Copilot: Excluding Files/Directories

Understanding Content Exclusion

When you exclude content from Copilot:

• Code completion will not be available in excluded files
• Excluded content won't inform suggestions in other files
• Excluded files won't influence Copilot Chat responses
• Excluded files won't be included in Copilot code reviews

Common reasons to exclude content:

• Security: Prevent access to files with secrets, API keys, or personal information (e.g., .env files)
• Performance: Exclude large dependency folders (like node_modules/) and build outputs
• Relevance: Focus context on your actual source code for better suggestions
• Compliance: Ensure sensitive or proprietary code isn't included in AI context

Using .gitignore for Basic Exclusions

GitHub Copilot automatically respects your project's .gitignore file, making it the simplest way to exclude common patterns:

# Standard exclusions for Copilot
# Dependencies
node_modules/
vendor/
bower_components/

# Build outputs
build/
dist/
out/
target/

# Environment and secrets
.env
.env.*
!.env.example
credentials.json
secrets/
*.pem
*.key

# Logs and temporary files
*.log
logs/
tmp/
temp/

# IDE and OS files
.vscode/
.idea/
*.swp
.DS_Store
Thumbs.db

IDE-Specific Exclusions

Different IDEs offer various ways to control Copilot's context:

VS Code

// settings.json
{
  "github.copilot.enable": {
    "*": true,                // Enable for all languages
    "plaintext": false,      // Disable for plain text
    "markdown": false        // Disable for markdown
  },
  // Optional: Hide files from explorer (may affect context)
  "files.exclude": {
    "**/node_modules": true,
    "**/dist": true
  }
}

JetBrains IDEs

• Use Project Structure settings to mark directories as "Excluded"
• Configure Copilot plugin settings for language-specific exclusions

Visual Studio

• Use Solution Explorer filters to exclude content
• Configure Copilot extension settings per language/project