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DanWahlin merged 5 commits into from
Mar 31, 2026
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[bot] Add /rewind timeline picker and update /allow-all subcommands documentation #22

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983b913
docs: add /rewind timeline picker and update /allow-all subcommands
github-actions[bot] Mar 31, 2026
75a88f7
Update README for context management commands
DanWahlin Mar 31, 2026
58d6d7d
Update README with command descriptions and fixes
DanWahlin Mar 31, 2026
ee3d7c3
Refine README context command explanations
DanWahlin Mar 31, 2026
ee3a819
Update commands for managing conversation context
DanWahlin Mar 31, 2026
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27 changes: 15 additions & 12 deletions 01-setup-and-first-steps/README.md
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Expand Up @@ -361,11 +361,11 @@ These commands work in interactive mode. **Start with just these six** - they co

| Command | What It Does | When to Use |
|---------|--------------|-------------|
| `/help` | Show all available commands | When you forget a command |
| `/clear` | Clear conversation and start fresh | When switching topics |
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Copilot AI Mar 31, 2026

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/clear is described here as "Clear conversation and start fresh", but later in the same chapter it’s described more specifically as abandoning the session with no history saved. Consider aligning these descriptions (e.g., add the "no history saved" detail here, or simplify the later one) so beginners don’t get conflicting guidance about what /clear does.

This issue also appears on line 425 of the same file.

Suggested change
| `/clear` | Clear conversation and start fresh | When switching topics |
| `/clear` | Abandon the current session, clear the conversation, and start fresh with no history saved | When switching topics |

Copilot uses AI. Check for mistakes.
| `/help` | Show all available commands | When you forget a command |
| `/model` | Show or switch AI model | When you want to change the AI model |
| `/plan` | Plan your work out before coding | For more complex features |
| `/research` | Deep research using GitHub and web sources | When you need to investigate a topic before coding |
| `/model` | Show or switch AI model | When you want to change the AI model |
| `/exit` | End the session | When you're done |

That's it for getting started! As you become comfortable, you can explore additional commands.
Expand All @@ -381,20 +381,20 @@ That's it for getting started! As you become comfortable, you can explore additi

| Command | What It Does |
|---------|--------------|
| `/init` | Initialize Copilot instructions for your repository |
| `/agent` | Browse and select from available agents |
| `/skills` | Manage skills for enhanced capabilities |
| `/init` | Initialize Copilot instructions for your repository |
| `/mcp` | Manage MCP server configuration |
| `/skills` | Manage skills for enhanced capabilities |

> 💡 Agents are covered in [Chapter 04](../04-agents-custom-instructions/README.md), skills are covered in [Chapter 05](../05-skills/README.md), and MCP servers are covered in [Chapter 06](../06-mcp-servers/README.md).

### Models and Subagents

| Command | What It Does |
|---------|--------------|
| `/model` | Show or switch AI model |
| `/delegate` | Hand off task to Copilot coding agent on GitHub (agent in the cloud) |
| `/fleet` | Split a complex task into parallel subtasks for faster completion |
| `/model` | Show or switch AI model |
| `/tasks` | View background subagents and detached shell sessions |

### Code
Expand All @@ -403,40 +403,43 @@ That's it for getting started! As you become comfortable, you can explore additi
|---------|--------------|
| `/diff` | Review the changes made in the current directory |
| `/pr` | Operate on pull requests for the current branch |
| `/review` | Run the code-review agent to analyze changes |
| `/research` | Run deep research investigation using GitHub and web sources |
| `/review` | Run the code-review agent to analyze changes |
| `/terminal-setup` | Enable multiline input support (shift+enter and ctrl+enter) |

### Permissions

| Command | What It Does |
|---------|--------------|
| `/allow-all` | Auto-approve all permission prompts for this session |
| `/add-dir <directory>` | Add a directory to allowed list |
| `/list-dirs` | Show all allowed directories |
| `/allow-all [on\|off\|show]` | Auto-approve all permission prompts; use `on` to enable, `off` to disable, `show` to check current status |
| `/cwd`, `/cd [directory]` | View or change working directory |
| `/list-dirs` | Show all allowed directories |

> ⚠️ **Use with caution**: `/allow-all` skips confirmation prompts. Great for trusted projects, but be careful with untrusted code.

### Session

| Command | What It Does |
|---------|--------------|
| `/resume` | Switch to a different session (optionally specify session ID) |
| `/rename` | Rename the current session |
| `/clear` | Abandons the current session (no history saved) and starts a fresh conversation |
| `/compact` | Summarize conversation to reduce context usage |
| `/context` | Show context window token usage and visualization |
| `/new` | Ends the current session (saving it to history for search/resume) and starts a fresh conversation. |
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Minor punctuation consistency: the /new description ends with a trailing period, while the surrounding rows don’t. Consider removing the final period to keep the table formatting consistent.

