--- title: Signals: how to recognize deployment context description: Telltale signs that documentation, screenshots, or support content is about a specific Elastic deployment type. Use during reviews to spot deployment-specific content that should be tagged or restructured. url: https://docs-v3-preview.elastic.dev/elastic/docs-content/pull/6745/contribute-docs/how-to/deployment-types/signals --- # Signals: how to recognize deployment context When you're reviewing a doc, looking at a screenshot, reading a ticket, or auditing search results, you often need to know *which deployment type the content is about* without anyone telling you explicitly. This page collects the cues that signal a piece of content is rooted in a specific deployment type. Use them to: - Spot when an `applies_to` tag is missing or wrong - Catch content that's quietly scoped to one deployment type without saying so - Quickly orient yourself in unfamiliar areas of the docs ## Quick-reference table | Signal | Self-managed | ECK | ECE | ECH | Serverless | |-----------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------| | **URL pattern in screenshots or links** | Direct host URL (for example, `https://localhost:5601`) | (none — Kubernetes service URL) | Customer-defined admin URL (for example, `admin.`) | `cloud.elastic.co` | `cloud.elastic.co/projects` | | **Terminology for the unit of work** | Cluster | Cluster (Kubernetes-native: Custom Resource) | Deployment | Deployment | Project | | **UI or surface named** | None (config on disk) | Kubernetes CRDs and manifests | ECE Cloud UI | Elastic Cloud Console | Project settings | | **Files or mechanisms mentioned** | `elasticsearch.yml`, `kibana.yml`, keystore | Kubernetes volumes, secrets, init containers | Bundles, user settings, plugins | User settings, bundles, plugins | (no user-accessible config files) | | **Features mentioned** | All Elasticsearch APIs, ILM, plugins | All + operator-managed features | Same as ECH | All except some ECE-only restrictions; supports plugins, bundles, private links, agentless | Limited subset: no ILM, no plugins, no user-controlled snapshots, no BYOK | | **Telltale phrase** | "edit the file," "SSH into the node" | "apply the manifest," "patch the CR" | "in the ECE Cloud UI," "as a platform admin" | "in Elastic Cloud Console" | "in your project," "in project settings" | ## How to use this in a review When you encounter a doc or PR: 1. **Scan for signals** from the table above. 2. **Check whether the page-level `applies_to`** matches the signals you see. 3. **If there's a mismatch:** - If the page is about a deployment-agnostic concept that mentions one deployment's surface — flag the surface mention, not the page scope - If the page is genuinely scoped to a specific deployment but isn't tagged that way — fix the `applies_to` For the full review checklist, refer to [Review checklist](https://docs-v3-preview.elastic.dev/elastic/docs-content/pull/6745/contribute-docs/how-to/deployment-types/review-checklist). ## Examples | What you see | What it signals | What to do if the page should be cross-deployment | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | "Log in to Elastic Cloud Console and open Kibana" on a generic Kibana feature page | Elastic Cloud Hosted (orchestrator surface) | Replace with deployment-agnostic phrasing (for example, "Open Kibana") and link to a single generic "access Kibana" doc | | "Edit `elasticsearch.yml` to set this value" on a setting-configuration page | Self-managed direct file access. Other deployment types use user settings (ECH, ECE), CRDs (ECK), or don't expose the setting (Serverless) | Use an `applies-switch` per surface, or link to [Stack settings](https://docs-v3-preview.elastic.dev/elastic/docs-content/pull/6745/deploy-manage/stack-settings) | | A code block starting with `apiVersion: elasticsearch.k8s.elastic.co/v1` | ECK manifest | Either scope the surrounding content to ECK or clearly mark the code block as one of several deployment-specific approaches | --- ## See also - [Documenting deployment types](https://docs-v3-preview.elastic.dev/elastic/docs-content/pull/6745/contribute-docs/how-to/deployment-types) — primer and content classification - [Review checklist](https://docs-v3-preview.elastic.dev/elastic/docs-content/pull/6745/contribute-docs/how-to/deployment-types/review-checklist) — symptoms to look for during PR review - [Strategies for deployment-type variation](https://docs-v3-preview.elastic.dev/elastic/docs-content/pull/6745/contribute-docs/how-to/deployment-types/strategies) — what to do when content varies