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Pre-Workshop Environment Checklist

Use this checklist to verify your environment is ready before attending the GitHub Copilot workshop. Completing these steps in advance ensures you can focus on learning during the workshop without setup delays.

✅ Required Setup (Complete Before Workshop)

1. GitHub Account & Copilot Subscription

  • GitHub account created

  • GitHub Copilot subscription active

    • Individual: $10/month or $100/year
    • Business: Through your organization
    • Students/Teachers: Free through GitHub Education

  • Verify subscription status

    1. Go to github.com/settings/copilot
    2. Should show "GitHub Copilot is active"
    3. Note your subscription type (Individual/Business/Free)

Troubleshooting:

2. Visual Studio Code Installation

  • VS Code installed (version 1.80 or later)

Expected output:

1.95.0 (or later)

Platform-specific notes:

  • macOS: Install VS Code, then open Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P) → "Shell Command: Install 'code' command in PATH"
  • Windows: Add to PATH during installation
  • Linux: Follow distribution-specific instructions

3. VS Code Extensions

Install these required extensions:

  • GitHub Copilot (GitHub.copilot)

    1. Open VS Code
    2. Click Extensions icon (left sidebar) or press Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+X
    3. Search for "GitHub Copilot"
    4. Click "Install"
    5. Sign in with your GitHub account when prompted

  • GitHub Copilot Chat (GitHub.copilot-chat)

    • Search for "GitHub Copilot Chat"
    • Click "Install"

  • C# Dev Kit (ms-dotnettools.csdevkit)

    • Search for "C# Dev Kit"
    • Click "Install"
    • Includes C# language support, IntelliSense, and debugging

Verify extensions installed:

  1. Open Command Palette (Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+P)
  2. Type "Extensions: Show Installed Extensions"
  3. Confirm all three are listed

Verify Copilot is working:

(Optional) Use the Dev Container

  • Use the Dev Container:
    Open the project in VS Code and select Dev Containers: Reopen in Container from the Command Palette. This will automatically set up all required tools and extensions for the workshop. See the main README for details.
  1. Create a new file: test.cs
  2. Type: // Function to calculate fibonacci
  3. Press Enter - you should see gray "ghost text" suggestions
  4. Press Tab to accept or Esc to dismiss
  5. ✅ If you see suggestions, Copilot is working!
  6. Delete test file

4. .NET 9 SDK Installation

Run in terminal:

dotnet --version

Expected output:

9.0.x (any 9.x.x version is fine)

Common issues:

  • Command not found: Restart terminal or reboot computer
  • Old version showing: Uninstall old versions, reinstall .NET 9, restart terminal
  • Multiple versions: That's OK! The workshop uses .NET 9, but having 6/7/8 won't hurt

5. Git Installation & Configuration

git --version

Expected: git version 2.30 or later

  • Configure Git identity (if not already done)
git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"
  • Verify configuration
git config --global user.name
git config --global user.email

Should display your name and email.

6. Clone Workshop Repository

  • Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/centricconsulting/ai-coding-workshop.git
cd ai-coding-workshop
  • Create your own branch from main
git checkout main
git pull
git checkout -b my-workshop-branch

Replace my-workshop-branch with your name or a unique identifier.

  • Open in VS Code
code .

VS Code should open with the workshop repository.

7. Verify Solution Builds

  • Restore dependencies
dotnet restore

Expected: "Restore succeeded" with no errors

  • Build solution
dotnet build

Expected output:

Build succeeded in X.Xs
TaskManager.Domain succeeded
TaskManager.Application succeeded
TaskManager.Infrastructure succeeded
TaskManager.Api succeeded
TaskManager.ConsoleApp succeeded
TaskManager.UnitTests succeeded
TaskManager.IntegrationTests succeeded
  • Run tests (should have failures - this is expected!)
dotnet test

Expected output:

Test summary: total: 11, failed: 11, succeeded: 0

✅ This is correct! The 11 failing tests are placeholders you'll implement during the workshop.

Build issues?

  • Run dotnet clean then try again
  • Check .NET version is 9.x
  • Ensure all extensions are installed

8. Verify GitHub Copilot Integration

  • Open a C# file

    • Navigate to src/TaskManager.Domain/Tasks/Task.cs

  • Check Copilot status bar

    • Look at bottom-right of VS Code window
    • Should see GitHub Copilot icon
    • Icon should show checkmark (✅) or be blue/white (active)
    • If red/crossed out, click it and sign in

  • Test inline suggestions

    1. At the end of the file, add a new line
    2. Type: // Method to validate task title
    3. Press Enter
    4. Start typing: public static bool
    5. You should see gray "ghost text" completing the method
    6. Press Tab to accept or Esc to dismiss
    7. Delete the test code

  • Test Copilot Chat

    1. Open Copilot Chat: Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+I (or click chat icon in left sidebar)
    2. Type: What testing frameworks are used in this project?
    3. Press Enter
    4. Should get a response mentioning xUnit and FakeItEasy
    5. ✅ Chat is working!

