Turn your notebook into a WiFi Hotspot

If you don't have a wireless router, you can easily turn your laptop or a PC into a virtual wireless router and share your Internet connection.

If you can't be bothered entering the command lines, click here for the lesson where you download, install and use a nice little program called Virtual Router Manger, that does almost everything for you.

Click the Start button and enter cmd.exe into Search program and files field.

We need to open the elevated command prompt in order to make this work.

In the search results right click cmd.exe and choose Run as administrator.

A new Command Prompt window opens. Enter the following in the command prompt window: netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=DreevooWiFi key=thePassword and press Enter.

Ssid represents the name of you new WiFi network and the Key is the password for this new WiFi network. So it's better to choose your own.

So you crated  a new Wireless Network, now you need to activate it.

Type netsh wlan start hostednetwork into the command prompt window and press Enter.

The network should now be started.

Now click Start, Control Panel and then Network and Sharing Center.

A new window opens, click Change adapter settings.

You should now see, among others your current Internet Connection (Wireless Network Connection dreevoo in my case) and the new Wireless Network Connection we just created (Wireless Network Connection dreevooWiFi in my case).

Right click your current Internet connection and choose Properties.

Click the Sharing tab.

Check the Allow other network users to connect... option and choose the wireless connection users will connect to (Wireless Network Connection 2 in my case).

You can uncheck the Allow other network users to control... option if you don't want other users to control or disable the connection.

Click OK.

Back to your Network Adapters settings.

Your primary internet connection is now in Shared mode. That means you can now try and connect with other Laptop, Tab, Smartphone or any other WiFi device you can surf on. Just search for the WiFi network with the name you set in the step 3, connect to it, enter the password you set and surf away!

To disable the Internet sharing again right click your primary Internet connection, choose properties and uncheck the first allow option (see picture).

To deactivate the WiFi hotspot run command prompt in elevated mode (step 2), enter netsh wlan stop hostednetwork and press Enter.

Any question or comments? Don't hesitate and use the Forum.