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Installation & Prerequisites

Prerequisites​

Before you start, make sure you have:

  • A Bash-compatible shell — macOS and Linux work out of the box. On Windows, install Git for Windows and use Git Bash.
  • Azure CLI, GitHub CLI, jq, and git — installed and authenticated.
Quick check

Run /prereq-check in Copilot Chat after installation. It validates every tool and auth session for you and shows platform-specific install commands for anything missing.

Which installation method should I use?​

MethodBest forRequirements
VS Code MarketplaceOne-click install for VS Code usersVS Code + Copilot
VS Code marketplaces settingAdvanced workflows, multi-plugin marketplacesVS Code + Copilot + chat.plugins.enabled
Copilot CLI pluginTerminal-first workflows or CI scriptingCopilot CLI
Local dev installContributing to Git-Ape itselfGit clone of the repo
GitHub CodespacesTrying Git-Ape without any local setupGitHub account

Most users should start with the VS Code Marketplace option. If you just want to try Git-Ape without installing anything, jump to Codespaces.

Option A: VS Code Marketplace (one-click)​

The fastest way to install Git-Ape in VS Code. The published listing bundles all agents and skills as a regular VS Code extension — no chat.plugins.enabled setting required.

Install from VS Code Marketplace Install in VS Code Install in VS Code Insiders

  1. Open the Git-Ape listing on the VS Code Marketplace and click Install, or use one of the badges above to open VS Code directly.
  2. Verify the agents and skills appear in Copilot Chat — type @git-ape or /prereq-check.
Direct install URI

You can also paste vscode:extension/Git-ApeTeam.git-ape into your browser to launch VS Code and install in one step. Use vscode-insiders:extension/Git-ApeTeam.git-ape for VS Code Insiders.

Option B: VS Code marketplaces setting​

Your organization must have the chat.plugins.enabled setting set to true. If you are unsure, ask your admin or try the steps below — VS Code will tell you if plugins are disabled.

  1. Add the Git-Ape marketplace to your VS Code settings.json:

    Open Settings in VS Code Open Settings in VS Code Insiders

    "chat.plugins.marketplaces": [
        "Azure/git-ape"
    ]

  2. Open the Extensions view (⇧⌘X on macOS, Ctrl+Shift+X on Windows/Linux), search for @agentPlugins, find git-ape, and select Install.

    Alternatively, open the Command Palette (⇧⌘P / Ctrl+Shift+P), run Chat: Install Plugin From Source, and enter https://github.com/Azure/git-ape.

  3. Verify the agents and skills appear in Copilot Chat — type @git-ape or /prereq-check.

Option C: Copilot CLI plugin​

copilot plugin marketplace add Azure/git-ape
copilot plugin install git-ape@git-ape
copilot plugin list   # Should show: git-ape@git-ape

Option D: Local development install​

Use this if you are contributing to Git-Ape or want to test local changes.

git clone https://github.com/Azure/git-ape.git

Register the local checkout in your VS Code settings.json:

"chat.pluginLocations": {
    "/absolute/path/to/git-ape": true
}

Reload VS Code; the @git-ape agent and skills will appear in Copilot Chat.

Verify installation​

In Copilot Chat, type:

@git-ape hello

You should see the Git-Ape orchestrator respond. If it does not, reload the VS Code window (Cmd+Shift+P → Developer: Reload Window).

What's next?​

You have Git-Ape installed. Here is the recommended path depending on what you want to do:

  • Azure Setup — Connect Git-Ape to your Azure subscription so it can deploy resources.
  • Onboarding — Configure OIDC, RBAC, and GitHub environments for CI/CD pipelines.
  • Codespaces — Spin up a ready-to-use dev environment in your browser.