📦 Installation

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Platform Command
npm (all platforms) npm install -g @github/copilot
WinGet (Windows) winget install GitHub.Copilot
Homebrew (macOS/Linux) brew install copilot-cli
Install Script (macOS/Linux) curl -fsSL https://gh.io/copilot-install | bash
Verify installation: copilot --version

🔐 Authentication

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Command Description
copilot login Authenticate via browser-based device code flow
copilot login --host HOST Authenticate to a specific GitHub Enterprise instance
copilot logout Sign out and remove stored credentials
Alternative: Set a fine-grained PAT with Copilot Requests permission: export GH_TOKEN=your_token_here

🎮 Modes of Operation

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Mode How to Start Description
Interactive copilot Full conversation — explore, iterate, and build
Programmatic copilot -p "prompt" One-shot prompt — get an answer and exit
Autopilot copilot --autopilot Fully autonomous mode
Agent Mode copilot --agent=NAME Use a specific custom agent
Switch modes during a session: Press Shift+Tab to cycle:
Interactive → Plan → Autopilot → Interactive

⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts

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Shortcut Action
Shift+Tab Cycle modes: interactive → plan → autopilot
Ctrl+T Toggle reasoning visibility (show/hide thinking)
Ctrl+S Save (e.g., when editing config)
Ctrl+G Open prompt in your default text editor
Ctrl+L Clear the terminal screen
Ctrl+C Cancel / clear input (press twice to exit)
Ctrl+D Exit the CLI session
Esc Cancel the current operation
↑ / ↓ Navigate command history
Tab Autocomplete file paths with @

🔧 Command-Line Flags

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Flag Description
-p "prompt" / --prompt Run in non-interactive (programmatic) mode
--agent=NAME Select a specific custom agent
--model=MODEL Override the AI model (e.g., gpt-4)
--autopilot Enable autonomous mode
--yolo / --allow-all Enable all permissions (use with caution!)
--experimental Enable experimental features
--no-experimental Explicitly disable experimental features
--continue Resume your most recent session
--resume Choose from a list of previous sessions
--max-autopilot-continues N Limit autopilot continuation cycles
--config-dir PATH Use a custom configuration directory
--output-format FORMAT Specify output format (json, markdown)
--share Share session context externally
--acp Start as Agent Client Protocol server
Example — Autonomous mode with agent: copilot --agent=architect --autopilot --yolo -p "Design a microservices API"

📝 Slash Commands

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Session Management

Command Description
/help List all available slash commands
/exit or /quit Leave the CLI session
/clear or /new Start a fresh conversation
/compact Summarize conversation to free context space
/context Show token usage visualization
/usage Display session statistics (requests, tokens, duration)
/share Export session as markdown file or GitHub gist

Code & Review

Command Description
/diff Show uncommitted changes in working directory
/review Run AI code review on your changes
/undo or /rewind Rewind the last turn and revert file changes
/pr [view|create|fix|auto] Operate on pull requests for the current branch
/copy Copy the last response to the clipboard

Configuration

Command Description
/instructions View loaded custom instruction files
/agent Browse and select custom agents
/mcp Manage MCP server connections
/model Switch between available AI models
/experimental Enable experimental features in-session
/cwd Confirm working directory scope
/add-dir PATH Allow Copilot to read/write a directory
/allow-all or /yolo Enable all permissions for this session

Advanced

Command Description
/plan [PROMPT] Create an implementation plan before coding
/fleet [PROMPT] Enable parallel subagent execution of parts of a task
/delegate TASK Push session to Copilot coding agent on GitHub
/remote Enable remote access from GitHub.com and GitHub Mobile
/research TOPIC Run a deep research investigation using GitHub search and web sources
/tasks View and manage background tasks (subagents and shell sessions)
/skills Manage skills for enhanced agent capabilities
/changelog [VERSION] Show the CLI changelog
/login Authenticate (if not already logged in)

🔤 Special Prefixes

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Prefix Purpose Example
@ Include file contents in prompt @src/Program.cs Explain this file
! Run shell command (bypasses AI) !git status
& Shortcut for /delegate & complete the API tests

Quick Mental Model:

  • @ = "Hey Copilot, look at this file"
  • ! = "Hey terminal, run this command"
  • & = "Hey GitHub, take this task and run with it"

🤖 Custom Agents

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Custom agents are specialized AI personas defined in .github/agents/.

Command Description
/agent Browse available agents in-session
copilot --agent=NAME Start session with specific agent
copilot --agent=NAME -p "..." One-shot prompt with agent

Example Agents:

🏗️ blueprint / architect System architecture & design
🔨 forge / developer Code implementation
🛡️ shield / reviewer Code review & security
📚 sage / doc-writer Documentation generation

🔌 MCP (Model Context Protocol)

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MCP extends Copilot with external tools and data sources.

Command Description
/mcp View and manage MCP server connections
@server-name Reference a specific MCP server in prompts
Config locations:
  • CLI: .github/copilot/mcp.json
  • VS Code: .vscode/mcp.json
Example MCP query: Using @microsoft-learn, explain EF Core migrations

🧩 Plugins

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Command Description
copilot plugin marketplace list List available plugin marketplaces
copilot plugin marketplace add NAME Add a plugin marketplace
copilot plugin install NAME Install a plugin
copilot plugin list List installed plugins
Default marketplaces: copilot-plugins, awesome-copilot

📁 Custom Instructions

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Copilot automatically loads instruction files from your repo:

.github/
├── copilot-instructions.md          ← Global: always included
└── instructions/
    ├── csharp.instructions.md       ← Conditional: *.cs files
    └── razor.instructions.md        ← Conditional: *.cshtml files
View loaded instructions: /instructions

🎯 Quick Recipes

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Explore a New Codebase

copilot > What is the structure of this project? > @README.md Summarize the key features > @src/main.ts Explain the entry point

Code Review Workflow

copilot > /diff > /review > /share

Autonomous Feature Implementation

copilot --autopilot --yolo -p "Add input validation to the user registration form"

Delegate to Copilot Coding Agent

copilot > Design a REST API for user management > /delegate implement this design and open a PR

Quick Lookup (Non-Interactive)

copilot -p "What does the --no-restore flag do in dotnet build?"

Switch Model Mid-Session

/model # Select from available options

Session Continuity

Resume most recent session copilot --continue
Choose from session history copilot --resume
Export session for sharing /share

⚡ Power Tips

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1
Batch context loading: Reference multiple files at once: @src/models/User.cs @src/models/Task.cs Compare these models
2
Context management: When your context fills up, use /compact to summarize and free space.
3
Tab completion: Type @ then start typing a file path — use Tab to autocomplete.
4
Escape hatch: Use ! for quick shell commands without leaving your conversation.
5
Trust once: Choose "Yes, and remember this folder" to skip the trust prompt next time.
6
Model switching: Use /model to balance speed vs. capability based on task complexity.
7
Session export: Use /share to save design discussions as markdown for team review.

🆘 Troubleshooting

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Issue Solution
copilot: command not found Ensure npm global bin is in PATH: npm bin -g
Custom agents not appearing Run from repo root, check .github/agents/ exists
MCP server not connecting Verify Node.js 22+, check JSON config syntax
Session context full Run /compact to summarize and free space
Authentication expired Run /login or copilot login

📚 Resources

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📖 GitHub Copilot CLI Documentation 📋 CLI Command Reference ⚙️ Custom Instructions Guide 🤖 Custom Agents Guide 🔌 MCP Protocol