stack/docs/providers/github-copilot.md

summary, read_when, title

summary	read_when	title
Sign in to GitHub Copilot from OpenClaw using the device flow or non-interactive token import	You want to use GitHub Copilot as a model provider You need the `openclaw models auth login-github-copilot` flow You are choosing between the built-in Copilot provider, Copilot SDK harness, and Copilot Proxy	GitHub Copilot

GitHub Copilot is GitHub's AI coding assistant. It provides access to Copilot models for your GitHub account and plan. OpenClaw can use Copilot as a model provider or agent runtime in three different ways.

Three ways to use Copilot in OpenClaw

Use the native device-login flow to obtain a GitHub token. By default, OpenClaw puts the token in its protected local secret store and saves only a `tokenRef` in the auth profile. When OpenClaw runs, it validates Copilot access and resolves the account-specific Copilot API endpoint. This is the **default** and simplest path because it does not require VS Code.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Run the login command">
    ```bash
    openclaw models auth login-github-copilot
    ```

    You will be prompted to visit a URL and enter a one-time code. Keep the
    terminal open until it completes.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Set a default model">
    ```bash
    openclaw models set github-copilot/claude-sonnet-5
    ```

    Or in config:

    ```json5
    {
      agents: {
        defaults: { model: { primary: "github-copilot/claude-sonnet-5" } },
      },
    }
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

Install the external `@openclaw/copilot` plugin when you want GitHub's Copilot CLI and SDK to own the low-level agent loop for selected `github-copilot/*` models.

```bash
openclaw plugins install @openclaw/copilot
```

Then opt a model or provider into the runtime:

```json5
{
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: "github-copilot/gpt-5.6-sol",
      models: {
        "github-copilot/gpt-5.6-sol": {
          agentRuntime: { id: "copilot" },
        },
      },
    },
  },
}
```

Choose this when you want native Copilot CLI sessions, SDK-managed thread
state, and Copilot-owned compaction for those agent turns. Without the
explicit `agentRuntime` opt-in, `github-copilot/*` models keep using the
built-in provider. See [Copilot SDK harness](/plugins/copilot) for the full
runtime contract.

Use the **Copilot Proxy** VS Code extension as a local bridge. OpenClaw talks to the proxy's `/v1` endpoint (default `http://localhost:3000/v1`) and uses the model list you configure.

The `copilot-proxy` plugin ships with OpenClaw and is enabled by default.
Configure the base URL and model ids with:

```bash
openclaw models auth login --provider copilot-proxy --set-default
```

<Note>
Choose this when you already run Copilot Proxy in VS Code or need to route
through it. The VS Code extension must stay running.
</Note>

GitHub Enterprise (data residency)

If your organization uses a data-residency GitHub Enterprise tenant (a *.ghe.com host such as your-org.ghe.com), Copilot lives on tenant-local endpoints rather than public github.com. OpenClaw exposes this as a first-class auth choice so you do not have to hand-edit URLs.

In onboarding or `openclaw models auth`, choose **GitHub Copilot (Enterprise / data residency)**. You will be prompted for your Enterprise domain (for example `your-org.ghe.com`), then the device login runs against that tenant.

Enter the tenant root only (`your-org.ghe.com`). Derived service hosts such
as `api.your-org.ghe.com` or `copilot-api.your-org.ghe.com` are not accepted;
OpenClaw derives those endpoints from the tenant root automatically.

```bash
openclaw models auth login --provider github-copilot --method device-enterprise
```

The chosen host is stored under the provider params so later account validation and completions target the tenant automatically:

```json5
{
  models: {
    providers: {
      "github-copilot": { params: { githubDomain: "your-org.ghe.com" } },
    },
  },
}
```

The device flow and account validation use the tenant's GitHub endpoints, and Copilot requests use https://copilot-api.your-org.ghe.com. This keeps both authentication and inference on the configured data-residency tenant instead of the public endpoints.

