Skip to content

allow direct execution of bash commands/scripts in Copilot CLI #186

Closed

Description

@PKartaviy

Describe the feature or problem you'd like to solve

Run a bash command prompt

Proposed solution

Description:
I would like to use Copilot CLI more seamlessly, but currently I’m missing an option to directly call bash commands or scripts.

In Claude’s code mode, I can run:

! ls

and get results instantly.

In Copilot CLI, running the equivalent (ls) takes ~20 seconds before returning output, which makes it impractical when I know which command I need to execute.

Expected behavior:

  • Ability to run bash commands/scripts directly from Copilot CLI, with near-instant execution (comparable to native shell).
  • Ideally support a syntax like ! command or a passthrough flag that pipes input directly to the shell.

Actual behavior:

  • Commands like ls take ~20 seconds to execute in Copilot CLI.
  • This delay makes the CLI less usable for day-to-day scripting.

Why this matters:

  • Developers expect a CLI tool to feel as responsive as a shell.
  • Quick script execution is essential for adoption.
  • Better UX would make Copilot CLI more competitive with alternatives.

Environment:

  • OS: macOS
  • Copilot CLI version: 0.0.332

Example prompts or workflows

No response

Additional context

No response

Activity

  1. added theissue type on Oct 2, 2025
  2. RyanHecht commented on Oct 2, 2025

    @RyanHecht
    Collaborator

    Hi! This feature will be in today's build. I'll update this issue when it's released!

    In the meantime, if you npm install -g @github/copilot@prerelease, you should get access to it!

  3. RyanHecht commented on Oct 2, 2025

    @RyanHecht
    Collaborator

    It's now available in the latest release, 0.0.333! https://github.com/github/copilot-cli/releases/tag/v0.0.333

  4. mb21 commented on Oct 13, 2025

    @mb21

    Is this why it says now on startup:

    This project also allows Copilot to automatically execute bash commands on your machine.

    How can I disable that? --deny-tool requires an argument, but --deny-tool bash doesn't make that message go away.

Sign up for free to join this conversation on GitHub. Already have an account? Sign in to comment

Metadata

Metadata

Assignees

No one assigned

    Labels

    No labels
    No labels

    Projects

    No projects

      Milestone

      No milestone

      Relationships

      None yet

      Development

      No branches or pull requests

      Issue actions