Copilot surfaces
Date and legend
Section titled “Date and legend”This matrix is dated September 2026. It combines current VS Code docs and GitHub Copilot docs. If a cell says check the docs, I could not confirm it without guessing.
| Mark | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Yes | Public docs confirm support. |
| No | Public docs do not list support, or list another location. |
| Partial | Public docs confirm a narrower behavior. |
| Check the docs | Verify the current docs and UI before relying on it. |
Matrix
Section titled “Matrix”| Primitive | VS Code agent mode | Copilot CLI | Copilot cloud agent | Copilot code review | github.com chat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.github/copilot-instructions.md | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, when repo context is attached |
.github/instructions/**/*.instructions.md | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes on GitHub.com code review. VS Code code review docs list only repo-wide | No in the GitHub.com chat support table |
AGENTS.md | Yes when chat.useAgentsMdFile is enabled | Yes | Yes | Yes on GitHub.com code review. VS Code code review docs list only repo-wide | No in the GitHub.com chat support table |
.github/skills/*/SKILL.md | Yes | Yes | Yes for skills-compatible sessions | Partial. GitHub docs say PR review reads agent skills from the head branch | Check the docs |
.github/agents/*.agent.md | Yes | Yes | Yes | No, code review is not a custom agent picker | No for regular chat. Agents tab is separate |
.github/prompts/*.prompt.md | Partial. Local agent support; Agent Host does not load prompt files | Check the docs | Check the docs | No | Check the docs |
.github/hooks/*.json | Yes, preview | Yes | Check the docs. This repo includes a bash wrapper for Linux cloud execution | Check the docs | No |
.vscode/mcp.json | Yes | No. CLI uses ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json by default | Partial. VS Code can forward eligible config to Agent Host, but GitHub cloud uses repository MCP settings | No for this file. GitHub code review uses repository MCP settings | No |
| GitHub repository MCP settings | No | No | Yes | Yes, with read-only requirements for code review tools | Check the docs |
Surface notes
Section titled “Surface notes”VS Code agent mode
Section titled “VS Code agent mode”VS Code is the richest local surface. It reads workspace instructions, AGENTS.md, custom agents, skills, hooks, and .vscode/mcp.json. Prompt files still work for the Local agent, but the docs say Agent Host does not load them.
Open Chat: Open Customizations from the Command Palette to inspect what VS Code found.
Copilot CLI
Section titled “Copilot CLI”Copilot CLI reads repository instructions, path instructions, AGENTS.md, repository custom agents, skills, hooks, and MCP config. The CLI MCP config location is ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json by default.
Copilot cloud agent
Section titled “Copilot cloud agent”Cloud agent reads repository instructions, path instructions, AGENTS.md, and .github/agents. This repo prepares cloud sessions with .github/workflows/copilot-setup-steps.yml, which installs Python tools and the pinned Skills for Fabric skill.
Copilot code review
Section titled “Copilot code review”GitHub docs confirm repository-wide instructions, path instructions, AGENTS.md, and agent skills for pull request review on GitHub.com. Docs also say review reads these from the head branch.
github.com chat
Section titled “github.com chat”Regular github.com chat supports repository-wide instructions when the repo is attached as context. The current support table does not list path instructions, AGENTS.md, skills, agents, prompts, hooks, or .vscode/mcp.json for regular chat.