Domain 1 of 6 · Chapter 1 of 4

Use GitHub Copilot in the IDE

Unlock the complete study guide.

Bundled into the existing GitHub Copilot premium course — no separate purchase.

14-day money-back guarantee — no questions asked.

Included in this chapter:

  • Copilot in the IDE: one access chain, two surface families
  • Enabling Copilot: integration, sign-in, and Copilot access
  • Organization policy: why an entitled user can miss a feature
  • Ghost text: completions at the cursor
  • Next edit suggestions: predicting where and what
  • Ask mode and Inline Chat: conversation without autonomy
  • Chat context: prompt prefixes and response references
  • Agent mode: handing Copilot a task from the chat view
  • Content exclusion: who configures it and what it withholds
  • Propagating and testing an exclusion change
  • Choosing and troubleshooting Copilot in the IDE

Copilot surfaces in the IDE: how each is triggered and what reaches your files

Surface behaviorGhost textNext edit suggestionsAsk modeInline ChatAgent mode
Surface familyCompletion surfaceCompletion surfaceChat surfaceChat surfaceChat surface
How you trigger itType code or a descriptive commentMake an edit; Copilot predicts the follow-on editSelect Ask in the chat view and submit a questionOpen inline chat in the editor on selected codeSelect Agent in the chat view and submit a task
Where the result appearsAt the current cursorAt a predicted location, which can be away from the cursorIn the chat viewOn the selected or nearby codeAcross the files Copilot chooses, plus terminal commands
What reaches your filesOnly the part you acceptOnly the edit you acceptNothing unless you insert proposed codeA proposed change to the focused codeEdits Copilot streams in, for you to review
On/off controlEditor setting (`github.copilot.enable` in Visual Studio Code), adjustable per languageSeparate next edit setting, with IDE-specific defaultsOrganization Chat policy, for organization seatsOrganization Chat policy, for organization seatsOrganization agent mode policy, for organization seats

Decision tree

Should Copilot choosefiles and edit them?YesAgent modeNoDoes it start from arequest in a chat box?NoYesCompletion at the cursor,or a predicted next edit?Is the request aboutselected code?Completionat the cursorPredicted next editGhost textNext editsuggestionsYesNoInline ChatAsk mode
Cheat sheet

Cheat sheet

  • IDE access requires the supported integration, sign-in, and Copilot access
  • Visual Studio Code installs the required Copilot extensions automatically during setup
  • Organization policy can remove IDE Chat or agent mode from an entitled account
  • Editor settings can enable or disable inline suggestions by language
  • Ghost-text suggestions appear at the current cursor as code is typed
  • Developers can accept, reject, or partially accept inline suggestions
  • The public-code policy determines whether matching inline suggestions are withheld or referenced
  • Changing the completion model affects ghost text but not Chat or next edits
  • Next edit suggestions predict both where and what to edit
  • Next edit support differs from ordinary inline-completion support
  • Next edit suggestions have an enablement state separate from ghost text
  • Ask mode answers and proposes code without autonomously implementing a task
  • Inline Chat brings a conversational request to selected or nearby editor code
  • Chat references reveal which context contributed to a response
  • Slash commands invoke common Chat tasks without rewriting their full prompts
  • Agent mode is triggered from the Chat mode or agent selector
  • A missing Agent selector can indicate an administrator-disabled policy
  • Content exclusion is configured by repository, organization, or enterprise administrators
  • Excluded files lose inline suggestions and are withheld as Copilot context
  • Repository exclusions use case-insensitive path patterns within that repository
  • IDE Edit and Agent modes do not currently honor content exclusion
  • Content exclusion changes may require propagation or an IDE reload

Unlock with Premium — includes all practice exams and the complete study guide.

References

  1. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/credentials/certifications/resources/study-guides/gh-300
  2. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/agents/copilot-cli/about-copilot-cli
  3. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/how-tos/configure-content-exclusion/exclude-content-from-copilot
  4. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/how-tos/set-up/install-copilot-extension
  5. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/billing/organizations-and-enterprises
  6. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/get-started/plans
  7. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/completions/code-suggestions
  8. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/how-tos/chat-with-copilot/chat-in-ide
  9. https://code.visualstudio.com/updates/v1_126
  10. https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/setup/copilot
  11. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/how-tos/get-code-suggestions/get-ide-code-suggestions
  12. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/how-tos/configure-personal-settings/configure-in-ide
  13. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/reference/supported-surfaces-for-policies
  14. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/reference/keyboard-shortcuts
  15. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/completions/code-referencing
  16. https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/copilot/ai-powered-suggestions
  17. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/reference/chat-cheat-sheet
  18. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/prompting/response-customization
  19. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/agents/cloud-agent/about-cloud-agent
  20. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/context/mcp
  21. https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/concepts/security-governance-and-network-settings/content-exclusion