HowTo: Configure .prompt Files for Markdown Preview in Visual Studio

This guide explains how to configure Visual Studio to render .prompt files with the markdown preview button.

Quick Setup

The repository is already configured with the necessary files:

  1. .editorconfig - Associates .prompt files with markdown-like settings
  2. .vs/fileextensions.json - Maps .prompt extension to markdown content type

Manual Configuration (If Needed)

If the automatic configuration doesn’t work, follow these steps:

Method 1: Using Visual Studio Settings

  1. Open Visual Studio
  2. Go to Tools → Options
  3. Navigate to Text Editor → File Extension
  4. In the Extension box, type: prompt
  5. In the Editor dropdown, select: Markdown Editor
  6. Click Add, then OK

Method 2: Using Extension Mappings

Add the following to your Visual Studio settings:

{
  "fileExtensionToContentTypeDefinitions": [
    {
  "fileExtension": ".prompt",
      "contentType": "markdown"
    }
  ]
}

Method 3: Registry Configuration (Advanced)

For system-wide configuration, you can add a registry entry:

Path: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VisualStudio\<version>\Text Editor\FileExtension\Extensions

Key: prompt Value: Markdown Editor

Verifying Configuration

  1. Open any .prompt file in the solution (e.g., .github/copilot/prompts/Issue-Generate analysis from current conversation.prompt)
  2. Look for the Preview button in the Visual Studio toolbar
  3. Click it to view the markdown-rendered version

Troubleshooting

Preview Button Not Appearing

  • Restart Visual Studio after configuration changes
  • Ensure the Markdown Editor extension is installed
  • Try reinstalling Visual Studio with Web Development workload

Syntax Highlighting Not Working

  • Go to Tools → Options → Text Editor → All Languages
  • Verify that syntax highlighting is enabled
  • Reset Visual Studio settings if needed

Extension Association Not Persisting

  • Check if .vs folder is in .gitignore
  • Verify file permissions for .vs/fileextensions.json
  • Use Method 1 (Visual Studio Settings) as an alternative

Additional Resources

Notes

  • The .vs folder is typically excluded from version control
  • Configuration may need to be reapplied on different machines
  • Consider documenting this setup in your team’s onboarding guide