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Finding Other NoMachine Computers on Your Local Network

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It's easy to find other computers on the same local network (LAN) thanks to the handy 'Advertise this computer on the network' feature. Any machines which have a NoMachine server installed (this can be the Free Edition or one of the products from the Enterprise family) will show up in the 'Machines' panel of all clients provided they are on your LAN. Read on to find out how to check that it is enabled, how to disable it and how to recognize computers which are being broadcast on your local network.

Enable or disable the 'Advertise this computer on the network' option

  • This option is enabled by default upon installation of any of the NoMachine server products.
  • Broadcasting can be enabled or disabled from the 'Server settings' in the 'Ports' panel by checking or unchecking 'Advertise this computer on the local network' (see Fig. 1).
Image of Ports panel in NoMachine Server Settings

Fig. 1 - Server settings > Ports > Advertise this computer on the local network

How are NoMachine computers on LAN recognized?

  • If there are other NoMachine computers available on the network and they have the broadcast functionality enabled, you will see them in the 'Machines' panel of the User Interface on the client you are connecting from.
  • The Machines panel may look something like this upon opening for the first time:
Machines panel showing Cloud Server host available on LAN

Fig. 2 - Cloud Server on LAN and a Testdrive connection in Machines

  • The 'Machines' panel is populated with different types of icons to help the user distinguish between connection types and machines.
  • Computers which are broadcasting their availability on LAN are identifiable with the 'pipe' icon.
  • Remember that even if your computer has disabled the "advertise on LAN" feature, you can still access it by starting a NoMachine connection and using its local IP address. Check out the Getting Started Guide here to learn how to do that.
On a LAN, all available NoMachine computers are advertised. NoMachine hosts on LAN are identifiable with the 'pipe' icon

Fig. 3 - The 'pipe' symbol represents a host broadcast on LAN

NoMachine desktop connections are identifiable with the '!M' icon

Fig. 4 - The '!M' icon represents a NoMachine connection file

NoMachine Is for Everybody

Free for personal use

NoMachine is freely available for everyone to download and install for personal use on any computer you need to remotely access. No strings attached. Use it to access all your files, display all your videos, play all your audio, edit your documents, as well as remotely assist and collaborate with friends or family.