github / github/copilot-cli

Feature Request: --disable-plugin flag for per-session plugin control

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#3,452 0 comments 0 reactions 0 assignees View on GitHub
area:plugins
Dominant language
Shell
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Merged PRs (30d)
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Description

## Summary

Currently, there is no way to start a Copilot CLI session with specific plugins disabled without fully uninstalling them. A `--disable-plugin ` startup flag would allow lightweight sessions without losing plugin configuration.

## Current behaviour

The only way to start without a plugin is to uninstall it:
```bash
copilot plugin uninstall
# ...later...
copilot plugin install
```

## Proposed change

Add a `--disable-plugin ` flag (can be used multiple times, similar to the existing `--disable-mcp-server`):

```bash
# Start a minimal session — no user plugins, only built-in tools
copilot --disable-plugin security-best-practices --disable-plugin context-engineering

# Or a blanket flag to skip all plugins for this session
copilot --no-plugins
```

This mirrors the existing pattern of `--disable-mcp-server` and `--disable-builtin-mcps` which already provide per-session MCP control.

## Use case

Power users often configure multiple plugins for different workflows. A simple alias pattern like:

```bash
alias copilot_minimal='copilot --no-plugins --disable-mcp-server playwright --disable-mcp-server postgres'
```

...would let you switch between heavy and lightweight sessions without touching installed state.

## Related

- #2714 — requests persistent `plugin enable/disable` commands (different angle: that is config-level; this is per-session flag)

## Notes

The feature gap is noticeable because MCP servers already have this per-session control (`--disable-mcp-server`) but plugins do not. Parity between the two would make the CLI much more composable for scripting and alias-based workflows.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

Research direction

Start by locating the existing --disable-mcp-server and --disable-builtin-mcps option definitions and trace how session startup loads plugins. Define the behavior of repeated --disable-plugin flags and --no-plugins, then add coverage showing that disabled plugins are skipped without changing installed configuration.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
shell
Domain
cli
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
4/5
Estimated time
3-5 days
Activity status
Quiet
Clarity
Mostly clear
Newbie friendliness
48/100

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