DR Runbook Automation Failure — Scripts Cannot Execute Recovery
During a disaster recovery drill, the automated runbook scripts fail to execute because the orchestration server's credentials to the DR environment have expired, the API endpoints have changed, and 3 of 8 recovery scripts reference infrastructure that has been decommissioned.
Pattern
UNKNOWN
Severity
CRITICAL
Confidence
95%
Remediation
Remote Hands
Test Results
Metric
Expected
Actual
Result
Pattern Recognition
UNKNOWN
UNKNOWN
Severity Assessment
CRITICAL
CRITICAL
Incident Correlation
Yes
22 linked
Cascade Escalation
N/A
No
Remediation
—
Remote Hands — Corax contacts on-site support via call, email, or API
Scenario Conditions
DR drill initiated. 8 automated recovery scripts. Service account password expired 4 months ago. 3 scripts reference decommissioned VMs. API endpoints changed in last infrastructure migration. No script testing since initial creation 14 months ago.
Injected Error Messages (2)
DR runbook automation CRITICAL failure — 0 of 8 recovery scripts executed successfully, script 'dr-activate-databases.sh' failed: service account 'dr-automation@company.com' password expired 2025-11-15 (4 months ago), authentication rejected by all target systems, scripts 'dr-start-app-servers.sh' and 'dr-configure-networking.sh' reference VMs (vm-app-legacy-01, vm-db-legacy-02, vm-web-legacy-03) that were decommissioned 6 months ago, script 'dr-failover-dns.sh' calling endpoint that returns not-found
DR recovery script execution log — script 1/8 'dr-activate-databases.sh': FAILED (authentication error, expired credentials), script 2/8 'dr-start-app-servers.sh': FAILED (target VM not found, 'vm-app-legacy-01' decommissioned), script 3/8 'dr-configure-networking.sh': FAILED (target VM not found), script 4/8 'dr-failover-dns.sh': FAILED (API endpoint changed, returning not-found), scripts 5-8 not attempted due to dependency on scripts 1-4, total recovery automation: completely non-functional, manual recovery procedures not documented
Neural Engine Root Cause Analysis
The DR Orchestration Server failure is caused by multiple critical misconfigurations in the disaster recovery automation system. The primary issues include an expired service account password (dr-automation@company.com expired 4 months ago), hardcoded references to decommissioned VMs that were removed 6 months ago, and a broken DNS failover endpoint. This indicates the DR system has not been maintained or tested, creating a cascading failure where none of the 8 recovery scripts can execute successfully, leaving the organization without functional disaster recovery capabilities.
Remediation Plan
1. Immediately reset password for service account 'dr-automation@company.com' and update all DR script configurations. 2. Audit and update all DR scripts to remove references to decommissioned VMs (vm-app-legacy-01, vm-db-legacy-02, vm-web-legacy-03) and replace with current infrastructure. 3. Fix the DNS failover endpoint in 'dr-failover-dns.sh' script. 4. Implement automated DR testing schedule to prevent future configuration drift. 5. Update DR documentation and runbooks to reflect current infrastructure. 6. Test all 8 recovery scripts in a controlled environment before marking system as operational.