Switching domains always re-runs the device login. If you already have a stored Copilot token and pick a different domain (public `github.com` ↔ a `*.ghe.com` tenant, or one tenant to another), OpenClaw will not reuse the existing token — it forces a fresh login so the token is scoped to the domain being written to config. Re-running login for the *same* domain still offers to reuse the current token. Switching back to public `github.com` clears the persisted `githubDomain` so config returns to the default. The `COPILOT_GITHUB_DOMAIN` environment variable overrides the resolved domain for every Copilot path that resolves it — the Enterprise device login (`--method device-enterprise`), the standalone `openclaw models auth login-github-copilot` shortcut, account validation, embeddings, and completions. Set it to your `*.ghe.com` host for fully headless or CI setups. Leave it unset (and the config param absent) to use public `github.com`. Logins persist the domain they minted the token for (and clear it when logging in against public `github.com`), so routing stays correct even after the environment variable is unset.

Tenant request identity

OpenClaw uses the copilot-developer-cli request identity by default, including for data-residency tenants. First confirm that your enterprise permits Copilot CLI and the selected model. A *.ghe.com hostname does not imply a different integration policy.

If your tenant administrator or GitHub support requires a different identity, use the existing provider header setting:

{
  models: {
    providers: {
      "github-copilot": {
        params: { githubDomain: "your-org.ghe.com" },
        headers: { "Copilot-Integration-Id": "vscode-chat" },
      },
    },
  },
}

The provider identity applies to model selection during setup, live model discovery, inference, and embeddings. Header names are case-insensitive; request.headers takes precedence over provider headers. Embedding-specific memory.search.remote.headers still takes precedence for embedding discovery and requests. Unrelated provider headers are not forwarded to the catalog or embedding endpoints. Changing the identity does not grant access to models or clients disabled by your organization's policy.

Optional flags

Command	Flag	Description
openclaw models auth login-github-copilot	--yes	Overwrite an existing auth profile without prompting
openclaw models auth login --provider github-copilot --method device	--set-default	Also apply the provider's recommended default model

# Skip the re-login confirmation
openclaw models auth login-github-copilot --yes

# Login and set the default model in one step
openclaw models auth login --provider github-copilot --method device --set-default

Non-interactive onboarding

The device-login flow requires an interactive TTY. For headless setup, import an existing GitHub OAuth access token with openclaw onboard --non-interactive:

openclaw onboard --non-interactive --accept-risk \
  --auth-choice github-copilot \
  --github-copilot-token "$COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN" \
  --skip-channels --skip-health

You can also omit --auth-choice; passing --github-copilot-token infers the GitHub Copilot provider auth choice. If the flag is omitted, onboarding falls back to COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN, GH_TOKEN, then GITHUB_TOKEN. Use --secret-input-mode ref with COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN set to store an env-backed tokenRef instead of plaintext in the auth profile store.

Fresh non-interactive setup validates the token before saving it. When setup must choose a default, it also checks the live Copilot model catalog. OpenClaw prefers the provider's current general-purpose model when that model is enabled for the account; otherwise it chooses a deterministic eligible fallback. Setup fails without writing a new auth profile if the account has no picker-visible model that supports streaming and tool calls. An explicitly configured default model is never replaced.

The device-login flow requires an interactive TTY. Run it directly in a terminal, not in a non-interactive script or CI pipeline. Copilot model availability depends on your GitHub plan and organization policy. Interactive onboarding uses the live catalog for its model picker, while non-interactive onboarding selects an eligible model automatically. See GitHub's [supported models per Copilot plan](https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/reference/ai-models/supported-models#supported-ai-models-per-copilot-plan) for the current model list. Once the device-login (or env-var) auth path has resolved a GitHub token, OpenClaw refreshes the model catalog on demand from `${baseUrl}/models` (the same endpoint VS Code Copilot uses) so the runtime tracks per-account entitlement and accurate context windows without manifest churn. The visible live catalog excludes models hidden from GitHub's picker or disabled by account policy. Automatic setup defaults additionally require streaming and tool-call support. Newly published Copilot models become visible without an OpenClaw upgrade, and context windows reflect the real per-model limits (e.g. 400k for the gpt-5.x series, 1M for the internal `claude-opus-*-1m` variants).

