Poster image for new features in Eclipse

We’ve just shipped a new set of improvements to make GitHub Copilot in Eclipse smarter and easier to use. These updates bring more context options, smoother workflows, and better customization for your development experience.

✨ What’s new

Custom instructions
You can now use custom instructions to provide Copilot with additional context tailored to your work. This helps Copilot deliver more relevant and personalized assistance. Learn more in our documentation about custom instructions.
Demo of custom instructions

Note: The custom instructions feature is currently available only in Chat and Agent mode.

Image support in chat context
You can now add images directly to the chat context to generate code snippets. For example, you can upload a hand-drawn layout page, and Copilot will generate corresponding HTML code.
Demo of Copilot Vision

Note: Some models do not support vision capabilities. In such cases, Copilot displays a warning.

Richer context with folders and resources
You can now enrich Copilot chat by referencing context with folders and resources. This makes it easier to share structured project content and collaborate more effectively:

  • Attach folders directly into chat to provide broader project context.
  • Drag and drop resources into referenced files for quick additions.
    Demo of drag and drop
  • Add resources via context menu in Package Explorer and Project Explorer.
    Demo of context menu

Improved user experience
We’ve refined both the Agent Mode workflow and the chat view to make them more intuitive and user-friendly:

  • A confirmation dialog now appears when starting a new Agent mode conversation if there are unhandled files in context, preventing accidental data loss.
  • The chat view banner now displays the conversation title and includes a shortcut to Edit Preferences…
  • A refreshed color design improves readability and provides a cleaner look.
  • The Copilot Chat view is now included in JEE-related perspectives by default, improving integration across development workflows.
  • A new configuration scope controls whether to show the What’s New page. This option is now also exposed in the Preferences dialog.
  • Enhanced colors and layout for chat view with dark theme and light theme improvements.
    Demo of dark theme
    Demo of light theme

Reduced plugin size
By splitting platform-specific binaries into separate fragments, the overall plugin size has been greatly reduced. This means faster downloads and updates.

New public API to programmatically start a chat session
We’ve introduced a new public API that allows other plugins to seamlessly start a new ask session in the Copilot Chat view. Plugins can now invoke the com.microsoft.copilot.eclipse.commands.openChatView command with two optional parameters:

  • com.microsoft.copilot.eclipse.commands.openChatView.inputValue: A string representing the initial content of the chat.
  • com.microsoft.copilot.eclipse.commands.openChatView.autoSend: A boolean indicating whether to automatically submit the content.

This opens up exciting possibilities for plugin developers to trigger contextual Copilot interactions directly from their tools.

Here’s how the Spring Tools plugin leverages the new API to launch a chat session:

Demo of Spring Tool API

🛠 Try it out

Get started by checking out our official documentation.

💬 Share your feedback

Your feedback drives improvements. Let us know what you think using the in-product feedback option, or share your thoughts in the following channels: