xks - Git Profile Switcher with SSH Key Management

xks is a CLI tool for switching between multiple Git profiles, seamlessly managing both .gitconfig and SSH keys. It allows you to save, apply, and delete profiles while ensuring that only the necessary files are modified.

Features

• Save and switch between multiple Git profiles.
• Automatically updates .gitconfig and SSH keys.
• Ensures that only default Git and SSH files are managed.
• Lightweight, with just one external Rust dependency (sha2).

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Installation

You can install xks in three different ways:

(Option 1) Install with curl or wget (recommended)

To install automatically, run one of the following commands:

With curl:

curl -fsSL https://xks.rwx222.com/install.sh | sh

Or with wget:

wget -qO- https://xks.rwx222.com/install.sh | sh

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Important

If you get a "No write permission" error during installation, try adding sudo before sh (the install command):

curl -fsSL https://xks.rwx222.com/install.sh | sudo sh

Or:

wget -qO- https://xks.rwx222.com/install.sh | sudo sh

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Important

On macOS, after installation and the first time you run xks, you might need to manually allow the binary to run by going to:

System Settings > Privacy & Security

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(Option 2) Download a Pre-Compiled Binary

Visit GitHub Releases and download the appropriate archive for your OS and architecture.

Then, extract the xks binary and move it to a directory in your $PATH, such as:

tar -xzf xks-<version>-<os>-<arch>.tar.gz -C /usr/local/bin/

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(Option 3) Build from Source (requires rust)

If you prefer to build xks yourself, you can compile it with Rust:

cargo build --release
cp target/release/xks /usr/local/bin/

Or move it to any directory included in your $PATH.

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How It Works

xks manages only the default Git and SSH configuration files (current_files):

~/.gitconfig
~/.ssh/config
~/.ssh/id_ed25519  (also id_ed25519.pub)
~/.ssh/id_ecdsa    (also id_ecdsa.pub)
~/.ssh/id_rsa      (also id_rsa.pub)
~/.ssh/id_dsa      (also id_dsa.pub)

All data is stored in ~/.xks. Custom SSH keys or additional Git configuration files are ignored.

Usage

xks <command> [options]

Commands

• xks List saved profiles and current_files state.
• xks save <profile> Save the current_files as a profile.
• xks use <profile> Apply a saved profile.
• xks use - Switch back to the previously used profile.
• xks remove <profile> Delete a saved profile.
• xks discard Delete the current_files.
• xks version Show the version number.
• xks help Show usage information.

Options

• -y Skip confirmation prompts.

Examples

xks                # List saved profiles and current_files state
xks save work      # Save current_files as 'work' profile
xks use personal   # Switch to 'personal' profile
xks use -          # Switch back to the previous profile
xks remove alex    # Delete 'alex' profile
xks discard        # Delete current_files

License

xks is released under the MIT License.

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Why I Built xks

I created xks because I often need to switch between different Git profiles for work and personal projects.

Since SSH keys cannot be shared between multiple accounts, managing them manually quickly became frustrating. While there are existing tools and other techniques to solve this problem, I wanted to build my own as a way to learn Rust.

Although xks was originally designed for Git profiles, it can be useful in different scenarios:

• Switching between Git profiles, with or without SSH keys.
• Managing SSH keys independently, even without Git, for accessing multiple remote servers.
• Handling both Git profiles and SSH keys together, making it easy to manage multiple identities.

This allows you to:

• Switch between SSH keys for different remote servers.
• Separate work and personal Git profiles.
• Manage multiple Git accounts for freelance clients.
• Use different Git configurations per profile.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, give xks a try! 🚀