Faculty VPN

The everyday way to reach your office computer. Works from Israel only, with no limit on how many machines you connect to.

  • Approx. 15 min the first time
  • Windows
  • macOS
  • Linux

Setup — register for two-factor auth

You do this once only, from any operating system. Without it no connection will work.

  1. Install the app

    Install Microsoft Authenticator on your phone from the app store.

  2. Register

    Go to mfar.esc.biu.ac.il and enter your Bar-Ilan username (without @biu.ac.il).

    The registration screen at mfar.esc.biu.ac.il

  3. Scan the QR code

    In the app: Add account → Work or school account → Scan a QR code, and scan the code you received by email.

    Scanning a QR code in the Authenticator app

  4. Find your office computer IP

    From the office computer open whatsmyip.com and write the address down. You need it for every connection.

    The office computer must stay powered on — A remote connection cannot wake a machine that is off.

From Windows — remote desktop

Bitvise SSH Client opens the tunnel and the remote desktop together, in one click.

  1. Install Bitvise

    At home, download and install Bitvise SSH Client (formerly Tunnelier).

  2. The Login tab

    • Host — vpn.esc.biu.ac.il
    • Port — 2222
    • Initial method — keyboard-interactive
    • Username — your Bar-Ilan username
    The Bitvise Login tab with the settings

  3. The Options and RDP tabs

    On Options: tick Open Remote Desktop, and untick Open Terminal and Open SFTP.

    On RDP:

    • Computer — your office computer IP
    • Domain — ccdom
    • Username / Password — your Bar-Ilan credentials
    The Bitvise RDP tab

  4. Connect

    1. Click Login, then Accept and Save.
    2. Type your Bar-Ilan password.
    3. Open Authenticator, pick mfa@esc.biu.ac.il and type the one-time code.
    4. Click Connect — your office desktop opens.
    Entering the one-time code in the verification dialog

From a Mac — remote desktop

On a Mac you open the tunnel from Terminal, then connect through it with the Microsoft remote desktop app.

  1. Open the tunnel

    Open Terminal and run — with your office computer IP and your username:

    ssh -f -N -L 13389:OFFICE_IP:3389 -l YOURUSER@biu.ac.il vpn.esc.biu.ac.il -p 2222

    For example:

    ssh -f -N -L 13389:132.71.71.2:3389 -l orenn@biu.ac.il vpn.esc.biu.ac.il -p 2222

  2. Authenticate

    1. Type your Bar-Ilan password and press Enter.
    2. Open Authenticator, pick mfa@esc.biu.ac.il and type the one-time code.

    No error means the tunnel is up and running in the background.

  3. Connect the desktop

    Install Windows App (formerly Microsoft Remote Desktop) from the App Store, click + Add PC and enter:

    127.0.0.1:13389

    Sign in with your Bar-Ilan username and password.

  4. Close the tunnel when done

    pkill -f "13389:"

From Linux — remote desktop

The same SSH tunnel as on a Mac, with a local RDP client.

  1. Open the tunnel

    ssh -f -N -L 13389:OFFICE_IP:3389 -l YOURUSER@biu.ac.il vpn.esc.biu.ac.il -p 2222

    Type your Bar-Ilan password, then the one-time code from the app.

  2. Connect with an RDP client

    xfreerdp /v:127.0.0.1:13389 /u:YOURUSER /d:ccdom /dynamic-resolution

    If xfreerdp is not installed:

    sudo apt install freerdp2-x11      # Debian / Ubuntu
sudo dnf install freerdp           # Fedora / RHEL

  3. Close the tunnel when done

    pkill -f "13389:"

SSH to a Linux machine

Command line only, no desktop. Works from any operating system — on Windows use PowerShell or Windows Terminal.

  1. Connect through the jump host

    ssh -J YOURUSER@vpn.esc.biu.ac.il:2222 LINUXUSER@TARGET_HOST
    • YOURUSER — your Bar-Ilan username
    • LINUXUSER — your account on the target machine
    • TARGET_HOST — hostname or IP of the lab machine

  2. Authenticate

    1. Bar-Ilan password → Enter
    2. One-time code from Authenticator → Enter
    3. Your password on the Linux machine

  3. Make it a shortcut

    To avoid typing all that every time, add to ~/.ssh/config:

    Host biu-jump
    HostName vpn.esc.biu.ac.il
    Port 2222
    User YOURUSER

Host lab
    HostName TARGET_HOST
    User LINUXUSER
    ProxyJump biu-jump

    From then on:

    ssh lab
Didn't work? Write to me.
·

Updated July 2026