Prism for AL Connector
Prism for AL Connector is Statical's extension for Visual Studio Code. It takes you from any line of AL code in Visual Studio Code to the same place in Prism for AL, and it gives GitHub Copilot in agent mode Prism's MCP server.
Opening it
Install the extension (see Install). It starts by
itself when Visual Studio Code opens a folder with an app.json or an .al file. Its
commands are in the editor's context menu and the Command Palette
(Ctrl+Shift+P); its settings are under Prism for AL Connector
Settings in Visual Studio Code's settings.
Install
-
In Visual Studio Code, open the Extensions view (Ctrl+Shift+X) and search for
prism-al, or open Prism for AL Connector on Visual Studio Marketplace. - Select Install.
The extension needs no configuration when Prism for AL is installed from its package: it finds
StaticalPrism.exe and StaticalPrismCmd.exe by name. Commands that work with
downloaded symbols need Microsoft's AL Language extension; if it is missing, the Connector offers to install it.
Commands
| Command | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| View in Prism for AL | The context menu of an .al file's editor, and the Command Palette |
Starts Prism for AL if it is not running, opens the folder or workspace if it is not open, and goes to the object and position nearest the cursor. |
| Open workspace in Prism for AL | The Command Palette, when a folder is open and the AL Language extension is active | Starts Prism for AL if it is not running and opens the folder or workspace. |
A command that cannot reach Prism for AL shows one of these messages:
| Message | Fix |
|---|---|
| “No Prism for AL executable found: See settings for manually specifying an exe file” | Set Prism for AL exe file (see Settings). |
| “Failed to launch Prism for AL” | The file in Prism for AL exe file did not start. Correct the path, or clear it. |
| “Prism for AL is busy, please try again later.” | Prism for AL is loading or working. Run the command again when it is done. |
MCP server
The Connector registers Prism's MCP server with Visual Studio Code, so GitHub Copilot in agent mode answers
questions about your code from Prism's symbol index and code graph rather than from text search. There is no
mcp.json to write.
-
The server is offered when the open folder has an
app.jsonat its root or, for a.code-workspace, when one of its folders does. - It appears as Prism for AL under MCP: List Servers.
-
It runs over stdio: Visual Studio Code starts
StaticalPrismCmd.exe mcp-server-stdioitself, so no Prism window is needed. Each start indexes the workspace and builds the code graph, and the tools become available as that work finishes. - The Connector also tells Copilot when to use Prism's tools instead of text search.
To connect Copilot to a running Prism server over HTTP, or to set up another agent, see MCP server.
Settings
To open them, select the gear of Prism for AL Connector in the Extensions view, then Settings.
| # | Setting | Options | Default | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Prism Exe: “Prism for AL exe file (optional)” | A path to StaticalPrism.exe or a shortcut (.lnk) to it |
Empty | The Prism for AL the commands start. Empty finds it by name. Set it only if Prism for AL is not found, as with the compat package on Windows Server 2016 (Point the Connector and command line at Prism on Windows Server 2016). Applies the next time a command starts Prism for AL. |
| 2 | Prism Cmd Exe: “Prism for AL command-line exe file, used to run the MCP server (optional)” | A path to StaticalPrismCmd.exe |
Empty | The exe that runs the MCP server. Empty finds it by name. Applies at once. |
| 3 | Mcp: Enabled: “Offer Prism's MCP server to this window.” | On, Off | On | Whether the window offers Prism's MCP server to Copilot. Applies at once. |