Hey @rawtaz , I compiled a restic version which includes the PR you mentioned. I’ve created an exclusion pattern file containing these lines:
.ssh/*
!.ssh/*.pub
!.ssh/config
!.ssh/authorized_keys
It works as expected for me: For all .ssh folders, all files are skipped for the backup with the exception of .pub, config and authorized_keys. They are included in the backup. Exactly what I want.
Now I’d vote for the PR to be included into mainline 
Thx! Best regards, Uli