Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 19, 2026

Message of the day

Many computer systems display a message of the day or welcome message when a user first connects to them, logs in to them, or starts them. It is a way of sending a common message to all users, and may include information about system changes, system availability, and so on. More recently, systems have displayed personalized messages of the day.

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Jul 19, 2026
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Default motd showing on OpenBSD 5.3 source ↗

Many computer systems display a message of the day or welcome message when a user first connects to them, logs in to them, or starts them. It is a way of sending a common message to all users, and may include information about system changes, system availability, and so on. More recently, systems have displayed personalized messages of the day.

On many time-sharing systems, the contents of the message of the day are fetched from a system file:

Usage

The contents of the special file are displayed after the user logs in successfully, typically before the login shell is started.6

Newer Unix-like systems may generate the message dynamically when the host boots or a user logs in.7

Various server-based PC games display messages of the day, including Half-Life, Call of Duty, Minecraft, and Battlefield. They may be personalized, encouraging users to try new features or make in-game purchases.8

Some IRC servers also display a message of the day on login.9

See also

See also

References

References

  1. A New Version of FAP (PDF) (Technical report). CTSS Bulletin. April 23, 1965. 80.
  2. "Multics Glossary -M-".
  3. A.K. Bhushan, "Scenarios for using ARPANET computers", Request for Comments 254, Network Working Group, IETF https://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc254.txt
  4. "The Univac 60/90 Mainframe Computer" https://studylib.net/doc/8373525/the-univac-90---60-mainframe-computer, p. 5
  5. "CP-67 Operator's Guide", Program Number 360D-05.2.005, Control Program-67/Cambridge Monitor System, October 1970, p. 4 http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/ibm/360/cp67/GH20-0856-0_CP-67_Operators_Guide_Oct1970.pdf
  6. The complete FreeBSD: documentation from the source, By Greg Lehey, p.572
  7. Project, Ubuntu Documentation (May 2011). Ubuntu 11.04 Server Guide. Fultus Corporation. ISBN 9781596822603.
  8. "How to build a dynamic message of the day with AWS Lambda | AWS for Games Blog". aws.amazon.com. 2019-06-20. Retrieved 2022-07-31.
  9. Kalt, Christophe (April 2000). "Internet Relay Chat: Client Protocol".