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@PeterDaveHello PeterDaveHello commented Sep 12, 2025

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Copilot coding agent now supports AGENTS.md custom instructions, as more coding agents support it. Migrating from GitHub Copilot's custom instructions file to AGENTS.md will help developers leverage more and different coding agents than just GitHub Copilot.

Reference:


PR Type

Documentation


Description

  • Migrate GitHub Copilot instructions to AGENTS.md format

  • Remove existing copilot-instructions.md file completely

  • Create AGENTS.md file referencing original instructions

  • Support multiple coding agents beyond GitHub Copilot


Diagram Walkthrough

flowchart LR
  A[".github/copilot-instructions.md"] -- "migrate to" --> B["AGENTS.md"]
  A -- "delete" --> C["removed"]
  B -- "references" --> A
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File Walkthrough

Relevant files
Documentation
copilot-instructions.md
Remove GitHub Copilot instructions file                                   

.github/copilot-instructions.md

  • Complete removal of GitHub Copilot specific instructions file
  • All 244 lines of documentation deleted
  • Includes build instructions, architecture overview, testing guidelines
  • Contains development workflow and troubleshooting information
+0/-244 
AGENTS.md
Create AGENTS.md with instructions reference                         

AGENTS.md

  • Create new AGENTS.md file with reference to original instructions
  • Single line pointing to .github/copilot-instructions.md
  • Follows AGENTS.md standard for multiple coding agents
+0/-1     

Summary by CodeRabbit

  • Documentation
    • Added AGENTS.md with comprehensive developer documentation covering build workflows, architecture overview, testing/validation steps, platform specifics, troubleshooting, and security/privacy guidance.
    • Clarified cross-browser compatibility, localization strategy, and AI model provider support.
    • Consolidated guidance for manual testing and release validation.
    • Removed outdated Copilot instructions document to reduce redundancy.
    • No changes to user-facing behavior or public APIs.

Copilot coding agent now supports AGENTS.md custom instructions, as more
coding agents support it. Migrating from GitHub Copilot's custom
instructions file to AGENTS.md will help developers leverage more and
different coding agents than just GitHub Copilot.

Reference:
- https://agents.md/
- https://github.blog/changelog/2025-08-28-copilot-coding-agent-now-supports-agents-md-custom-instructions/
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coderabbitai bot commented Sep 12, 2025

Walkthrough

Removes .github/copilot-instructions.md and adds a new AGENTS.md at the repo root with comprehensive developer documentation for the ChatGPTBox Browser Extension. No source code or public API changes.

Changes

Cohort / File(s) Summary of modifications
Documentation added
AGENTS.md
Added developer-facing documentation covering build workflows, architecture, manifests, testing/validation, debugging, development workflow, directory structure, platform notes, security/privacy, localization, AI provider support, and troubleshooting.
Documentation removed
.github/copilot-instructions.md
Removed prior AI-generated Copilot instructions document previously under .github/.

Estimated code review effort

🎯 2 (Simple) | ⏱️ ~8 minutes

Possibly related PRs

Suggested labels

Review effort 2/5

Pre-merge checks (3 passed)

✅ Passed checks (3 passed)
Check name Status Explanation
Description Check ✅ Passed Check skipped - CodeRabbit’s high-level summary is enabled.
Title Check ✅ Passed The title "Migrate GitHub Copilot instructions to AGENTS.md" is a concise, single-sentence summary that accurately describes the primary change: moving Copilot's custom instructions into AGENTS.md. It matches the diff (removal of .github/copilot-instructions.md and addition of AGENTS.md) and aligns with the PR objectives to enable broader agent support. The phrasing is specific and free of noise, making it easy for teammates to understand the main intent at a glance.
Docstring Coverage ✅ Passed No functions found in the changes. Docstring coverage check skipped.

Poem

I thump my paws—new scrolls appear,
Old notes hop off without a tear.
AGENTS.md now lights the way,
Build, test, ship—all in a day.
In docs we burrow, clear and bright,
Carrots for clarity—ship it right! 🥕✨

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📜 Recent review details

Configuration used: CodeRabbit UI

Review profile: CHILL

Plan: Pro

📥 Commits

Reviewing files that changed from the base of the PR and between 3768a06 and 5cc85d2.

