reveals that traditional approaches focus on auditing standards rather than preparing for knowledge loss.
Effective documentation should include the reasons behind decisions, hidden dependencies between systems, and abnormal behaviors that are actually normal. A template is proposed to compile this essential information, including critical passwords, essential contacts, and lists of services with their purposes and restart procedures.
This documentation aims to prevent costly downtime and confusion in case of the sole IT person's absence.
Written by urgent.news from Dev.to's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
