Step 3 · Set up your tools ≈ reading…

Set Up Your Tools

Same job, a few different front doors. Every option below is an AI coding agent that builds real Power Platform solutions — they differ in where you run them and how they feel. Pick one to start. You're not marrying it.

▶ Watch — the AI stack, explained

First, the AI stack

Before you pick a tool, it helps to see where that choice actually sits. Everything on this page is really four layers stacked together — and the tool you're choosing is just one of them. Click any layer to expand it.

            
                4
                
                  My Skills
                  Your conventions & custom skills — the rules that make output yours
                
              Encoded once in CLAUDE.md / .github/copilot-instructions.md (or as skills you write), so every prompt follows your standards without you repeating them.
2-column form sectionsOOB Status Code / State CodeGlobal option setsSingular table namesLeast data repetition

                3
                
                  AI Plugins
                  Installable containers that bundle ready-made AI skills for a product
                
              Added from a marketplace. Each plugin drops in a set of slash-command skills for one Power Platform asset type. See the full skills catalog →
DataversePower PagesCanvas AppsCode AppsModel-DrivenMicrosoft Docs

                2
                
                  AI Client
                  The app you run the agent in — this is the choice you're about to make
                
              Where you actually work with the agent. Every option lower down the page is one of these — and they all sit on the same layers above and below.
Claude Code · DesktopClaude Code · CLIGitHub Copilot · AppGitHub Copilot · VS CodeGitHub Copilot · CLI

                1
                
                  LLMs
                  The models doing the reasoning under the hood
                
              The engine every client calls. Most clients let you switch models per session (e.g. Copilot CLI's /model, Claude Code's /model).
Claude OpusClaude SonnetOpenAI GPT-5OpenAI CodexGoogle Gemini

your rules on top · the model at the base — you swap the client in the middle, the rest stays

There are two families of agent, and each comes in more than one surface:

Anthropic — Claude Code: a graphical desktop app, or the CLI in your terminal. Same engine, same config.
GitHub — Copilot: inside VS Code, the native App, or the CLI. GitHub's agent, wherever you work.

They all do the same core thing for you — read your files, plan a change, and build Power Platform assets to your conventions. The right pick is mostly about where you already spend your day.

Choose in ten seconds:

New to terminals, want the gentlest start → Claude Code · Desktop app

You live in the terminal → Claude Code · CLI (or Copilot CLI)

You're in VS Code all day → GitHub Copilot · VS Code

You want a native agent app with issue/PR workflows → GitHub Copilot · App

Anthropic · Claude Code

Our recommended starting point for Power Platform makers — the fullest Dataverse plugin support and the gentlest on-ramp.

Claude Code · Desktop app

Graphical · no terminal

A graphical app: visual diff review of every change, a sidebar for parallel sessions, integrated editor + terminal, and live app preview. Bundles Claude Code — no Node.js needed.

Best for: anyone who wants the smoothest start, and anyone who'd rather click Accept/Reject than read a terminal.

Recommended Setup guide · Members →

Claude Code · CLI

Terminal

The exact same engine in your terminal, installed via npm. Fast, scriptable, and the way to go on Linux or over SSH. Shares all config with the desktop app.

Best for: terminal-native makers, Linux users, and anyone automating runs.

Setup guide · Members →

GitHub · Copilot

GitHub's agent, if you're already living in the GitHub + VS Code world. Carries your conventions through .github/copilot-instructions.md the same way Claude Code uses CLAUDE.md.

GitHub Copilot · VS Code

In your editor

Agent mode inside the editor you already use. Great for targeted rewrites of the files in front of you, with MCP servers wired in for Dataverse.

Best for: developers who spend the day in VS Code already.

Setup guide · Members →

GitHub Copilot · App

Native desktop app

GitHub's native agentic desktop app — now GA. Start sessions straight from issues and PRs, review plans, and use Agent Merge. Plugins, MCP servers, and skills supported.

Best for: teams who run their work through GitHub issues and pull requests.

GA Setup guide · Members →

GitHub Copilot · CLI

Terminal

Copilot's agentic coding agent in your terminal — plans, edits files, runs commands, and builds Power Platform solutions with the same Dataverse + Power Platform skills as Claude Code.

Best for: terminal users who are all-in on GitHub.

Setup guide · Members →

You can run more than one. These aren't exclusive — many makers keep Claude Code for solo speed and Copilot for team PR workflows. Your conventions travel with you: the same standards live in CLAUDE.md for Claude and .github/copilot-instructions.md for Copilot, so both build to the same rules. Want the honest head-to-head first? The full Claude Code vs GitHub Copilot head-to-head is inside the Inner Circle.

Not sure? Start with Claude Code · Desktop app — it's the fastest path to your first build, and everything in the next steps of this path is written with it in mind. You can always add another tool later.

First, the AI stack

Anthropic · Claude Code

GitHub · Copilot

The step-by-step setup guides live in the Inner Circle.