Getting started

Install

In VS Code with GitHub Copilot, run Chat: Install Plugin From Source from the Command Palette and enter:

https://github.com/aiagentkit-labs/agentic-dev-kit

VS Code clones the repo and keeps it updated: it checks every 24 hours, or when you run Extensions: Check for Extension Updates.

Recommend it to everyone in a repo

Add .github/copilot/settings.json to the repo:

{
  "extraKnownMarketplaces": {
    "agentic-dev-kit": {
      "source": { "source": "github", "repo": "aiagentkit-labs/agentic-dev-kit" }
    }
  },
  "enabledPlugins": {
    "agentic-dev-kit@agentic-dev-kit": true
  }
}

VS Code then offers to install it the first time someone sends a chat message in that repo. To pin a version instead of following main, append a tag to the repo, for example aiagentkit-labs/agentic-dev-kit#v0.5.0.

Turn on the guardrails

The guardrails run as a PreToolUse hook. Hooks are in preview in VS Code:

1. Set chat.useHooks to true.
2. Trust the workspace.

In Claude Code, register scripts/guardrails.sh as a PreToolUse hook in your settings.

Check your tools

Each skill checks its own prerequisites before it runs. You can run the same check yourself from your repo:

<plugin>/scripts/check.sh pre ado-implement
<plugin>/scripts/check.sh pre ado-implement --skip gh

It checks git, the az CLI with its azure-devops extension, gh and its sign-in for GitHub repos, node for web projects, the .NET SDK for .NET projects, and your working tree. On Windows, use check.ps1.

To install anything missing, run scripts/install.sh (macOS through Homebrew; Linux prints the commands) or scripts/install.ps1 (Windows through winget). Both show what they’ll run and ask first.

If a tool works in your terminal but the check says it won’t run, VS Code is still using the PATH it read at launch. Quit and reopen VS Code.

Sign in

The plugin contains no credentials; everyone signs in with their own account.

• Azure DevOps MCP server: VS Code prompts for a Microsoft Entra sign-in the first time a tool is used. Your Azure DevOps organization must be backed by Microsoft Entra ID.
• Fallback: if the MCP server can’t sign in, ado-implement switches to the az CLI, using az login or a personal access token you export as AZURE_DEVOPS_EXT_PAT.
• GitHub-hosted code: pull requests are opened with the gh CLI, signed in with gh auth login.

Your first run

Start with a work item and an interview mode, and let the skill drive:

/ado-implement https://dev.azure.com/<org>/<project>/_workitems/edit/<id> teach

Grill mode asks the decisions; teach mode also explains why and checks your recall. See Workflows for every step.