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Add Copilot instructions and automated environment setup for repository#1456

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nilehmann merged 7 commits intomainfrom
copilot/setup-copilot-instructions
Jan 27, 2026
Merged

Add Copilot instructions and automated environment setup for repository#1456
nilehmann merged 7 commits intomainfrom
copilot/setup-copilot-instructions

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Copilot AI commented Jan 27, 2026

Configures repository-wide custom instructions for GitHub Copilot coding agents per the documented best practices, including automated dependency installation.

Changes

  • .github/copilot-instructions.md: Comprehensive guidance covering:

    • Non-standard build system (cargo xtask required, not direct cargo commands)
    • Sysroot architecture (<repo>/sysroot/ for dev, ~/.flux for installed)
    • Project structure (15 workspace crates + 4 library packages)
    • Common failure modes and workarounds
    • CI pipeline validation steps
    • Note about automatic dependency installation in Copilot agent environment
  • .github/workflows/copilot-setup-steps.yml: Automated environment setup workflow:

    • Pre-installs fixpoint via .github/actions/install-fixpoint
    • Pre-installs Z3 4.12.1 via cda-tum/setup-z3@v1.6.6
    • Runs automatically before Copilot coding agent starts working
    • Eliminates need for agents to discover and install dependencies via trial and error

Key Context Provided

Critical for agents unfamiliar with Flux:

  • Build: Must use cargo xtask install (not cargo build)
  • Test: Must use cargo xtask test (not cargo test)
  • Sysroot: Libraries require pre-compilation; use cargo xtask build-sysroot after lib changes
  • Dependencies: Automatically installed in Copilot agent environment; Z3 version matters (4.12.1 for standard tests, 4.15.3 for vtock/lean-demo)

Reduces exploration overhead by documenting tested workflows, architectural constraints, and repo-specific conventions upfront, while ensuring the agent environment is pre-configured with all required dependencies.

Original prompt

This section details on the original issue you should resolve

<issue_title>✨ Set up Copilot instructions</issue_title>
<issue_description>Configure instructions for this repository as documented in Best practices for Copilot coding agent in your repository.

</issue_description>

Comments on the Issue (you are @copilot in this section)


✨ Let Copilot coding agent set things up for you — coding agent works faster and does higher quality work when set up for your repo.

Copilot AI and others added 2 commits January 27, 2026 15:03
Co-authored-by: nilehmann <2400776+nilehmann@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: nilehmann <2400776+nilehmann@users.noreply.github.com>
Copilot AI changed the title [WIP] Set up Copilot instructions for the repository Add Copilot instructions for repository Jan 27, 2026
Copilot AI requested a review from nilehmann January 27, 2026 15:06
@nilehmann
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@copilot, add a copilot-setup-steps.yml following instructions here https://docs.github.com/en/enterprise-cloud@latest/copilot/how-tos/use-copilot-agents/coding-agent/customize-the-agent-environment#preinstalling-tools-or-dependencies-in-copilots-environment. The workflow should install fixpoint and z3. Then remove instructions about dependencies from copilot-instructions.md because they will be installed.

Copilot AI and others added 3 commits January 27, 2026 16:03
Co-authored-by: nilehmann <2400776+nilehmann@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: nilehmann <2400776+nilehmann@users.noreply.github.com>
Co-authored-by: nilehmann <2400776+nilehmann@users.noreply.github.com>
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Copilot AI commented Jan 27, 2026

@copilot, add a copilot-setup-steps.yml following instructions here https://docs.github.com/en/enterprise-cloud@latest/copilot/how-tos/use-copilot-agents/coding-agent/customize-the-agent-environment...

Done! Added .github/workflows/copilot-setup-steps.yml that installs fixpoint and Z3 4.12.1, and updated copilot-instructions.md to remove manual dependency installation instructions. Changes committed in 487eb14.

Copilot AI changed the title Add Copilot instructions for repository Add Copilot instructions and automated environment setup for repository Jan 27, 2026
@nilehmann nilehmann marked this pull request as ready for review January 27, 2026 16:28
@nilehmann nilehmann merged commit b5977a5 into main Jan 27, 2026
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@nilehmann nilehmann deleted the copilot/setup-copilot-instructions branch January 27, 2026 16:28
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✨ Set up Copilot instructions

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