📒 Files selected for processing (3)
  • .github/copilot-instructions.md (0 hunks)
  • AGENTS.md (0 hunks)
  • AGENTS.md (1 hunks)
💤 Files with no reviewable changes (1)
  • .github/copilot-instructions.md
✨ Finishing touches
🧪 Generate unit tests
  • Create PR with unit tests
  • Post copyable unit tests in a comment
  • Commit unit tests in branch AGENTS.md

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Pull Request Overview

This PR migrates GitHub Copilot-specific instructions to the standardized AGENTS.md format, enabling support for multiple AI coding agents beyond just GitHub Copilot. The change adopts the emerging AGENTS.md convention that allows various coding assistants to leverage the same custom instructions.

  • Moves all content from .github/copilot-instructions.md to AGENTS.md
  • Removes the GitHub Copilot-specific instruction file
  • Maintains identical content and formatting for seamless transition

Reviewed Changes

Copilot reviewed 2 out of 3 changed files in this pull request and generated no comments.

File Description
AGENTS.md Creates new standardized AI agent instructions file with complete project documentation
.github/copilot-instructions.md Removes GitHub Copilot-specific instructions file

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PR Reviewer Guide 🔍

Here are some key observations to aid the review process:

⏱️ Estimated effort to review: 1 🔵⚪⚪⚪⚪
🧪 No relevant tests
🔒 No security concerns identified
⚡ Recommended focus areas for review

Possible Issue
PR description says to create/migrate to AGENTS.md, but this file is deleted in the diff. Verify this wasn't an accidental removal and ensure AGENTS.md is added with the migrated content.

Content Migration
The legacy Copilot instructions are removed; confirm their content has been migrated into AGENTS.md before deletion to avoid loss of guidance.

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PR Code Suggestions ✨

Explore these optional code suggestions:

CategorySuggestion                                                                                                                                    Impact
High-level
Keep backward-compatible stub file

Instead of deleting .github/copilot-instructions.md, it should be replaced with
a minimal stub file containing a deprecation notice and a link to the new
AGENTS.md file to ensure backward compatibility.

Examples:

.github/copilot-instructions.md [1-244]

Solution Walkthrough:

Before:

# File system changes in the PR

- .github/copilot-instructions.md (deleted)
  - Contains all project instructions...

+ AGENTS.md (created)
  - Contains all project instructions...

After:

# File system changes after applying the suggestion

~ .github/copilot-instructions.md (content replaced)
  # Deprecated
  These instructions have been moved to the root `AGENTS.md` file.
  Please refer to that file for the latest information.
  This file will be removed in a future version.

+ AGENTS.md (created, as in PR)
  - Contains all project instructions...
Suggestion importance[1-10]: 8

__

Why: The suggestion correctly identifies a significant backward compatibility risk in deleting .github/copilot-instructions.md and provides a robust, low-effort solution that ensures a smoother migration.

Medium
  • More

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Summary of Changes

Hello @PeterDaveHello, I'm Gemini Code Assist1! I'm currently reviewing this pull request and will post my feedback shortly. In the meantime, here's a summary to help you and other reviewers quickly get up to speed!

This pull request standardizes the management of custom instructions for AI coding agents. It transitions the project's existing GitHub Copilot instructions to the new "AGENTS.md" format, enabling compatibility with a wider array of coding agents. This change streamlines documentation and prepares the project for a multi-agent development environment.

Highlights

  • Migration to AGENTS.md: The existing GitHub Copilot custom instructions have been moved from ".github/copilot-instructions.md" to a new "AGENTS.md" file.
  • Enhanced Agent Compatibility: This migration allows for broader support and leverage of multiple coding agents, not just GitHub Copilot, by adopting the "AGENTS.md" standard.
  • File Removal: The original ".github/copilot-instructions.md" file, containing comprehensive development documentation, has been completely removed.
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Code Review

This pull request migrates the GitHub Copilot instructions from .github/copilot-instructions.md to the standardized AGENTS.md file in the root directory. This is a good change that improves compatibility with various AI coding agents. The content of the instructions has been preserved, but I've found a small issue in a PowerShell command within the documentation that I've suggested a fix for.

@PeterDaveHello PeterDaveHello merged commit 1eb1dc3 into master Sep 12, 2025
1 check passed
@PeterDaveHello PeterDaveHello deleted the AGENTS.md branch September 12, 2025 18:13
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