Software Documentation Template with an Example
A software documentation template puts what developers, support and customers need to know about an app on one page. Fill in each item or link the real doc.
Overview & context
Documentation usually gets written twice: at the project kickoff and the day before handover. Below is a software documentation template you can copy, plus a filled-in example. You don't have to rewrite anything for it, since most items are just a link to where the document already lives.
1. What a software documentation template is for
An app's documentation usually exists, just in pieces. The README sits in the repository, the requirements in Confluence, the deployment steps in one colleague's head and the release notes in pull requests. Someone new to the app doesn't know where to look. Support often can't even tell which version a customer has deployed.
A template works as an index. It goes through every area on one page and says where each document is and who owns it. For why these areas matter, see What to Document in a Software Project. This article gives you the template to fill in.
2. Software documentation template (copy and paste)
The template has seven parts. If you don't know something, leave it empty or write "unknown". That's more useful than a made-up answer. For detailed architecture docs, the arc42 template works well. For user docs, use the Diátaxis split into tutorials, how-to guides, reference and explanation.
Don't put credentials, API keys or connection strings in the template. Add a link to the password manager or secrets vault instead, where only the people who need access will find them.
# <App name>: documentation
## 1. Overview
- Purpose: one sentence on what the app is for
- Users: who works with the app
- Owner:
- License:
- Current version: <number>, shown in the app <where>
## 2. Origin and requirements
- Requirements and specification: <link>
- Analyses and meeting notes: <link>
- Architecture decisions: <link>
- AI project or prompts, if the app was built with AI: <link>
## 3. Source code and technical documentation
- Repository: <link>
- Running the project locally: <link to README>
- Architecture and data model: <link>
- API description (OpenAPI): <link>
## 4. Environments and deployments
| Environment | URL | Hosting | Version |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Production | | | |
| Test | | | |
- Deployment process and CI/CD pipeline: <link>
- Release notes: <link>
- Third-party services: <list with links>
## 5. Operations
- Monitoring and logs: <link>
- Bug reports and requests: <link>
- Backups and restore: <link>
- Outage procedure: <link>
- Support contact:
## 6. User documentation
- User manual: <link>
- Guides, videos, FAQ: <link>
## 7. Legal and licenses
- Terms of use and privacy policy: <link>
- Contracts and SLA: <link>
- Third-party component licenses: <link>3. Software documentation example
Here's what a filled-in template can look like for a small internal app. Most lines are links. Only the overview and the environments table carry their own text.
# Room Booking: documentation
## 1. Overview
- Purpose: booking meeting rooms in the office
- Users: all employees; reception manages the rooms
- Owner: head of internal development
- License: internal, not distributed
- Current version: 1.8.2, shown in the app footer
## 2. Origin and requirements
- Requirements and specification: Confluence page "Room Booking – Requirements"
- Architecture decisions: docs/adr/ in the repository
## 3. Source code and technical documentation
- Repository: github.com/acme/room-booking
- Running the project locally: README.md in the repository
- API description (OpenAPI): /api/docs on the test environment
## 4. Environments and deployments
| Environment | URL | Hosting | Version |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Production | rooms.acme.example | Azure App Service | 1.8.2 |
| Test | rooms-test.acme.example | Azure App Service | 1.9.0-rc.1 |
- Deployment process and CI/CD pipeline: GitHub Actions, deploy.yml workflow
- Release notes: GitHub Releases
- Third-party services: Microsoft 365 (room calendars)
## 5. Operations
- Monitoring and logs: Azure Application Insights
- Bug reports and requests: Jira, project ROOMS
- Backups and restore: unknown, operations team to fill in
- Support contact: [email protected]
## 6. User documentation
- User manual: intranet page "How to book a meeting room"4. Software documentation best practices: keeping it current
Outdated documentation is worse than none, because people trust it. That's why the template holds as little copied text as possible and as many links as possible to sources that stay up to date on their own.
5. Mobile app technical documentation: a sample
A mobile app needs details a web app doesn't: store accounts, signing keys and certificates that expire after a while. Whoever doesn't know them can't ship even a bug fix and usually finds out when the fix is urgent.
That's why the template gets an eighth part for mobile apps. Passwords and keys don't go in it. It only says where they're stored and who has access.
## 8. Mobile app
- Stores: App Store Connect (Acme team), Google Play Console (Acme account)
- App identifier: com.acme.roombooking (iOS and Android)
- Signing keys and certificates: in the password manager, folder "Mobile – signing", head of development has access
- Numbering: version 1.8.2, CI bumps the build number on every store upload
- Push notifications: APNs key and Firebase project room-booking-prod
- Beta distribution: TestFlight, Google Play internal testing
- Supported OS versions: iOS 16 and later, Android 8.0 and later
- Privacy policy for the stores: <link>6. Where your software documentation should live
A file in the repository works for developers. But support, consultants and customers usually don't have repository access, so they end up asking a developer for the same information. During a software handover, a file in the repository is also easy to miss.
In AboutTheApp, each part of the template has its own link category. You attach the links to the app, mark each one as public or private and the About page shows them grouped by category. Versions and environments from part 4 aren't links: they go into the version catalog and the deployments for each customer.
| Template part | Category in AboutTheApp |
|---|---|
| 1. Overview | Product name, description, author and license; version from the version catalog |
| 2. Origin and requirements | Analysis & Planning, AI |
| 3. Source code and technical documentation | Source Code & Architecture, API |
| 4. Environments and deployments | Customer deployments, DevOps & Infrastructure |
| 5. Operations | Monitoring & Quality, Issue Tracking, Support, Security |
| 6. User documentation | Documentation |
| 7. Legal and licenses | Legal & Compliance, Components & Licenses |
| 8. Mobile app | DevOps & Infrastructure, Security, Legal & Compliance |
Frequently asked questions
What should software documentation include?
An overview of the app, the materials from its origin, technical documentation for the source code and API, an overview of environments and deployed versions, operations procedures, user documentation and legal documents. It doesn't all have to be in one file. A link to each part is enough.
How detailed should software documentation be?
Detailed enough that someone new can find their way around the app without asking the author. For a small app, a filled-in template with links fits on one page. The details belong in the documents the template links to.
Is there a standard for software documentation?
There's no single mandatory standard. arc42 is a common template for architecture docs, Diátaxis is a popular way to structure user docs and formal projects often follow ISO/IEC/IEEE standards. For a typical project, one consistent template the team actually fills in is enough.
Who should maintain software documentation?
Whoever changes the thing it describes. Developers update the technical part when the code changes, operations when an environment changes and the product owner the user docs. Naming an owner for each part of the template keeps updates from falling through the cracks.
What should mobile app technical documentation include?
Everything other apps need, plus the App Store Connect and Google Play Console accounts, the app identifier, where the signing keys and certificates are stored, how versions and build numbers are assigned, push notification setup, beta distribution and the supported OS versions.
Can I keep my docs in Confluence or Notion and still have them in one place?
Yes. The documents can stay wherever your team writes them; you just need one place that links to them. In AboutTheApp, you attach the links to the app by category and show them on the About page and right inside the app in the About box.
In short
A filled-in template doesn't have to hold all your documentation. It just has to say, for each area, where the document is and who owns it.
Want the filled-in template next to your app?
Add your app to AboutTheApp for free and attach the links from all seven parts of the template.