Table of Contents
Introduction
Content exclusions allow organizations to prevent GitHub Copilot from using specific repositories, files, or folders as context when generating suggestions. This is an Enterprise feature that helps protect sensitive code and maintain privacy.
Key Point: Content exclusions prevent Copilot from using excluded content as context, ensuring sensitive code remains private.
What Are Content Exclusions?
Content exclusions are policies that specify which content GitHub Copilot should NOT use when generating suggestions:
What Can Be Excluded
- Repositories: Entire repositories can be excluded from Copilot context
- Folders: Specific folders within repositories can be excluded
- Files: Individual files can be excluded from context
- File Patterns: Files matching specific patterns can be excluded
Purpose of Exclusions
- Protect sensitive or proprietary code
- Prevent Copilot from using confidential information as context
- Maintain privacy for specific codebases
- Comply with organizational security policies
- Control what code Copilot can reference
Enterprise Feature
Content exclusions are available exclusively in GitHub Copilot Enterprise plans:
Availability
- Enterprise Plans Only: Not available in Individual or Business plans
- Organization Level: Can be configured at organization level
- Enterprise Level: Can be configured at enterprise level
- Not Repository Level: Cannot be set at individual repository level
Important: Content exclusions are set at enterprise or organization level, not at the repository level. Settings inherit down to all repositories.
Configuring Content Exclusions
To configure content exclusions in GitHub Copilot:
Configuration Steps
- Navigate to your Enterprise or Organization settings on GitHub.com
- Go to GitHub Copilot settings
- Find the "Content Exclusions" section
- Add repositories, folders, or files to exclude
- Save the configuration
- Wait approximately 30 minutes for changes to propagate to IDEs
What Happens After Configuration
- Exclusions are set on GitHub.com
- Changes take effect after about 30 minutes
- Exclusions propagate to all IDEs (VS Code, Visual Studio, etc.)
- Copilot features stop working for excluded content
- Excluded files/folders/repositories are not used as context
Effect on Copilot Functionality
When content is excluded:
- Copilot suggestions are disabled for excluded files
- Excluded content is not sent to Copilot as context
- Copilot Chat cannot reference excluded repositories
- Code completion may be limited for excluded files
- Other files in the same repository may still use Copilot (if not excluded)
Exclusion Levels
Content exclusions can be configured at different levels:
Enterprise Level
- Applies to entire enterprise
- Inherits to all organizations
- Inherits to all repositories
- Highest level of control
Organization Level
- Applies to specific organization
- Inherits to all repositories
- Cannot override enterprise settings
- Organization-specific control
Repository Level
- NOT Available
- Cannot set exclusions at repo level
- Inherits from org/enterprise
- No individual repo control
Exam Tip: Remember that content exclusions cannot be set at the repository level. They are configured at enterprise or organization level and inherit down to all repositories.
Propagation and Inheritance
Content exclusions follow a hierarchical inheritance model:
Inheritance Model
- Enterprise → Organization: Enterprise exclusions inherit to all organizations
- Organization → Repository: Organization exclusions inherit to all repositories
- No Override: Lower levels cannot override higher-level exclusions
- Cumulative Effect: Exclusions at multiple levels all apply
Propagation Timeline
- Changes made on GitHub.com take effect immediately on the platform
- Propagation to IDEs takes approximately 30 minutes
- All developers see the changes after propagation
- No manual refresh required in IDEs
Example Scenario
Scenario: Enterprise sets exclusion for "sensitive-repo"
- Enterprise exclusion applies to all organizations
- All organizations inherit this exclusion
- All repositories in all organizations inherit the exclusion
- After 30 minutes, Copilot stops working for "sensitive-repo" in all IDEs
- Individual developers cannot override this at repository level
Use Cases
Common scenarios where content exclusions are valuable:
Sensitive Code Protection
- Exclude repositories containing proprietary algorithms
- Protect code with trade secrets
- Prevent exposure of confidential business logic
- Maintain competitive advantage
Compliance Requirements
- Meet regulatory compliance requirements
- Protect healthcare data (HIPAA)
- Secure financial information
- Comply with data protection regulations
Security Best Practices
- Exclude folders containing credentials or secrets
- Protect configuration files with sensitive data
- Prevent AI from learning about security implementations
- Maintain security through obscurity where needed
Best Practices
Planning Exclusions
- Identify sensitive repositories before enabling Copilot
- Document why exclusions are needed
- Review exclusion policies regularly
- Balance security with developer productivity
- Communicate exclusions to development teams
Configuration Management
- Set exclusions at enterprise level for organization-wide policies
- Use organization level for org-specific needs
- Test exclusions in a non-production environment first
- Monitor audit logs for exclusion changes
- Keep exclusion lists up to date
Developer Communication
- Inform developers about excluded content
- Explain why certain repositories are excluded
- Provide guidance on working with excluded files
- Set expectations about Copilot availability
- Document exclusion policies in developer guides
Exam Key Points
- Content exclusions are an Enterprise-only feature
- Can exclude repositories, folders, or files from Copilot context
- Configured at enterprise or organization level, NOT repository level
- Exclusions inherit from enterprise → organization → repositories
- Changes take approximately 30 minutes to propagate to IDEs
- Excluded content prevents Copilot from using it as context
- Copilot features stop working for excluded files/folders/repositories
- Lower levels cannot override higher-level exclusions
- Used to protect sensitive, proprietary, or confidential code
- Helps organizations comply with security and privacy requirements
- All exclusion changes are tracked in audit logs
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