Copilot customization workshop

Appearance

Start here ​

Scope and prerequisites ​

  • Local Git, approved Node 24.20.0/npm 11.19.0, package-registry access for npm ci, and an entitled supported client for runtime activities.
  • No database, frontend, Docker, Python, cloud account, personal fork, or public repository is required.
  • This release is local only. Obtain the prepared repository including local release tags; future distribution requires an approved readable clone or Git bundle.
  • Owner/name/visibility and Pages audience remain undecided. Publication boundaries.
  • Never work in an account-notes repository. Confirm git rev-parse --show-toplevel before any edit.
  • Create a learner branch from main, not examples or solution; preserve original main.
  • Author/consumer must be separate sibling workspaces beneath a parent without .github customizations. Never nest consumer inside author.
  • Do not run concurrent writers, or disable unrelated user/global customizations to force success.

First commands ​

sh
git switch main
git switch -c workshop-my-client
npm ci
npm run preflight
npm run verify:baseline
npm run lab:examples:fetch
  • preflight records actual Node/npm/ref and lists manual capability checks; it does not interrogate or install Copilot.
  • Toolchain mismatch is a failed preflight, not a claimed rehearsal. Use your approved runtime manager; do not modify global settings as a workshop step.
  • If package/network/client access is blocked, inspect Markdown/assets and record artifact-only.
  • Main's npm test covers baseline API and real stdio MCP. verify:baseline adds the intentional stub assertion, helper/asset/docs checks and production docs build.
  • npm run test:search intentionally fails with 501 !== 200 or 501 !== 400. Do not weaken those tests. After implementing, use verify:solution, not the starter-only check.

Client steps ​

VS Code ​

  • Open only the author folder; confirm workspace trust is appropriate.
  • Inspect installed VS Code/Copilot versions and managed settings; record them privately.
  • Use native Chat customization discovery; check instructions, prompts, skills, and agents individually as their labs create them.
  • For plugin consumption open the sibling consumer in a separate window. Local plugin settings are not portable paths.

Copilot CLI ​

  • Start an already-installed, approved copilot in author root. Do not install a client just to rehearse documentation.
  • Record your CLI version using its help/version support and actual command output.
  • /skills reload refreshes project skills; /skills info is the supported inspection entry point.
  • Check copilot plugin list --json for conflicting user-search-toolkit registrations before Lab 04.

Copilot app ​

  • Open/register author as a distinct project/session, not the account-notes project.
  • Inspect Customize Skills/MCP/Plugins and record actual app build. This guide does not assume precise button labels or local install parity.
  • Consumer gets its own project/session. The local plugin path uses a CLI-assisted bridge, unverified in app until an actual rehearsal.
  • If the bridge cannot be observed, continue in CLI/VS Code or record a package walkthrough; do not call it app-native completion.

Next ​