A full walkthrough of every file and directory created by copilot-kit init.
After running npx @ntdev204/copilot-kit init, the following directory structure is created in your project root:
.github/Root of all copilot-kit configuration
.github/copilot-instructions.mdAGF v3.2 core governance brain — the main instructions file Copilot reads
.github/skills/Domain skill files. Each skill is a SKILL.md loaded on-demand
.github/skills/clean-code/SKILL.mdExample: Clean code standards (SRP, DRY, KISS, YAGNI)
.github/skills/frontend-design/SKILL.mdExample: Frontend design principles for web UI
.github/rules/Governance rule files loaded by the Rule Engine
.github/rules/01-identity.mdAgent identity and persona rules
.github/rules/11-conflict-resolution.mdConflict resolution between rules, user requests, and agents
.github/prompts/Reusable prompt templates (.prompt.md files)
.github/agent/Agent mode definitions (brainstorm, debug, create, etc.)
.github/scripts/Validation & automation scripts (security scans, lint, tests)
.github/ARCHITECTURE.mdSystem architecture overview — read by agents on first multi-file action
.github/CODEBASE.mdCodebase conventions map — how the project is structured
GitHub Copilot in VS Code automatically reads .github/copilot-instructions.md on every request. This file contains the full AGF v3.2 framework. Skills in .github/skills/ are loaded lazily — only when the request keywords match their domain. This keeps every response fast while enabling deep expertise.
Request mentions frontend/React/Next.js
→ Loads: frontend-design, vercel-react-best-practices, tailwind-patterns
Request mentions security/auth/secrets
→ Loads: security-auditor, vulnerability-scanner
Request mentions database/schema/ORM
→ Loads: database-design, api-patterns
Request mentions debug/investigate/trace
→ Loads: systematic-debugging, clean-code
Customizing the structure
.github/ to customize behavior for your team. Add your own rules to .github/rules/ or update CODEBASE.md with your project conventions. Re-running init will overwrite everything, so keep custom files in a separate location.