One team, one inbox — support@mbn-projects.com

Support & help centre

Everything you need to activate, run and update MBN Projects. If the answer is not here, email us — a real person reads every message.

support@mbn-projects.comSales, licensing, activation, bugs and everything else. This is our only support address — there is no phone line and no live chat.
Mon–Fri, UK hoursWe aim to reply within one working day. Licence keys and activation requests are usually answered much faster.
Include your detailsFor licence issues, always include your order email and the Machine ID of the device concerned. It saves a round trip.

System requirements

MBN Projects is a native desktop application. We support Microsoft Windows 11 only.

  • Operating system: Microsoft Windows 11 (64-bit)
  • Disk: around 150 MB for the application, plus your project data
  • Memory: 4 GB RAM minimum, 8 GB comfortable
  • Display: 1366×768 or larger
  • Internet: not required. Ever.

Windows 11 only — please read

We do not support Windows 10, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS, tablets or phones. There is no web version and no mobile app.

The application may happen to run on other Windows builds, but we do not test on them and cannot support them. Please only buy if you are on Windows 11.

Activating your licence — how the Machine ID works

MBN Projects activates completely offline. There is no licence server to call, nothing phones home, and no account to create. That means activation is tied to the specific devices you tell us about.

1
Buy your plan

Pay securely by card through Stripe. You will receive an order confirmation by email straight away.

2
We ask for your Machine ID

We will email you and ask for the Machine ID of every device you want a seat on — one ID per seat. A 5-seat Small Teams licence means we need up to five Machine IDs.

3
Find each Machine ID in the app

Install MBN Projects on the device, open Settings › Licence, and copy the Machine ID shown there. Send them all back to us in one reply.

4
We issue your keys

We generate a signed licence key bound to each Machine ID and email them to you. Paste the key into Settings › Licence and every limit lifts immediately — your trial projects carry straight over.

Where to find your Machine ID

Open MBN Projects → SettingsLicence. The Machine ID is displayed on that screen with a copy button next to it.

The Machine ID is a one-way hashed value derived from your device. It is not a serial number, it contains no personal information, and it cannot be reversed to identify your hardware. It is used purely to bind a key to a seat. See the privacy notice below.

Changing or replacing a device

If you replace a PC, email us from your order address with the old Machine ID and the new one and we will re-issue that seat. We do this as a courtesy for genuine hardware changes — it is not a way to add extra seats.

Adding seats later

You can buy an additional plan at any time, or move up a tier. Email us first and we will tell you the difference to pay so you are not charged twice for seats you already own.

No refunds once a licence key has been issued

All sales are final. Because MBN Projects activates offline, a licence key that has been issued cannot be revoked, disabled or recalled. Once a key leaves our hands it works permanently on the device it is bound to, whether or not it has been installed. For that reason we are unable to offer refunds, part-refunds or cancellations after a key has been issued.

This is why the 7-day free trial exists. Please use it. The trial is the full application — every view, all 24 column types, PDF export, the document writer and all ten themes — limited only to 2 projects and 1 automation, with .mbnproj import/export reserved for licence holders. Satisfy yourself that it does what you need before you buy.

Nothing here affects rights you have under law that cannot be excluded. If a key we issued genuinely does not work on the Machine ID you gave us, that is our problem to fix, and we will fix it — email support@mbn-projects.com.

Updates — on your terms

MBN Projects never checks for updates on its own. There is no background polling, no startup check and no telemetry. The only time it contacts the internet is when you click Settings › Check for updates.

  • You press the button — nothing happens automatically
  • One secure, encrypted request to our website
  • Non-HTTPS and unknown hosts are refused outright
  • If a newer version exists, you see the release notes
  • The download opens in your browser — the app never downloads or runs an installer itself

You can also just check this website whenever you like. The download page always shows the current version.

Installing an update

Download the new installer from the download page and run it. It installs over the top of your existing copy.

  • Your projects, settings and themes are preserved
  • Your licence key stays activated — no need to re-enter it
  • The database is upgraded in place where needed

Good practice: export a .mbnproj backup of important projects before any upgrade. It takes seconds.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an internet connection?

No. MBN Projects is a fully offline project management tool. Everything — your data, your licence, PDF export, the document writer — works with no connection at all. The only optional network call is the manual update check you trigger yourself.

What exactly does the 7-day free trial include?

The full application, not a cut-down demo. All fourteen views, all 24 column types, Gantt and critical path, dashboards, the document writer, PDF export, the portfolio view, the activity log and all ten themes. The trial is limited to 2 projects and 1 automation, and .mbnproj project import/export is reserved for licence holders. No card required to start.

What happens to my projects when the trial ends?

Nothing is deleted. Your data stays on your PC exactly as it is. Enter a licence key and everything unlocks with your projects intact.

Which operating systems do you support?

Microsoft Windows 11 only. We do not support Windows 10, macOS, Linux or mobile devices, and there is no web version.

How do seats work?

