Give Copilot conventions, procedures and tools in separate places

GitHub’s new Copilot guide separates four kinds of project context: instructions for conventions, skills for repeatable procedures, custom agents for specialized tasks, and MCP servers for external tools. Repository files keep those choices alongside the code. Start with one rule or testing procedure you repeatedly explain; the guide describes configuration mechanisms, not evidence that more instructions automatically produce better code.

GitHub · Oct 12, 2026

Why it matters

The distinction helps teams avoid turning one giant instruction file into every workflow at once.

More context

Try repository-wide guidance in .github/copilot-instructions.md or a procedure in .github/skills. These examples target the Copilot app; external tools such as Playwright need their own MCP configuration and permissions.

Keep in mind

Instructions guide behavior but do not replace executable checks or review of the resulting changes.

Original read