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VS Code + GitHub Copilot Setup

Connect VS Code with GitHub Copilot to TI Mindmap HUB's threat intelligence platform via MCP.

Prerequisites

Setup

1. Create MCP Configuration

In your project folder (or user settings), create .vscode/mcp.json:

{
  "servers": {
    "ti-mindmap": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.ti-mindmap-hub.com/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "X-API-Key": "${input:tiMindmapApiKey}"
      }
    }
  },
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "tiMindmapApiKey",
      "type": "promptString",
      "description": "TI Mindmap HUB API Key",
      "password": true
    }
  ]
}

2. Reload VS Code

Press Ctrl+Shift+P (or Cmd+Shift+P on macOS) and run: 

Developer: Reload Window

3. Enter API Key

When prompted, enter your TI Mindmap HUB API key (format: tim_xxxxxxxxxxxx).

Alternative: Hardcoded API Key

If you prefer not to be prompted each time:

{
  "servers": {
    "ti-mindmap": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.ti-mindmap-hub.com/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "X-API-Key": "tim_your_api_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

⚠️ Security Warning: Don't commit API keys to version control. Add .vscode/mcp.json to your .gitignore.

User-Level Configuration

To make TI Mindmap available in all projects, add to your VS Code settings (settings.json):

{
  "mcp.servers": {
    "ti-mindmap": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.ti-mindmap-hub.com/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "X-API-Key": "tim_your_api_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Using with GitHub Copilot

Open Copilot Chat

Press Ctrl+Shift+I (or Cmd+Shift+I on macOS) to open Copilot Chat.

Verify Connection

  1. Click on the Tools icon (🔧) in the chat
  2. You should see ti-mindmap listed with 16 tools

Example Prompts

List recent reports: 

Show me the latest threat intelligence reports about ransomware

Get report details: 

Get the full details and AI summary for report [report-id]

Search for CVEs: 

Search for CVE-2024-3400 and explain its impact

Get weekly briefing: 

What's in the latest weekly threat briefing?

Search IOCs: 

Search for any reports mentioning the domain malware.example.com

Get MITRE ATT&CK TTPs: 

Show me the MITRE ATT&CK techniques from report [report-id]

Submit article for analysis: 

Analyze this threat article: https://example.com/threat-report

Available Tools

Category Tools
Reports list_reports, get_report_details, get_report_content, get_available_sources, get_available_tags
Briefings get_latest_briefing, list_briefings, get_briefing_by_date
IOCs search_ioc
CVEs search_cve, search_cves_by_keyword, list_cves, get_cves_by_article, get_cve_statistics
Other get_statistics, submit_article

Example Workflows

Investigating a Threat

1. "List the latest reports about APT29"
2. "Get the full details for the first report"
3. "Show me the MITRE ATT&CK TTPs from this report"
4. "Search for any CVEs mentioned in this report"
5. "Get the STIX bundle for this report"

Daily Threat Review

1. "What's in the latest weekly briefing?"
2. "List all critical CVEs from the past 7 days"
3. "Show me reports about ransomware from this week"

IOC Investigation

1. "Search for reports mentioning IP 192.168.1.100"
2. "Search for the domain evil.example.com"
3. "Look up hash d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e"

Troubleshooting

Tools not appearing

  1. Verify .vscode/mcp.json exists and is valid JSON
  2. Reload VS Code (Developer: Reload Window)
  3. Check that your API key is correct

Authentication errors

  1. Verify your API key at ti-mindmap-hub.com/settings
  2. Ensure the key has not expired
  3. Check for typos in the configuration

Connection timeout

  1. Check your internet connection
  2. Verify the server is accessible: curl https://mcp.ti-mindmap-hub.com/health
  3. Check if a firewall is blocking the connection

View logs

  1. Open Output panel (Ctrl+Shift+U)
  2. Select "GitHub Copilot" from the dropdown
  3. Look for MCP-related messages

Security Best Practices

  1. Use input prompts for API keys instead of hardcoding
  2. Add to .gitignore: 
    .vscode/mcp.json
  3. Rotate keys regularly in your account settings
  4. Use separate keys for different projects/environments

Support