Finding public code that matches GitHub Copilot suggestions

This version of this article is for Copilot in Visual Studio. For Copilot on other platforms, click the appropriate tab above.

View code references for inline suggestions

You can find code references in the GitHub Copilot log in Visual Studio.

1. In the menu bar, click View.

2. In the dropdown menu, click Output.

3. In Output view, click the box to the right of "Show output from" and select GitHub Copilot.

4. Leave the log displayed while you use GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio Code.

   When you accept an inline suggestion that matches code in a public GitHub repository, an entry is added to the log.

   The log entry includes the following details:

   • The time you accepted the suggestion. Click the "Show Timestamp" clock icon if the time is not displayed.
   • The description [Completions Public Code Match Information].
   • The license type for the matching code, if found, otherwise NOASSERTION.
   • The URL of the file on GitHub.com where the similar code was found.

Example log entry

09:39:16:203	[Completions Public Code Match Information] Similar code with license type [MIT] https://github.com/octo-org/octo-repo/blob/34deb75eb6a2e22483ed465a6aec38c02eb2536e/routines/quicksort.js

Verifying the code referencing functionality

Vous pouvez vérifier que le référencement du code fonctionne en demandant à Copilot d’ajouter du code couramment utilisé et en vérifiant la sortie dans le journal.

1. Créez un fichier appelé fizz-buzz.js et ouvrez-le dans l’éditeur.

2. Affichez le journal comme décrit dans la section précédente.

3. Dans l’éditeur, tapez :

   function fizzBuzz()
   

   Avec un espace après la parenthèse fermante.

   GitHub Copilot doit suggérer du code pour terminer la fonction. Généralement, la suggestion sera une implémentation commune de l'algorithme fizz buzz qui correspondra au code disponible publiquement sur le site web GitHub.

4. Pour accepter la suggestion, appuyez sur Tab.

5. Vérifiez si des entrées pour un code similaire ont été ajoutées au journal.

If a response in Copilot Chat includes matching code, this is below the suggested code by the following text:

Found similar code in public repos. View matches

Click View matches to open the GitHub Copilot log, if it is not already open, and add details of the matched code.

The details include:

• The time you added the details to the log. Click the "Show Timestamp" clock icon if the time is not displayed.
• The description [Code Match] as the first log entry before the list of matching code.
• The license type—if found—for each instance of similar code.
• The URL of the file on GitHub.com where the matching code was found.
• A code snippet showing the matching code.

Logging example

09:24:10:525	[Code Match] Similar code with 2 license type(s) [MIT, NOASSERTION]
09:24:10:525	## License: MIT
09:24:10:525	https://github.com/octo-org/octo-repo/tree/127aac4ab27a42706af01be80f7aae3b83f44fbc/buzzfizz.py
09:24:10:525	```
09:24:10:525	for i in range(1, n + 1):
09:24:10:525	        if i % 3 == 0 and i % 5 == 0:
09:24:10:525	            print('FizzBuzz')
09:24:10:525	        elif i % 3 == 0:
09:24:10:525	            print('Fizz')
09:24:10:525	        elif i % 5 == 0:
09:24:10:525	```
09:24:10:525	## License: NOASSERTION
09:24:10:525	https://github.com/octo-org/monalisa/tree/011308746e53b26b128fa53c044a2527c39231f0/fizz-buzz.py
09:24:10:525	```
09:24:10:525	i % 3 == 0 and i % 5 == 0:
09:24:10:525	            print('FizzBuzz')
09:24:10:525	        elif i % 3 == 0:
09:24:10:525	            print('Fizz')
09:24:10:525	        elif i % 5 == 0:
09:24:10:525	            print('Buzz')
09:24:10:525	        else:
09:24:10:525	            print(i)
09:24:10:525	```