The Tool Desk
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How the connection works
The workflow assumes a narrowly scoped AWS IAM role through GitHub’s OpenID Connect (OIDC) identity provider. It then uses the AWS CLI and Session Manager plugin to start a Session Manager session to the instance. SSH’s ProxyCommand sends the SSH connection through that session to the instance’s SSH service.
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This avoids an inbound TCP port 22 connection from the runner to the instance, so this pattern does not require a security-group ingress rule for GitHub runner address ranges. It does not disable SSH on the instance: SSH must be running, and the client must authenticate as a valid OS user with the corresponding SSH key.
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What you need before configuring the workflow
- A GitHub OIDC trust relationship: An AWS IAM identity provider for GitHub and a role whose trust policy restricts which repository and branch, tag, or GitHub environment can assume it. For the official GitHub action, GitHub documents
sts.amazonaws.comas the audience. Its guide warns that a condition is required to prevent untrusted repositories from requesting tokens. - An SSM-managed EC2 instance: The instance must be registered as a Systems Manager managed node, and it must have a network path to the Systems Manager endpoints. The specific instance role, subnet, endpoints, and egress depend on your AWS account architecture.
- SSH configured on the instance: The SSH service must be listening on the port you intend to use. The OS account must accept the public key corresponding to the private key available to the workflow.
- Tools on the runner: Install and configure the AWS CLI and the Session Manager plugin in the GitHub Actions runner environment. AWS lists client prerequisites in its Session Manager plugin installation guide. Check that guide for current installation instructions for your runner operating system.
- Scoped IAM permissions: The role needs permission to start the intended session and identify its target. Limit permissions to the necessary Systems Manager actions, instance, and session document where the policy supports that scope; do not use broad wildcards as a production shortcut.
Configure GitHub OIDC access to AWS
- Register GitHub as an IAM OIDC identity provider. Follow GitHub’s AWS OIDC configuration guide. Use the audience required by the official action,
sts.amazonaws.com. - Create an IAM role with a restrictive trust policy. Add conditions that identify the intended GitHub repository and restrict the subject to the branch, tag, or GitHub environment permitted to deploy. Do not leave the trust relationship open to arbitrary repositories.
- Grant the role only the session permissions the workflow needs. Scope the Systems Manager permissions to the target instance and session document where supported. Review the AWS permissions guidance for Session Manager user permissions and adapt it to your intended operation.
- Configure the workflow to request an OIDC token. Grant the job the GitHub Actions
id-token: writepermission and use the AWS credential action documented by GitHub to assume the role. Keep deployment permissions limited to the job that needs them.
Set up SSH over Session Manager
- Install the AWS CLI and Session Manager plugin on the runner. Use AWS’s current installation steps for the runner platform, then verify both tools are available on the job’s
PATH. - Make the SSH private key available to the job securely. The matching public key must already be authorized for the chosen OS account on the instance. Do not print the private key or expose it in workflow logs.
- Add an SSH host configuration that invokes Session Manager. In the runner’s SSH configuration, use the EC2 instance ID as the host target and set a ProxyCommand like this:
Host i-0123456789abcdef0
HostName i-0123456789abcdef0
User ec2-user
IdentityFile ~/.ssh/deploy_key
ProxyCommand aws ssm start-session --target %h --document-name AWS-StartSSHSession --parameters 'portNumber=%p'Replace the example instance ID, OS username, and key path with values for your environment. The command’s %h and %p substitutions pass the configured host and SSH port to aws ssm start-session. The AWS-StartSSHSession document starts the tunnel to the instance’s SSH service; it does not replace SSH key authentication.
- Connect using the configured host alias. Run
ssh i-0123456789abcdef0or use that alias as the host in your deployment command. SSH will invoke the ProxyCommand, which in turn starts the Session Manager session. - Run the deployment command through SSH. Keep the command and any application-specific setup appropriate to your deployment. No inbound port 22 rule from the runner is needed for this route.
Choose SSH tunneling or port forwarding
These Session Manager options solve different problems. Choose SSH tunneling when the workflow needs an SSH session or commands on the EC2 host. Choose port forwarding when it needs a local TCP connection to a service on the managed node or a remote host. AWS explains port-forwarding behavior in its Session Manager session documentation and port-forwarding guidance.
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| Choice | Use it for | Target requirements | Authentication and access | Agent version noted by AWS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSH through Session Manager | SSH login and commands on the EC2 host | SSM-managed node with SSH running | IAM-authorized Session Manager session plus SSH OS-user and key authentication | Not stated in the cited SSH guidance |
| Port forwarding to the managed node | A local TCP connection to a service on the managed node | SSM-managed node with the target service listening on the forwarded port | IAM-authorized Session Manager tunnel; the application protocol may require its own authentication | 2.3.672.0 minimum |
| Port forwarding to a remote host | A local TCP connection through the managed node to a service on another host | Managed node with network reachability to the remote host and its service | IAM-authorized Session Manager tunnel; the application protocol may require its own authentication | 3.1.1374.0 minimum |
AWS specifies the listed minimum SSM Agent versions for Session Manager port forwarding in its session documentation. Those version requirements apply to the forwarding cases, not as a general SSH-over-Session-Manager requirement.
For a task that only needs to execute commands on an instance, Systems Manager Run Command may be a better fit than opening an SSH session. It is a separate Systems Manager operation with its own permission and execution model; choose it only after checking the requirements for your account and workflow.
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Plan for the SSH and Session Manager logging limitation
AWS states: “Logging isn’t available for Session Manager sessions that connect through port forwarding or SSH.” In these modes, SSH encrypts its payload inside the TLS connection and Session Manager acts as a tunnel, so Session Manager cannot record the commands or forwarded application data. The session still uses AWS-authorized access, but that does not make the SSH transcript available in Session Manager logs.
Account for that limitation in your audit design. If command-level records are required, consider whether the task can use a suitable alternative such as Run Command, or arrange appropriate logging at the operating-system or application layer. Validate that any chosen logging approach captures what your organization needs.
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Troubleshoot common connection failures
- The workflow cannot assume the role: Check the GitHub job’s OIDC permission, the role trust policy’s audience and subject conditions, and whether the repository and branch, tag, or environment match those conditions.
start-sessioncannot reach the target: Confirm the instance is an SSM managed node, the role can start the intended session, and the instance has connectivity to Systems Manager endpoints through its configured network path.- The proxy command fails on the runner: Verify that both AWS CLI and the Session Manager plugin are installed and available to the SSH process, and that the AWS CLI is using the credentials obtained through OIDC.
- SSH reaches the tunnel but authentication fails: Check that SSH is running on the target port, the selected OS username is correct, and the workflow’s private key corresponds to a public key authorized for that user.
- A forwarded service is unreachable: Confirm the service is listening on the destination port, the managed node can reach the remote host when forwarding to one, and the installed SSM Agent meets AWS’s minimum version for that forwarding mode.
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