Getting it into your agent
One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.
npx agentmods add instructions/microsoft/vscode/copilot-instructionsgit clone --depth 1 https://github.com/microsoft/vscodeWhat it costs to keep this loaded
Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.
| Model | Per session | Once invoked |
|---|---|---|
| Fable 5 | $0.02494 | $0.02494 |
| Opus 5 | $0.01247 | $0.01247 |
| Sonnet 5 | $0.00499 | $0.00499 |
| Haiku 4.5 | $0.00249 | $0.00249 |
Grade A, and why
vscode copilot-instructions.md scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured yesterday.
A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.
Nothing flagged
None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.
How it starts
The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 157 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.
VS Code Copilot Instructions
Project Overview
Visual Studio Code is built with a layered architecture using TypeScript, web APIs and Electron, combining web technologies with native app capabilities. The codebase is organized into key architectural layers:
Root Folders
src/: Main TypeScript source code with unit tests insrc/vs/*/test/foldersbuild/: Build scripts and CI/CD toolsextensions/: Built-in extensions that ship with VS Codetest/: Integration tests and test infrastructurescripts/: Development and build scriptsresources/: Static resources (icons, themes, etc.)out/: Compiled JavaScript output (generated during build)
Core Architecture (src/ folder)
src/vs/base/- Foundation utilities and cross-platform abstractionssrc/vs/platform/- Platform services and dependency injection infrastructuresrc/vs/editor/- Text editor implementation with language services, syntax highlighting, and editing featuressrc/vs/workbench/- Main application workbench for web and desktopworkbench/browser/- Core workbench UI components (parts, layout, actions)workbench/services/- Service implementationsworkbench/contrib/- Feature contributions (git, debug, search, terminal, etc.)workbench/api/- Extension host and VS Code API implementation
src/vs/code/- Electron main process specific implementationsrc/vs/server/- Server specific implementationsrc/vs/sessions/- Agent sessions window, a dedicated workbench layer for agentic workflows (sits alongsidevs/workbench, may import from it but not vice versa)
The core architecture follows these principles:
- Layered architecture - from
base,platform,editor, toworkbench - Dependency injection - Services are injected through constructor parameters
- If non-service parameters are needed, they need to come before the service parameters
- Contribution model - Features contribute to registries and extension points
- Cross-platform compatibility - Abstractions separate platform-specific code
What this file has done since we first saw it
Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.
- yesterday First seen · 157 lines · 2,494 tokens per session scan A d711289b5eff
vscode copilot-instructions.md is an instructions file published in the GitHub repository microsoft/vscode (190,061 stars, last pushed yesterday), licensed MIT. It adds 2,494 tokens to every session, about $0.0125 per session on Opus 5. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-30.
Other instructions, from other repositories
vscode-peacock AGENTS.md
Instructions for johnpapa/vscode-peacock, covering peacock — agent guide, project overview, repository structure, tech stack and build & run.
vscode-peacock copilot-instructions.md
Instructions for johnpapa/vscode-peacock, covering copilot instructions — peacock, project type, typescript conventions, vs code extension patterns and color handling.
code-by-wire CLAUDE.md
Instructions for luojiahai/code-by-wire, covering claude.md, development, website, architecture and code style.
swob AGENTS.md
Instructions for IvyYang1999/swob, covering swob 研发协作唯一规范, 不可越过的边界, 角色与职责, 生命周期 and 分支、worktree 与提交.
clodex-ide AGENTS.md
AGENTS.md instructions for mereyabdenbekuly-ctrl/clodex-ide, covering clodex repository agent rules, open/closed product boundary, commercial product invariant, current protocol v0 phase and current authorization state.
data-peek CLAUDE.md
Claude Code instructions for Rohithgilla12/data-peek, covering claude.md, project overview, commands, development (from root) and from apps/desktop.