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SSH IdentityAgent option

The IdentityAgent option specifies what UNIX-domain socket to use to communicate with the authentication agent. When configured, it overrides the environment variable SSH_AUTH_SOCK and provides the option to select a specific agent.

Besides the option to define a socket, the location of the socket can also be provided by the SSH_AUTH_SOCK environment variable. In that case the value should defined as “SSH_AUTH_SOCK” (without quotes). If the value starts with a ‘$’, it indicates that another enviroment variable is to be used.

To disable the usage of the SSH-agent, define the value “none” (without quotes).

Host *
    # Disable entities known to ssh-agent for all systems
    IdentityAgent none

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This article has been written by our Linux security expert Michael Boelen. With focus on creating high-quality articles and relevant examples, he wants to improve the field of Linux security. No more web full of copy-pasted blog posts.

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