JSON Schema for the YAML frontmatter of GitHub Copilot and VS Code .instructions.md files. These file-scoped custom instruction files use applyTo glob patterns to target specific file types or tasks with tailored AI guidance.
AI CopilotCoding StandardsDeveloper WorkflowGitHub CopilotVS Code
Properties
Name
Type
Description
name
string
Display name shown in the UI. Defaults to the file name when omitted.
description
string
Short description shown on hover in the Chat view.
applyTo
string
Glob pattern (or comma-separated list of patterns) that defines which files the instructions apply to automatically, relative to the workspace root. Use '**' to apply to all files. If omitted, the ins
{
"$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema",
"$id": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/instructions-md/refs/heads/main/json-schema/instructions-md-frontmatter-schema.json",
"title": "Instructions.md Frontmatter Schema",
"description": "JSON Schema for the YAML frontmatter of GitHub Copilot and VS Code .instructions.md files. These file-scoped custom instruction files use applyTo glob patterns to target specific file types or tasks with tailored AI guidance.",
"type": "object",
"additionalProperties": false,
"properties": {
"name": {
"type": "string",
"description": "Display name shown in the UI. Defaults to the file name when omitted."
},
"description": {
"type": "string",
"description": "Short description shown on hover in the Chat view."
},
"applyTo": {
"type": "string",
"description": "Glob pattern (or comma-separated list of patterns) that defines which files the instructions apply to automatically, relative to the workspace root. Use '**' to apply to all files. If omitted, the instructions are not applied automatically and must be manually attached to a chat request.",
"examples": [
"**",
"**/*.py",
"**/*.ts,**/*.tsx",
"docs/**/*.md"
]
}
}
}