Turn on a password manager's agent

Then pick the agent in Sternway (Use an SSH agent).

Start the agent

1Password

1. On Windows only, first stop the OpenSSH Authentication Agent service and set its startup type to Disabled (services.msc).
2. In 1Password, open Settings › Developer and select Use the SSH Agent.
3. On Mac and Linux, to keep it running with the window closed, keep 1Password in the menu bar or system tray (Settings › General).

1Password’s agent doesn’t work with its Flatpak or Snap packages for Linux. It offers keys from your Personal, Private or Employee vault; other vaults need its agent.toml file. See Get started with 1Password for SSH.

Bitwarden

1. On Windows only, first disable the OpenSSH Authentication Agent service, as for 1Password.
2. In the Bitwarden desktop app, open Settings and turn on Enable SSH agent.

The agent runs only while you’re logged in to Bitwarden. See Bitwarden’s SSH Agent guide.

Where Sternway looks

Choice	Linux	macOS	Windows
System agent (SSH_AUTH_SOCK)	$SSH_AUTH_SOCK	$SSH_AUTH_SOCK	\\.\pipe\openssh-ssh-agent (or $SSH_AUTH_SOCK when set)
1Password	~/.1password/agent.sock	~/Library/Group Containers/2BUA8C4S2C.com.1password/t/agent.sock	\\.\pipe\openssh-ssh-agent
Bitwarden	~/.bitwarden-ssh-agent.sock, then the Snap and Flatpak places	~/.bitwarden-ssh-agent.sock, then the Mac App Store place	\\.\pipe\openssh-ssh-agent
Custom socket or pipe…	the path you type under Agent socket or pipe	the same	the same

Note

Sternway’s vendor choices were checked against the documented socket and pipe paths, using test agents, not the real 1Password and Bitwarden apps. A test agent that waits before signing stood in for their approval windows. The Windows and macOS paths are checked by unit tests only.