Using context-kit with GitHub Copilot

context-kit is a plugin marketplace that GitHub Copilot CLI installs from directly — the same plugins Claude Code and APM use, from one shared source. No manual copying of skill folders.

GitHub Copilot CLI installs via copilot plugin; Claude Code installs via /plugin and APM via apm install. The retrieval SKILL.md bodies, their references/, the agents, and the commands are identical across hosts.

Install for GitHub Copilot

Register this marketplace, then install the plugins you want:

copilot plugin marketplace add mbeacom/context-kit
copilot plugin install code-search@context-kit      # auto-installs retrieval-core
copilot plugin install local-rag@context-kit
copilot plugin install obsidian@context-kit
copilot plugin install plan-execute@context-kit
copilot plugin install context-steering@context-kit
copilot plugin install verify@context-kit           # auto-installs retrieval-core
copilot plugin install runtime-evidence@context-kit # pulls verify, then retrieval-core
copilot plugin install context-handoff@context-kit  # pulls verify, then retrieval-core
copilot plugin install memory@context-kit           # pulls handoff, verify, retrieval-core
copilot plugin install plugin-forge@context-kit

runtime-evidence and context-handoff depend on verify; verify transitively pulls retrieval-core. memory depends on context-handoff.

Manage them with copilot plugin list, copilot plugin update <name>, and copilot plugin uninstall <name>.

What you get

Repository asset	GitHub Copilot	Claude Code
plugins/*/skills/<name>/SKILL.md (+ references/)	Installed via copilot plugin install	Installed via /plugin install
plugins/retrieval-core/agents/retrieval-strategist.md	Installed with the plugin	Installed as a subagent
plugins/local-rag/bin/rag	Bootstrap manually — see below	Auto-bootstrapped by a Claude SessionStart hook
plugins/memory/scripts/memory-provider.py	Run explicitly; Copilot does not run Claude hooks	Explicit commands plus opt-in Claude hooks
.claude-plugin/* manifests	Used to resolve the marketplace	Marketplace packaging

Copilot's discovery-critical skill frontmatter is name and description, which this repo's skills keep compatible.

Using the skills

Once installed, ask Copilot naturally, for example:

• "Use the retrieval strategy to find where retry backoff is handled."
• "Use code-search to find structural React useEffect cleanup issues."
• "Use local-rag to query my notes for billing open questions."
• "Use the Obsidian RAG bridge to search notes linked to Project X."
• "Analyze the prospective impact of changing this schema."
• "Collect bounded runtime evidence for this unable-to-check claim."
• "Write a context handoff for the next session."
• "Recall why this project changed its retry policy, then verify current evidence."

Running local-rag outside Claude Code

local-rag's rag CLI runs on a uv-managed venv. Claude Code bootstraps it automatically via a SessionStart hook; GitHub Copilot does not run Claude hooks, so bootstrap it once yourself from a clone of this repo:

export CONTEXT_KIT_DATA="$HOME/.local/share/context-kit"
bash plugins/local-rag/scripts/bootstrap.sh
export PATH="$PWD/plugins/local-rag/bin:$PATH"
ollama pull nomic-embed-text
rag index /path/to/vault --name notes
rag query "open questions about billing" --name notes --k 8
rag query "open questions about billing" --name notes --k 8 --hybrid

Supported neutral environment variables:

Variable	Purpose	Claude fallback
CONTEXT_KIT_DATA	venv and index storage for local-rag	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_DATA
CONTEXT_KIT_EMBED_MODEL	ollama embedding model	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_OPTION_EMBED_MODEL
CONTEXT_KIT_OLLAMA_HOST	ollama base URL	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_OPTION_OLLAMA_HOST
CONTEXT_KIT_OBSIDIAN_VAULT	vault path used by examples/fallbacks	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_OPTION_VAULT_PATH
CONTEXT_KIT_RUNTIME_EVIDENCE_CONFIG	user-owned exact-ID JSON command allowlist	—
CONTEXT_KIT_RUNTIME_EVIDENCE_ROOT	installed runtime-evidence root	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT
CONTEXT_KIT_HANDOFF_PATH	handoff artifact override	—
CONTEXT_KIT_MEMORY_PROVIDER	none or optional mempalace provider	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_OPTION_PROVIDER
CONTEXT_KIT_MEMORY_HOME	reviewed records and project-isolated provider data	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_OPTION_MEMORY_HOME
CONTEXT_KIT_MEMORY_PROJECT	explicit durable-memory project scope	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_OPTION_PROJECT
CONTEXT_KIT_MEMORY_AUTO_CAPTURE	opt-in Claude lifecycle forwarding	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_OPTION_AUTO_CAPTURE
CONTEXT_KIT_MEMORY_ROOT	installed memory plugin root	CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT

The Claude-specific variables remain supported so existing plugin installs keep working. The CONTEXT_KIT_* names are preferred for portable docs and shell profiles shared across agents. The former PRODUCTIVITY_SKILLS_* names (from before the marketplace was renamed to context-kit) are still honored as a deprecated alias — resolution order is CONTEXT_KIT_* → PRODUCTIVITY_SKILLS_* → the Claude fallback — but will be dropped in a future release; migrate when convenient.

Tooling expectations

Neither host installs the underlying CLI tools for you. Install the same tools the skills expect:

• Required for code-search: rg (ripgrep).
• Optional but useful: fd, ast-grep/sg, semgrep, jq, yq, gron, duckdb, sqlite-utils, rga, pandoc, pdftotext, difftastic, tokei, scc, and rtk.
• Required for local-rag: uv, ollama, and an embedding model such as nomic-embed-text. SQLite FTS5 is required only for opt-in --hybrid; the default semantic mode remains available without it.
• Required for runtime-evidence and context-handoff: Python 3. Their runner and validator use only the standard library. The runtime runner requires POSIX and refuses Windows before execution; the handoff validator is cross-platform. Copilot does not provide universal host-level command enforcement; runtime collection remains bound to the plugin's reviewed exact-ID allowlist.
• Optional for obsidian-rag-bridge: the official obsidian CLI with Obsidian running; otherwise use the rg/fd fallback over vault files.
• Required for local memory records: Python 3. Optional provider recall uses a separately installed mempalace CLI. Copilot does not run the plugin's Claude lifecycle hooks, so capture remains explicit unless a native host integration is configured separately.

Run plugins/code-search/scripts/check-tools.sh from a clone of this repository to see what is already installed and what brew install ... command would fill the gaps.

Authoring portable skills

When updating this repo, keep the reusable retrieval instructions agent-neutral:

1. Put cross-agent workflow knowledge in SKILL.md and references/.
2. Keep Claude marketplace mechanics in .claude-plugin/, hooks, and Claude-only docs.
3. Prefer CONTEXT_KIT_* in portable examples, with CLAUDE_PLUGIN_* documented as the Claude fallback.
4. Mention when a behavior is installed automatically by Claude (for example, the local-rag bootstrap hook) but must be run manually for GitHub Copilot.
5. Keep command output compact when possible (rtk is optional and safe to omit).