Microsoft announced in August 2025 that support for the Model Context Protocol (MCP) is generally available in Visual Studio. MCP enables AI agents within Visual Studio to connect to external tools and services via a consistent protocol. The announcement notes that Visual Studio now provides new means to configure and manage MCP servers.
MCP, introduced by Anthropic in 2024, is an open standard that simplifies interactions between AI‑enabled development workflows and external systems such as databases, code search engines and deployment pipelines. A Visual Studio user operating Copilot in Agent mode or Chat mode can connect to that endpoint by configuring a JSON file named .mcp.json, selecting the model and enabling the tools in the chat UI (for example, the GitHub Copilot agent). Visual Studio then allows the agent to query the connected services.
{
"servers": {
"github": {
"url": "https://api.githubcopilot.com/mcp/"
}
}
}
An example of an .mcp.json file with the connection to GitHub Copilot MCP server
MCP servers can be added directly in Visual Studio via an install button exposed on the repository’s Markdown files as a badge. Alternatively, developers can add them to the .mcp.json file in different locations in the solution tree.
The docs also indicate that administrators can govern MCP usage in enterprise settings via policy and access controls in GitHub Copilot settings. The authorisation of the MCP protocol in Visual Studio follows the MCP OAuth specification. Developers can select MCP server endpoints, manage tool access and use secure authentication flows via Azure AD or other provider sign‑in.
For developers working with Visual Studio and extensions such as GitHub Copilot, MCP GA means that they may now attach AI assistants to external tool chains and systems using a standard protocol rather than custom integrations. Visual Studio documentation provides guidance on configuration files, server endpoints, linking provider API keys and specifying models for Chat experiences. At the same time, the documentation notes limitations: for example, only tools can be exposed to a Copilot agent, even though the MCP protocol allows for exposing resources and prompts. Also, there are important security risks when connecting to third-party MCP servers, outlined on Microsoft’s blog.
Microsoft provides a GitHub repository of reference implementations of MCP servers, including those that manipulate Git repositories or retrieve information from different databases. The same repository contains links to dozens of third-party MCP servers. Another source of useful MCP servers is a GitHub repository maintained by Frank Fiegel.
The rollout of MCP support in Visual Studio may have implications for tooling standardisation and security governance (given remote endpoints and authentication flows). Developers should consult the detailed documentation for configuration, .mcp.json syntax, and how to register server providers.
