Inventory SSH authorized_keys

You need to list authorized key files and identify the key type plus comment for each entry.

Command

find home -path '*/.ssh/authorized_keys' -exec awk '{print FILENAME, $1, $NF}' {} +

Before you run this

Risk: safe. Do not delete keys from this output alone; confirm the comment, owner, fingerprint, and current dependency first.

Expected output

Each authorized_keys entry with its file path, key type, and comment.

System impact

Nothing changes. The command reads authorized_keys files and prints the source file, key type, and trailing comment.

Recovery / rollback: no state is changed.

When to use it

Use during SSH access inventory, account handoff, or before removing a user's key-based access.

When not to use it

Do not delete keys from this output alone; confirm the comment, owner, fingerprint, and current dependency first.

Watch this command run

Example output from a temporary Linux lab

This example uses disposable sample files and sanitized output so you can inspect the shape of the result before touching a real system.

demo@lab:~$

$ find home -path '*/ssh-keys/authorized_keys' -printf '%m %p\n' | sort

600 home/alice/ssh-keys/authorized_keys
600 home/deploy/ssh-keys/authorized_keys
644 home/bob/ssh-keys/authorized_keys

$ find home -path '*/ssh-keys/authorized_keys' -exec awk '{print FILENAME, $1, $NF}' {} +

home/deploy/ssh-keys/authorized_keys ssh-ed25519 deploy-ci-2026
home/bob/ssh-keys/authorized_keys ssh-rsa bob-old-laptop
home/alice/ssh-keys/authorized_keys ssh-ed25519 alice-laptop-2026
home/alice/ssh-keys/authorized_keys ssh-rsa breakglass-ticket-4821

View reproducible demo details

This page shows the sanitized shell transcript and the setup steps needed to reproduce the example.