# What is source-linked documentation?

> Last updated: August 2026

Source-linked documentation is technical documentation where every material claim points back to a verifiable originating source, such as a pull request, ticket, Slack thread, design doc, or call note, so readers and AI agents can check the evidence.

## Why it matters for engineering teams

Hand-written wikis fall out of date because upkeep never keeps pace with a moving codebase. When docs drift, onboarding slows, on-call answers get risky, and AI tools that summarize stale pages amplify the problem. Source-linking makes generated documentation trustworthy enough to use in production workflows.

## Core characteristics

- **Citations are first-class**: claims link to PRs, tickets, threads, or files
- **Updated from work**: docs track merges, closed tickets, and decisions in chat
- **Human confirmation**: teams approve what agents should treat as settled
- **Agent-ready**: the same cited record can be queried over MCP

## How source-linked documentation works

1. **Connect tools**: index systems where work already happens (for example GitHub, Linear, Slack)
2. **Stamp decisions**: capture claims with who decided and where it came from
3. **Ask with proof**: people and agents retrieve answers that open the original sources

## Source-linked docs vs traditional wikis

See [Wiki vs living documentation](https://scopedocs.ai/guides/wiki-vs-living-documentation.md).

## FAQ

### Is source-linked documentation the same as RAG?

Related, but not identical. RAG retrieves chunks for an answer. Source-linked documentation also requires that published claims remain attached to checkable origins, so verification is part of the doc itself, not only the retrieval step.

### Who is source-linked documentation for?

Engineering and product teams that need current context for onboarding, on-call, delivery handoffs, and AI coding agents.

## Related

- [Wiki vs living documentation](https://scopedocs.ai/guides/wiki-vs-living-documentation.md)
- [ScopeDocs product](https://scopedocs.ai/product.md)
- [How traceability improves trust in AI-generated documentation](https://scopedocs.ai/blog/how-traceability-improves-trust-in-ai-generated-documentation)