GitHub Copilot SDK Documentation

Welcome to the GitHub Copilot SDK docs. Whether you're building your first Copilot-powered app or deploying to production, you'll find what you need here.

Where to Start

I want to...	Go to
Build my first app	Getting Started — end-to-end tutorial with streaming & custom tools
Set up for production	Setup Guides — architecture, deployment patterns, scaling
Configure authentication	Authentication — GitHub OAuth, environment variables, BYOK
Add features to my app	Features — hooks, custom agents, MCP, skills, and more
Debug an issue	Troubleshooting — common problems and solutions

Documentation Map

Getting Started

Step-by-step tutorial that takes you from zero to a working Copilot app with streaming responses and custom tools.

Setup

How to configure and deploy the SDK for your use case.

• Default Setup (Bundled CLI) — the SDK includes the CLI automatically
• Local CLI — use your own CLI binary or running instance
• Backend Services — server-side with headless CLI over TCP
• GitHub OAuth — implement the OAuth flow
• Azure Managed Identity — BYOK with Azure AI Foundry
• Scaling & Multi-Tenancy — horizontal scaling, isolation patterns

Authentication

Configuring how users and services authenticate with Copilot.

• Authentication Overview — methods, priority order, and examples
• Bring Your Own Key (BYOK) — use your own API keys from OpenAI, Azure, Anthropic, and more

Features

Guides for building with the SDK's capabilities.

• Hooks — intercept and customize session behavior
• Custom Agents — define specialized sub-agents
• MCP Servers — integrate Model Context Protocol servers
• Skills — load reusable prompt modules
• Image Input — send images as attachments
• Streaming Events — real-time event reference
• Steering & Queueing — message delivery modes
• Session Persistence — resume sessions across restarts

Hooks Reference

Detailed API reference for each session hook.

• Pre-Tool Use — approve, deny, or modify tool calls
• Post-Tool Use — transform tool results
• User Prompt Submitted — modify or filter user messages
• Session Lifecycle — session start and end
• Error Handling — custom error handling

Troubleshooting

• Debugging Guide — common issues and solutions
• MCP Debugging — MCP-specific troubleshooting
• Compatibility — SDK vs CLI feature matrix

Observability

• OpenTelemetry Instrumentation — built-in TelemetryConfig and trace context propagation

Integrations

Guides for using the SDK with other platforms and frameworks.

• Microsoft Agent Framework — MAF multi-agent workflows