Setting up keys

Scenarios for configuring keys for a new or existing git repository:

1. I want to use the auto-generated key pair across multiple projects
2. I want to use my existing SSH key pair
3. I want to avoid symlinking my private key in the workspace

I want to use the auto-generated key pair across multiple projects

ctg init auto generates a new key for convenience. You can (but don’t have to) use the same key across multiple projects.

To do that, you can copy the private key to ~/.config/cottage/identity/ and symlink it back to the project:

mkdir -p ~/.config/cottage/identity
chmod 700 ~/.config/cottage/identity
mv -v .cottage/identity ~/.config/cottage/identity/"$(basename $PWD)"
ln -s -v ~/.config/cottage/identity/"$(basename $PWD)" .cottage/identity

renamed '.cottage/identity' -> '/home/...XXX.../.config/cottage/identity/tmp....XXX...'
'.cottage/identity' -> '/home/...XXX.../.config/cottage/identity/tmp....XXX...'

I want to use my existing SSH key pair

If you already have an SSH key pair¹ (e.g. the one you use with git), you can use it with cottage by adding a symlink to the private key in the .cottage/identity file or directory, and copying the public key to the .cottage/recipients directory.

# ssh-keygen -t rsa  # (optional: generate a new RSA key pair without passphrase)
rm -v .cottage/identity
ln -s -v ~/.ssh/id_rsa .cottage/identity
cp -v ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub .cottage/recipients/$USER

removed '.cottage/identity'
'.cottage/identity' -> '/home/...XXX.../.ssh/id_rsa'
'/home/...XXX.../.ssh/id_rsa.pub' -> '.cottage/recipients/...XXX...'

I want to avoid symlinking my private key in the workspace

You don’t have to symlink or copy your private key in the workspace.

By default, cottage looks for private keys in the .cottage/identity file or directory.

If the project-level identity is absent, it will try to load all keys from ~/.config/cottage/identity.

If that is also absent, it will try to load all keys from ~/.ssh.

You can also always mention the path to the private key using the -i / --identity flag or the COTTAGE_IDENTITY environment variable.

rm -v .cottage/identity

removed '.cottage/identity'

1. (cott)age is compatible with RSA and Ed25519 keys that are generated without passphrase. You can always generate a new SSH (e.g. RSA) key using ssh-keygen (e.g. ssh-keygen -t rsa) to use with cottage. ↩