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GitHub Copilot for JetBrains plugin inspection, 2026-10-01

Background and method

The user requested analysis of plugin structure/documentation and JetBrains Copilot usage collection. No JetBrains IDE or %APPDATA%\JetBrains existed locally. Following the documentation/source inspection process, the Windows x64 Marketplace plugin github-copilot-intellij 1.18.0-261, updateId 1173985, was downloaded/unpacked. Kotlin/Java constant-pool strings were checked in ignored build/jb-copilot-analysis/, alongside official GitHub troubleshooting documentation. No IDE started and no paid usage was generated.

Local formats

  • Default local data lacks per-call tokens.
    • Embedded Nitrite session database, bundled h2-mvstore 2.2.224: NitriteAgentSessionPersistenceService names copilot-agent-sessions-nitrite.db. NtAgentSession has turns, modelName/modelProvider/modelIdType, sessionStatus and turnCreditsJson; NtAgentTurn/NtAgentMessage contain model information. turnCreditsJson decodes RestoredTurnCredits(messageId, credits): credits/quota, not tokens, comparable to CLI nano AIU/premium multipliers. Quotas are neither converted nor added to tokens. Project.getDirectoryStorePath builds the parent from project .idea-related storage; the exact subpath needs a real sample.
    • idea.log is diagnostic output; official instructions use Help → Show Log.
    • telemetry.properties contains an App Insights key for remote telemetry, outside local-source scope.
  • Per-call tokens require enabled OTel export. Its names are related to VS Code github.copilot.chat.otel.*:
    • CopilotApplicationState: otelEnabled, otelExporterType (file/otlp-http/otlp-grpc/console; default protocol otlp-http), otelEndpoint, otelOutfile, otelServiceName, otelResourceAttributes and otelCaptureContent. CopilotOtelSettings sends them to copilot-language-server.
    • Official viewing-logs documentation describes optional Agent debug File Logging under Settings → Tools → Copilot → Chat, corresponding to file export.
    • The plugin’s Agent Debug Panel OTelSpanProvider$getEventRows$2 contains gen_ai.response.model, gen_ai.usage.input_tokens, gen_ai.usage.output_tokens, gen_ai.usage.cache_read.input_tokens and gen_ai.usage.cache_creation.input_tokens. OtlpSpan reads line-oriented JSON attributes/status through readSpansFromFile; GetAgentDebugLogPath, debug/getAgentDebugLogPath, returns the path.
  • Native agent: copilot-agent/native/*/copilot-language-server.exe, a Node SEA executable with compressed strings that cannot be read directly, related to CLI/VS agents.

Adapter decision

  • No new adapter for default files: they hold credits, which the user’s requirements keep separate from the main token statistics.
  • JetBrains intake uses the existing otel adapter (M5). Enable otelExporterType=file and otelOutfile in plugin settings, then add outfile as a manual root. NDJSON span format is related to the VS Code exporter, but without a local JetBrains environment this remains documentation/source analysis. Verify a real sample under V30 when available. The otel capability table records this format and limitation.
  • otelCaptureContent puts prompt/response bodies in outfile. The application reads only permitted statistical keys; bodies are neither stored nor output, as for VS Code OTel.
  • The manually selected JetBrains outfile and the application’s OTLP receiver must not count overlapping calls. Reading the same file in JetBrains Debug Panel is harmless.

Inspection references

  • Marketplace updateId 1173985, 1.18.0-261 windows-x64 plugin.
  • Constants: NitriteAgentSessionPersistenceService (DB name), NtAgentSession/ RestoredTurnCredits, CopilotApplicationState (settings/default protocol), OtelExporterType (four values), CopilotOtelSettings, OTelSpanProvider* (gen_ai fields/readSpansFromFile), GetAgentDebugLogPathCommand (debug/getAgentDebugLogPath), telemetry.properties (App Insights key).
  • Official Viewing logs for GitHub Copilot in your environment: JetBrains idea.log and optional Agent Debug Panel/Agent debug File Logging.
  • Outstanding: actual outfile rows, default otelServiceName and exact Nitrite database path require a real JetBrains environment/sample and subsequent local checks.