Copilot Hyperlink

Copilot Hyperlink lets you open GitHub Copilot Chat with a pre-filled message and local file attachments from anywhere — a browser tab, a web app, a shell script, a CI pipeline, or a clickable link in any document. No server, no background process, no configuration required.

Construct a vscode:// URL with your message and file paths, open it, and VS Code instantly pops open Copilot Chat with the context loaded and ready to submit.

Features

• One-click deep links — trigger a pre-filled Copilot Chat session from any URL-capable surface
• File attachments — attach one or more local files directly from the URL
• Folder expansion — point at a folder and every file inside it is attached automatically
• Payload file mode — link to a local JSON file that carries the full message, mode, and attachments; ideal for automation tools and scripts that generate output
• Chat mode control — open in Ask, Agent, or Edit mode
• No server, no ports — purely driven by VS Code's vscode:// URI protocol

Installation

Install from the VS Code Marketplace or search Copilot Hyperlink in the Extensions panel.

Requires GitHub Copilot to be installed and signed in.

Quick Start

Paste this into your browser address bar (update the path to a real file on your machine):

vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat?message=Review+this+file&path=C%3A%5CUsers%5Cme%5Cnotes.md&mode=ask

VS Code will open, the Copilot Chat panel will appear, and your message + file will be pre-filled.

URL Reference

All links follow this structure:

vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat?<params>

Parameters

Folder paths: if path points to a folder, every direct (non-recursive) file inside it is attached.

Inline mode — single file

vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat
  ?message=Why%20is%20this%20test%20failing%3F
  &path=C%3A%5CProjects%5Cmyapp%5Csrc%5Cutils.ts
  &mode=ask

Inline mode — multiple files

Repeat path for each file:

vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat
  ?message=Review%20these%20two%20files
  &path=C%3A%5CProjects%5Cmyapp%5Csrc%5Cfoo.ts
  &path=C%3A%5CProjects%5Cmyapp%5Csrc%5Cbar.ts
  &mode=agent

Inline mode — entire folder

vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat
  ?message=Summarise%20everything%20in%20this%20folder
  &path=C%3A%5CProjects%5Cmyapp%5Clogs
  &mode=ask

All files directly inside C:\Projects\myapp\logs are attached.

PowerShell helper

Constructing the URL in PowerShell is straightforward:

$message = [Uri]::EscapeDataString("Review these files and suggest improvements")
$path1   = [Uri]::EscapeDataString("C:\Projects\myapp\src\main.ts")
$path2   = [Uri]::EscapeDataString("C:\Projects\myapp\src\utils.ts")

Start-Process "vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat?message=$message&path=$path1&path=$path2&mode=ask"

JavaScript / web app helper

const message = encodeURIComponent("Review the attached annotations");
const path    = encodeURIComponent("C:\\Users\\me\\reports\\annotations.yaml");

window.open(`vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat?message=${message}&path=${path}&mode=ask`);

Payload file mode

For richer automation (e.g. a tool that generates a report and wants to send it to Copilot), create a JSON file anywhere on disk:

{
  "message": "Please review the attached annotation report and apply the feedback.",
  "mode": "ask",
  "attachments": [
    "C:\\Users\\me\\reports\\annotations.yaml",
    "C:\\Users\\me\\reports\\screenshots"
  ]
}

Then open it with:

vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat?payloadFile=C%3A%5CUsers%5Cme%5Creports%5Cpayload.json

Notes:

• mode and attachments are optional in the JSON.
• Attachment paths may be absolute or relative to the JSON file's directory.
• A folder in attachments expands to all direct files inside it.

Payload file — PowerShell example

# Write the payload
$payload = @{
    message     = "Here is the generated report. Please action the feedback."
    mode        = "ask"
    attachments = @(".\report.yaml", ".\screenshots")
} | ConvertTo-Json
$payload | Set-Content "C:\Temp\payload.json"

# Open it in Copilot Chat
$encoded = [Uri]::EscapeDataString("C:\Temp\payload.json")
Start-Process "vscode://BearNecessities.copilot-hyperlink/chat?payloadFile=$encoded"

Commands

Access these from the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P):

The Copilot Hyperlink output channel (View → Output) logs the inbox path and both URL formats every time the extension activates.

Requirements

• VS Code 1.90 or later
• GitHub Copilot installed and signed in

Extension Settings

This extension has no configurable settings.

Release Notes

See CHANGELOG.md.

License

MIT — © 2026 Bear Necessities