Skip to content

QUICKSTART.md

Latest commit

 

History

History
197 lines (146 loc) · 4.32 KB

QUICKSTART.md

File metadata and controls

197 lines (146 loc) · 4.32 KB

Quick Start Guide

⚠️ MIGRATION NOTICE: This guide has been updated for the new standalone GitHub Copilot CLI (copilot), not the deprecated gh copilot extension.

Prerequisites Check

⚠️ Important: The new GitHub Copilot CLI requires specific minimum versions:

Component Minimum Recommended Check Command
Node.js 22.x (Required) 22.x node --version
npm 10.x Latest npm --version
PowerShell (Windows) 6+ Latest pwsh --version

Breaking Changes:

  • GitHub CLI is no longer required
  • Node.js 22 is now required (not just recommended)
  • Completely new installation method

Quick Prerequisites Setup

If you need to update Node.js (required):

# Install NVM and Node.js 22 (Required)
curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.39.0/install.sh | bash
source ~/.bashrc  # or ~/.zshrc
nvm install 22 && nvm use 22 && nvm alias default 22

# Verify
node --version  # Should show v22.x.x

Prerequisites Verification Script

⚠️ Note: The verification script is being updated for the new CLI. Manual verification recommended for now.

# Manual verification
node --version   # Should be 22.x
npm --version    # Should be 10.x+

# On Windows, also check:
pwsh --version   # Should be 6.x+

New Installation Method

⚠️ BREAKING CHANGE: The installation method has completely changed.

Install the New Standalone CLI

# Install globally with npm
npm install -g @github/copilot

# Verify installation
copilot --version

Migration from Old Extension

# Remove old extension (if installed)
gh extension remove github/gh-copilot

# Install new standalone CLI
npm install -g @github/copilot

First Launch and Authentication

# Launch the new CLI
copilot

# Authenticate using the /login command
# In the copilot interface, type:
/login
# Follow the OAuth prompts

Alternative: PAT Authentication

# Create PAT with "Copilot Requests" permission at:
# https://github.com/settings/personal-access-tokens/new

# Set environment variable
export GH_TOKEN="your-pat-here"
# or
export GITHUB_TOKEN="your-pat-here"

# Launch copilot
copilot

Essential Commands to Get Started

1. Installation and Setup

# Install the new standalone CLI
npm install -g @github/copilot

# Launch for first time
copilot

# Authenticate (within copilot interface)
/login

2. Basic Usage

# Launch copilot (from your project directory)
cd /path/to/your/project
copilot

# Basic interactions (within copilot)
# Just type natural language:
# "Help me understand this codebase"
# "Review my recent changes" 
# "Create a Python function to parse JSON"

3. Essential Configuration

# Set preferred model (before launching)
export COPILOT_MODEL=gpt-5
copilot

# Or use default (Claude Sonnet 4)
copilot

# Launch with banner
copilot --banner

4. Working with Different Models

# Use default Claude Sonnet 4
copilot

# Use GPT-5
COPILOT_MODEL=gpt-5 copilot

# Set as environment variable
export COPILOT_MODEL=gpt-5
copilot

5. Get Help

# General help
copilot --help

# Within copilot interface
/help      # Show available slash commands
/feedback  # Submit feedback survey

Your First Session

Try these steps in order:

  1. Install and launch:

    npm install -g @github/copilot
copilot

  2. Authenticate:

    # Within copilot, run:
/login
# Follow the OAuth flow

  3. Try basic interactions:

    • "What are the most important git commands for beginners?"
    • "Help me create a Python function to read a CSV file"
    • "Explain the files in this project"

  4. Test different models:

    # Exit copilot (Ctrl+C), then try:
COPILOT_MODEL=gpt-5 copilot
# Ask the same question to compare responses

Next Steps

⚠️ Note: Many advanced features from the old gh copilot extension are being reimplemented in the new CLI. Check the official repository for the latest updates.