Configuring the new Bitwarden feature to use it as an SSH-agent

I’ve been using Bitwarden as my password manager for a couple of years now as its reliable, open-source, easy to use across multiple devices, and secure.

Now, recently I discovered that Bitwarden added an SSH agent functionality and wanted to try it out. This post walks through setting up and using Bitwarden’s SSH agent on Linux.

Why Use Bitwarden as an SSH Agent?

You might be wondering why use Bitwarden for SSH when traditional SSH key management works fine?

Well, having your SSH keys in the same secure vault as your passwords means everything is encrypted, backed up, and synced across devices automatically.

Second, Bitwarden can prompt you for authorization before allowing an SSH connection, adding an extra layer of security beyond a simple passphrase-protected key file.

Finally, if you already use Bitwarden across multiple machines, this centralizes your key management into a service that you already use, which is pretty good tbh.

How Bitwarden SSH Agent Works

Bitwarden SSH agent consists of 3 main components:

• Bitwarden Desktop App: Acts as the SSH agent and stores your keys.
• SSH Agent Socket: Unix domain socket that handles communication between SSH clients and Bitwarden.
• Remote SSH Servers: Target systems configured for public key authentication.

When you attempt an SSH connection, the SSH client communicates with Bitwarden through the socket. Bitwarden can prompt you for authorization (depending on your settings), and provides the private key to complete the authentication.

Setting Up the Client

More on https://danoss.me/categories/linux/bitwarden-ssh-agent