From VS Code Login to CodeQL Auto fix: A Complete GitHub Secure Dev Workflow

From VS Code Login to CodeQL Autofix: A Complete GitHub Secure Dev Workflow

Getting started with GitHub inside Visual Studio Code sounds simple enough — click a button, sign in, and you’re done. At least, that’s what I assumed. But the moment I connected VS Code to GitHub, I realized I had stepped into a much bigger ecosystem: identity, security, automation, AI‑assisted coding, and a workflow that quietly takes care of things you don’t even know you need yet.

This is the story of how I logged into GitHub from VS Code for the first time — and ended up experiencing the full power of GitHub’s secure development pipeline.

Why VS Code + GitHub Is Such a Powerful Combo

Before diving into the steps, it’s worth appreciating the pairing:

  • VS Code is a lightweight editor with built‑in Git superpowers.
  • GitHub is where your code lives, evolves, and gets secured.
  • Together, they form a workflow that feels effortless once everything is connected.

If you’re new to version control or just setting up a fresh machine, this walkthrough will feel familiar.

Together, they form a productivity combo that developers love.

Step 1- Open Visual Code — Nothing fancy here. I launched VS Code on a clean setup and headed straight to the Source Control panel. VS Code immediately prompted me to sign in to GitHub — the starting point of everything that follows.

Step 2 —Signing In to GitHub (OAuth Flow) — The moment I clicked “Sign in to GitHub”, my browser opened automatically. GitHub asked me to choose which identity I wanted to use — extremely helpful when you juggle personal and organization accounts.

Behind the scenes, VS Code uses an OAuth flow to authenticate securely. No tokens to copy. No passwords to store. Just a clean, modern login experience.

Step 3-Git Credential Manager Joins the Party

After VS Code was authenticated, GitHub asked me to authorize the Git Credential Manager (GCM).

This is the unsung hero of the Git world. It securely stores your credentials so you don’t have to authenticate every time you push, pull, or clone.

GCM requested access to:

  • My GitHub organization
  • Private repositories

Once approved, GitHub confirmed:

✅ Authentication succeeded ✅ VS Code is now fully connected

And just like that, my editor became GitHub‑aware.

Step 4- Copilot Business License Activated

Since my organization assigns Copilot Business licenses, GitHub immediately showed the entitlement. It’s a small but satisfying moment — knowing that AI‑powered coding assistance is now part of your workflow.

Step 5 – Testing the Setup: Running a Python App

To validate everything end‑to‑end, I created a small Flask app using Copilot. A few lines of code, a quick debug run — and then something interesting happened.

When the app was executed in debug mode, GitHub Advanced Security automatically flagged the issue:

GitHub Advanced Security flagged a vulnerability.

Not in a noisy, overwhelming way — but with a clean, actionable alert that included:

  • CWE classification
  • CodeQL query reference
  • Suggested fix
  • Impact explanation

This wasn’t just a warning. It was a teaching moment.

Step 6- Copilot Autofix: The Patch Writes Itself

The best part? Copilot Autofix generated a patch automatically.

I reviewed it, committed it, and pushed it — all from VS Code.

CodeQL Scans: The Silent Guardians

From the GitHub Actions dashboard, I could see the workflow unfold:

  • A push to main triggered a CodeQL scan
  • Opening a pull request triggered another
  • CodeQL setup completed successfully
  • Each workflow was timestamped and linked to the triggering branch

This level of transparency makes debugging and auditing incredibly smooth.

When I created the PR with the Copilot‑generated fix, CodeQL ran again to ensure the patch didn’t introduce new issues.

That’s when it hit me: This wasn’t just a login experience. It was a secure development lifecycle unfolding automatically.

The Loop Closes — Here’s what the full cycle looked like:

  • ✅ Vulnerability detected
  • ✅ Copilot generated the fix
  • ✅ I committed the patch
  • ✅ CodeQL verified the fix

All without leaving VS Code.

This is what modern secure development feels like — automated, intelligent, and deeply integrated.

What started as a simple “log in to GitHub from VS Code” moment turned into a complete demonstration of GitHub’s secure development ecosystem:

  • Identity and authentication
  • Credential management
  • AI‑assisted coding
  • Automated vulnerability detection
  • Autofix generation
  • CodeQL verification

If you’re setting up VS Code with GitHub for the first time, don’t underestimate what happens after that login screen. You’re not just connecting an editor to a repository — you’re plugging into a workflow designed to help you write better, safer code with less effort.

And honestly, once you experience this end‑to‑end flow, it’s hard to imagine working any other way.

Thanks for browsing till the end….lets keep learning the agentic way .. lets sail together….into the future of AI‑powered development..!!

From VS Code Login to CodeQL Auto fix: A Complete GitHub Secure Dev Workflow was originally published in Javarevisited on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

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