Copilot Studio Agent Direct Line MCP Server
Mentioned as a deployment option with templates for containerized deployment
Integrates with VS Code and GitHub Copilot to enable interaction with Microsoft Copilot Studio Agents directly from the code editor
Mentioned as a deployment option with templates for orchestrated deployment
Required runtime environment for executing the MCP server
Implementation language used to build the MCP server
Used for input validation with type-safe schemas
Click on "Deploy Server".
Wait a few minutes for the server to deploy. Once ready, it will show a "Started" state.
In the chat, type
@followed by the MCP server name and your instructions, e.g., "@Copilot Studio Agent Direct Line MCP Server ask my agent about product pricing tiers"
That's it! The server will respond to your query, and you can continue using it as needed.
Here is a step-by-step guide with screenshots.
β Copilot Studio Agent Direct Line MCP Server
Easily install the Copilot Studio Agent Direct Line MCP Server for VS Code or VS Code Insiders:
This TypeScript project provides a local MCP server for Microsoft Copilot Studio Agents, enabling you to interact with your Copilot Studio Agents directly from your code editor via the Direct Line 3.0 API.
π Table of Contents
Related MCP server: copilot-studio-agent-direct-line-mcp
πΊ Overview
The Copilot Studio Agent Direct Line MCP Server brings Microsoft Copilot Studio Agent context to your development environment. Try prompts like:
"Start a conversation with my Copilot Studio Agent"
"Ask my agent about product sizing"
"Send a message to the agent: What are your capabilities?"
"Get the conversation history"
"End the current conversation"
π Expectations
The Copilot Studio Agent Direct Line MCP Server is built with tools that are concise, simple, focused, and easy to useβeach designed for a specific scenario. We intentionally avoid complex tools that try to do too much. The goal is to provide a thin abstraction layer over the Direct Line 3.0 API, making agent interaction straightforward and letting the language model handle complex reasoning.
βοΈ Features
β Direct Line 3.0 Integration - Full support for Microsoft Bot Framework Direct Line API
β Token Management - Automatic token caching and proactive refresh
β Conversation State - Manages conversation lifecycle with 30-minute idle timeout
β MCP Tools - Four tools for agent interaction: send_message, start_conversation, end_conversation, get_conversation_history
β Comprehensive Error Handling - 11 specialized error types, OAuth-specific retry strategies, MCP error transformation
β Circuit Breaker Pattern - Intelligent failure classification, excludes user errors from circuit state
β Retry Logic - Exponential backoff with jitter, OAuth-aware retry strategies
β Input Validation - Zod schemas for type-safe validation
β Security - Secret masking in logs, secure environment configuration, no disk persistence
β HTTP Transport Mode - Optional HTTP server with Azure Entra ID OAuth authentication
β Testing Suite - 45+ tests with 80%+ coverage on critical components
β Production Ready - Deployment templates for Azure Container Apps, Docker, Kubernetes
βοΈ Supported Tools
Interact with your Copilot Studio Agent using these tools:
send_message: Send a message to the Copilot Studio Agent and receive a response.
start_conversation: Start a new conversation with the Agent, optionally with an initial message.
end_conversation: End a conversation and clean up resources.
get_conversation_history: Retrieve message history for a conversation.
π Installation & Getting Started
For the best experience, use Visual Studio Code and GitHub Copilot. See the getting started documentation to use our MCP Server with other tools such as Claude Code and Cursor.
Prerequisites
Install VS Code or VS Code Insiders
Install Node.js 18+
Microsoft Copilot Studio Agent with Direct Line 3.0 enabled
Direct Line secret key from your Copilot Studio Agent
Installation
β¨ One-Click Install (Recommended)
After installation, select GitHub Copilot Agent Mode and refresh the tools list. Learn more about Agent Mode in the VS Code Documentation.
𧨠Manual Install with NPX
This installation method is the easiest for all users of Visual Studio Code.
In your project, add a .vscode/mcp.json file with the following content:
{
"inputs": [
{
"id": "direct_line_secret",
"type": "promptString",
"description": "Direct Line secret key from your Copilot Studio Agent"
}
],
"servers": {
"copilot-studio-agent-direct-line-mcp": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "copilot-studio-agent-direct-line-mcp"],
"env": {
"DIRECT_LINE_SECRET": "${input:direct_line_secret}"
}
}
}
}Save the file, then click 'Start' in the MCP Server panel.
In chat, switch to Agent Mode.
Click "Select Tools" and choose the available tools.
Open GitHub Copilot Chat and try a prompt like Start a conversation with my Copilot Studio Agent. The first time a tool is executed, you will be prompted for your Direct Line secret.
π₯ We strongly recommend creating a
.github/copilot-instructions.mdin your project. This will enhance your experience using the Copilot Studio MCP Server with GitHub Copilot Chat. To start, just include "This project uses Microsoft Copilot Studio Agents. Always check to see if the Copilot Studio MCP server has a tool relevant to the user's request" in your copilot instructions file.
See the getting started documentation for additional installation methods, including local development setup.
π Troubleshooting
See the Troubleshooting guide for help with common issues and logging.
π© Examples & Best Practices
Explore example prompts and usage patterns in our Examples documentation.
For detailed tool reference and usage guides, refer to the Usage Guide.
πββοΈ Frequently Asked Questions
For answers to common questions about the Copilot Studio Agent Direct Line MCP Server, see the Frequently Asked Questions.
π Contributing
We welcome contributions! During preview, please file issues for bugs, enhancements, or documentation improvements.
See our Contributions Guide for:
π οΈ Development setup
β¨ Adding new features
π Code style & testing
π Pull request process
π€ Code of Conduct
This project follows standard open-source community guidelines. We expect all contributors to be respectful and constructive in their interactions.
License
Licensed under the MIT License.
Disclaimer: This is a personal project by Brad Stevens.
It is not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft Corporation.
Available Tools
4 toolsend_conversationB
End an existing conversation and clean up resources
Inputs: conversationId (required).
get_conversation_historyB
Retrieve message history for a conversation
Inputs: conversationId (required), limit.
send_messageC
Send a message to the Copilot Studio Agent
Inputs: message (required), conversationId.
start_conversationB
Start a new conversation with the Copilot Studio Agent
Inputs: initialMessage.
Tool Schema Changelog
Recent tool additions, removals, and schema changes observed during successful MCP inspections.
Loading tool schema changelogβ¦
TDQS
Scored across 4 tools
Each tool has a clearly distinct purpose with no overlap: start_conversation initiates, send_message communicates, get_conversation_history retrieves, and end_conversation terminates. The four tools cover the complete conversation lifecycle without any ambiguity.
All tool names follow a consistent verb_noun pattern (e.g., start_conversation, send_message) using snake_case throughout. The naming is predictable and readable, with no deviations in style or convention.
Four tools are well-scoped for a conversation management server, covering initiation, messaging, history retrieval, and termination. Each tool earns its place without being excessive or insufficient for the domain.
The tool set provides complete CRUD/lifecycle coverage for conversation management: start (create), send (update/communicate), get (read), and end (delete). There are no obvious gaps, and agents can handle the full workflow without dead ends.
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