ALAN Messenger is aninstant messaging program for computers designed for use within a singlelocal area network (LAN).
Many LAN Messengers offer basic functionality for sending private messages,file transfer,chatrooms and graphicalsmileys. The advantage of using a simple LAN messenger over a normal instant messenger is that no active Internet connection orcentral server is required, and only people inside thefirewall will have access to the system.
A precursor of LAN Messengers is theUnixtalk command, and similar facilities on earlier systems,[1] which enabled multiple users on one host system to directly talk with each other. At the time, computers were usually shared between multiple users, who accessed them through serial or telephone lines.
Novell NetWare featured a trivial person-to-person chat program for DOS, which used the [IPX/SPX] protocol suite. NetWare for Windows also included broadcast and targeted messages similar to WinPopup and the Windows Messenger service.
OnWindows,WinPopup was a small utility included with Windows 3.11. WinPopup usesSMB/NetBIOS protocol and was intended to receive and send short text messages.
Windows NT/2000/XP improves upon this withWindows Messenger service, a Windows service compatible to WinPopup.[2] On systems where this service is running, the received messages "pop up" as simple message boxes. Any software compatible with WinPopup, like the console utilityNET SEND, can send such messages. However, due to security concerns,[3] by default, the messenger service is off in Windows XP SP2 and blocked by Windows XP'sfirewall.
On Apple'sMac OS X-based computers, theiChat program has allowed LAN messaging over theBonjour protocol since 2005.[4] The multi-protocol messengerPidgin has support for the Bonjour protocol,[5] including on Windows.[6][7]