diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 722d5e7..4fc9754 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -1 +1,3 @@
 .vscode
+inventory
+ansible.cfg
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/meta/argument_specs.yml b/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/meta/argument_specs.yml
index 6eb92ed..4779a0b 100644
--- a/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/meta/argument_specs.yml
+++ b/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/meta/argument_specs.yml
@@ -40,3 +40,8 @@ argument_specs:
             required: false
             default: false
             description: Boolean value indicating whether SSH key pairs should be generated for passwordless authentication.
+      private_key_path:
+        type: str
+        required: no
+        default: /tmp
+        description: "Path to the private key. If not provided, the default path will be /tmp."
diff --git a/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/tasks/main.yml b/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/tasks/main.yml
index 97440be..4dfc50f 100644
--- a/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/tasks/main.yml
+++ b/slococo/playground/roles/local_accounts/tasks/main.yml
@@ -16,17 +16,24 @@
 
 - name: Determine key path
   set_fact:
-    key_path: "{{ (private_key_path | default('/tmp')) + '/id_rsa' }}"
+    key_path: "{{ (private_key_path | default('/tmp')) | regex_replace('/$','') }}/id_rsa"
 
 - name: Generate SSH key pairs for local users
   community.crypto.openssh_keypair:
     path: "{{ key_path }}_{{ item.name }}"
   loop: "{{ accounts_with_home }}"
-  when: not ansible_check_mode and item.passwordless | default(false) | bool
+  when: item.passwordless | default(false) | bool
   delegate_to: localhost
   run_once: true
   become: false
 
+- name: Ensure .ssh directory exists
+  ansible.builtin.file:
+    path: "{{ item.home }}/.ssh"
+    state: directory
+  loop: "{{ accounts_with_home }}"
+  when: item.passwordless | default(false) | bool
+
 - name: Copy public keys to authorized_keys for passwordless authentication
   ansible.builtin.copy:
     content: "{{ lookup('file', key_path + '_' + item.name + '.pub') }}"