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Why separate SSH keys for Git identities
SSH authentication identifies a key, not a Git repository. If your personal and work accounts use the same key, the server can authenticate the key but cannot distinguish which identity you intended. A separate key pair for each identity gives you a clear boundary: you can remove a departing employer’s key without changing your personal access, and you can see which account a connection is supposed to use.
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The hostname creates the routing problem. A typical Git URL uses [email protected]:owner/repository.git. Two accounts on the same service therefore appear to use the same SSH destination. OpenSSH solves that by letting you create local aliases such as github.com-work and github.com-personal. Both aliases point to the real host, but each selects a different private key.
The configuration pattern at a glance
| Purpose | Setting or action | What it controls |
|---|---|---|
| Identity separation | One key pair per account or organisation | Which public key is registered on the remote service |
| Routing | A distinct Host alias in ~/.ssh/config |
Which key OpenSSH selects when Git connects |
| Predictability | IdentitiesOnly yes |
Prevents other agent-held identities from being tried |
| Repository selection | Remote URL containing the alias hostname | Which SSH configuration block a clone or fetch uses |
| Passphrase convenience | ssh-agent and ssh-add |
Whether private keys must be unlocked on every connection |
An alias is local syntax; it does not create a DNS name. The HostName directive sends the connection to the actual service hostname.
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Prepare clearly named key pairs
Choose a file name that describes the identity
Use names such as ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work and ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal. The private key has no filename requirement, but descriptive names prevent you from accidentally registering or loading the wrong key. Keep the public-key companion, ending in .pub, beside it.
OpenSSH versions have different default identity-file lists. A Debian bookworm ssh_config(5) page lists ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 among the defaults, while a newer Debian listing also includes ~/.ssh/id_mldsa44_ed25519. Do not rely on an implicit default when several identities exist; specify each file explicitly and check man ssh_config on the Linux installation you are using.
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Ed25519 is a practical modern choice on systems that support it. Generate each key separately and protect every private key with a passphrase:
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -f ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work -C "work Git identity"
ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -f ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal -C "personal Git identity"The comment is metadata for your own identification; it does not grant access. The private files must remain readable only by you. If the command creates the directory for the first time, confirm that ~/.ssh is private and that the key files are not shared through backups or dot-file repositories without encryption.
Register the public keys with the correct accounts
Copy the contents of each .pub file into the SSH-key area of the corresponding Git service account or organisation. Register id_ed25519_work.pub only with the work identity and the personal file only with the personal identity. Never upload a private key or paste its contents into a web form. If an organisation labels keys, use labels that include the machine and identity, for example “laptop-work”.
Build ~/.ssh/config with one alias per key
Create or edit ~/.ssh/config. The following pattern maps two local aliases to the same real host:
Host *
AddKeysToAgent yes
Host github.com-work
HostName github.com
User git
IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work
IdentitiesOnly yes
Host github.com-personal
HostName github.com
User git
IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal
IdentitiesOnly yesUser git is the SSH login name used by many Git hosting services; use the service’s documented SSH user if yours differs. The alias text can be any unused name, but keeping the real host plus an identity suffix makes Git URLs easy to recognise.
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Why IdentitiesOnly yes matters
OpenSSH’s default for IdentitiesOnly is no. With that default, an agent can offer additional keys beyond the file named in the host block. A server may reject the connection after too many incorrect offers, or it may authenticate the wrong account first. Setting IdentitiesOnly yes tells SSH to use only the configured identity and certificate files for that host, even when the agent contains other keys. This makes the alias deterministic.
Do not confuse this with AddKeysToAgent yes. The latter asks SSH to add a key to the agent after the key is used; it does not limit which identities the agent may offer. Keep both directives when you want automatic loading and strict identity selection.
Understand repeated IdentityFile lines
Repeating IdentityFile adds files to the identities tried in sequence; it does not replace an earlier value. That behaviour is useful when a host legitimately accepts more than one key, but it is usually the wrong choice for separate personal and work accounts. Give each alias one intended key unless you have a specific fallback requirement.
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Set the correct remote URL for every repository
Clone new repositories
Replace the normal hostname with the alias. For the work identity, a clone command looks like:
git clone [email protected]:your-org/repo.gitFor a personal repository, use the personal alias:
git clone [email protected]:your-user/repo.gitEverything after the colon remains the service’s repository path. Git passes the alias to SSH as the destination host, so OpenSSH selects the matching Host block and then connects to the HostName value.
Change an existing clone
An existing checkout keeps whatever hostname was recorded when it was cloned. Inspect it first:
git remote -vChange only the remote URL, choosing the alias that matches the repository’s account:
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git remote set-url origin [email protected]:your-org/repo.git
git remote -vThe second command confirms that fetch and push now display the alias. The repository’s .git/config stores this value; changing one checkout does not alter any other repository on the machine.
Use ssh-agent when passphrase caching is useful
Start an agent in the current shell
If no desktop session or distribution service has already started one, launch an agent and import its environment:
eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"This command affects the current shell. A new terminal may need the agent environment again unless your desktop, login manager, or shell startup already provides it.
Add and inspect keys
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal
ssh-add -lssh-add -l lists fingerprints for keys currently loaded. It does not prove that a repository uses a particular key; the host alias and IdentitiesOnly setting still determine what SSH offers.
