feat: initial docs pages (#1107)

* docs structure and edits to getting started * draft for about page * skeleton for concepts page * attempt at explaining templates * left-align tables * add best practices and variables * update structrure * update structure * templates are shared * workspaces docs * remove coming soon * fix typos * docs structure and edits to getting started * draft for about page * skeleton for concepts page * attempt at explaining templates * left-align tables * add best practices and variables * update structrure * update structure * templates are shared * workspaces docs * remove coming soon * fix typos * fix typos * Update docs/about.md Co-authored-by: Joe Previte <jjprevite@gmail.com> * remove line breaks between bullets * rename variables to parameters * reduce limits * chore: edit text * revert some changes, fix footnotes Co-authored-by: Katie Horne <katie@coder.com> Co-authored-by: Joe Previte <jjprevite@gmail.com>
2026-09-24 15:04:27 +08:00 · 2022-04-26 12:10:50 -05:00
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+# Templates
+
+Templates define the infrastructure underlying workspaces. Each Coder deployment
+can have multiple templates for different workloads, such as ones for front-end
+development, Windows development, and so on.
+
+Coder manage templates, including sharing them and rolling out updates
+to everybody. Users can also manually update their workspaces.
+
+## Manage templates
+
+Coder provides production-ready [sample template](../examples/), but you can
+modify the templates with Terraform.
+
+```sh
+# start from an example
+coder templates init
+
+# optional: modify the template
+vim <template-name>/main.tf
+
+# add the template to Coder deployment
+coder templates <create/update> <template-name>
+```
+
+> We recommend source controlling your templates.
+
+## Persistent and ephemeral resources
+
+Coder supports both ephemeral and persistent resources in workspaces. Ephemeral
+resources are destroyed when a workspace is not in use (e.g., when it is
+stopped). Persistent resources remain. See how this works for a sample front-end
+template:
+
+| Resource                     | Type       |
+| :--------------------------- | :--------- |
+| google_compute_disk.home_dir | persistent |
+| kubernetes_pod.dev           | ephemeral  |
+| └─ nodejs (linux, amd64)     |            |
+| api_token.backend            | ephemeral  |
+
+When a workspace is deleted, all resources are destroyed.
+
+## Parameters
+
+Templates often contain *parameters*. In Coder, there are two types of parameters:
+
+- **Admin parameters** are set when a template is created/updated. These values
+  are often cloud secrets, such as a `ServiceAccount` token, and are annotated
+  with `sensitive =  true` in the template code.
+
+**User parameters** are set when a user creates a workspace. They are unique to
+each workspace, often personalization settings such as "preferred
+region" or "workspace image".
+
+---
+
+Next: [Workspaces](./workspaces.md)