ms-refs

name	ms-refs
description	Find working code samples, verify API signatures, and fix Microsoft SDK errors using official docs. Use whenever the user is writing, debugging, or reviewing code that touches any Microsoft SDK, .NET library, Azure client library, or Microsoft API—even if they don't ask for a "reference." Catches hallucinated methods, wrong signatures, and deprecated patterns. If the task involves producing or fixing Microsoft-related code, this is the right skill. Trigger keywords: ms-refs.
context	fork
compatibility	Requires MCP server called ms-learn configured in ~/.copilot/mcp-config.json.

Microsoft Code Reference

Tools

Need	Tool	Example
API method/class lookup	microsoft_docs_search	"BlobClient UploadAsync Azure.Storage.Blobs"
Working code sample	microsoft_code_sample_search	query: "upload blob managed identity", language: "python"
Full API reference	microsoft_docs_fetch	Fetch URL from microsoft_docs_search (for overloads, full signatures)

Finding Code Samples

Use microsoft_code_sample_search to get official, working examples:

microsoft_code_sample_search(query: "upload file to blob storage", language: "csharp")
microsoft_code_sample_search(query: "authenticate with managed identity", language: "python")
microsoft_code_sample_search(query: "send message service bus", language: "javascript")

When to use:

• Before writing code—find a working pattern to follow
• After errors—compare your code against a known-good sample
• Unsure of initialization/setup—samples show complete context

API Lookups

# Verify method exists (include namespace for precision)
"BlobClient UploadAsync Azure.Storage.Blobs"
"GraphServiceClient Users Microsoft.Graph"

# Find class/interface
"DefaultAzureCredential class Azure.Identity"

# Find correct package
"Azure Blob Storage NuGet package"
"azure-storage-blob pip package"

Fetch full page when method has multiple overloads or you need complete parameter details.

Error Troubleshooting

Use microsoft_code_sample_search to find working code samples and compare with your implementation. For specific errors, use microsoft_docs_search and microsoft_docs_fetch:

Error Type	Query
Method not found	"[ClassName] methods [Namespace]"
Type not found	"[TypeName] NuGet package namespace"
Wrong signature	"[ClassName] [MethodName] overloads" → fetch full page
Deprecated warning	"[OldType] migration v12"
Auth failure	"DefaultAzureCredential troubleshooting"
403 Forbidden	"[ServiceName] RBAC permissions"

When to Verify

Always verify when:

• Method name seems "too convenient" (UploadFile vs actual Upload)
• Mixing SDK versions (v11 CloudBlobClient vs v12 BlobServiceClient)
• Package name doesn't follow conventions (Azure.* for .NET, azure-* for Python)
• Using an API for the first time

Validation Workflow

Before generating code using Microsoft SDKs, verify it's correct:

1. Confirm method or package exists — microsoft_docs_search(query: "[ClassName] [MethodName] [Namespace]")
2. Fetch full details (for overloads/complex params) — microsoft_docs_fetch(url: "...")
3. Find working sample — microsoft_code_sample_search(query: "[task]", language: "[lang]")