A hands-on, ~4-hour instructor-led workshop for mastering GitHub Copilot - in VS Code and the CLI, on both GitHub and Azure DevOps.
This course takes a mixed audience of developers and engineering managers from Copilot fundamentals to context engineering, code review, and agentic workflows - using only features every paid Copilot user can run in the hands-on path, with the gated "wow" features shown as live demos.
- Dual-platform. Every relevant module has a GitHub / Azure DevOps note. Editor Copilot, the Azure DevOps MCP server (GA), and Pipelines authoring all work for ADO teams. What's GitHub-only or preview is called out honestly.
- Ungated core. The hands-on path (Modules 0–6) needs only a Copilot license. Gated features (coding agent, Spaces, ADO previews) are facilitator demos with an ungated fallback - nobody is blocked.
- Current & verified. Claims are checked against official GitHub + Microsoft Learn docs. No dead features, no retired model names - we teach Auto and how to switch, not a lineup that ages in weeks.
- Facilitator-ready. Includes a run-of-show, talk tracks, failure-recovery table, a demo script with recording fallbacks, and answer keys (a verified reference test suite).
- Who: Developers, DevOps engineers, and engineering managers.
- Format: ~4 hours, instructor-led. Self-paced also works.
- Prerequisites: Complete Module 0 before the session.
- Platform: Works whether your code is on GitHub or Azure DevOps.
| # | Module | What you'll do | Gated? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Prerequisites & Setup | Install, authenticate, run the access self-check | - |
| 1 | Foundations | Completions, Next Edit Suggestions, Ask/Plan/Agent, Auto | Ungated |
| 2 | Copilot in the CLI | Setup, debug, /plan, /review, MCP, models |
Ungated |
| 3 | VS Code Core | Docs, tests to ≥80% (run + verify), debugging | Ungated |
| 4 | Context Engineering | Instructions, custom agents, skills, MCP, token hygiene (GitHub + Azure DevOps) | Ungated |
| 5 | Copilot Code Review - the flagship | Scoped CLI review, optional VS Code/PR review, custom instructions | Ungated core (PR path needs org policy) |
| 6 | Governance & ROI | Policies, content exclusion, usage metrics, cost | Ungated |
Optional appendices (self-study / demos):
- A - Agentic Showcase: Issue → coding agent → PR → review → merge (gated: GitHub-hosted repo + admin)
- B - The "Ralph" Autonomous Loop (advanced)
- C - Spec-Driven Development with Spec Kit
- D - GitHub Copilot with Azure DevOps (consolidated ADO reference)
- E - .NET Framework to Modern .NET (customer-focused modernization deep dive)
See AGENDA.md for the minute-by-minute run-of-show, and facilitator/ for the delivery kit.
The workshop uses a small Flask app as its practice target - you'll document it, test it, debug it, and extend it.
# Python 3.10+ and Node.js 22+ required (see Module 0)
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate # Windows: .venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
pip install -r requirements.txt
python app.py # http://localhost:5000Enable debug mode with FLASK_DEBUG=true python app.py.
Port 5000 in use (common on macOS AirPlay)? The app honors a
PORTvariable - runPORT=5001 python app.py(orflask --app app run --port 5001) and open http://localhost:5001.
pythonvspython3: In an activated venv,pythonworks on all OSes. Outside a venv, usepython3on macOS/Linux.
github-copilot-workshop/
├── README.md # This file
├── AGENDA.md # Minute-by-minute run-of-show
├── CHANGELOG-enrichment.md # What changed in the 2026 enrichment (and why)
├── app.py # Sample Flask app (practice target)
├── requirements.txt
├── templates/ static/ # App views + styles
├── bugs/ # Bug-injection scripts for the debugging labs
├── prompts/ # Reusable instructions, prompt files, custom agents, skills
├── scripts/ralph.sh # Autonomous loop runner (Appendix B)
├── images/ # Banners + screenshots (incl. app-screenshots/)
├── workshop/
│ ├── 00-prerequisites.md … 06-governance-metrics.md # Core curriculum
│ ├── appendices/ # A–E optional deep-dives
│ └── _archive/ # Superseded original modules (kept for reference)
└── facilitator/
├── validation-notes.md # Instructor/maintainer validation notes
├── facilitator-guide.md # Timing, talk tracks, failure recovery
├── demo-script.md # Gated-demo click-paths + recording fallback
└── answer-keys/ # Reference app.py + verified pytest suite
- Python 3.10+, Flask, Jinja2, HTML/CSS (the sample app)
- GitHub Copilot: CLI, VS Code (completions, chat, Ask/Plan/Agent), code review, MCP, custom agents & skills
- Node.js 22+ (Copilot CLI), pytest / pytest-cov (testing labs)
- Original workshop (v1): Michael Liav (@notoriousmic) - created the original GitHub Copilot workshop this project builds on.
- Enrichment & current maintainer (v2): @msftnadavbh - 2026 enrichment pass (dual-platform GitHub/Azure DevOps, ungated core, fact-verification against official docs, facilitator kit, and answer keys). See
CHANGELOG-enrichment.md.
MIT - see LICENSE.