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| `/new` | Ends the current session (saving it to history for search/resume) and starts a fresh conversation. |
| `/new` | Ends the current session (saving it to history for search/resume) and starts a fresh conversation |

Copilot uses AI. Check for mistakes.
| `/resume` | Switch to a different session (optionally specify session ID) |
| `/rename` | Rename the current session (omit the name to auto-generate one) |
| `/rewind` | Open a timeline picker to roll back to any earlier point in the conversation |
| `/usage` | Display session usage metrics and statistics |
| `/session` | Show session info and workspace summary |
| `/compact` | Summarize conversation to reduce context usage |
| `/share` | Export session as markdown file or GitHub gist |

### Help and Feedback

| Command | What It Does |
|---------|--------------|
| `/help` | Show all available commands |
| `/changelog` | Display changelog for CLI versions |
| `/feedback` | Submit feedback to GitHub |
| `/help` | Show all available commands |
| `/theme` | View or set terminal theme |

### Quick Shell Commands
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23 changes: 16 additions & 7 deletions 02-context-conversations/README.md
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Expand Up @@ -330,19 +330,27 @@ copilot

### Check and Manage Context

As you add files and conversation, Copilot CLI's [context window](../GLOSSARY.md#context-window) fills up. Two commands help you stay in control:
As you add files and conversation, Copilot CLI's [context window](../GLOSSARY.md#context-window) fills up. Several commands are available to help you stay in control:

```bash
copilot

> /context
Context usage: 45,000 / 128,000 tokens (35%)
Context usage: 62k/200k tokens (31%)

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This /context example uses a different token-limit format ("62k/200k") than the other context examples later in the chapter (e.g., "45,000 / 128,000 tokens"). Consider standardizing the formatting and/or adding a short note that the context limit varies by model/config so readers aren’t confused by conflicting numbers.

Copilot uses AI. Check for mistakes.
> /clear
# Wipes context and starts fresh. Use when switching topics
# Abandons the current session (no history saved) and starts a fresh conversation

> /new
# Ends the current session (saving it to history for search/resume) and starts a fresh conversation

> /rewind
# Opens a timeline picker allowing you to roll back to an earlier point in your conversation
```

> 💡 **When to use `/clear`**: If you've been reviewing `books.py` and want to switch to discussing `utils.py`, run `/clear` first. Otherwise stale context from the old topic may confuse responses.
> 💡 **When to use `/clear` or `/new`**: If you've been reviewing books.py and want to switch to discussing utils.py, run /new first (or /clear if you don't need the session history). Otherwise stale context from the old topic may confuse responses.
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In this callout, command names and filenames aren’t consistently formatted: books.py/utils.py should be code-formatted, and the references to /new and /clear later in the sentence should also be wrapped in backticks (and include the leading slash consistently). This improves readability and matches the earlier formatting in the same line ("/clear or /new").

Suggested change
> 💡 **When to use `/clear` or `/new`**: If you've been reviewing books.py and want to switch to discussing utils.py, run /new first (or /clear if you don't need the session history). Otherwise stale context from the old topic may confuse responses.
> 💡 **When to use `/clear` or `/new`**: If you've been reviewing `books.py` and want to switch to discussing `utils.py`, run `/new` first (or `/clear` if you don't need the session history). Otherwise stale context from the old topic may confuse responses.

Copilot uses AI. Check for mistakes.

> 💡 **Made a mistake or want to try a different approach?** Use `/rewind` (or press Esc twice) to open a **timeline picker** that lets you roll back to any earlier point in your conversation, not just the most recent one. This is useful when you went down the wrong path and want to backtrack without starting over entirely.

---

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -559,15 +567,16 @@ copilot
| Situation | Action | Why |
|-----------|--------|-----|
| Starting new topic | `/clear` | Removes irrelevant context |
| Went down wrong path | `/rewind` | Roll back to any earlier point |
| Long conversation | `/compact` | Summarizes history, frees tokens |
| Need specific file | `@file.py` not `@folder/` | Loads only what you need |
| Hitting limits | Start new session | Fresh 128K context |
| Hitting limits | `/new` or `/clear` | Fresh context |
| Multiple topics | Use `/rename` per topic | Easy to resume right session |

#### Best Practices for Large Codebases

1. **Be specific**: `@samples/book-app-project/books.py` instead of `@samples/book-app-project/`
2. **Clear between topics**: Use `/clear` when switching focus
2. **Clear context between topics**: Use `/new` or `/clear` when switching focus
3. **Use `/compact`**: Summarize conversation to free up context
4. **Use multiple sessions**: One session per feature or topic

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -846,7 +855,7 @@ copilot --add-dir /path/to/directory
1. **`@` syntax** gives Copilot CLI context about files, directories, and images
2. **Multi-turn conversations** build on each other as context accumulates
3. **Sessions auto-save**: use `--continue` or `--resume` to pick up where you left off
4. **Context windows** have limits: manage them with `/context`, `/clear`, and `/compact`
4. **Context windows** have limits: manage them with `/context`, `/clear`, `/rewind`, and `/compact`
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Key Takeaways lists commands for managing context limits but omits /new, which is introduced earlier in this chapter as a primary way to start fresh (and is referenced in the Context Efficiency Tips table). Consider adding /new here or adjusting the wording so the summary matches the commands recommended above.

Suggested change
4. **Context windows** have limits: manage them with `/context`, `/clear`, `/rewind`, and `/compact`
4. **Context windows** have limits: manage them with `/context`, `/clear`, `/new`, `/rewind`, and `/compact`

Copilot uses AI. Check for mistakes.
5. **Permission flags** (`--add-dir`, `--allow-all`) control multi-directory access. Use them wisely!
6. **Image references** (`@screenshot.png`) help debug UI issues visually

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