Ports are physical holes. Their numbers rarely change. Use the manufacturer’s silkscreened numbers (1 through 24 or 48). renumber physical ports to match logical destinations; that breaks the template when you swap cables.
This is the most critical variable. Your template must map the physical port to the endpoint (e.g., "Conf Room B" or "Jack 4F-A2").
A standardized numbering template solves all of this.
A truly powerful template includes on the patch panel label. A common format for the label affixed next to each port is: