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title GitHub Copilot Instructions
description Repository-specific coding guidelines and conventions for GitHub Copilot
author HVE Core Team
ms.date 2026-03-11
ms.topic reference
keywords
copilot
instructions
coding standards
guidelines
estimated_reading_time 5

GitHub Copilot Instructions

Repository-specific guidelines that GitHub Copilot automatically applies when editing files. Instructions ensure consistent code style and conventions across the codebase.

How Instructions Work

  1. Instruction files declare which file patterns they apply to using applyTo in frontmatter
  2. GitHub Copilot reads instructions when editing matching files
  3. Suggestions follow the documented standards automatically

Custom agents and the prompt-builder agent respect these instructions and can create new ones. See Contributing Instructions for authoring guidance.

Available Instructions

Language and Technology

File Applies To Purpose
coding-standards/bash/bash.instructions.md **/*.sh Bash script implementation standards
coding-standards/bicep/bicep.instructions.md **/bicep/** Bicep infrastructure as code patterns
coding-standards/csharp/csharp.instructions.md **/*.cs C# implementation and coding conventions
coding-standards/csharp/csharp-tests.instructions.md **/*.cs C# test code standards
coding-standards/rust/rust.instructions.md **/*.rs Rust development conventions
coding-standards/rust/rust-tests.instructions.md **/*.rs Rust test code standards
coding-standards/python-script.instructions.md **/*.py Python scripting implementation
coding-standards/terraform/terraform.instructions.md **/*.tf, **/*.tfvars, **/terraform/** Terraform infrastructure as code
coding-standards/uv-projects.instructions.md **/*.py, **/*.ipynb Python virtual environments using uv

Documentation and Content

File Applies To Purpose
hve-core/markdown.instructions.md **/*.md Markdown formatting standards
hve-core/writing-style.instructions.md **/*.md Voice, tone, and language conventions
hve-core/prompt-builder.instructions.md **/*.prompt.md, **/*.agent.md, **/*.instructions.md Prompt engineering artifact authoring

Git and Workflow

File Applies To Purpose
hve-core/commit-message.instructions.md Commit actions Conventional commit message format
hve-core/git-merge.instructions.md Git operations Merge, rebase, and conflict handling
hve-core/pull-request.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/pr/** PR generation workflow with subagents
pull-request.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/pr/** Repo-specific PR conventions

Azure DevOps Integration

File Applies To Purpose
ado/ado-create-pull-request.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/pr/new/** Pull request creation protocol
ado/ado-get-build-info.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/pr/*-build-*.md Build status and log retrieval
ado/ado-update-wit-items.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/workitems/**/handoff-logs.md Work item creation and updates
ado/ado-wit-discovery.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/workitems/discovery/** Work item discovery protocol
ado/ado-wit-planning.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/workitems/** Work item planning specifications

GitHub Integration

File Applies To Purpose
github/community-interaction.instructions.md **/.github/instructions/github-backlog-*.instructions.md GitHub-facing communication patterns
github/github-backlog-discovery.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/github-issues/discovery/** Issue discovery protocol
github/github-backlog-planning.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/github-issues/** Backlog planning specifications
github/github-backlog-triage.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/github-issues/triage/** Issue triage workflow
github/github-backlog-update.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/github-issues/**/handoff-logs.md Issue execution workflow

Jira Integration

File Applies To Purpose
jira/jira-backlog-discovery.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/jira-issues/discovery/** Jira issue discovery protocol
jira/jira-backlog-planning.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/jira-issues/** Jira backlog planning specifications
jira/jira-backlog-triage.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/jira-issues/triage/** Jira issue triage workflow
jira/jira-backlog-update.instructions.md **/.copilot-tracking/jira-issues/**/handoff-logs.md Jira issue execution workflow

GitLab Workflow Entry Points

This README indexes instruction files. GitLab delivery support is currently discoverable through the local skill and provider-aware project-planning agents.

  • Use ../skills/gitlab/gitlab/SKILL.md when delivery context lives in GitLab and you need merge request, pipeline, or job operations.
  • Keep GitLab delivery workflows distinct from backlog planning unless GitLab is also the system of record for work tracking.

XML-Style Blocks

Instructions use XML-style comment blocks for structured content:

  • Purpose: Enables automated extraction, better navigation, and consistency
  • Format: Kebab-case tags in HTML comments on their own lines
  • Examples: <!-- <example-bash> -->, <!-- <schema-config> -->
  • Nesting: Allowed with distinct tag names
  • Closing: Always required with matching tag names
<!-- <example-terraform> -->
```terraform
resource "azurerm_resource_group" "example" {
  name     = "example-rg"
  location = "eastus"
}
```
<!-- </example-terraform> -->

Creating New Instructions

Use the prompt-builder agent to create new instruction files:

  1. Open Copilot Chat and select prompt-builder from the agent picker
  2. Provide context (files, folders, or requirements)
  3. Prompt Builder researches and drafts instructions
  4. Auto-validates with Prompt Tester (up to 3 iterations)
  5. Delivered to .github/instructions/

For manual creation, see Contributing Instructions.

Directory Structure

.github/instructions/
├── ado/                              # Azure DevOps workflows
│   ├── ado-create-pull-request.instructions.md
│   ├── ado-get-build-info.instructions.md
│   ├── ado-update-wit-items.instructions.md
│   ├── ado-wit-discovery.instructions.md
│   └── ado-wit-planning.instructions.md
├── coding-standards/                 # Language and technology conventions
│   ├── bash/
│   │   └── bash.instructions.md
│   ├── bicep/
│   │   └── bicep.instructions.md
│   ├── csharp/
│   │   ├── csharp.instructions.md
│   │   └── csharp-tests.instructions.md
│   ├── rust/
│   │   ├── rust.instructions.md
│   │   └── rust-tests.instructions.md
│   ├── terraform/
│   │   └── terraform.instructions.md
│   ├── python-script.instructions.md
│   └── uv-projects.instructions.md
├── github/                           # GitHub integration
│   ├── community-interaction.instructions.md
│   ├── github-backlog-discovery.instructions.md
│   ├── github-backlog-planning.instructions.md
│   ├── github-backlog-triage.instructions.md
│   └── github-backlog-update.instructions.md
├── jira/                             # Jira backlog workflows
│   ├── jira-backlog-discovery.instructions.md
│   ├── jira-backlog-planning.instructions.md
│   ├── jira-backlog-triage.instructions.md
│   └── jira-backlog-update.instructions.md
├── hve-core/                              # HVE Core workflow
│   ├── commit-message.instructions.md
│   ├── git-merge.instructions.md
│   ├── markdown.instructions.md
│   ├── prompt-builder.instructions.md
│   └── writing-style.instructions.md
├── shared/                           # Cross-collection
│   └── hve-core-location.instructions.md
└── README.md

🤖 Crafted with precision by ✨Copilot following brilliant human instruction, then carefully refined by our team of discerning human reviewers.