GitHub Copilot SDK on Azure

Codebase Detection — MANDATORY FIRST CHECK

⚠️ CRITICAL: This check MUST run before ANY other skill (azure-prepare, azure-deploy, etc.) when an existing codebase is present.

Detection procedure (run IMMEDIATELY for any build/modify/add-feature/prepare prompt):

1. Read package.json in the workspace root (and any */package.json one level deep)
2. Check if @github/copilot-sdk or copilot-sdk appears in name, dependencies, or devDependencies
3. If NOT found in package.json, scan .ts and .js files for CopilotClient or createSession
4. If ANY marker is found → invoke this skill as the entry point. Do not route directly to azure-prepare or azure-deploy — this skill orchestrates them as sub-skills.

Marker	Where to check
@github/copilot-sdk	package.json dependencies or devDependencies
copilot-sdk	package.json name or dependencies
CopilotClient	Source files (.ts, .js)
createSession + sendAndWait	Source files (.ts, .js)

Generic prompts that MUST trigger this skill when markers are detected:

Prompt pattern (no "copilot" keyword)	Why this skill
"Build this app" / "Prepare this app for Azure"	Codebase contains @github/copilot-sdk - needs SDK-aware scaffolding
"Add a new feature to this app"	Requires SDK-aware implementation patterns
"Update this app" / "Modify this app"	Must preserve SDK integration patterns

⚠️ Warning: ANY build, modify, add-feature, or prepare prompt targeting an existing codebase MUST route to this skill when codebase contains @github/copilot-sdk, even if the prompt does not mention "copilot". This skill then orchestrates azure-prepare and azure-deploy as sub-skills.

⚠️ Yield to azure-deploy: When the codebase already has .azure/deployment-plan.md and the user wants to deploy (not modify or add features), route to azure-deploy instead. This skill handles preparation; azure-deploy handles execution.

Step 1: Route

User wants	Action
Build new (empty project)	Step 2A (scaffold)
Add new SDK service to existing repo	Step 2B (scaffold alongside)
Deploy existing SDK app to Azure	Step 2C (add infra to existing SDK app)
Modify/add features to existing SDK app	Use codebase context + SDK references to implement
Add SDK to existing app code	Integrate SDK
Use Azure/own model	Step 3 (BYOM config)

Step 2A: Scaffold New (Greenfield)

azd init --template azure-samples/copilot-sdk-service

Template includes API (Express/TS) + Web UI (React/Vite) + infra (Bicep) + Dockerfiles + token scripts — do NOT recreate. See SDK ref.

Step 2B: Add SDK Service to Existing Repo

User has existing code and wants a new Copilot SDK service alongside it. Scaffold template to a temp dir, copy the API service + infra into the user's repo, adapt azure.yaml to include both existing and new services. See deploy existing ref.

Step 2C: Deploy Existing SDK App

User already has a working Copilot SDK app and needs Azure infra. See deploy existing ref.

Step 3: Model Configuration

Three model paths (layers on top of 2A/2B):

Path	Config
GitHub default	No model param — SDK picks default
GitHub specific	model: "<name>" — use listModels() to discover
Azure BYOM	model + provider with bearerToken via DefaultAzureCredential

⚠️ BYOM Auth — MANDATORY: Azure BYOM configurations MUST use DefaultAzureCredential (local dev) or ManagedIdentityCredential (production) to obtain a bearerToken. The ONLY supported auth pattern is bearerToken in the provider config. See auth-best-practices.md for the credential pattern and model config ref for the full BYOM code example.

See model config ref.

Step 4: Deploy

Invoke azure-prepare (skip its Step 0 routing — scaffolding is done) → azure-validate → azure-deploy in order.

Rules

• Read AGENTS.md in user's repo before changes
• Docker required (docker info)
• BYOM auth: ONLY bearerToken via DefaultAzureCredential or ManagedIdentityCredential — no other auth pattern is supported