A local alternative to GitHub Copilot cloud agent
Rusuban is a free, MIT-licensed alternative to GitHub Copilot cloud agent, formerly called Copilot coding agent. Both take GitHub work off your hands and open pull requests. Copilot cloud agent works on a task you give it, in a cloud environment, and cannot merge its own pull request. Rusuban runs Claude Code on your own machine, reads every issue and pull request, judges each one against the rules in your repo, and merges what those rules allow behind its locks. Copilot cloud agent is the better choice when your team works in GitHub's interface and wants no machine of its own to run.
This page is published by the Rusuban project. The details on Copilot cloud agent come from GitHub's documentation, plans page and changelog, checked in November 2026. GitHub renamed and repriced Copilot several times in 2026. The sources are listed at the end.
At a glance
| Rusuban | GitHub Copilot cloud agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the agent runs | On your machine, Windows, macOS or Linux | In a cloud environment built on GitHub Actions, or a custom remote environment |
| How work starts | Rusuban reads every issue and PR, every 90 seconds by default, and judges what needs it | You assign it an issue, mention @copilot in a pull request, or start a task from the Agents tab, an IDE, Slack or Teams |
| What decides the work | Plain-text rules in .rusuban/rules/, the same for every item | The task you give it |
| What it changes | Comments, closes, labels, fixes in worktrees, opens and updates PRs | Works on one branch and opens a pull request |
| Merging | Rusuban's server merges what your rules allow, behind eight gates, on the exact head it checked | The agent cannot mark its pull request ready, approve it or merge it. A person merges, or Agent Merge does once GitHub allows it |
| Model | Claude Code, on the model you choose | Auto, or a model you pick among several vendors |
| What you pay | Nothing for Rusuban. The agents run on your Claude plan | A paid Copilot plan. Its usage is billed in AI Credits, and its compute in GitHub Actions minutes (as of November 2026) |
| Source code | MIT | Proprietary |
| Setup | npm install -g rusuban, then rusuban init | Built into GitHub, behind your plan and your organization's policies |
What both do
- From an issue to a pull request. A Rusuban worker fixes a bug and opens the PR. Copilot cloud agent works on its branch and opens one too.
- Work kept apart. Rusuban's workers use worktrees of its own clone, never your checkout. Copilot works on a branch of its own.
- People keep the merge, or set its terms. Copilot's agent never approves or merges its own work. Rusuban's agents never merge: its server does, only where your rules and its locks allow.
Where Rusuban differs
Nobody has to assign it
Rusuban reads every issue, PR, review and CI run, and a judge decides what each one needs, as your rules say. You do not pick tasks for it: you write once what it may do alone and what comes to you. See issue and PR triage.
Rules you can read
The rules are Markdown files in your repo, on its default branch. They say which pull requests may merge without a person, how long a third party is waited for, and how agents write on GitHub. See Writing rules.
Merges behind locks
When your rules let a pull request merge alone, Rusuban's server merges it once eight gates pass on the head it checked, with your path and size locks among them. See auto-merge behind locks.
Your machine, your Claude plan
The agents run where your tools and test machines are, on the Claude plan you already pay for, within its limits. Rusuban adds no credits and no minutes. Its code is open, under the MIT license.
One inbox for your decisions
What your rules keep for you comes as a card, in one inbox for all your projects, answered in the dashboard or on your phone.
When Copilot cloud agent is the better choice
- Your whole team hands it tasks, from issues, pull requests, IDEs, Slack or Teams. A Rusuban instance is one person's.
- You keep no machine on. It runs in GitHub's cloud.
- You need models other than Claude. It offers models from several vendors.
Getting started
- Install Rusuban:
npm install -g rusuban, thenrusuban init. You need Node 22 or later, andghand Claude Code logged in. - Write your first rules, or start from an example.
- Keep merges paused while you read the first judgments.
Comparing other tools as well? See Rusuban vs Claude Code GitHub Actions and Rusuban vs Mergify.
Sources
Copilot cloud agent facts, checked November 2026:
- What it is, where it runs, Actions minutes: About Copilot cloud agent
- Starting a task, branches and pull requests: Asking Copilot to create a pull request
- Models and where tasks start: Changing the AI model
- No ready, approval or merge by the agent; workflows wait for approval: Risks and mitigations
- Agent Merge: GitHub changelog, October 28, 2026
- Plans and AI Credits: Copilot plans and github.com/features/copilot/plans
- Copilot Pro for open-source maintainers: Set up for teachers and open-source maintainers
- Terms: Copilot product-specific terms
Rusuban facts link to its documentation above.
GitHub and GitHub Copilot are trademarks of GitHub, Inc. Rusuban is an independent project, not affiliated with or endorsed by GitHub.