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Dashboards are where operational data becomes decision-making context. In Rootly, dashboards allow you to transform raw incident data into structured, visual insights across teams, services, severities, time periods, and operational layers. Whether you’re tracking executive-level reliability metrics or drilling into team-level performance, dashboards give you flexible control over how performance is measured and communicated. You can access dashboards by navigating to Metrics.

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Overview

Every dashboard in Rootly is defined by three core dimensions:
  1. Ownership — who controls it
  2. Permissions — who can modify or manage it
  3. Visibility — who can access it (internally or publicly)
Understanding these dimensions helps you design dashboards intentionally — not just visually, but operationally.

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Dashboard Ownership & Visibility

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Ownership Types

Dashboards are owned either by a user or by the organization.

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Personal Dashboards

Personal dashboards are owned by an individual user. They are ideal for:
  • Exploratory analysis
  • Individual reporting workflows
  • Temporary or experimental views
  • Personal operational tracking
By default:
  • You are the Manager
  • No one else has access unless explicitly shared

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Organization Dashboards

Organization dashboards are owned at the team level. They are appropriate when:
  • Multiple teams rely on the same metrics
  • Dashboards support recurring reporting (weekly reviews, exec syncs)
  • Standardized views are required across departments
Organization dashboards can be shared broadly across your Rootly account.

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Public Dashboards

Any dashboard (Personal or Organization) can optionally be made Public. When public access is enabled:
  • A view-only link is generated
  • Authentication is not required
  • External stakeholders can access performance data
Public access is a visibility layer — not ownershipPublic dashboards do not change who manages or edits the dashboard. They simply allow view-only access via a shareable link.
Public dashboards may be disabledSome organizations disable public dashboard access. If you do not see the public toggle, contact your administrator.

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Creating a Dashboard

To create a new dashboard:
  1. Navigate to Metrics
  2. Click + Create Dashboard
  3. Configure the dashboard settings
Dashboards are designed to be flexible but opinionated — providing sensible defaults while allowing advanced customization.

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Configuration Options

When creating a dashboard, you can define:
  • Name (must be unique within your organization)
  • Description
  • Icon
  • Color theme
  • Date range
  • Period grouping
  • Auto-refresh behavior

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Default Values

If you create a dashboard without customizing every field, Rootly applies the following defaults:
  • Icon: 📊
  • Date range: Last 30 Days
  • Period: Day
  • Auto-refresh: Disabled
  • Color: Randomly selected from the supported palette
Color systemDashboard colors are selected from a predefined palette to ensure visual consistency across your organization.

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Period Grouping

Metrics can be grouped by:
  • Day
  • Week
  • Month
  • Quarter
  • Year
Choosing the correct period grouping is not cosmetic — it affects how trends are interpreted. For example:
  • Day is useful for short-term incident spikes
  • Month or Quarter is better for leadership-level reporting

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Personalizing Dashboard Views

Each user can personalize how they view a dashboard — without affecting other users. You can adjust:
  • Date range
  • Period grouping
  • Team filters
  • Service filters
These preferences are saved per user, per dashboard.
View preferences are privateChanging filters or date ranges does not modify the dashboard globally. Other viewers will not see your changes.

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Sharing & Permissions

To share a dashboard:
  1. Open the dashboard
  2. Click Share
  3. Assign permission levels

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Permission Levels

Permissions are hierarchical:
  • Viewer
    • Can view data only
  • Editor
    • Can view and modify panels
    • Inherits Viewer permissions
  • Manager
    • Can view, edit, share, and delete
    • Inherits Editor permissions
Permission hierarchy mattersEditors automatically inherit Viewer permissions. Managers inherit both Viewer and Editor capabilities.

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Setting a Default Dashboard

You can designate one dashboard as your default. This dashboard will automatically open when navigating to Metrics. To set a default:
  1. Open the dashboard
  2. Click ⋯
  3. Select Set default
You can only have one default dashboard per team. Setting a new default replaces the previous one.

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Duplicating Dashboards

Duplicating a dashboard is useful when:
  • Creating team-specific variants
  • Running quarterly comparisons
  • Testing new panel configurations safely
To duplicate:
  1. Open the dashboard
  2. Click ⋯
  3. Select Duplicate
Duplicated dashboards:
  • Include all panels and configurations
  • Are created as Personal dashboards
  • Do not inherit sharing permissions
  • Are automatically renamed with a date suffix

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Exporting Dashboards & Panels

Dashboards and panels can be exported for reporting and distribution.

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Entire Dashboard

  • PDF export

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Individual Panels

From the panel menu:
  • CSV
  • JSON
  • PDF
  • PNG (charts only)
  • JPG (charts only)
Exports allow teams to distribute insights outside of Rootly while preserving data fidelity.

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Auto-Refresh Behavior

Dashboards support auto-refresh, but data is cached.
Auto-refresh is not real-timeChanges to underlying data may take 15–20 minutes to appear due to caching layers and refresh intervals.

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Deleting Dashboards

To delete:
  1. Navigate to Metrics
  2. Open the ⋯ menu
  3. Select Delete
Deletion is not user-recoverableDashboards use soft deletion internally, but there is no self-serve recovery mechanism. Duplicate important dashboards before deleting.

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Best Practices

Designing dashboards is not just about metrics — it’s about operational clarity.

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1. Separate Strategic vs Tactical Dashboards

  • Tactical dashboards: Short date ranges, high granularity
  • Strategic dashboards: Monthly or quarterly grouping
Avoid mixing both purposes in one dashboard.

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2. Limit Panel Density

Too many panels reduce clarity. Instead:
  • Create multiple focused dashboards
  • Duplicate and specialize dashboards
  • Use descriptive naming conventions
Example:
  • 🚨 Critical Incidents — Last 30 Days
  • 📈 Reliability Trends — Quarterly

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3. Use Organization Dashboards for Standardization

If a dashboard is referenced in:
  • Weekly reviews
  • Executive reporting
  • Post-incident retros
It should likely be an Organization dashboard.
Public dashboards are powerful, but:
  • Ensure sensitive data is not exposed
  • Confirm intended filters are applied
  • Validate before distributing externally

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Frequently Asked Questions

Dashboard names must be unique within your organization (excluding deleted dashboards) to prevent confusion and maintain clarity in shared environments.If you receive a validation error, simply choose a different name.
Yes. Assign users as Viewers to grant read-only access.Only Editors and Managers can modify panel configurations.
No. Duplicated dashboards start as Personal dashboards owned by the duplicating user.Sharing must be configured separately.
You can have one default dashboard per team context. Setting a new default replaces the previous one.
The dashboard will refresh automatically at set intervals, but underlying data may still be subject to caching delays (up to ~15–20 minutes).
Dashboards are most effective when they reflect how your organization thinks about reliability. Design them intentionally, share them responsibly, and revisit them periodically as your operational maturity evolves.