One seat = one Windows 11 device. Freelance is 1 seat, Small Teams is 5 seats, Medium Teams is 10 seats. Every plan includes every feature — the only difference is how many devices you can activate.

Why do you need my Machine ID?

Because activation is offline, there is no server to check who you are. We bind each licence key to a device using a hashed Machine ID you send us from Settings › Licence. It contains no personal data and cannot be reversed.

Can I get a refund?

No. Once a licence key has been issued it cannot be revoked, because activation is offline and permanent. Please use the free trial first. See the no-refund policy.

Is my data sent anywhere? Do you collect analytics?

No, to both. There is no telemetry, no analytics, no crash reporting and no account. Your projects never leave your device.

Where is my data stored, and can I back it up?

In a local database in your Windows user profile. Export any project to a single portable .mbnproj file to archive it, move it to another PC or hand it to a colleague.

Can two people work on the same project at once?

Not simultaneously. MBN Projects is a single-user desktop tool by design — that is what makes it fully offline and private. Share work by exporting a .mbnproj file or a PDF.

Do I have to pay again next year?

Licences are annual. Renew to keep receiving updates and support.

Can I change the look of the application?

Yes — ten built-in themes, including a dedicated High Contrast option, switchable instantly with Ctrl + T or from Settings › Appearance. See the themes section.

Privacy notice

Short version: your project data never leaves your computer, and we do not want it.

What the application does with your data

  • All projects, tasks, people and documents are stored locally on your device
  • We have no access to it and no ability to retrieve it
  • No telemetry, no analytics, no crash reporting, no advertising identifiers
  • No account, no sign-in, no cloud sync
  • The only outbound request is the update check you press

Because you control the data

If you record other people's details in your projects — team members, client contacts — you are the data controller for that information. We are not a processor of it, because we never receive it. A permanent-erase function is built into the app so you can satisfy genuine deletion requests: it clears the rows, the search index and the audit history, then compacts the database.

What we hold as a business

  • Your order details — name, email, billing country and amount, to fulfil the sale and meet UK tax record-keeping duties
  • Your Machine IDs — the hashed device values you send us, kept so we can re-issue or support your seats
  • Your emails to us — kept while needed to support you

Card payments

Card details are handled entirely by Stripe, our payment processor. They are never entered on this website and we never see or store them.

Your rights

You can ask us for a copy of what we hold about you, ask for corrections, or ask us to delete it where we are not legally required to keep it. Email support@mbn-projects.com and we will respond within one month.

Security — built in, not bolted on

Being offline removes most of the attack surface. We hardened what remained anyway.

No network exposureNo server, no listening ports, no cloud account to breach. There is no remote attack surface because there is nothing remote.
Hardened data layerEvery database query is parameterised — no dynamically assembled SQL anywhere in the codebase.
Memory-safe coreThe application core is written in Rust with no unsafe code blocks.
Signed licence keysKeys are verified with strict Ed25519 signature checking. A forged or tampered key is rejected.
Safe file importsImported .mbnproj archives are validated on the way in. Unsafe or malformed file paths are refused, in both directions.
Locked-down interfaceA strict content security policy with no inline scripts, and sandboxed document previews.

Deploying on a managed estate?

The project database is a local file. For company devices we recommend enabling BitLocker full-disk encryption, which protects your project data at rest along with everything else on the machine.

A written compliance pack — security overview, privacy notice, data-retention schedule, incident response and deployment hardening guidance — ships with the application for IT and procurement teams. Ask us if you need anything further for a supplier review.

Found a security issue? Please report it privately to support@mbn-projects.com before disclosing it publicly. We will acknowledge your report and keep you updated.

Licence terms

What you are buying

  • An annual licence to use MBN Projects on the number of seats in your plan
  • One seat = one Windows 11 device, bound to the Machine ID you provide
  • Every feature is included in every plan — nothing is gated by tier
  • Updates and support for the duration of your licence term

What you may not do

  • Share, resell, sublicense or publish your licence key
  • Use one seat's key on more devices than you have paid for
  • Attempt to circumvent the licensing or trial limits
  • Reverse-engineer, decompile or redistribute the application

Your data is yours

We claim no ownership of anything you create in MBN Projects. Your projects, documents and exports are yours, and remain on your device.

Payment and renewal

Prices are in GBP. Licences run for 12 months from issue. Renewal is not automatic unless you tell us otherwise — we will remind you before your term ends.

No refunds

Licence keys are non-refundable once issued, because offline activation cannot be revoked. Use the free trial first. See the no-refund policy.

Warranty and liability

The software is provided as-is. We work hard to make it reliable, but we cannot accept liability for lost data or lost profits. Keep backups — .mbnproj export exists for exactly that reason. Nothing here limits liability that cannot be limited in law.

The full end-user licence agreement is included with the application and is shown during installation.

Still stuck?

Email us with your order address and, if it is a licence question, your Machine ID from Settings › Licence.