Disable Required Copilot Bot Commits & Create Upstream PR Automation

[ylevental]

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Product Feedback

Copilot Feature Area

Copilot in GitHub

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1. Option to disable "Co-authored-by" / Required Bot Commits

The Problem:
When using the Agent to implement changes, it automatically adds itself as a committer or appends Co-authored-by: Copilot. While transparency is important, treating the IDE/Agent as a legal co-author creates "noise" in the git history.

• Analogy: When I use clang-format or an IDE's refactoring tool, the tool does not claim authorship.
• Current Workaround: Users must manually pull the branch, run git reset --soft, and force-push to squash the history into a clean, human-authored commit.

The Request:
Add a setting (e.g., "Copilot Agent: No Commits") that allows the user to accept full responsibility for the code. The resulting commit should be signed solely by the user's verified GPG key, without bot trailers. This treats Copilot as a tool, not a collaborator.

2. Allow Agent to Open PRs on Upstream Repositories

The Problem:
Currently, if I ask the Agent to fix an issue on a repo I don't maintain, it correctly forks the repo and pushes the branch, but stops there. It cannot complete the final mile: opening the Pull Request to the original upstream repository.

The Request:
The Agent should have the permissions/capability to execute the full "External Contributor" workflow:

1. Fork (if needed)
2. Branch & Commit
3. Create PR targeting upstream/main

Impact:
These changes would turn the Copilot Agent from a "code drafter" into a true "contribution assistant," allowing users to submit fixes to open source projects in a single, continuous workflow without needing to leave the browser to scrub git history.

[github-actions[bot]]

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[zeelkher]

1. Optional: Turn Off “Co-authored-by” / Bot Commit Attribution

Your comparison to tools like clang-format or IDE refactoring is accurate. In many workflows, the agent behaves more like an automated editor than a human collaborator. When every small fix leaves behind bot trailers or bot-authored commits, the history becomes noisy and harder to maintain.

A toggle such as “Disable Copilot commit authorship” or “Attribute commits to me only” would solve several issues:

Clean, human-only commit histories

Easier signing with a user’s own GPG key

No need for manual “reset → squash → force-push” cleanup

Treating Copilot as a tool instead of a credited contributor

This also aligns with how most developer tools behave today.

2. Allow the Agent to Open Pull Requests on Upstream Repositories

You’re right — the agent currently stops just before the finish line.
It forks and pushes the branch, but cannot create the actual PR to the upstream repo.

Supporting the full contributor workflow would make the Agent far more useful:

Fork if required

Create and push a branch

Automatically open a PR against the upstream repository

Populate the PR with a summary / description

This is especially impactful for open-source contributions, small fixes, and documentation improvements.

Impact

Adding both features would significantly improve end-to-end productivity:

Cleaner history

Less manual Git surgery

True “submit a fix in one step” capability

A more intuitive model for authorship and accountability

[ylevental]

Thanks for agreeing with me! Your input is highly appreciated.