Why This Matters

Manual seat management doesn't scale. API-driven seat management enables automation, audit trails, and cost control.

Concept Explained

The /copilot/seats endpoints allow: list seats, add seat, cancel seat, get seat details. Use for onboarding, offboarding, and audits.

How It Works

List seats via GET /orgs/{org}/copilot/seats. Add via POST. Cancel via DELETE. Audit by diffing seat list against org member list. Automate onboarding/offboarding hooks.

Step-by-Step Tutorial

1. List seats

2. Add seat

3. Cancel seat

4. Audit

5. Automate

Real-World Example

A team automated seat management: HR webhook triggered seat assignment on new hire, seat cancellation on offboard. Saved 30 minutes per onboarding/offboarding. Caught 5 orphaned seats (former employees still assigned) — saved $95/month.

Example Prompts / Commands / Code

import requests

ORG = 'your-org'
TOKEN = 'YOUR_GITHUB_TOKEN'

def list_seats():
    r = requests.get(f'https://api.github.com/orgs/{ORG}/copilot/seats',
                     headers={'Authorization': f'Bearer {TOKEN}'})
    return r.json()['seats']

def add_seat(login: str):
    r = requests.post(f'https://api.github.com/orgs/{ORG}/copilot/seats',
                      headers={'Authorization': f'Bearer {TOKEN}'},
                      json={'selected_usernames': [login]})
    return r.json()

def cancel_seat(seat_id: int):
    r = requests.delete(f'https://api.github.com/orgs/{ORG}/copilot/seats/{seat_id}',
                        headers={'Authorization': f'Bearer {TOKEN}'})
    return r.status_code == 204

def audit_seats():
    seats = list_seats()
    org_members = list_org_members()  # separate call
    seat_logins = {s['assignee']['login'] for s in seats}
    member_logins = {m['login'] for m in org_members}

    orphaned = seat_logins - member_logins  # seats for non-members
    unassigned = member_logins - seat_logins  # members without seats

    print(f'Orphaned seats: {orphaned}')
    print(f'Unassigned members: {unassigned}')

audit_seats()

Common Mistakes

• Not auditing regularly — orphaned seats waste money.
• Manual onboarding/offboarding — slow, error-prone.
• Not automating with HR webhooks — manual work forever.
• Forgetting to cancel on offboard — security risk.

Best Practices

• List seats weekly; audit for orphans monthly.
• Automate onboarding (HR webhook → add seat).
• Automate offboarding (HR webhook → cancel seat).
• Audit seat utilization; right-size plan if needed.
• Document the seat management workflow.

Troubleshooting

Practical Exercise

Professional Challenge

Frequently Asked Questions

Further Reading

• Copilot seat management

Official References

• Copilot seat management

Related lessons: PR-07, PR-09