what-context-needed

github/awesome-copilot

Get Copilot to ask for the right files before it answers your question.

What is what-context-needed?

A prompt template that makes Copilot pause and list which files it needs to see before answering a question, rather than answering with potentially incomplete context. Useful for reducing inaccurate or guessed answers in large codebases.

Takes a user-supplied question as input
Prompts Copilot to list required and helpful files before answering
Separates files into 'Must See', 'Should See', and 'Already Have' categories with reasons
Surfaces uncertainties Copilot has without seeing the code
Waits for the user to supply files before the question is answered

How to install what-context-needed

npx skills add https://github.com/github/awesome-copilot --skill what-context-needed

Prerequisites

GitHub Copilot or compatible coding agent set up in the environment

Claude Code

Cursor

Windsurf

Cline

How to use what-context-needed

1.Invoke the what-context-needed skill and supply your question in place of {{question}}
2.Review the markdown output listing 'Must See', 'Should See', 'Already Have', and 'Uncertainties' files
3.Open or paste the contents of the 'Must See' (and optionally 'Should See') files into the conversation
4.Re-ask your original question now that Copilot has the relevant context

Use cases

Good for

Asking a question about an unfamiliar codebase and wanting to ensure Copilot has full context first
Avoiding inaccurate answers caused by Copilot guessing without seeing relevant files
Debugging a multi-file issue where it's unclear which files are relevant
Onboarding to a new repo and wanting Copilot to surface relevant files for a feature area

Who it's for

Developers using Copilot in large or unfamiliar codebases
Engineers wanting more accurate, context-aware answers from an AI coding assistant
Teams that want to reduce hallucinated or guessed responses from Copilot

what-context-needed FAQ

What does this skill actually do?

It instructs Copilot to first list which files it needs to examine before answering your question, instead of guessing or answering with incomplete context.

Does it automatically fetch the files for Copilot?

No, it only generates a list of needed files with explanations. You still need to manually provide those files to Copilot.

What format does the output come in?

A markdown breakdown with sections for 'Must See', 'Should See', 'Already Have', and 'Uncertainties' files.

When should I use this instead of just asking my question directly?

Use it when you suspect Copilot lacks enough codebase context to answer accurately, such as in large or unfamiliar repositories.

Full instructions (SKILL.md)

Source of truth, from github/awesome-copilot.

name: what-context-needed description: 'Ask Copilot what files it needs to see before answering a question'

What Context Do You Need?

Before answering my question, tell me what files you need to see.

My Question

Instructions

Based on my question, list the files you would need to examine
Explain why each file is relevant
Note any files you've already seen in this conversation
Identify what you're uncertain about

Output Format

## Files I Need

### Must See (required for accurate answer)
- `path/to/file.ts` — [why needed]

### Should See (helpful for complete answer)
- `path/to/file.ts` — [why helpful]

### Already Have
- `path/to/file.ts` — [from earlier in conversation]

### Uncertainties
- [What I'm not sure about without seeing the code]

github/awesome-copilot

Surgical code refactoring to improve maintainability without changing behavior.

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