Microsoft has launched a public preview of the GitHub Copilot for Azure extension for Visual Studio 2022. The extension integrates a set of Azure developer tools, exposed through the Azure MCP server, directly into GitHub Copilot Agent Mode. This extension automates the installation and management of the Azure MCP server.
It’s key to reiterate that this is a preview version, so if you decide to use it, things might break. To install it, you must be running Visual Studio 2022 17.14 or later, have a GitHub Copilot subscription, and an Azure subscription. The MCP server version included with the extension may also occasionally be a few versions behind the latest release.
With this extension, Microsoft is aiming to streamline workflows and increase developer productivity by enabling tasks like querying resources, diagnosing issues, and deploying applications directly within the Copilot Chat. Further, by bringing Azure tools to Agent Mode in GitHub Copilot, the AI can autonomously pick the appropriate tools for a given task.
One of the main benefits of using the extension is that it gives you a zero-setup Azure MCP server, which automatically downloads and starts when Copilot Chat is opened. It allows developers to use Copilot in Agent Mode with Azure tools to perform typical tasks like listing resources, pulling app logs, and running Azure CLI commands.
The tool suite also gives you interactions with App Configuration, Container Registry, Cosmos DB, Key Vault, and more. For the best results, Microsoft recommends that developers include resource details in their prompts.
If you meet the requirements as mentioned earlier, you can install the extension. The setup process involves installing the extension, opening Copilot Chat, and enabling the Azure Extension in Agent Mode. Some prompts that you could try running include “Do I have any webapps in my current subscription?” or “Look for a WebApp named . Does it have any recent downtime?”
Microsoft has plans to continuously expand the Azure toolset and deepen the integration with Visual Studio. As usual, Microsoft is asking for user feedback to shape the future of the product and determine which Azure scenarios to automate next.