VS Code and Visual Studio
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What can you set up in VS Code?
Section titled “What can you set up in VS Code?”You can set up five things for GitHub Copilot’s agent in VS Code: instructions files, custom agents, skills, MCP servers and settings. Each can belong to a repo, to you or to your organization.
VS Code’s default harness, the Copilot harness, reads .github/ in the repo and ~/.copilot/ in your home folder. For the basics, see An Accidental Guide to: Agents, Harnesses, Skills, and Tools.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Instructions file | Rules the agent follows, always or for matching files. |
| Custom agent | A role with its own instructions, tools and model. |
| Skill | Steps the agent loads when a task needs them. |
| MCP server | A program that gives the agent more tools. |
| Setting | A switch or value that changes what VS Code does. |
01 Instructions file
Section titled “01 Instructions file”| Field | Text |
|---|---|
| Identify by | copilot-instructions.md, AGENTS.md or a .instructions.md file. |
| What | An instructions file is text Copilot adds to your requests. See An Accidental Guide to: Agents, Harnesses, Skills, and Tools. |
| So what | Put rules you’d otherwise repeat in every chat here. An applyTo pattern makes a file apply only to matching files. |
| Field | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Loads | When it applies |
| Cannot | Settle a conflict |
Confused with: Setting
Section titled “Confused with: Setting”An instructions file tells the agent how to work. A setting changes what VS Code does.
02 Custom agent
Section titled “02 Custom agent”| Field | Text |
|---|---|
| Identify by | A .agent.md file, or a name in the Agent dropdown. |
| What | A custom agent is a saved role with its own instructions, tools and model. See An Accidental Guide to: Agents, Harnesses, Skills, and Tools. |
| So what | Limiting a custom agent’s tools limits what it can change. Give each agent only the tools its job needs. |
| Field | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Loads | When picked or started |
| Cannot | Replace instructions |
Confused with: Chat mode
Section titled “Confused with: Chat mode”Chat mode is the old name for a custom agent, and a .chatmode.md file can be renamed to .agent.md.
03 Skill
Section titled “03 Skill”| Field | Text |
|---|---|
| Identify by | A folder with a SKILL.md file whose name matches the folder. |
| What | A skill is a written procedure in a folder. Type /skill-name to run one. See An Accidental Guide to: Agent Skills. |
| So what | A skill’s steps take up no room until they’re needed. When a skill doesn’t run, check its description first. |
| Field | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Loads | Description first |
| Cannot | Add a tool |
Confused with: Prompt file
Section titled “Confused with: Prompt file”A prompt file (.prompt.md) is a saved prompt you run with /name. Only the Local harness runs them, so VS Code suggests a skill.
04 MCP server
Section titled “04 MCP server”| Field | Text |
|---|---|
| Identify by | An entry with a command or a URL in .mcp.json or ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json. |
| What | An MCP server is a program that gives the agent more tools. Search @mcp in Extensions to find one. See An Accidental Guide to: Model Context Protocol. |
| So what | A local MCP server runs code on your machine with your permissions. Add only servers you trust. |
| Field | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Loads | When it connects |
| Cannot | Act by itself |
Confused with: Extension
Section titled “Confused with: Extension”An extension adds features to VS Code itself. MCP servers install from the same view, for you or for the workspace.
05 Setting
Section titled “05 Setting”| Field | Text |
|---|---|
| Identify by | A value in the Settings editor, your user settings or .vscode/settings.json. |
| What | A setting is a switch or value that changes how VS Code behaves. For example, chat.useAgentSkills turns skills on and off. |
| So what | When something works for a teammate and not for you, compare your settings. Your user settings apply in every repo. |
| Field | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Loads | From every scope |
| Cannot | Guide the agent |
Confused with: Policy
Section titled “Confused with: Policy”A policy is a setting an administrator makes for your organization. It wins over your own settings.
Where things live
Section titled “Where things live”The Copilot harness reads these places. Use the repo for what the team shares and your home folder for what’s only yours.
| Thing | Scope | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Instructions file | Repo | .github/copilot-instructions.md |
| AGENTS.md, from the root down to the working folder | ||
| .github/instructions/*.instructions.md | ||
| You | ~/.copilot/copilot-instructions.md | |
| ~/.copilot/instructions/*.instructions.md | ||
| Organization | Copilot settings in your GitHub organization | |
| Custom agent | Repo | .github/agents/*.agent.md |
| You | ~/.copilot/agents/*.agent.md | |
| Organization | agents/ in the organization’s .github-private repo | |
| Skill | Repo | .github/skills/ |
| .agents/skills/ | ||
| You | ~/.copilot/skills/ | |
| ~/.agents/skills/ | ||
| MCP server | Repo | .mcp.json |
| You | ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json | |
| Organization | A registry of approved servers, set in GitHub | |
| Setting | Repo | .vscode/settings.json |
| You | Your user settings.json | |
| Organization | Policies set by an administrator |
The Local harness also reads .vscode/mcp.json. The Claude harness reads .claude/ and ~/.claude/ instead.
How scopes combine
Section titled “How scopes combine”Instructions add up, and settings override.
| Thing | When more than one scope has one |
|---|---|
| Instructions file | Every file that applies is added. None takes priority. |
| Custom agent | The selected agent’s instructions win a conflict. |
| MCP server | Give each server its own name. Your organization can limit which ones run. |
| Setting | Default, then User, then Workspace, and the later one wins. An administrator’s policy wins over all three. |
What’s different in Visual Studio
Section titled “What’s different in Visual Studio”| Thing | In Visual Studio |
|---|---|
| Instructions file | .github/copilot-instructions.md and .github/instructions/*.instructions.md. In Visual Studio 2026, personal instructions go in %USERPROFILE%/copilot-instructions.md. |
| Custom agent | .github/agents/*.agent.md, or %USERPROFILE%\.github\agents for your own. Version 18.4 or later. |
| Skill | The same folders as VS Code. Version 18.5 or later. |
| MCP server | %USERPROFILE%\.mcp.json, then .vs\mcp.json, .mcp.json, .vscode\mcp.json and .cursor\mcp.json in the solution folder. |
| Setting | Tools › Options › GitHub › Copilot, where a checkbox turns instructions files on. |
Visual Studio doesn’t list AGENTS.md as supported, so put rules both editors need in .github/copilot-instructions.md.
Same thing elsewhere
Section titled “Same thing elsewhere”Copilot CLI uses the same Copilot harness, so it reads the same .github/ and ~/.copilot/ folders.
| Thing | In the other tools |
|---|---|
| Instructions file | Claude Code: CLAUDE.md. Codex: AGENTS.md. Claude Desktop: project instructions. |
| Custom agent | Claude Code: .claude/agents/. Codex: .codex/agents/. |
| Skill | Claude Code: .claude/skills/. Codex: .agents/skills/. Claude Desktop: Customize › Skills. |
| MCP server | Claude Code: .mcp.json. Codex: ~/.codex/config.toml. Claude Desktop: Customize › Connectors. |
| Setting | Claude Code: .claude/settings.json. Codex: ~/.codex/config.toml. |
Each has its own guide: An Accidental Guide to: Claude Code, An Accidental Guide to: Claude Desktop, An Accidental Guide to: GitHub Copilot CLI and An Accidental Guide to: OpenAI Codex.
Sources
Section titled “Sources”These public pages were checked on 22 October 2026.
A person writes and reviews every guide. AI does the grunt work.