How to configure
multiple git accounts

Configure your machine to use GitHub, Gitlab, Azure Repos and Bitbucket accounts simultaneously with git.

This guide explains how to configure your machine to access multiple git repositories, using different credentials between them, without requiring to login and logout from those accounts constantly. Applies for both Linux and Windows (though you can replicate the Linux steps on Mac). It has no limits regarding the number of accounts per provider.

If you use Github Desktop, please check these quick guides.

You can have a single account configured as usual but use this method to integrate additional accounts. For example, if you are already using GitHub, you only need to follow this procedure for the extra accounts that you are going to work with.

Pre-requisites

Git is installed and you understand its basic functioning.

Steps

1. Go to the following path (if the folder .ssh does not exists, create it):

   # Linux
   ~/.ssh
   
   # Windows 
   C:\users\USER_NAME\.ssh
   

2. Create a new ssh key. Important: When the asked for a passphrase, if you are on a safe machine, you can press ENTER and leave the key without a passphrase. By doing that, you will avoid the requirement to type the passphrase constantly (or needing to configure the ssh-agent, by default).

   # Linux
   ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096
   
   # Windows 
   ssh-keygen.exe
   
   # Filename example:
   file name: id_rsa_gitlab
   # Follow the process...
   

   For the filename, it is recommended to use something descriptive as: id_rsa_[PROVIDER]_[ACCOUNT]. Where:

   • PROVIDER can be github, gitlab, azurerepos, etc.
   • ACCOUNT (optional) could be used in case of having more than one account per PROVIDER.
   • For example:
     • id_rsa_github
     • id_rsa_github_work

3. Finishing the previous steps, you will see two files, one of them with extension .pub (public). Open the file and copy all its contents to add a new key to your respective git provider:

   • Add a new SSH key on Github

   • Add a new SSH key on Gitlab - Follow the guide starting from step 2.

   • Add a new SSH key on Azure Repos - Follow the guide starting from step 2.

   • Add a new SSH key on Bitbucket - Follow the guide starting from step 2.

4. Next, you must create a file named config located in the folder .ssh (where you previously created the keys). The file contents must be filled customizing the following sample:

   # Github
   Host github.com
   HostName github.com
   User git
   IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_rsa_github
   
   # Gitlab
   Host gitlab.com
   HostName gitlab.com
   User git
   IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_rsa_gitlab
   
   # Azure repos
   Host ssh.dev.azure.com
   HostName ssh.dev.azure.com
   IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_rsa_azurepos
   # Replace with your account
   User your_msft@account.com
   IdentitiesOnly yes
   
   # Bitbucket
   Host bitbucket.org
   HostName bitbucket.org
   User git
   IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_rsa_bitbucket
   
   # In case that you have multiple accounts per provider
   # For example:
   
   # Github work
   Host github.com-work
   HostName github.com
   User git
   IdentityFile ~/.ssh/id_rsa_github_work
   

5. Now you can clone the project that you want, browsing into the repository URL ans selecting the option SSH. Keep in mind that:

   • If you only have one account per provider:

     git clone URL_SSH
     
     # Example
     git clone git@github.com:equilaterus/wikilaterus.git
     

   • If you have multiple accounts per provider, be sure to use the correct Host (reviewing the set-up done in the previous step):

     # Modify the host!
     git clone URL_SSH_MODIFIED
     
     # Example for github work
     git clone git@github.com-work:equilaterus/wikilaterus.git
     

We have finished! Now you can work normally on your git repos, no matter the user account. The advantaje is that this configuration is done only once and according to the host that you use during a git clone, GIT will know which set of keys it needs to use to obtain access to the repo with a correct user account.