Copilot Instructions Generator

Copilot Instructions Generator

Generate professional .github/copilot-instructions.md files following GitHub's official best practices.

When To Use This Skill

Trigger phrases:

• "create copilot instructions"
• "generate copilot-instructions.md"
• "set up copilot config"
• "update copilot instructions"
• "make a copilot instructions file"

Workflow

Step 1: Determine Project Type

• Greenfield: No existing codebase - gather requirements via interview
• Existing: Analyze codebase first, then interview

Step 2: Analyze Codebase (Existing Projects)

# Tech stack detection
ls -la package.json pyproject.toml Cargo.toml go.mod pom.xml *.csproj 2>/dev/null

# Directory structure
find . -type d -maxdepth 3 -not -path '*/\.*' | head -30

# Check existing configs
cat .editorconfig .prettierrc* .eslintrc* tsconfig.json 2>/dev/null | head -100

Step 3: Research Best Practices

Search for current practices:

• {language} coding standards best practices 2024
• {framework} project structure conventions
• github copilot instructions {tech stack}

Step 4: Select Tech-Stack Template

Load the appropriate example from assets/examples/:

Step 5: Generate Using Template

Use references/template.md structure:

# Project Name

Brief description of what the project does.

## Tech Stack

- **Language**: [language]
- **Framework**: [framework]
- **Database**: [database]
- **Testing**: [test framework]

## Project Structure

- `src/` - Source code
- `tests/` - Test files
[etc.]

## Development Commands

- **Build**: `[command]`
- **Test**: `[command]`
- **Lint**: `[command]`

## Before Committing

- [pre-commit step 1]
- [pre-commit step 2]

## Coding Guidelines

### [Category]
- [guideline]
- [guideline]

## Key Guidelines

1. [most important rule]
2. [second most important]
3. [third most important]

Step 6: Interview User

Ask focused questions:

1. "Are there specific coding patterns your team enforces?"
2. "Do you have preferred naming conventions?"
3. "Any libraries Copilot should always/never use?"
4. "What testing requirements should be followed?"
5. "Any security practices that must be applied?"

Step 7: Validate Output

Check against references/validation-checklist.md:

• File at .github/copilot-instructions.md
• Length under 500 lines
• Clear headings and bullets
• Specific, actionable instructions
• Copy-pasteable commands
• No anti-patterns (external refs, style instructions)

Writing Rules

DO:

• Short, imperative statements
• Specific, actionable guidance
• Concrete examples
• Copy-pasteable commands
• Under 500 lines

DON'T:

• ❌ "Follow styleguide.md in repo X"
• ❌ "Answer in a friendly tone"
• ❌ "Keep responses brief"
• ❌ Long paragraphs

Good Examples:

✅ "Use Bazel for Java dependencies, not Maven"
✅ "Run `make fmt` before committing"
✅ "JavaScript uses double quotes and tabs"

Output Location

Always create at: .github/copilot-instructions.md

References

• Template - Full template structure
• Validation Checklist - Quality checks
• Official Resources - GitHub docs
• Examples - Tech-stack specific examples