Senturo Broadcasting for Everyday IT Updates

Your IT team still needs to send updates to students and staff when they take their devices home. According to NCES, 46% of U.S. public schools with a 1:1 computing program allowed students to take school-issued devices home on school days and weekends during the 2024–25 school year.

With Senturo Broadcasting, you can send those notices straight to the device screen, so students and staff don’t have to open their email to read them. They can receive the message wherever they’re using the device, as long as it’s connected to the internet. 

What Is Senturo Broadcasting?

Senturo Broadcasting lets you send a one-way message to a single device or share it with a group. When an update applies to everyone, you can send it across your whole fleet. 

People can’t reply within a broadcast, so include your helpdesk email or phone number for questions about the message. For a return reminder, that also gives them a way to ask for more time.

Choose Your Audience and Write a Clear Message

Before sending a return reminder, check which loaner devices are still out and who needs the message. Give them the deadline and drop-off location in the message, and say whether you need the charger back too.

Please return this device and its charger to the IT office by Friday at 3 p.m. If you need it for longer, contact the helpdesk before the deadline.

A maintenance notice needs different details: what will be affected, when the work starts, and whether people need to save their work beforehand. If the IT office will be closed, give them another place to return equipment. Include enough information for someone to act without having to email your team for the missing details.

How to Send a Broadcast Message in Senturo

Open Broadcasts → Create broadcast and work through Compose, Recipients, and Schedule. You can send the message straight away, schedule it, or save a draft to finish later.

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Before sending to the full group, check the Laptop, Tablet, and Phone previews and test on a few devices that cover the operating systems you use. Confirm that the message arrives and is easy to follow.

After sending, select View sending status in Broadcasts to check delivery for each device. You can also filter the list by status, type, or sender, or switch to the Calendar tab to see your broadcasts by date.

Reuse Templates and Schedule Broadcast Messages

For return reminders or maintenance updates you send regularly, select Save as template to save the message and its images for reuse. When you need the message again, choose Use template and update the dates or other details.

Choose One-time for a single send, Date range for a daily message between two dates, or Recurring for selected days and times. Recurring messages keep going if you leave the end date blank.

You can edit the content, recipients, and schedule after setup. Remove devices from recipients as they are returned, and check the schedule around holidays or closures so outdated reminders don't keep going out.

Automate Broadcasts Based on Device Activity

For devices that should stay on-site, you can set up a broadcast asking the user to contact IT when a device is detected outside its approved area.

In a Security Policy Automation, choose one trigger and add Send Broadcast as the action. Available triggers include Outside Geofence, Inside Geofence, IP Fencing, and Senturo Agent Phone Home.

An Outside Geofence rule could send this message:

This device is assigned for use on campus. Please return it to the IT office or contact the helpdesk if you have permission to use it elsewhere.

Choose the groups covered by the policy and when it should run. It can run continuously or within a custom window, such as school hours, and each device follows its own time zone. Save the policy as a draft while checking the setup, then activate it when ready.

When to Use Broadcasting or Senturo Lock

The choice depends on how urgently you need the user to act and whether they should still have access to the device.

Broadcasting leaves the device available for use. Senturo Lock restricts access on ChromeOS, Windows, and macOS, and can display a message on the lock screen. An administrator can restore access with Senturo Unlock.

For a routine return, a reminder may be enough. For a lost, stolen, or at-risk device, follow your recovery procedure, including Senturo Missing Mode where appropriate, without waiting for someone to respond to a broadcast.

Give Staff Access to Broadcasting

Staff who send return reminders or office updates don’t necessarily need access to device location data. With the Broadcaster role, they can create and send messages and access templates, the broadcast table, and the calendar.

Their permissions do not include viewing location history, network information, or screenshots, and they cannot remotely lock or wipe devices.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which operating systems support Senturo Broadcasting?

Broadcasts are supported on Windows, macOS, ChromeOS, iOS/iPadOS, and Android. Test messages across your platforms before sending to a larger group.

Can recipients reply to a broadcast?

Recipients cannot reply within the broadcast, so include a helpdesk email, phone number, or support link when someone may need to respond.

What happens if a device is offline?

The device needs a connection to receive a broadcast. For immediate broadcasts sent through CSV import, messages to offline devices wait in the queue until the device reconnects.

Can I send broadcasts using a CSV file?

Yes, you can send immediate broadcasts through CSV import. Include each device’s serial number or UUID, a broadcast name, and the message content. Each row can contain different instructions.

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