AI in VS Code Documentation

What it covers

The VS Code documentation has a full section on building with AI in the editor. It is where Microsoft documents how GitHub Copilot and other agents work inside VS Code:

• Inline suggestions: ghost text, accepting the next word with Cmd+Right or Ctrl+Right, next edit suggestions and snoozing suggestions.
• Chat and agents: the Chat view, inline chat, the Plan agent, local and cloud agent sessions, and the Agents window.
• Customising: .github/copilot-instructions.md, .instructions.md files with applyTo patterns, AGENTS.md, prompt files in .github/prompts, skills, custom agents, hooks and MCP servers.
• Staying in control: permission levels (Manual, Assisted and Allow all), checkpoints, reviewing changes, agent terminal sandboxing and a security baseline.
• Reference: a features cheat sheet with the essential keyboard shortcuts and every chat slash command.

Is it worth reading?

If you use Copilot in VS Code, yes. The GitHub docs explain plans and GitHub.com features, but the editor experience, including shortcuts such as Ctrl+Alt+I for the Chat view and Ctrl+I for inline chat on Windows and Linux, is documented here. Two pages are worth reading in full early: the features cheat sheet, which is short, and the security page, which explains what auto-approval really means and why a Git worktree is not a security boundary.

How long it takes

The cheat sheet takes ten minutes. Custom instructions and prompt files take half an hour including trying them. The security and permissions pages take another half hour. After that, use it as a reference.

Why it matters for learning well

The docs are refreshingly direct about limits. They say that stopping a request does not undo actions already taken, that checkpoints do not reverse changes to external services, and that model-based approval can make mistakes. Those are exactly the habits the Sefism roadmap builds: review diffs, keep Git as your safety net and grant autonomy carefully.

How it fits the Coding with AI tools roadmap

The Copilot edition of the roadmap uses this guide for custom instructions and scoped rules in the setup stage, prompt files and the Plan agent in the prompting stage, fixing failing tests in the debugging stage, and permission levels in the agents stage.

Common questions

Is it only about Copilot? Mostly, but VS Code now supports other agent harnesses too, and the docs cover them.

Is it free? Yes, and VS Code itself is free.