GitHub Copilot#
GitHub Copilot is a feature available on github.com. Access to GitHub Copilot can be enabled for existing Azure cloud users by emailing devex@umn.edu. This feature is currently available on an opt-in basis due to the variable cost of different Copilot features and models.
Understand when to use GitHub Copilot#
Copilot works best when it has access to your projects or code files, and GitHub Copilot is the tool that has built-in access to this code. As you use it, it will become more accustomed to your projects and provide more tailored responses. GitHub Copilot uses GPT by default, but other language models are available for use.
Our Enterprise Agreement with GitHub ensures that information used with Generally Available ("GA") language models in GitHub Copilot is not used to train the model; Copilot CLI and other tools that are not used in a code editor or in the browser will retain prompts to provide the service and should be avoided.
Note: To use GitHub Copilot, you agree that you will not provide any data to it that is subject to FERPA, PHI protected by HIPAA, related to criminal convictions or offenses, clinical trial or biomedical research, or biometric information in general.
The two types of Copilot available for paid use are Copilot Business and Copilot Enterprise. Each seat purchased for Copilot Business comes with 300 free premium requests per month; certain models and features are billed using "multipliers" that will consume more premium requests per prompt. GitHub publishes a list of available Copilot models and their multipliers on their website. The GPT models are default to Copilot and come with unlimited free usage.
Why isn't the model or feature I want available to use on the UMN Enterprise, despite being advertised on github.com?#
Certain features are released early in preview form and fall outside of the Enterprise Data Agreement until they become GA. Once they leave "Microsoft preview", they are enabled for the Enterprise.
Protect University Data#
Any use of Artificial Intelligence for use at the University of Minnesota should adhere to the standards outlined in the Appropriate Use guidance page from IT@UMN.
Always evaluate the level of privacy of the data you work with before using a new technology with it.
- It is against University policy to use data classified as Private-Highly Restricted or Health Information.
- It is prohibited to use private student information as defined by the Board of Regents Student Education Records policy.
Additionally, it is important to use a keyvault for secrets management to ensure that passwords, keys, and certificates are not compromised by being shared in code files.
Paying for Copilot#
GitHub Copilot will be billed using Azure Subscriptions that are associated with a Cost Center in GitHub, managed by the Devex team.
For more information, check out our docs page on billing.