Common questions about LanSend

To download and install LanSend please visit our Download page.

The latest version of LanSend supports the following Windows platforms: Windows 10, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2022, Windows 11, Windows Server 2025 .

To install and run LanSend, your computer needs to meet these minimum requirements:

• Windows 11, Windows 10, or Windows Server 2022, 2019, or 2016 (64-bit editions)
• 1 GHz or faster processor
• 512 MB of RAM
• 50 MB of free disk space
• Administrator privileges to install the software
• Network access to each computer you message, plus administrative rights on it to send messages

LanSend does not require an Internet connection. It delivers messages over your local network using the built-in Windows messaging channel.

Yes. When the installer starts, it asks whether to install LanSend for all users or just for you. Pick Install for me only and LanSend installs under your own account without administrative privileges; the Install for all users option puts it in Program Files for everyone and does need an administrator. Installing this way does not change how LanSend runs, but sending messages to other computers still requires administrative rights on those targets.

The Business license is per machine: count the computers that will run LanSend and buy one license for each. The Corporate license is a single license for a whole organization, with unlimited installations across departments and sites, plus priority support. Pick Business for a fixed, smaller set of machines, and Corporate once you have many computers or several sites. Both are perpetual and include a year of updates and support. See LanSend pricing.

LanSend is a one-time purchase, not a subscription. Each license is perpetual, so the version you buy keeps working with no time limit. The price includes one year of software updates and email and ticket support, and the Corporate license adds priority support. See LanSend pricing for the Business and Corporate tiers.

No, LanSend is a paid product. It has two license tiers: a Business license, sold per machine for commercial use, and a Corporate license that covers a whole organization. See LanSend pricing for the current prices.

The easiest way to purchase LanSend is to pay via one of our payment options and download the software immediately.

After making your purchase you will receive an e-mail with a license key which you will use to activate your copy of LanSend. Click here to be directed to the ordering page.

The Business license is per machine, so each computer that runs LanSend needs its own license. If you need LanSend on many machines or across several sites, the Corporate license covers a whole organization with unlimited installations. See LanSend pricing for both tiers.

If you have lost your license code you may request a copy be sent to you.

Please fill out the registration information request form.

No. LanSend uses the Windows messaging channel built into the operating system, so the recipient PCs need nothing installed and there is no server in the middle. You run LanSend on one machine and it messages the others directly. You do need network access to each target PC and administrative rights on it.

net send was removed after Windows XP and Server 2003, so it does not exist on modern Windows. msg.exe still works but is command-line only, sends to one host per call, and has no saved computer list, no presets, and no history. LanSend uses the same Windows delivery channel and adds a window, a computer list with groups, presets, and a message log.

Yes. Message > Preview message shows the message box on your own screen with the same type, title, and timeout, so you see exactly what recipients will get before you send.

LanSend has no built-in scheduler, but you can drive it from the command line and schedule that command with Windows Task Scheduler. Point the task at lansend.exe with the -to:, -message:, and other switches you need.

Go to the Message History tab, select the message, and click Reuse message to load it back into the composer. You can change the title, body, or message type there before you send it again, or click Add to presets to save it for reuse later.

Yes. Run lansend.exe with switches such as -to:, -title:, -message:, -type:, and -time:. For example:

lansend.exe -to:PC1,PC2 -title:Reboot -message:"Save your work" -type:Warning -time:30

The -message: value can be the body text or the path to a text file, and -time: sets an auto-close timeout in seconds.

Yes, as presets. Message > Add message to presets saves the current title, body, and type into a category, and the Presets menu loads one back into the composer. LanSend ships with 15 default presets across four categories, including Scheduled Maintenance, Planned Server Restart, and Emergency Shutdown.

Yes. Add the machines to the computer list, check the ones you want (or use Computers > Check all), and click Send message. You can reach a single PC, a group such as a floor or a lab, or every computer on the list in one send.

LanSend is a LAN messenger for Windows that sends pop-up messages to one or many PCs over the local network. It uses the Windows messaging channel built into the operating system, so there is no server to set up and nothing to install on the machines you message. It is built for IT admins and help-desk staff who need to reach users before maintenance, a restart, or a shutdown. You can message a single PC, a group such as a floor or a lab, or every computer on the list at once.

Put a variable in the message title or body and LanSend fills it in when the message is sent. There are five variables:

• %computer_name% - your computer name
• %user_name% - your user name
• %time_now% - the current date and time at send
• %time% - the current time
• %date% - the current date

All five resolve to your own machine's values - the sender's, not the recipient's - and they are case-insensitive, so %COMPUTER_NAME% works the same as %computer_name%. For example, a body of "Save your work, %computer_name% restarts soon" is expanded just before the message goes out.

LanSend has four message types: None, Info, Warning, and Error. The type sets the icon and system sound on the message box the recipient sees, so it signals how urgent a message is at a glance.

• None - a plain message box with no icon and no special sound. Use it for routine notes that do not need to stand out.
• Info - the Windows information icon and sound. Use it for general announcements, such as a reminder or a status update.
• Warning - the Windows warning icon and sound. Use it for advance notice that needs attention, such as upcoming maintenance or a scheduled restart.
• Error - the Windows error icon and sound. Use it for urgent situations, such as an emergency shutdown.

You pick the type from the message type combo when you compose a message. You can also set it on the command line with -type:Info, -type:Warning, or -type:Error (the value is case-insensitive); leave it off for a plain box with no icon.

Yes, select multiple groups or computers using the tree structure before composing your message.

If you get an "Access is denied" or "Error 5 getting session names" error when LanSend tries to send a message, enable remote RPC to the Terminal Server on the target computer:

1. Open the Registry Editor (regedit.exe).
2. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Terminal Server.
3. Set the AllowRemoteRPC value to 1 (change it if it is currently 0).
4. Close the Registry Editor and restart the computer.
5. Run LanSend again.

You also need network access to the target computer and administrative rights on it to send messages.

To send a message to another user's session, you need the Message permission for Remote Desktop Services (formerly Terminal Services) on the target computer. For the full permission model, see Microsoft's Remote Desktop Services Permissions.

The Remote Desktop Services Configuration tool (tsconfig.msc) that used to set this permission was removed in Windows Server 2012 and is not present in current versions of Windows. Instead, you grant the Message permission through the Terminal Services WMI provider. Run PowerShell as an administrator and use the Win32_TSAccount class on each target computer to allow the Message permission. For a ready-to-run script, see How to Enable Message Sending for Standard Users in LanSend.