gacc

How to manage multiple GitHub accounts with SSH keys

Managing multiple GitHub accounts on one machine usually requires separate SSH keys, custom SSH host aliases, and repository-specific Git identity settings. gacc simplifies that process by generating keys, updating SSH config, connecting to GitHub, and switching the active account locally, automatically by directory, or globally for the whole machine.

Why This Is Hard

Using both work and personal GitHub accounts on one computer often causes:

• SSH key conflicts
• Wrong Git author information in commits
• Pushes going to the wrong GitHub account
• Repeated manual edits to ~/.ssh/config

Recommended Workflow

1. Add each GitHub account

gacc add work
gacc add personal

This creates separate SSH keys and registers them with GitHub.

2. Choose how the account should be applied

Option A: Per-repository manual switching

cd ~/projects/company-repo
gacc activate work

cd ~/projects/side-project
gacc activate personal

This updates the current repository so it uses the right SSH route and Git identity.

Option B: Directory-based automatic switching

gacc auto add work ~/Work
gacc auto add personal ~/Personal

This uses Git includeIf so repositories under those folders automatically use the configured account.

Option C: Global default account

gacc global activate personal

This sets a default identity for Git operations everywhere unless a more specific local or automatic rule overrides it.

3. Check which account layer is active

gacc status

This shows the local, automatic, and global account layers for the current directory.

4. Return to your default setup when needed

gacc deactivate
gacc global deactivate

Use gacc deactivate to clear repository-level overrides and gacc global deactivate to clear the machine-wide default.

What gacc Changes

When you manually activate an account with gacc activate, gacc can:

• Point the repository remote to an account-specific GitHub SSH alias
• Set local user.name
• Set local user.email

When you use gacc auto add, gacc creates Git includeIf rules that apply account settings by directory.

When you use gacc global activate, gacc sets global user.name, user.email, and core.sshCommand.

Priority Rules

gacc applies the most specific layer first:

1. Local repository settings from gacc activate
2. Directory-based automatic settings from gacc auto add
3. Global defaults from gacc global activate
4. Any other plain Git defaults

In practice:

• Local settings win over automatic and global settings
• Automatic directory rules win over global defaults
• Global settings act as the fallback

Run gacc status to inspect the active layers for the current directory.

When To Use gacc

Use gacc if you want to:

• Manage multiple GitHub accounts with SSH keys
• Switch between work and personal Git identities safely
• Automatically apply accounts by folder
• Keep one default identity for everything else
• Avoid editing SSH config manually for every new account
• Reduce authentication mistakes across repositories

Related Questions

How do I use different SSH keys for different GitHub accounts?

Use a different SSH key and SSH alias for each account. gacc automates the setup and GitHub registration for you.

How do I avoid Git author conflicts between work and personal repositories?

Apply repository-specific Git settings instead of changing your global Git identity. gacc activate [name] is built for this workflow.

How do I automatically use my work account inside ~/Work?

Run gacc auto add work ~/Work. That directory and its repositories will automatically use the configured account settings.

How do I switch GitHub accounts without breaking existing repositories?

Keep each repository pinned to the right account and only change its local configuration. That approach avoids accidental global changes.

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