laptop as wifi hotspot

Before proceeding further, we will touch upon what is WiFi hotspot. A hotspot is a facility that provides internet access over LAN or local area network. Hotspot generally needs a router and uses Wi-Fi technology. Hotspot operates in two ways i.e. Open public network and closed public network. In open public network, there is no authentication required and anyone can use it within the range of the hotspot. Closed hotspot generally needs some kind of authorization and most of the time, it is restricted usage with respect to time or speed or both.

 

The 3G/4G dongle, which we use, is good for connecting a single computer to the internet. However, with Connectify, we can turn this into a WiFi hotspot service. You can download the software from http://www.connectify.me/hotspot/ . There are two versions of Connectify, one is free Lite version and the other is PRO. With the Lite version, you will NOT be able to turn the 3G/4G connection into a WiFi hotspot. Thus, you do need a PRO version of Connectify Hotspot. If you want to convert wired connection to WiFi hotspot, the free lite version is good enough.

 

For turning your laptop into a WiFi hotspot, you do need an internet connection in any mode e.g. Ethernet, WiFi or 3G/4G dongle wireless connection. Additionally, your laptop/computer should be a WiFi enabled. It works in Windows operating system 7 or later. Using Connectify, you can transform any kind of internet connection into a WiFi hotspot. You can also share files between different devices and machines. And the good part is that you can share the files even without any internet connection ("No Internet Sharing" mode).

 

 

Once you install the software, it doesn’t need much configuration. In the setting tab, enter password, which will be used as mean of authentication, when users will connect to your WiFi hotspot. The next field is “Internet to Share”. For PRO users, you can choose automatic, so that Connectify will automatically pick up the Internet connection. In the advanced setting, you have the option of making it either Open network or Close network. For open network, choose sharing mode as “WiFi Ad-hoc Open”. For close network, you can either choose WPA2 encryption or WEP encryption. WPA and WEP both uses encryption but differ in the way they provide security to the WiFi network. Next, click on “Start Hotspot” and your WiFi hotspot is ready.