How to Decide What Documentation Should Be Public or Internal

A technical writing guide outlines a framework for distinguishing between internal and external documentation based on the intended reader and their task. Internal documentation covers architecture decisions, private system details, credentials, and candid incident analysis meant only for employees and operators. External documentation addresses supported behaviors, integration guides, prerequisites, and recovery steps aimed at customers, partners, and public developers. When a topic serves both audiences, it should be split into separate documents with distinct access controls rather than combined into one page. The guide recommends asking four key questions about audience need, sensitivity, operator context, and ownership to determine where any given piece of documentation belongs.