Boston University plans to test its new emergency-response system Friday by sending text messages and emails to registered students and staff.

Because the Send Word Now system takes about two days to processes entries, students must enter their cellphone numbers on the Student Link website today to receive the test messages Friday. The test is the first of two scheduled trials on the Charles River and Medical campuses.

“This initial test will examine our system’s ability to generate and transmit an emergency alert to a large volume of recipients, and to evaluate the validity of the addresses in our database,” said BUPD Chief Thomas Robbins in an Oct. 5 press release. “In the wake of the tragedy at Virginia Tech and other wide-scale incidents, we are fully committed to the preparation necessary to effectively and swiftly secure our campus in the event of a crisis.”

An email test will also be sent to all BU email addresses. These emails do not require a response, but the administration will take suggestions from students during the test period, the release states.

In case of an actual emergency, the messages would state specific instructions for the community to follow, Robbins said in the release.

In mid-September, just less than half of the BU population had not registered an emergency contact number with the system.

Students who have not registered by the time of class registration will be banned from picking classes for the spring.