Tags and Config Comments

Server Tags in SSH Config Comments

neossh allows assigning custom tags to servers (e.g., prod, database, aws, k8s) for rapid filtering and organization.

Unlike tools that store metadata exclusively in a local database, neossh persists tags directly inside ~/.ssh/config as structured comments.

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Two-Way Synchronization

By saving tags as SSH configuration comments, your tags remain completely portable and synchronizable across multiple workstations using Git dotfiles, Nextcloud, or rsync without needing to export proprietary databases.

Configuration Format

Tags can be formatted inline on the Host line or as dedicated comments inside the host block:

# Inline on the Host line:
Host web-prod # tags: prod, web, us-east
    HostName 192.168.1.10
    User ubuntu

# Or inside the Host block:
Host db-primary
    # tags: prod, database
    HostName 192.168.1.20
    User postgres

• Comma-separated or space-separated lists of tags are supported.
• When edited via the TUI (t or e), tags are written directly back to the source file where the host is defined.

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Editing Tags in the TUI

1. Highlight any server in the list.
2. Press t to open the tag editor modal.
3. Add, remove, or modify tags separated by commas.
4. Press Enter to save. The changes are immediately written to your ~/.ssh/config.

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Filtering by Tags

In the search bar (/ or 0):

tag:prod

Matches servers containing the prod tag.

-tag:staging

Excludes servers containing the staging tag.

Combine tags with other search criteria:

tag:prod user:root status:up web

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Other Supported Config Directives

neossh recognizes several other special comment directives within ~/.ssh/config:

Directive Comment	Purpose	Example
# tags: <list>	Server categorization tags	# tags: prod, database
# pin	Pin server to top of server list	Host db # pin
# hidden	Hide server from default view	Host jumpbox # hidden
# pre-connect: <cmd>	Command executed before SSH connection	# pre-connect: vpn-up.sh %h
# hook: <cmd>	Alias for pre-connect command	# hook: wakeonlan %h
# certificate-command: <cmd>	Certificate renewal command	# certificate-command: step ssh login %u@%h
# cert-command: <cmd>	Alias for certificate renewal command	# cert-command: vault write ...
# cert-renew: <cmd>	Alias for certificate renewal command	# cert-renew: tsh login
# sync-dotfiles: true	Automatically stream dotfiles via chezmoi archive on connect	# sync-dotfiles: true
# dotfiles: true	Alias for auto-syncing dotfiles on connect	# dotfiles: true

All comment directives are preserved verbatim across read and write operations.