Email or SMS provider template broken: pre-release and first 30 minutes checklists

Transactional messages are sent with broken templates or to wrong recipients after a template change.

The pre-release checklist maps each item to a test class from the incident page. The first-30-minutes checklist covers detection, containment, the rollback decision and customer communication.

8 pre-release items · 7 first-30-minutes items · verified 2026-10-22

Pre-release checklist

PR-01Add a unit test that renders PASSWORD_RESET_CONFIRM and every review template and fails on any variable, such as lostPasswordUrl, that has no registered value. unit
PR-02Add a unit test that fails when a localized body of PASSWORD_RESET_CONFIRM uses a variable name absent from the default body. unit
PR-03On a fresh install, send the password reset email with the mailer set to log and confirm the log shows a reset URL and no unreplaced variable. integration
PR-04Repeat the password reset email test on an install upgraded through the migration script and confirm both installs render the same template. integration
PR-05Send a signing invitation through the updated email script version in staging and confirm the received body contains text and an invite link. integration
PR-06Roll back the email script version in staging and confirm the restored version sends signing invitations with correct mail templates. integration
PR-07Add an end-to-end test that requests a password reset, opens the received email, follows its link and sets a new password. e2e
PR-08Add an end-to-end test that creates a signing transaction, opens the invitation email and finalizes the signature through the invite link. e2e

First 30 minutes

FM-01Search the email log for errors and unreplaced template variables since the release.
FM-02Send a password reset or signing invitation to an internal address and read the received body.
FM-03Queue new outgoing messages from the affected template until a version with a working template is confirmed.
FM-04Roll back the email script or template version, then send another internal test message to confirm the rollback restored correct content.
FM-05If the test message after the first rollback is still broken, roll back further to the last version whose templates rendered correctly.
FM-06List the recipients of broken messages since the release so correct messages can be resent after the fix.
FM-07Tell affected customers which message type went out without its link, the time window and when correct messages will be resent.

Download the checklist

Pre-release checklist (Markdown)1.7 KB · v1.0.0
First 30 minutes checklist (Markdown)1.2 KB · v1.0.0

Only in this checklist

PR-01 is the only item among 7 published checklists in this group that relies on unit tests: Add a unit test that renders PASSWORD_RESET_CONFIRM and every review template and fails on any variable, such as lostPasswordUrl, that has no registered value.

Questions

What should be checked before a release to prevent Email or SMS provider template broken?

8 pre-release items, PR-01 to PR-08. PR-01: Add a unit test that renders PASSWORD_RESET_CONFIRM and every review template and fails on any variable, such as lostPasswordUrl, that has no registered value.

Is there a rollback plan for Email or SMS provider template broken?

The first-30-minutes checklist has 7 items. FM-01: Search the email log for errors and unreplaced template variables since the release.

What should a team do in the first 30 minutes after Email or SMS provider template broken is detected?

The first-30-minutes checklist has 7 items. FM-01: Search the email log for errors and unreplaced template variables since the release.

Is a Email or SMS provider template broken checklist still needed if deployment is automated?

Yes. Automation runs the steps; the checklist names what the tests must cover: unit tests, integration tests and end-to-end tests.

Which pipeline stages does the Email or SMS provider template broken checklist cover?

The pre-release items map to the pre-merge, pre-deploy and post-deploy stages.

In what formats can the Email or SMS provider template broken checklist be downloaded?

Both checklists download as Markdown files: /downloads/email-or-sms-provider-template-broken-pre-release.md and /downloads/email-or-sms-provider-template-broken-first-30-minutes.md, licensed CC BY 4.0.