copilot-image-gen-mcp 0.1.0

MCP server for AI image generation via Microsoft Copilot

Copilot Image Generation MCP

An MCP server that connects GitHub Copilot CLI to Microsoft Copilot's image generation backend.

Generate images from text prompts and iteratively refine them — all from the terminal. Images are saved locally and organized by session.

Requirements

• Python 3.10+
• GitHub Copilot CLI
• Microsoft 365 Copilot license with image generation enabled
• A Chromium-based browser (Edge, Chrome, or Chromium) for first-time sign-in

Quick Start

1. Install

   pip install git+https://github.com/msartem/copilot_image_gen_mcp.git
   

   Or install from source:

   git clone https://github.com/msartem/copilot_image_gen_mcp.git
   cd copilot_image_gen_mcp
   pip install .
   

2. Add to your MCP config (~/.copilot/mcp-config.json)

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "copilot-image-gen": {
         "type": "stdio",
         "command": "copilot-image-gen"
       }
     }
   }
   

3. Launch Copilot CLI

   copilot
   

4. Sign in (first time only)

   Copilot will automatically call sign_in when needed. An Edge browser window opens — sign in with your Microsoft 365 account. The auth code is captured automatically via Playwright (no manual copy-paste).

5. Try it out

   Generate an image of an elephant in Times Square
   Make the elephant golden
   Change the background to a sunset over mountains
   

After first sign-in, auth is silent via cached refresh tokens (~90 day lifetime, auto-renewing). No browser window on subsequent uses.

How It Works

1. You ask Copilot CLI to generate or modify an image
2. Copilot routes it to the generate_image or refine_image tool
3. The MCP server opens a WebSocket to Microsoft Copilot's backend
4. The backend generates the image (DALL-E) and returns it as base64 PNG
5. The image is saved to ~/.copilot-images/ and the file path is returned

Multi-turn refinement works automatically — the server maintains a conversation so each refine_image call builds on the previous image.

You → Copilot CLI → image gen MCP → M365 Copilot (Sydney) → DALL-E → PNG saved locally

Tools

Tool	Description
generate_image(prompt, orientation)	Generate a new image from text. Blocks ~15-30s, returns file path.
refine_image(prompt)	Modify the last generated image. Same conversation context.
sign_in()	Sign in to Microsoft 365 (opens browser, one-time).
new_session()	Start a fresh conversation (discard previous image context).

Orientation Options

• landscape (default)
• portrait
• square

Image Storage

Images are saved to ~/.copilot-images/ organized by session. Each session groups an initial image with its refinements:

~/.copilot-images/
├── 20250115_143022_elephant_in_times_square/
│   ├── session.json                              ← metadata (prompts, timestamps)
│   ├── 001_elephant_in_times_square.png           ← initial image
│   ├── 002_make_the_elephant_golden.png           ← first refinement
│   └── 003_change_the_background_to_a_sunset.png  ← second refinement
└── 20250116_091200_sunset_over_mountains/
    ├── session.json
    └── 001_sunset_over_mountains.png

Session directories are created lazily on first image save — no side effects until you actually generate something.

Authentication

Authentication uses Playwright to automate browser sign-in via Microsoft Edge. This works identically on macOS and Windows — no platform-specific code.

First sign-in

1. Copilot calls sign_in (or you trigger it manually)
2. An Edge window opens to the Microsoft sign-in page
3. Sign in with your M365 account (SSO may auto-complete this)
4. The auth code is captured automatically — the browser closes
5. Tokens are cached locally

Subsequent runs

Cached refresh tokens are used — no browser window, no interaction needed.

Browser selection

Playwright uses Microsoft Edge by default. To use a different Chromium-based browser:

export COPILOT_BROWSER=chrome    # or: msedge (default), chromium

Note: chromium requires playwright install chromium. Edge and Chrome use your installed browser directly — no extra install needed.

Manual auth

python auth.py          # Interactive sign-in
python auth.py logout   # Clear cached tokens

Token storage

Platform	Cache location
macOS / Linux	~/.copilot-image-gen-mcp/token_cache.json
Windows	%LOCALAPPDATA%\copilot-image-gen-mcp\token_cache.json

Environment Variables

Variable	Default	Description
COPILOT_IMAGES_DIR	~/.copilot-images	Image output directory
COPILOT_BROWSER	msedge	Browser for sign-in: msedge, chrome, chromium
COPILOT_TENANT	common	Azure AD tenant ID
COPILOT_TIMEOUT	90	Image generation timeout in seconds
COPILOT_VARIANTS	(built-in)	Feature flag overrides (advanced)

Technical Details

See TECHNICAL.md for details on the SignalR WebSocket protocol, authentication flow, image delivery format, and multi-turn refinement architecture.

Disclaimer

This is an independent community project — not affiliated with or supported by Microsoft.

It works by communicating with the same undocumented web APIs that power the M365 Copilot web/desktop app image generation. These APIs may change or break without notice. Use at your own risk.