Associating an email with your GPG key

1. Open TerminalTerminalGit Bash.

2. Use the gpg --list-secret-keys --keyid-format LONG command to list GPG keys for which you have both a public and private key. A private key is required for signing commits or tags.

   $ gpg --list-secret-keys --keyid-format LONG

   Note: Some GPG installations on Linux may require you to use gpg2 --list-keys --keyid-format LONG to view a list of your existing keys instead. In this case you will also need to configure Git to use gpg2 by running git config --global gpg.program gpg2.

3. From the list of GPG keys, copy the GPG key ID you'd like to use. In this example, the GPG key ID is 3AA5C34371567BD2:

   $ gpg --list-secret-keys --keyid-format LONG
   /Users/hubot/.gnupg/secring.gpg
   ------------------------------------
   sec   4096R/3AA5C34371567BD2 2016-03-10 [expires: 2017-03-10]
   uid                          Hubot 
   ssb   4096R/42B317FD4BA89E7A 2016-03-10

4. Enter gpg --edit-key GPG key ID, substituting in the GPG key ID you'd like to use. In the following example, the GPG key ID is 3AA5C34371567BD2:

   $ gpg --edit-key 3AA5C34371567BD2

5. Enter gpg> adduid to add the user ID details.

   $ gpg> adduid

6. Follow the prompts to supply your real name, email address, and any comments. You can modify your entries by choosing N, C, or E.

   Real Name: Octocat
   Email address: octocat@github.com
   Comment: GitHub key
   Change (N)ame, (C)omment, (E)mail or (O)kay/(Q)uit?

7. Enter O to confirm your selections.

8. Enter your key's passphrase.

9. Enter gpg> save to save the changes

   $ gpg> save

10. Enter gpg --armor --export GPG key ID, substituting in the GPG key ID you'd like to use. In the following example, the GPG key ID is 3AA5C34371567BD2:

    $ gpg --armor --export 3AA5C34371567BD2
    # Prints the GPG key, in ASCII armor format

11. Upload the GPG key by adding it to your GitHub account.

Further reading

• "Checking for existing GPG keys"
• "Generating a new GPG key"
• "Using a verified email address in your GPG key"
• "Adding a new GPG key to your GitHub account"
• "Signing commits"
• "Signing tags"