Failed refreshes report the failure and retain the last successful inventory,
or bundled models before the first success. A successful empty response clears
discovered models. Disabled discovery or missing credentials makes no live
request. To use only bundled models (offline / air-gapped scenarios):

```json5
{
  plugins: {
    entries: {
      "github-copilot": {
        config: { discovery: { enabled: false } },
      },
    },
  },
}
```

Claude model IDs use the Anthropic Messages transport automatically. Gemini models use the OpenAI Chat Completions transport; GPT and o-series models keep the OpenAI Responses transport. The bundled static catalog includes these transports and request compatibility settings, so Gemini keeps using Chat Completions when live discovery is disabled or unavailable. Use `/think xhigh` or `/think max` when the selected model exposes that level. Copilot's live catalog determines the supported efforts for your account, and OpenClaw preserves those efforts in Responses requests. When a Responses model starts its native effort range at `low`, `minimal` maps to `low` instead of sending an unsupported value. Explicit live limits take precedence over the bundled catalog. Gemini's Chat Completions transport does not expose `max`. See [Thinking levels](/tools/thinking) for session and per-message controls. OpenClaw sends Copilot-compatible request headers with a Copilot CLI request identity, marks tool-result follow-up turns as agent-initiated, and sets the Copilot vision header when a turn carries image input. OpenClaw resolves Copilot auth from environment variables in the following priority order:

| Priority | Variable              | Notes                            |
| -------- | --------------------- | -------------------------------- |
| 1        | `COPILOT_GITHUB_TOKEN` | Highest priority, Copilot-specific |
| 2        | `GH_TOKEN`            | GitHub CLI token (fallback)      |
| 3        | `GITHUB_TOKEN`        | Standard GitHub token (lowest)   |

When multiple variables are set, OpenClaw uses the highest-priority one.
The device-login flow (`openclaw models auth login-github-copilot`) stores a
protected-store `tokenRef` in the auth profile and takes precedence over all
environment variables.

By default, device login stores the GitHub token in OpenClaw's protected local secret store and writes only a `tokenRef` to the auth profile (profile id `github-copilot:github`). The built-in store does not require a configured external secret provider. If OpenClaw cannot write the store, login stops before replacing the auth profile and reports that the state-directory or database permissions need repair.

Interactive onboarding honors an explicit `--secret-input-mode plaintext`
choice for compatibility. That mode stores the token inline, reports the
choice, and remains visible to `openclaw secrets audit --check`.

The protected store is write-only through OpenClaw's user-facing secret APIs,
but it is not encrypted at rest; its SQLite file relies on state-directory
permissions. At runtime, OpenClaw resolves the reference, validates Copilot
access, resolves the account-specific API endpoint, and uses the GitHub token
for Copilot requests. You do not need to manage runtime authentication
manually.

Usage checks also use the selected profile's GitHub token. For OAuth profiles
that carry a tenant domain, usage follows that domain before the provider's
configured domain. `COPILOT_GITHUB_DOMAIN` still takes precedence.

Memory search embeddings

GitHub Copilot can also serve as an embedding provider for memory search. If you have a Copilot subscription and have logged in, OpenClaw can use it for embeddings without a separate API key.

Config

Set memory.search.provider explicitly to use GitHub Copilot embeddings. If a GitHub token is available, OpenClaw discovers available embedding models from the Copilot API and picks the best one automatically.

{
  memory: {
    search: {
      provider: "github-copilot",
      // Optional: override the auto-discovered model
      model: "text-embedding-3-small",
    },
  },
}

How it works

1. OpenClaw resolves your GitHub token (from env vars or auth profile).
2. Validates Copilot access and resolves the account-specific API endpoint.
3. Queries the Copilot /models endpoint to discover available embedding models, with a 10-second deadline that includes reading the response body.
4. Picks the best model (preference order: text-embedding-3-small, text-embedding-3-large, text-embedding-ada-002).
5. Sends embedding requests to the Copilot /embeddings endpoint.

Model availability depends on your GitHub plan. If discovery fails or no embedding models are available, OpenClaw uses memory.search.fallback only when you explicitly configure another provider. Otherwise, setup reports the error instead of silently selecting a different provider.

Related

Choosing providers, model refs, and failover behavior. Auth details and credential reuse rules.