Workflow setup

To run Copilot on issue events, add a workflow that uses the issues trigger and passes the required inputs (at least token). This page describes the events to use and what the action does on each run.

Trigger events

Use the issues trigger with the types you need. Common setup:

on:
  issues:
    types: [opened, reopened, edited, labeled, unlabeled, assigned, unassigned]

For branch creation, the most important event is usually labeled: when the user adds the branch launcher label (default: branched) or when the issue has a hotfix/release label and the creator is a member, the action creates the branch. See Branch management.

Minimal workflow

Create a file under .github/workflows/ (e.g. copilot_issue.yml):

name: Copilot - Issue

on:
  issues:
    types: [opened, reopened, edited, labeled, unlabeled, assigned, unassigned]

jobs:
  copilot-issues:
    name: Copilot - Issue
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - name: Checkout Repository
        uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - uses: vypdev/copilot@v2
        with:
          token: ${{ secrets.PAT }}
          project-ids: ${{ vars.PROJECT_IDS }}

• token is required (use a fine-grained PAT with repo and project permissions; see Authentication).
• project-ids is optional but needed if you want issues (and PRs) linked to GitHub Project boards.

Add other inputs as needed: branch-management-launcher-label, desired-assignees-count, main-branch, development-branch, etc. See Configuration and Examples.

What runs when

1. On every trigger (with valid token): The action loads the issue and repository context. If the event actor is the same as the token owner, the action may skip the normal pipeline (see Troubleshooting → Action skips issue/PR/push pipelines); use a bot account for the PAT if you want full behavior when you act as a user.

2. Project linking: If project-ids is set and the token has access, the issue is linked to those projects and moved to the configured column (e.g. "Todo" or "In Progress").

3. Assignees: If desired-assignees-count is set, the action assigns up to that many members (issue creator first if they belong to the org/repo, then additional members). See Assignees and projects.

4. Branch creation: When the issue has a branch type label (feature, bugfix, docs, chore, hotfix, release) and either the launcher label (e.g. branched) is present or branch-management-always: true, the action creates the branch (with hotfix/release restrictions for non-members). See Branch management.

5. Deploy trigger: When the deploy label is added to an issue that has a release or hotfix type, the action dispatches the workflow named in release-workflow or hotfix-workflow (e.g. release_workflow.yml, hotfix_workflow.yml). Filenames must match exactly.

Next steps

• Assignees and projects — Member assignment and project linking.
• Branch management — When and how branches are created.
• Examples — Full workflow YAML examples.