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With AddKeysToAgent yes, the first use of a configured key can load it into the agent after you enter its passphrase. You can also add keys explicitly with ssh-add. These are separate choices: automatic loading controls convenience, while IdentitiesOnly controls selection.
Verify identity selection before pushing
Ask SSH which effective configuration it will use
OpenSSH can print the options resulting from all configuration files and command-line settings:
ssh -G github.com-workCheck that the output contains the expected hostname github.com, user git, the work identityfile, and identitiesonly yes. Repeat with the personal alias. This catches spelling errors in aliases and paths before Git is involved.
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Test authentication without opening a shell
ssh -T [email protected]
ssh -T [email protected]Git hosting services commonly respond with an account greeting and explain that interactive shell access is unavailable. The exact wording is service- and account-dependent, so use the account name shown by the service as the check rather than expecting one fixed sentence.
Trace a failed connection
Add verbose output when the test does not identify the expected account:
ssh -vT [email protected]Look for the configuration file and host block being read, the identity file offered, and whether the agent contributes another key. If the wrong key appears, verify the alias spelling, the IdentityFile path, and IdentitiesOnly yes. If the right key is offered but rejected, check that its matching public key is registered on the intended account and that file permissions allow SSH to read the private key safely.
Alternative: select a key per repository with core.sshCommand
A repository can specify its own SSH command instead of using host aliases. Set it from inside that checkout:
git config core.sshCommand "ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work"Git writes the setting under [core] in that repository’s .git/config. This approach is useful when only one repository needs an exceptional key or when you cannot change the remote URL. It applies only to that repository, so every additional checkout requires its own setting.
| Approach | Strength | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Host aliases | One central mapping works for all repositories that use the alias | Remote URLs must contain the alias hostname |
core.sshCommand |
No alias is required; selection is local to one repository | Each checkout must be configured and maintained separately |
| Relying on agent order | Little configuration initially | Selection is implicit and can change as keys are added or reordered |
For multiple identities on the same Git host, aliases plus IdentitiesOnly yes are generally easier to audit. Use a per-repository command when the exception genuinely belongs to one checkout.
Configuration scope, ordering and reusable files
OpenSSH evaluates command-line options first, then the user file ~/.ssh/config, then the system configuration. For most directives, the first value found is used. Put broad defaults before specific host blocks, and avoid a broad setting that unintentionally supplies an identity to every host.
Include can load additional configuration files using glob wildcards and ~. Relative user paths resolve under ~/.ssh. A modular layout might keep work entries in ~/.ssh/config.d/work.conf and include them from the main file:
Include ~/.ssh/config.d/*.confMatch limits following declarations until the next Host or Match. Because conditional blocks can change which options apply, inspect the effective result with ssh -G alias after editing them.
Common failure modes and fixes
Git still uses the original hostname
If git remote -v shows [email protected]:... rather than an alias, the repository never reaches your identity-specific host block. Run git remote set-url with the correct alias, then verify the remote again.
The server authenticates the wrong account
Confirm that the alias points to the intended private key and that IdentitiesOnly yes is inside that alias block. Remove accidental duplicate IdentityFile lines, inspect loaded keys with ssh-add -l, and repeat the verbose test.
“Too many authentication failures” appears
An agent holding many keys may offer them before the server accepts one. The per-alias IdentitiesOnly yes setting limits offers to the configured identity. If you use core.sshCommand, add the option explicitly:
git config core.sshCommand "ssh -o IdentitiesOnly=yes -i ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work"SSH says the private key permissions are too open
Restrict the directory and private files, then retry:
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chmod 600 ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal
chmod 644 ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_work.pub ~/.ssh/id_ed25519_personal.pubUse the ownership and permission conventions required by your distribution. Do not loosen permissions on a private key to work around an error.
Quick Recap
The configuration change appears to do nothing
- Check that the file is exactly
~/.ssh/config, not a similarly named file. - Ensure each directive is indented consistently and that the alias in the Git URL exactly matches the
Hostline. - Run
ssh -G aliasto see the effective values rather than guessing which block won. - Use
ssh -vTto distinguish configuration errors from a missing or unregistered public key.
Maintenance and security checklist
- Keep one private key per identity and label files unambiguously.
- Back up encrypted private keys, never plaintext copies in a public repository.
- Remove a key from the remote account and local agent when the identity or device should no longer have access.
- Review
~/.ssh/configafter changing distributions or OpenSSH versions because default identity-file lists can change. - Use aliases consistently in scripts, CI jobs and documentation so a repository cannot silently fall back to the wrong hostname.
- Regenerate a compromised key and register its replacement; changing a filename alone does not revoke the old public key.
A repeatable setup sequence
- Create a uniquely named key pair for each Git identity.
- Register only each public key with its matching account.
- Add one
Hostalias per identity in~/.ssh/config, includingHostName,User,IdentityFileandIdentitiesOnly yes. - Optionally enable
AddKeysToAgent yes, startssh-agent, and load keys withssh-add. - Clone with the alias hostname or update an existing repository’s
originURL. - Run
ssh -Gandssh -Tfor each alias before the first push. - If a repository needs an isolated exception, set its
core.sshCommandinstead of adding another global alias.
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