From bb600c030bcb0bb961ecb76c1a78db5bae83c502 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Noah Talerman <47070608+noahtalerman@users.noreply.github.com> Date: Mon, 8 Nov 2021 10:15:56 -0500 Subject: [PATCH] Add feature flag guidelines to Fleet's public handbook (#2823) - Add outline for when a feature is placed behind a feature flag in the Fleet product - Add items to consider when deciding if feature flags should be leveraged --- handbook/product.md | 11 +++++++++++ 1 file changed, 11 insertions(+) diff --git a/handbook/product.md b/handbook/product.md index 5c31891869..2487dd6f0d 100644 --- a/handbook/product.md +++ b/handbook/product.md @@ -20,6 +20,17 @@ Below is a table of [directly responsible individuals (DRIs)](./people.md#direct | Release notes | Noah Talerman | | Publishing release blog post, and promoting releases | Mike Thomas | +## Feature flags +In Fleet, features are placed behind feature flags if the changes could affect Fleet's availability of existing functionalities. + +The following highlights should be considered when deciding if feature flags should be leveraged: + +- The feature flag must be disabled by default. +- The feature flag will not be permanent. This means that the individual who decides that a feature flag should be introduced is responsible for creating an issue to track the feature's progress towards removing the feature flag and including the feature in a stable release. +- The feature flag will not be advertised. For example, advertising in the documentation on fleetdm.com/docs, release notes, release blog posts, and Twitter. + +Fleet's feature flag guidelines borrows from GitLab's ["When to use feature flags" section](https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/product-development-flow/feature-flag-lifecycle/#when-to-use-feature-flags) of their handbook. Check out [GitLab's "Feature flags only when needed" video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQaGqyolOd8) for an explanation on the costs of introducing feature flags. + ## Fleet docs ### Adding a link to the Fleet docs