Set up URL handlers in AnyDesk

Relevant for: Admin, IT agent

Platform: Windows, macOS (6.3.1+), and Linux

You can use URL handlers to automatically launch AnyDesk actions such as starting a connection or registering a license key.

They are particularly useful for IT administrators and support teams who manage remote access or automate deployments.

💡 NOTE

AnyDesk must be installed on your device for URL handlers to work.

Client types

The URL format depends on which type of AnyDesk client you’re using.

• Standard clients

  These are the default AnyDesk clients downloaded from the official AnyDesk website.

  They use the default format and are not customized through my.anydesk.

• Custom clients

  Created and configured in my.anydesk I (legacy) or the newer my.anydesk II customer portal..

  They can include a custom prefix or be distributed as MSI installers for managed environments.

Start a remote session

You can embed AnyDesk links in web pages or internal dashboards. When clicked, AnyDesk opens and starts a connection to the specified ID or alias.

<a href="anydesk:user@namespace">Connect to AnyDesk</a>

Standard clients

anydesk:<anydesk-id-or-alias>

Example: anydesk:123456789

Custom clients

Non-MSI custom clients

anydesk-<prefix>:<anydesk-id-or-alias>

Example: anydesk-abc12345:123456789

MSI custom clients (Windows only)

anydesk:AnyDesk-<prefix>_msi:<anydesk-id-or-alias>

Example: anydesk:AnyDesk-abc12345_msi:123456789

Initiate sessions from my.anydesk

You can also use this feature directly in the my.anydesk:

1. Go to the Clients tab.

2. Select the client you want to connect to.

3. Click Connect to launch a session using a URL handler.

Example use case

If you use a web-based support dashboard, you can collect customer AnyDesk IDs through a form. These IDs can be automatically converted into clickable AnyDesk URLs. When an IT agent clicks the link, AnyDesk opens and starts the session immediately, no need to manually enter the ID.

Example: anydesk:AnyDesk-abc12345_msi:123456789

Register a license key

You can register an AnyDesk license using URL handlers, either silently or with a visible success message.

This feature is available in:

• Windows: AnyDesk 9.0.0 and newer

• macOS: AnyDesk 9.0.2 and newer

• Linux: AnyDesk 7.0.0 and newer

The license key can be found in your my.anydesk.com customer portal.

<a href="anydesk://register-license?key=ABCD123456">Register license key to AnyDesk</a>

To process the license registration silently, add &silent to the end of the URL handler.

<a href="anydesk://register-license?key=ABCD123456&silent">Silently register license key to AnyDesk</a>

Standard clients

anydesk://register-license?key=<license_key>

Example: anydesk://register-license?key=ABCD123456

Custom clients

Non-MSI custom clients

anydesk-<prefix>://register-license?key=<license_key>

Example: anydesk-abc12345://register-license?key=ABCD123456

MSI custom clients (Windows only)

anydesk:AnyDesk-<prefix>_msi://register-license?key=<license_key>

Example: anydesk:AnyDesk-abc12345_msi://register-license?key=ABCD123456