There is nothing inaccurate to say that the craze of smart devices is increasing at a very fast speed. After the introduction of a few amazing widgets in the last few years, everyone wants to enjoy the best that they can offer. Although the smart gadgets come with a flawless blend of features, the fact that they are nothing without the internet cannot be denied.
The first thing that comes to our mind when we think about a Wi-Fi internet connection is obviously a Wi-Fi router which we need to buy. However, it is actually possible to create a Wi-Fi hotspot on your windows laptop and that too without using any software. This post puts some spotlight on the same and lets you save your money on buying a Wi-Fi router.
Well, if you are thinking that whether you can actually turn your Windows-based notebook to a Wi-Fi hotspot or not, let me make it clear to you that it is actually possible. It really doesn’t matter whether you use 32-bit Window or 64-bit version, there is nothing much you need to do to keep up the pace in this matter. There are a few methods that work perfectly to enable you to turn your laptop into a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Prerequisites For Creating Hotspot
If the question arrives in your mind is how it is possible without any software, then I would like to make it clear that this is generally due to a hidden virtual Wi-Fi adapter feature. It let you create a Wi-Fi hotspot on your laptop and connect all other devices such as a smartphone, iPad or any other Wi-Fi enabled device with it. However, there are a few things which you need to keep in mind before proceeding further with the same.
The very first thing is to make sure that the wireless adapter on your PC is working fine. This is actually the most common issues that wouldn’t let users turn their laptop into a Wi-Fi hotspot.
All the latest laptops are equipped with the wireless adapter and you need to make sure of same.
How To Check if Your Laptop Has The Network Adapter
To check this, simply click the “Start” button and type “Device Manager” in the search bar. You will see an option “Wireless” that states that your device is having the wireless adapter present in it. In case you don’t find it on your laptop PC, there is no need for you to worry about the same.
Alternatively, you can type a single line command to check the status of the driver.
Netsh wlan show driver
You can purchase it easily and can install it in no time. One of the best options to consider is the USB wireless card. This is because it comes with some user-friendly features such as compatibility, portability, as well as easy installation. Make sure you have installed the driver software for the network adapter properly. Once done, you can proceed with the following guide.
It must be noted that the method I am going to share with you works in a very similar manner on all the version of Windows. It really doesn’t matter whether you are using XP, 7, 8 or Windows 10, the same steps can be followed easily to simply turn your laptop into a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Create Wifi Hotspot In Windows 7, 8 ,8.1 & 10
1. You need to open the command prompt first and need to run it as Administrator. For this, simply make a right click on it and choose “Run as Administrator”. Another way to open the same is by pressing the Windows plus X key simply.
2. Next step is to type the following command into the command prompt
netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=mak key=wifihotspot
3. After this, you can set a username and a password for your Wi-Fi hot spot. As you can see on the screen, the “SSID” would be the name of your hotspot and the “key” will be the password for the same. Although Windows will show it by default, you can make changes to it and can set as per your choice.
4. Next step is to enter another command in the command prompt and i.e.
netsh wlan start hostednetwork
5. After entering this command, you will see a message “Hosted Network Started” appear on the screen.
6. You now go to the “Network & Sharing Center” where you can find your newly created Wi-Fi hotspot connection. However, it only indicates its presence; there will be no network access to the same. To make it work with all the devices, you need to enable it. This is done generally by simply enabling the sharing of the network.
6. There is nothing much you need to do to enable the sharing. For it, simply open your default internet connection and click on the “Properties” which you will find under the sharing tab. Check the box that says “Allow other network users to connect through this computer internet connection”
7. This will simply enable your Wi-Fi hotspot and connection will be shared with other devices. Your Wi-Fi hotspot will now be having the internet access.
6. Check if its work properly. You can do so with the help of any other Wi-Fi enabled device by entering the password you set earlier.
If you want to stop the Wi-Fi hotspot anytime, just proceed with the following command and type it in the command prompt
netsh wlan stop hostednetwork
How To Remember The Commands
It is quite true that remembering these commands is not easy. In fact, entering wrong commands is one of the most common reasons why many people fail to convert their laptop PC into a Wi-Fi hotspot. So I am going to share a solution to this problem. To remember the commands, follow the below steps
- Simply write them on a notepad.
- Save them by selecting the appropriate option as a “batch file”. You can choose the name of the file as per your choice but make sure it remains a .bat file.
- These batch files after storing can be run anytime with the administrator privileges.
- All other command files can be created in a similar manner.
Another Method To Create Hotspot In Windows
Users of Windows can go with another method which is very basic and can easily be considered for making their laptop into a Wi-Fi hotspot. Check out the below instructions for the same.
- First of all, simply select the “Start” button and then tap on “Network & Internet” and then click “Mobile Hotspot”
- Next is to choose the internet connection you want to share. This can be done simply by clicking “Share my Internet Connection”
- Simply select the “Edit” option and enter the network name as per your choice and set a password for the same. Click “Save” once done.
- You will see an option i.e. “share my Internet connection”, simply turn it ON
- Now can now connect any Wi-Fi enables device with the hotspot you created on your laptop easily.
This tutorial can easily be trusted and there is nothing much you need to do to convert your laptop into a Wi-Fi device for sharing your internet connection. Also, all the steps are easy and have been tested. I would like to mention once again and that this method works with all the version of Windows and thus you can proceed without worrying about the same.