Context exclusion not working just after VS code starts

[bokhom]

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Bug

Copilot Feature Area

VS Code

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Hi,
There is a problem with context exclusion. I set up files which should be excluded, and generally it works. But then I noticed that just after opening VS Code I still see code suggestions in those files. There is a few-second window where it works, then it works as intended (no suggestions for excluded files, suggestions generated for the rest). It's a problem because the excluded files (I tried both the organization context exclusion and .copilotignore in the repo) should never go into the model context, because of the privacy concerns. If they still go into the context even once after the editor starts, the whole concept is not working basically.

My hypothesis is that it takes some time for the copilot plugin to initialize, and it is able to generate suggestions before it gets the information about context exclusion. I suppose that the copilot plugin should not generate any suggestions before the full initialization (or just to set up a delay like 10 or 20 seconds) where the plugin is not doing anything whatsoever to make sure everything is properly initialized.

VS Code:
Version: 1.110.0
Commit: 0870c2a0c7c0564e7631bfed2675573a94ba4455
Date: 2026-03-04T01:20:28.863Z
Electron: 39.6.0
ElectronBuildId: 13330601
Chromium: 142.0.7444.265
Node.js: 22.22.0
V8: 14.2.231.22-electron.0
OS: Linux x64 5.15.0-168-generic snap

Copilot plugin:
Identifier github.copilot-chat
Version 0.38.0
Last Updated 23 hours ago

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[pallav-the-analyst]

Hi,

Your hypothesis is likely correct. When VS Code starts, extensions are activated asynchronously. GitHub Copilot can begin generating suggestions as soon as the extension initializes, while repository settings such as .copilotignore or organization context-exclusion policies may take a few moments to be fully loaded and applied.

During that short initialization window, Copilot may temporarily generate suggestions before the exclusion rules are enforced. Once the extension finishes syncing repository configuration and policy settings, the exclusions start working as expected.

A few things you can try to reduce or eliminate this behavior:

1. Disable Copilot on startup and enable it manually
   You can start VS Code with Copilot disabled and enable it once the workspace is fully loaded.

2. Use workspace-level enablement settings
   In VS Code settings, set Copilot to disabled globally and enable it only for specific repositories where it is allowed.

3. Check that .copilotignore is at the repository root
   Make sure the ignore file is committed and located at the root so the extension can detect it immediately.

4. Restart the Copilot extension after workspace load
   Running Developer: Reload Window or restarting the Copilot extension after the workspace is ready ensures all policies are applied.

If strict privacy is required, the safest approach is to disable Copilot entirely for repositories containing sensitive files or ensure those files are excluded at the repository or organization level.

You may also want to report this behavior directly to the Copilot extension repository so the team can consider delaying suggestions until all exclusion rules are loaded.

[bokhom]

Hey, thanks for your reply.

Where exactly should I report the bug? I tried to find the copilot extension repo and failed. The only place I found is the VS code repo itself. And generally what's the most direct way to report problems etc to the vs copilot dev team?

It seems like a pretty simple change to do, adding a small delay before activating the extension.

So far we simply disabled inline suggestions. I never managed it to produce any code in forbidden files using the chat or ctrl+i interface. But it's weak enforcement since everyone should disable it manually (that's why disabling the extension and enabling it after start is not an option, chances are someone will forget to do it a certain point). My objective is to enforce it globally for the organization so it doesn't rely on local settings or engineers doing any manual actions.