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Fix misleading timeout error when Copilot Chat is not installed#1444

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copilot/fix-ask-copilot-command-timeout
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Fix misleading timeout error when Copilot Chat is not installed#1444
Copilot wants to merge 3 commits into
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copilot/fix-ask-copilot-command-timeout

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Copilot AI commented May 13, 2026

When GitHub.copilot-chat is not installed, "Ask Copilot" commands would silently attempt to open chat and surface a confusing "Chat took too long to get ready" timeout instead of a clear install prompt.

Changes

  • askAgentAboutActivityLog.ts, askAgentAboutResource.ts, askAzure.ts — Added ensureCopilotChatReady() guard before all workbench.action.chat.open calls. The helper already existed (used by openChatWithAgent) but was missing from these three handlers.

When GitHub.copilot-chat is absent, the user now sees:

GitHub Copilot Chat is required to continue. Please install the GitHub Copilot Chat extension and try again.

instead of the timeout error shown above. If the extension is installed but not yet active, it is activated before opening chat.

Copilot AI self-assigned this May 13, 2026
Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings May 13, 2026 18:24
Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings May 13, 2026 18:24
Copilot AI requested review from Copilot and removed request for Copilot May 13, 2026 18:26
Copilot AI changed the title [WIP] Fix timeout error for Ask Copilot command without Chat extension Fix misleading timeout error when Copilot Chat is not installed May 13, 2026
Copilot AI requested a review from nturinski May 13, 2026 18:27
Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings May 14, 2026 21:19
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Pull request overview

Note

Copilot was unable to run its full agentic suite in this review.

Adds an ensureCopilotChatReady() guard to three "Ask Copilot" entry points so users get a clear install prompt for the GitHub Copilot Chat extension instead of a misleading "Chat took too long to get ready" timeout.

Changes:

  • Guard askAzureInCommandPalette with ensureCopilotChatReady() before opening chat.
  • Guard askAgentAboutResource with the same check before issuing chat commands.
  • Guard askAgentAboutActivityLog similarly before opening chat.

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 3 out of 3 changed files in this pull request and generated no comments.

File Description
src/chat/askAzure.ts Adds early return if Copilot Chat is not ready before prompting.
src/chat/askAgentAboutResource.ts Adds readiness check before executing chat commands for a resource.
src/chat/askAgentAboutActivityLog/askAgentAboutActivityLog.ts Adds readiness check before opening chat for the activity log flow.

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Executing "Ask Copilot about the Azure Activity Log" command shows misleading timeout error when Copilot Chat is not installed

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