  • Test @workspace participant

    1. In Copilot Chat, type: @workspace Where is the Task entity defined?
    2. Should respond with file path: src/TaskManager.Domain/Tasks/Task.cs
    3. ✅ Workspace context is working!

Copilot not working?

  • Click Copilot icon in status bar → "Sign in to GitHub"
  • Check subscription at github.com/settings/copilot
  • Reload window: Command Palette → "Developer: Reload Window"
  • Check internet connection (Copilot requires online access)

📋 Workshop Day Quick Check (5 minutes before)

Run these commands to verify everything still works:

# 1. Check .NET
dotnet --version
# Should show: 9.x.x

# 2. Navigate to workshop directory
cd path/to/ai-coding-workshop
git checkout main

# 3. Pull latest changes
git pull origin main

# 4. Verify build
dotnet build
# Should show: Build succeeded

# 5. Check Copilot status in VS Code
code .
# Check status bar icon is active (✅)

🆘 Common Issues & Solutions

Issue: "GitHub Copilot is not available"

Solution:

  1. Check subscription: github.com/settings/copilot
  2. Sign out and back in: Click Copilot status bar icon → Sign out → Sign in
  3. Reload VS Code window: Command Palette → "Developer: Reload Window"

Issue: "dotnet: command not found"

Solution:

  1. Ensure .NET 9 SDK is installed (not just Runtime)
  2. Restart terminal/computer after installation
  3. Check PATH environment variable includes .NET

Issue: Build fails with "SDK not found"

Solution:

  1. Run dotnet --list-sdks to see installed SDKs
  2. Should include 9.0.xxx
  3. If missing, reinstall .NET 9 SDK
  4. If multiple SDKs, ensure global.json (if present) doesn't pin to old version

Issue: Copilot suggestions not appearing

Solution:

  1. Ensure you're typing in a supported file (.cs, .md, etc.)
  2. Wait 1-2 seconds after typing
  3. Check Copilot isn't disabled for the file type
  4. Try closing and reopening the file
  5. Check Copilot status bar icon isn't showing error

Issue: Extensions not loading

Solution:

  1. Ensure VS Code is up to date (Help → Check for Updates)
  2. Disable other AI/autocomplete extensions that might conflict
  3. Reload window: Command Palette → "Developer: Reload Window"
  4. Reinstall extensions if needed

Issue: Git clone fails

Solution:

  1. Check internet connection
  2. If using SSH: Ensure SSH keys are configured on GitHub
  3. Try HTTPS instead: git clone https://github.com/centricconsulting/ai-coding-workshop.git
  4. Check firewall/proxy settings

📧 Getting Help

If you encounter issues completing this checklist:

  1. Check workshop documentation:

    • Main README: README.md
    • Facilitator Guide: docs/FACILITATOR_GUIDE.md

  2. Official documentation:

  3. Contact workshop facilitator:

    • Reach out via email/Slack before the workshop
    • Arrive 15 minutes early for help

  4. Backup plan:

    • If all else fails, we can use GitHub Codespaces (cloud-based VS Code)
    • Requires only a browser and GitHub account

✅ Final Checklist

Before the workshop, confirm:

  • GitHub Copilot subscription is active
  • VS Code with all 3 extensions installed (Copilot, Copilot Chat, C# Dev Kit)
  • .NET 9 SDK installed (dotnet --version shows 9.x.x)
  • Git installed and configured
  • Workshop repository cloned and personal branch created from main
  • Solution builds successfully (dotnet build)
  • Tests run and show 11 expected failures (dotnet test)
  • Copilot inline suggestions work
  • Copilot Chat responds to queries
  • Workspace context works with @workspace

🎯 You're Ready!

If all items above are checked, you're fully prepared for the workshop! 🎉

See you at the workshop! Bring:

  • ✅ Your laptop with the environment set up
  • ✅ Power adapter (3-hour workshop)
  • ✅ Curiosity and willingness to experiment
  • ✅ Questions about AI-assisted development

Note: If you couldn't complete all checklist items, still attend! Facilitators will help during the setup period, and we have backup options available.