GitHub Copilot History: Where It Goes and How to Keep It

GitHub Copilot just gave you the perfect code suggestion. You accepted it, kept coding, and now you can't remember what it was.

Unlike ChatGPT or Claude, Copilot doesn't have a conversation history. Suggestions appear and disappear. Here's how to capture them.

The Quick Answer

GitHub Copilot does NOT save suggestion history by default.

Your options:

1. •Use VS Code's output panel for recent suggestions
2. •Enable telemetry logging (limited)
3. •Use Tribecode for automatic capture

Try Tribecode Free →

Why Copilot Doesn't Save History

GitHub Copilot is designed for real-time assistance, not conversation:

• •Inline suggestions: Appear in your editor, not a chat window
• •No UI for history: Unlike ChatGPT, there's no sidebar with past interactions
• •Privacy focus: Less data stored means less privacy risk

This design makes sense for quick suggestions but is frustrating when you want to:

• •Review what Copilot suggested
• •Learn from good suggestions
• •Debug why Copilot suggested something wrong

Where Copilot Data Lives

VS Code Output Panel

The closest thing to a log:

1. •Open VS Code
2. •View → Output (or Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + U)
3. •Select "GitHub Copilot" from dropdown
4. •See recent activity

Limitations:

• •Only shows recent events
• •Not searchable
• •Clears on restart

Extension Logs

More detailed logging is available:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Code/logs/

Windows: %APPDATA%\Code\logs\

Linux: ~/.config/Code/logs/

Look for files related to github.copilot extension.

Network Requests (Advanced)

For deep debugging, you can inspect network requests:

1. •Open Developer Tools in VS Code (Help → Toggle Developer Tools)
2. •Go to Network tab
3. •Filter for Copilot-related requests
4. •See prompts sent and responses received

Caution: This is for debugging, not regular use.

What You Can't See

Copilot intentionally doesn't expose:

• •Historical suggestions from past sessions
• •Aggregated statistics on your usage
• •The exact context sent for each suggestion

This is a privacy feature, but it limits your ability to learn and improve.

Capturing Copilot History with Tribecode

Tribecode solves this by capturing Copilot activity as it happens:

1. •Installs as VS Code extension
2. •Captures all Copilot suggestions
3. •Records accepted vs rejected
4. •Provides searchable history

What You Get

• •Complete history of Copilot suggestions
• •Acceptance rate metrics
• •Context for each suggestion
• •Cross-tool view (Copilot + Cursor + Claude)

Start Tracking Copilot History →

Measuring Copilot Effectiveness

With proper history, you can answer:

Is Copilot Actually Helping?

Track:

• •Suggestions accepted vs rejected
• •How often you modify accepted suggestions
• •Time saved (or lost) per session

What Does Copilot Do Well?

Identify patterns:

• •Types of code where Copilot excels
• •Languages where it performs best
• •Situations where it struggles

How Can You Get Better Suggestions?

Learn from history:

• •What context leads to good suggestions
• •How to write code that prompts better completions
• •When to enable/disable Copilot

GitHub Copilot vs Other AI Tools: History Comparison

| Tool | Built-in History | Exportable | Searchable | |------|------------------|------------|------------| | GitHub Copilot | No | No | No | | ChatGPT | Yes | Yes (limited) | No | | Claude | Yes | No | No | | Cursor | Partial | No | No |

None of these tools prioritize history and search. That's the gap observability tools fill.

Best Practices for Copilot Users

1. Pause Before Accepting

When Copilot suggests something good:

• •Read it carefully
• •Understand why it works
• •Consider saving the pattern

2. Comment Your Intent

Better comments = better suggestions = easier to review later.

# Calculate the moving average of the last n prices
# Handle edge cases: empty list, n > len(prices)
def moving_average(prices, n):
    # Copilot will give better suggestions with this context

3. Review Your Patterns

Periodically review what you accept from Copilot:

• •Are you learning from suggestions or just accepting?
• •Could you write that code yourself now?
• •What patterns appear frequently?

Frequently Asked Questions

Does GitHub store my Copilot history?

GitHub collects some telemetry (with your permission) but doesn't provide you access to your personal suggestion history.

Can I export Copilot suggestions?

Not through official tools. You'd need a third-party solution that captures suggestions as they happen.

Does Copilot learn from my rejections?

The model doesn't personalize based on your individual accepts/rejects. It uses aggregate data for improvements.

How do I see Copilot usage statistics?

GitHub provides some aggregate metrics for Copilot Business/Enterprise. Individual users get limited visibility.

The Bottom Line

GitHub Copilot is powerful but opaque. Without history, you can't:

• •Learn from what it suggests
• •Measure whether it helps
• •Debug when it goes wrong

If you're serious about using AI for coding, you need visibility into what your tools are actually doing.

Ready to track your Copilot history? Try Tribecode for complete visibility into all your AI coding tools.