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+# Copilot Instructions for sonic-utilities
+
+## Project Overview
+
+sonic-utilities provides the command-line interface (CLI) for SONiC switches. It includes `show`, `config`, `clear`, and other commands that network operators use to configure and monitor SONiC devices. This is the primary user-facing component of SONiC — every CLI command a user types goes through this repo.
+
+## Architecture
+
+```
+sonic-utilities/
+├── config/              # 'config' command group — write CONFIG_DB
+│   ├── main.py          # Main config CLI entry point
+│   ├── vlan.py          # VLAN configuration
+│   ├── interface.py     # Interface configuration
+│   └── ...
+├── show/                # 'show' command group — read and display state
+│   ├── main.py
+│   └── ...
+├── clear/               # 'clear' command group
+├── scripts/             # Standalone CLI scripts
+├── acl_loader/          # ACL loading utilities
+├── crm/                 # Critical Resource Monitoring CLI
+├── counterpoll/         # Counter polling configuration
+├── fwutil/              # Firmware update utility
+├── pfc/pfcwd/           # Priority Flow Control utilities
+├── generic_config_updater/ # GCU (Generic Config Updater) / patch apply
+├── gcu/                 # GCU commands
+├── dump/                # State dump utilities
+├── rcli/                # Remote CLI
+├── utilities_common/    # Shared utility functions
+├── tests/               # pytest unit tests
+│   └── mock_tables/     # Mock Redis data for testing
+├── setup.py             # Package setup
+└── doc/                 # Documentation
+```
+
+### Key Concepts
+- **Click framework**: All CLI commands use the Python Click library
+- **CONFIG_DB interaction**: Config commands write to Redis CONFIG_DB
+- **Show commands**: Read from various Redis DBs (STATE_DB, COUNTERS_DB, APP_DB)
+- **Yang models**: Configuration is validated against YANG models (sonic-yang-models)
+
+## Language & Style
+
+- **Primary language**: Python 3
+- **Framework**: Click (command-line interface framework)
+- **Indentation**: 4 spaces
+- **Naming conventions**:
+  - Functions/variables: `snake_case`
+  - Classes: `PascalCase`
+  - CLI command names: `kebab-case` (e.g., `show interfaces status`)
+  - Constants: `UPPER_CASE`
+- **Imports**: Standard library → third-party → local, each group separated by blank line
+- **Docstrings**: Use for all public functions
+- **String formatting**: Prefer f-strings
+
+## Build Instructions
+
+```bash
+# Build Python wheel
+python3 setup.py bdist_wheel
+
+# Install for development
+pip3 install -e .
+
+# Recommended: Build inside sonic-buildimage slave container
+# (handles all SONiC-specific dependencies automatically)
+make configure PLATFORM=generic
+make -f Makefile.work BLDENV=bookworm KEEP_SLAVE_ON=yes \
+  target/python-wheels/bookworm/sonic_utilities-1.2-py3-none-any.whl
+```
+
+## Testing
+
+```bash
+# Run all tests
+python3 setup.py test
+# Or using pytest directly
+pytest tests/ -v
+
+# Run specific test
+pytest tests/config_test.py -v -k "test_vlan"
+
+# Tests with coverage
+pytest tests/ --cov=config --cov=show --cov-report=term-missing
+```
+
+### Test Structure
+- Tests are in `tests/` directory using **pytest**
+- **Mock tables**: `tests/mock_tables/` contains mock Redis DB data
+- Tests mock the `SonicV2Connector` / `ConfigDBConnector` to avoid needing a real Redis
+- Use `click.testing.CliRunner` to test CLI commands
+- New CLI commands MUST have corresponding tests
+
+### Writing Tests
+```python
+from click.testing import CliRunner
+from config.main import config
+
+def test_my_config_command():
+    runner = CliRunner()
+    result = runner.invoke(config, ['my-feature', 'enable'])
+    assert result.exit_code == 0
+    assert 'Success' in result.output
+```
+
+## PR Guidelines
+
+- **Commit format**: `[component]: Description` (e.g., `[config/vlan]: Add VLAN range support`)
+- **Signed-off-by**: REQUIRED (`git commit -s`)
+- **CLA**: Sign Linux Foundation EasyCLA
+- **Testing**: All new commands MUST have unit tests
+- **Backwards compatibility**: Don't break existing CLI command syntax
+- **Yang validation**: New config commands should validate against YANG models
+
+## Common Patterns
+
+### Adding a New Show Command
+```python
+import click
+from tabulate import tabulate
+
+@show.group()
+def my_feature():
+    """Show my feature information"""
+    pass
+
+@my_feature.command()
+def status():
+    """Show my feature status"""
+    db = SonicV2Connector()
+    db.connect(db.STATE_DB)
+    # Read data and format output
+    click.echo(tabulate(data, headers))
+```
+
+### Adding a New Config Command
+```python
+@config.group()
+def my_feature():
+    """Configure my feature"""
+    pass
+
+@my_feature.command()
+@click.argument('value')
+def set(value):
+    """Set my feature value"""
+    db = ConfigDBConnector()
+    db.connect()
+    db.mod_entry('MY_TABLE', 'key', {'field': value})
+```
+
+### Database Access Patterns
+- `ConfigDBConnector` — for CONFIG_DB reads/writes
+- `SonicV2Connector` — for multi-database access
+- Always use `utilities_common` helper functions where available
+
+## Dependencies
+
+- **sonic-py-common**: Common Python utilities
+- **sonic-config-engine**: Configuration rendering
+- **sonic-yang-models**: YANG model definitions for validation
+- **python-swsscommon**: Python bindings for swss-common
+- **Click**: CLI framework
+- **tabulate**: Table formatting for show commands
+- **natsort**: Natural sorting
+
+## Gotchas
+
+- **Mock tables must match real DB schema**: When writing tests, ensure mock data reflects actual CONFIG_DB/STATE_DB structure
+- **Multi-ASIC support**: Commands must work on both single-ASIC and multi-ASIC platforms; use `multi_asic` utilities
+- **YANG validation**: config commands may fail if YANG models aren't updated for new fields
+- **Click context**: Use `click.pass_context` properly for nested command groups
+- **Output format**: Show commands should use consistent formatting (tabulate); don't invent new formats
+- **Backwards compatibility**: Never change existing command syntax without a deprecation path
+- **DB schema dependencies**: If you add a new CONFIG_DB table, update sonic-yang-models too
+- **Testing without SONiC**: Unit tests must work without a real SONiC environment — mock all DB access