File-based custom instructions GA

Author: ntrogh

docs/copilot/copilot-customization.md

@@ -239,19 +239,19 @@ To create a user prompt file:
 
 ### Custom instructions settings
 
-* `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate code.
-* `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.useInstructionFiles)` _(Preview)_: Controls whether code instructions from `.github/copilot-instructions.md` are added to Copilot requests.
-* `setting(github.copilot.chat.testGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate tests.
-* `setting(github.copilot.chat.reviewSelection.instructions)` _(Preview)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests for reviewing the current editor selection.
-* `setting(github.copilot.chat.commitMessageGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate commit messages.
+* `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.useInstructionFiles)`: controls whether code instructions from `.github/copilot-instructions.md` are added to Copilot requests.
+* `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate code.
+* `setting(github.copilot.chat.testGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate tests.
+* `setting(github.copilot.chat.reviewSelection.instructions)` _(Preview)_: set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests for reviewing the current editor selection.
+* `setting(github.copilot.chat.commitMessageGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate commit messages.
 
 ### Prompt files (experimental) settings
 
 * `setting(chat.promptFiles)` _(Experimental)_: enable prompt file locations. Use the `{ "/path/to/folder": boolean }` notation to specify a specific path and whether it's enabled or not. Relative paths are resolved from the root folder(s) of your workspace.
 
     | Setting value | Description |
     |---------------|-------------|
-    | `{ "/path/to/folder": boolean }` | Enable prompt files for a specific path. Specify one or more folders where prompt files are located. Relative paths are resolved from the root folder(s) of your workspace.<br/>By default, `.github/prompts` is added but disabled. |
+    | `{ "/path/to/folder": boolean }` | enable prompt files for a specific path. Specify one or more folders where prompt files are located. Relative paths are resolved from the root folder(s) of your workspace.<br/>By default, `.github/prompts` is added but disabled. |
 
 ## Related content
 

docs/copilot/copilot-settings.md

@@ -71,8 +71,8 @@ The team is continuously working on improving Copilot in VS Code and adding new
 
 ## Customize Copilot prompts
 
+* `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.useInstructionFiles)`: Controls whether code instructions from `.github/copilot-instructions.md` are added to Copilot requests.
 * `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate code.
-* `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.useInstructionFiles)` _(Preview)_: Controls whether code instructions from `.github/copilot-instructions.md` are added to Copilot requests.
 * `setting(github.copilot.chat.testGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate tests.
 * `setting(github.copilot.chat.reviewSelection.instructions)` _(Preview)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests for reviewing the current editor selection.
 * `setting(github.copilot.chat.commitMessageGeneration.instructions)` _(Experimental)_: A set of instructions that will be added to Copilot requests that generate commit messages.

docs/copilot/copilot-vscode-features.md

@@ -144,7 +144,7 @@ With reusable prompt files, you can specify common prompt instructions and relev
 
 | Action | Description |
 |--------|-------------|
-| File-based instructions _(Preview)_ | Define shared instructions for code generation in a `.github/copilot-instructions.md` file in your workspace. These common instructions supplement your own personal code-generation instructions.  |
+| File-based instructions | Define shared instructions for code generation in a `.github/copilot-instructions.md` file in your workspace. These common instructions supplement your own personal code-generation instructions.  |
 | Code-review instructions _(Preview)_ | Define instructions for using Copilot to review an editor selection in settings or import from a file. You can define language-specific instructions. |
 | Code-generation instructions _(Experimental)_ | Define instructions for code generation with GitHub Copilot in settings or import from a file. You can define language-specific instructions. |
 | Test-generation instructions _(Experimental)_ | Define instructions for test generation with GitHub Copilot in settings or import from a file. You can define language-specific instructions. |

release-notes/v1_98.md

@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ Welcome to the February 2025 release of Visual Studio Code. There are many updat
 * [Linux custom title bar](#custom-title-bar-on-linux) - Custom title bar support for Linux enabled by default.
 * [Unresolved diagnostics (preview)](#diagnostics-commit-hook-experimental) - Prompt when committing with unresolved diagnostics.
 * [Soft-delete in source control](#discard-untracked-changes-improvements) - Move untracked files to trash instead of deleting them.
+* [Custom instructions GA](#custom-instructions-generally-available) - Use custom instructions to tailor Copilot to your needs.
 
 >If you'd like to read these release notes online, go to [Updates](https://code.visualstudio.com/updates) on [code.visualstudio.com](https://code.visualstudio.com).
 **Insiders:** Want to try new features as soon as possible? You can download the nightly [Insiders](https://code.visualstudio.com/insiders) build and try the latest updates as soon as they are available.
@@ -95,12 +96,22 @@ With the `setting(chat.renderRelatedFiles)` setting, you can enable getting sugg
 
 ![Screenshot that shows the updated Copilot Edits attachments and changed files user experience.](images/1_98/copilot_edits_ui.png)
 
-### Removed Copilot Edits limits
+#### Removed Copilot Edits limits
 
 Previously, you were limited to attach 10 files to your prompt in Copilot Edits. With this release, we removed this limit. Additionally, we've removed the client-side rate limit of 14 interactions per 10 minutes.
 
 > Note that service-side usage rate limits still apply.
 
+### Custom instructions generally available
+
+**Setting**: `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.useInstructionFiles)`
+
+Custom instructions enable you to tailor GitHub Copilot to provide chat responses and code suggestions to the way you and your team work. Describe your specific requirements Markdown format in a `.github/copilot-instructions.md` file in your workspace.
+
+This milestone, we are making custom instructions with `.github/copilot-instructions.md` generally available. Make sure that the `setting(github.copilot.chat.codeGeneration.useInstructionFiles)` VS Code setting is enabled, and Copilot will then use these instructions when generating responses.
+
+Learn more about [custom instructions in Copilot](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/copilot/copilot-customization).
+
 ### Smoother authentication flows in chat
 
 If you host your source code in a GitHub repository, you're able to leverage several features, including advanced code searching, the `@github` chat participant, and more!