the same goal can usually be achieved with this one time setup (instead of per repo):

multiple @github accounts without messing with hostnames in ssh configs & standard git: urls for cloning:

~/.gitconfig:
[includeIf "gitdir:~/work/"]
path = .gitconfig_work

~/.gitconfig_work:
[user]
email = …
[core]
sshCommand = ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_…_work -o 'IdentitiesOnly yes'

https://twitter.com/wbolster/status/1127265684319293440

A problem arises with this trick when your repo uses submodules that can only be accessed by a specific account. The problem is that you’ll need to change the urls in your .gitmodules file as well, which you then can’t commit. If anyone happens to know a way around that, I’d love to know :)

Well, the trick is not a trick at all - this is pretty standard OpenSSH config. Obviously, not limited to Git or GitHub, et al.

In terms of actual Git, I like @wbolster’s solution much more, especially if one copy-pastes URLs a lot - no need to remember to modify them.

Please note that this may technically violate GitHub’s terms of service, see section B.3. Account Requirements:

• One person or legal entity may maintain no more than one free Account (if you choose to control a machine account as well, that’s fine, but it can only be used for running a machine).

Separate local users can do the job, too. Each gets its own ~/.gitconfig and ~/.ssh.

That’s a neat trick.

However, I wonder what kind of motivation people have for leading a double life that don’t require stronger anonymity measures than just separate accounts.

That’s nice. I usually work with a combination of direnv and setting GIT_SSH properly.

I use this trick with my local GoCD hosting, since it doesn’t allow you to configure which ssh key you want to use for a version control checkout. Though it looks like I might swap to wbolster’s trick.

nice post =)

Related: remember that your commits are tied to an email address. If you want to associate them with your account long-term (eg, your open source work), be sure you use an email address you control long-term (eg, not a work address).

I used this trick so you don’t have to change remote path or anything. Create a file kgit in ~/bin

#!/usr/bin/env bash
ssh -i $HOME/.ssh/[other-personal-ssh-key] $1 $2

Whenever I need to switch to personal account:

export GIT_SSH=$HOME/bin/kgit

This tell git when cloning/pushing via SSH it will use the right personal ssh key.

You can also create a shell function and put it into your rc file:

kgit () {
	export GIT_SSH=$HOME/bin/kgit
}

Now simply run kgit in your shell.