Remote Desktop - Connecting to a Biochemistry Computer
Before Connecting
- To request the ability to connect to a Biochemistry machine remotely, please submit a Job Board ticket to Biochem IT and include the following information in your request
- Your lab (PI)
- The Asset Number of the machine you would like to connect to (See Locating a Biochemistry Asset Number)
- Reason for requesting remote access to this machine
- You must be connected to the Biochemistry VPN to access a machine remotely (See VPN - Connecting to the Biochemistry VPN)
Connecting from MacOS to Windows
Add the Remote Machine to Microsoft Remote Desktop
- Download the Microsoft Remote Desktop app from the App Store
- Connect to the Biochemistry VPN (See VPN - Connecting to the Biochemistry VPN)
- Open Microsoft Remote Desktop on your machine
- Click the plus (+), then choose Add PC
- In the PC name field, enter the full name of the Biochemistry machine followed by ".ad.wisc.edu" (Ex. BIOCWK-01234W.ad.wisc.edu)
- See Biochemistry Device Naming Convention for guidance on determine the device's name
- If you are unable to determine the name of the device you are connecting to, please reach out to Biochem IT (See Get Help from Biochemistry IT!)
- In the User account dropdown menu, choose Add user account...
- Enter your UW-Madison NetID and password; set a Friendly name for the account if desired (not required)
- Click Add to save your credentials
- Under the General settings tab, set the Friendly name for the device if desired (not required)
- Click Add to save the PC
Connect to the Remote PC
- Locate the PC you added in your list of Saved PCs in the Microsoft Remote Desktop app
- Double click on the PC to initiate the remote connection
- You will get a message about failed certificate validation, click Continue to continue connecting
- You should now be connected to the remote machine
IMPORTANT: If you connect to a remote machine and see the following message, it is strongly recommended to not continue with your remote connection. Logging out another user can cause them to lose unsaved work. Do not continue connecting unless you are very sure it will not negatively affect the logged in user.
"Another user is signed in. If you continue, they'll be disconnected. Do you want to sign in anyway?"
If you encounter errors, please open a Job Board ticket with Biochem IT and include the exact error message in your request (See Get Help from Biochemistry IT!).
Connecting from Windows to Windows
Configure the Remote Desktop Connection
- Connect to the Biochemistry VPN (See VPN - Connecting to the Biochemistry VPN)
- Open the Windows search and type "Remote Desktop"
- Open Remote Desktop Connection from the search results
- In the Computer field, enter the full name of the Biochemistry machine followed by ".ad.wisc.edu" (Ex. BIOCWK-01234W.ad.wisc.edu)
- See Biochemistry Device Naming Convention for guidance on determine the device's name
- If you are unable to determine the name of the device you are connecting to, please reach out to Biochem IT (See Get Help from Biochemistry IT!)
- Click Show Options to reveal additional settings
- In the User name field, enter your UW-Madison NetID
- Check the box next to Allow me to save credentials if desired
- If you want to save this PC connection for future use, click Save As... under Connection settings and choose a location; for future connections, you can double click the saved shortcut to connect more quickly
- Click Connect to initiate the remote connection
- You will see a warning message about the identity of the remote computer, click Yes to continue connecting
IMPORTANT: If you connect to a remote machine and see the following message, it is strongly recommended to not continue with your remote connection. Logging out another user can cause them to lose unsaved work. Do not continue connecting unless you are very sure it will not negatively affect the logged in user.
"Another user is signed in. If you continue, they'll be disconnected. Do you want to sign in anyway?"
If you encounter errors, please open a Job Board ticket with Biochem IT and include the exact error message in your request (See Get Help from Biochemistry IT!).
Connecting from MacOS to MacOS
Connecting from an Apple computer to another Apple computer running macOS does not require any additional software.
- Connect to the Biochemistry VPN (See VPN - Connecting to the Biochemistry VPN)
- Open Finder
- Press Command + K or open the Go menu and choose Connect to Server...
- In the text field, enter vnc:// followed by the computer's Active Directory network name (the inventory name followed by .ad.wisc.edu)
Examples:- vnc://BIOCWK-01234M.ad.wisc.edu
- vnc://BIOCNB-01234M.ad.wisc.edu
- Click Connect
- Enter your UW-Madison NetID and password, then click Sign In
- You may be prompted to Log in as Yourself or Share the Diplay
- Log in as Yourself: use the computer in the background; this will not disrupt the other user(s) that are logged in
- Share the Display: view and control the screen of the other logged in user
If you cannot connect or if you see any error messages, reach out to Biochemistry IT (See Get Help from Biochemistry IT!)
Connecting from Windows to MacOS
Coming Soon