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Remote Desktop Connection through Wormhole

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Through the Brandeis Wormhole website (wormhole.brandeis.edu), faculty and staff members can remotely connect to their campus computer (referred to as 'target computer' going forward) from other locations (either somewhere else on-campus or off-campus entirely.)  There are some preliminary steps which must be performed on your target computer first to enable this, and which vary by operating system:

The instructions for Windows XP computers can be found here.  

The instructions for Windows 7 computers can be found here.  

Computers running Mac OS cannot be targeted using the Remote Desktop Connection software.  However, if you would like to access your Mac from off campus you may try these instructions kindly supplied by the Biology department.  

Once you have completed those steps, you can use the following instructions on your other computer to connect to your target computer.

From your other computer (Windows):

Open a web broswer (Firefox, Chrome, Internet Explorer, Safari) and go to the web address 'wormhole.brandeis.edu'.  The screenshots provided below are for Firefox, but other browsers will be fairly similar.

Log in using your Brandeis username and password.

Click on the center icon on the righthand side of the Terminal Sessions heading, circled below.

Enter the title of your choice for the remote connection in the Bookmark Name field, and the name obtained in the earlier steps into the Host field.  When finished, scroll down and click Add. This will bring you back to the Wormhole home page.

Once back on the home page, scroll down until you see the Bookmark Name you just entered and click on it.  

This will initialize the connection to your campus computer.  If this is the first time you are establishing this connection on your other computer, you may be prompted to install software from Juniper Networks.  Answer in the affirmative (Yes, Accept, Allow, Install, Run) to any prompts you receive.  Screenshots for Firefox prompts are shown below.

You will then see your Brandeis computer's login screen.

From your other computer (Mac):

Download the Remote Desktop Connection Client for Mac.

Install it by double-clicking the RDC_(versionnumber)_ALL.dmg file in your Downloads folder.

Open a web broswer (Firefox, Chrome, Internet Explorer, Safari) and go to the web address 'wormhole.brandeis.edu'.  The screenshots provided below are for Firefox, but other browsers will be fairly similar.

Log in using your Brandeis username and password.

Launch Network Connect by clicking the Start button under the Client Application Sessions heading.

If this is your first time running Network Connect, you'll be asked to give the program permission to run on your computer.  Do so by clicking 'Always allow' in the bar that pops up along the top of your screen.

Once the Network Connect session is running (visible as a lock icon in your dock), open the Remote Desktop Connection Client for Mac.

If you don't see the Remote Desktop Connection icon in your dock, you can launch it by typing 'Remote Desktop Connection' (no quotes) in the Spotlight box in the top right of your screen and hitting enter.

Type the name obtained in the earlier steps into the Computer field, then click Connect.

Important Notes on Wormhole and Security

If you've configured your target and other computers as detailed above and are unable to connect, ensure that you're running the latest version of Java.

Using the Brandeis VPN service subjects the user to the same restrictions and responsibilities as a campus user. Connections via VPN are considered direct connections to the campus network. All connection attempts are logged.

VPN users will be automatically disconnected from the Brandeis network after a predetermined amount of inactivity. The user can immediately logon again to reconnect to the Brandeis network - no work will have been lost.

Additionally, please be mindful of where you use the VPN to connect to your desktop. All computers connected to Brandeis internal networks via VPN must use the most up-to-date anti-virus software; this includes personal computers. Malicious software can log your keystrokes and steal your password. Do not use the VPN in cyber cafes, public clusters or from any computer that you do not completely trust.