You inherit an unfamiliar repository. What is a good first use of Copilot Chat?
Why B is the answer
Asking it to explain how the code handles a specific area, such as authentication
GitHub's own example is using chat to understand how a repository handles authentication, then planning tests.
In detail
- Asking how one area works is a safe way to learn a new codebase.
- Check the explanation against the code.
Use case
An illustrative scenario, not a real incident.
A developer joins a large project and asks Copilot Chat how authentication works. The answer points to the right files, and they read those next.
See it in different ways
stateDiagram-v2 [*] --> Suggested Suggested --> Reviewed: check correctness, security and fit Reviewed --> Accepted: passes review Reviewed --> Rejected: fails review Accepted --> [*] Rejected --> [*]
flowchart LR S0["Ask about one area"] --> S1["Read the files it names"] --> S2["Confirm"] --> S3["Move to the next area"]
Key point: Use Chat to learn a codebase safely.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Asking it to merge all of the open pull requests in the project
- Merging unreviewed pull requests is unsafe.
- C. Asking it to delete the code that it thinks nobody is using in this repository
- Deleting code you do not yet understand is risky.
- D. Asking it to rewrite the entire repository in a different language right away
- A full rewrite is not a way to learn a repository.