Skill: sync-to-copilot

Sync Claude Code knowledge to GitHub Copilot instructions. Two-tier output: project-specific + common protocol.

Quick Summary

Purpose: Keep Copilot instructions in sync with Claude Code workflows, dev rules, and project-reference docs.

Architecture (Two-Tier):

.github/copilot-instructions.md — Project-specific (always loaded by Copilot)
- TL;DR golden rules, decision table
- Project-reference docs index with READ prompts
- Key file locations, dev commands
.github/instructions/common-protocol.instructions.md — Generic protocols (applyTo: **/*)
- Prompt protocol, before-editing rules
- Workflow catalog (from workflows.json)
- Workflow execution protocol
- Development rules (from development-rules.md)
.github/instructions/{group}.instructions.md — Per-group (applyTo: file patterns)
- Enhanced summaries per doc with READ prompts
- Groups: backend, frontend, styling, testing, project

What gets synced:

Workflow catalog (from workflows.json) — SCRIPT-GENERATED
Dev rules (from development-rules.md) — SCRIPT-GENERATED
Project-reference summaries (from copilot-registry.json) — SCRIPT-GENERATED
Enriched section headings and key patterns — AI-GENERATED (this skill)

Usage:

/sync-to-copilot

Script: .claude/scripts/sync-copilot-workflows.cjs

Be skeptical. Apply critical thinking, sequential thinking. Every claim needs traced proof, confidence percentages (Idea should be more than 80%).

When to Use This Skill

Trigger this skill when:

Workflows added/modified — After editing .claude/workflows.json
Development rules changed — After editing .claude/workflows/development-rules.md
Project-reference docs updated — After modifying files in docs/project-reference/
Registry entries changed — After editing docs/copilot-registry.json
Regular maintenance — Quarterly sync to ensure Copilot parity
Copilot setup — First-time Copilot instructions creation

Workflow

Phase 1: Script Generation (Automated)

node .claude/scripts/sync-copilot-workflows.cjs

This generates:

.github/copilot-instructions.md — project-specific with registry summaries
.github/instructions/common-protocol.instructions.md — generic protocols
.github/instructions/{group}.instructions.md — per-group instruction files
Removes old .github/common.copilot-instructions.md if it exists

Phase 2: AI Enrichment (This Skill)

After the script runs, the AI MUST enrich the generated instruction files:

For each per-group instruction file in .github/instructions/:
- Read the corresponding docs/project-reference/*.md source file
- Extract the ## section headings from the source file
- Add a "Key Sections" list under each doc entry showing the headings
- Keep it concise — headings only, no content duplication
For .github/copilot-instructions.md:
- Verify the TL;DR golden rules in docs/copilot-registry.json → projectInstructions.goldenRules still match CLAUDE.md
- Check if any new project-reference files exist but are missing from docs/copilot-registry.json
- If missing entries found, add them to the registry and re-run the script
For docs/copilot-registry.json:
- Verify each summary field accurately describes the current file content
- Update stale summaries based on actual file content
- Add entries for any new docs/project-reference/*.md files

Phase 3: Verification

Check that:

.github/copilot-instructions.md contains project-specific content
.github/instructions/common-protocol.instructions.md contains protocols + workflow catalog
Per-group instruction files contain READ prompts
No old common.copilot-instructions.md file remains
Workflow count matches workflows.json
All project-reference files are represented in the registry

AI Enrichment Protocol

When enriching per-group instruction files, follow this pattern for each doc entry:

## [Doc Title](relative/path)

**Summary:** One-line summary from registry.

**Key Sections:**

- Section 1 Name
- Section 2 Name
- Section 3 Name
- ...

> **READ** `docs/project-reference/filename.md` when: trigger description

Rules:

Extract ONLY ## level headings from the source file (not ### or deeper)
Do NOT copy content — just list heading names
Keep the READ prompt from the registry whenToRead field
If a file is very large (>30KB), note the file size: (~59KB - read relevant sections)

Output Files

File	Type	Content
`.github/copilot-instructions.md`	Project-specific	TL;DR + project-reference index + READ prompts
`.github/instructions/common-protocol.instructions.md`	Generic (applyTo: `*/`)	Prompt protocol + workflow catalog + dev rules
`.github/instructions/backend-csharp.instructions.md`	Backend (applyTo: `*/.cs`)	Backend doc summaries + READ prompts
`.github/instructions/frontend-angular.instructions.md`	Frontend (applyTo: `*/.ts,*/.html`)	Frontend doc summaries + READ prompts
`.github/instructions/styling-scss.instructions.md`	Styling (applyTo: `*/.scss,*/.css`)	Styling doc summaries + READ prompts
`.github/instructions/testing.instructions.md`	Testing (applyTo: `*/Test/*,...`)	Testing doc summaries + READ prompts
`.github/instructions/project-reference.instructions.md`	Cross-cutting (applyTo: `*/`)	General project doc summaries + READ prompts

Copilot Limitations

Copilot can't enforce protocols like Claude Code hooks:

No blocking operations (edit-enforcement, search-before-code)
Relies on LLM instruction-following (not guaranteed)
Protocols are advisory, not enforced
No runtime context injection — all context must be in instruction files

Benefits:

Consistent guidance across AI tools
Same workflow detection for Claude and Copilot users
READ prompts enable on-demand context loading
Automated sync reduces configuration drift

Troubleshooting

Issue: "workflows.json not found"

Solution: Ensure you're running from project root

Issue: Missing project-reference files in registry

Solution: Add entries to docs/copilot-registry.json, then re-run script

Issue: Stale summaries

Solution: Run this skill — AI will read files and update summaries

Related Skills

/ai-dev-tools-sync — Broader Claude/Copilot sync (skills, prompts, agents)
/sync-copilot-workflows — Workflow-only sync (subset of this skill)

References

Script: .claude/scripts/sync-copilot-workflows.cjs
Registry: docs/copilot-registry.json
Sources: .claude/workflows.json, .claude/workflows/development-rules.md
Main output: .github/copilot-instructions.md
Instruction files: .github/instructions/*.instructions.md