Software to make my computer a wifi hotspot

Whether traveling or at home, Connectify Hotspot keeps all your devices connected anytime and anywhere.

See how easy it is to create a WiFi hotspot with the Connectify Hotspot software app for Windows computers. Share the Internet with all your devices, extend your WiFi network range and get rid of annoying ads, all in one!

Plus - get rid of NAT type issues when playing games online, and eliminate incompatibilities by bridging other devices onto your home network.

Find the latest version for your PC or laptop at connectify. Turn your PC into a repeater for any existing Wi-Fi signal, extending service to a hard-to-reach basement or bedroom.

Connectify Hotspot. Connectify Hotspot Features. Connectify Hotspot makes all your devices happy. This easy-to-use virtual router application lets you share Internet from your laptop with your smartphone, tablet, media player, e-reader, other laptops, and even your nearby friends. Use it anywhere in the world without restrictions. Ad Blocking for Client Devices. You can find it in your Downloads folder or in your browser's Downloads section.

Follow the prompts to install Virtual Router. You can leave the settings at their defaults. Click the Start button.

You can launch Virtual Router from the Start menu after installing. Click "Virtual Router Manager. Enter a network name. You can change the network name to anything you'd like. This is the name that will appear on other devices in the list of available networks. Create a password. This will help protect your network from unwanted connections.

Users on other devices will need to enter this password in order to connect to the network. Click the "Shared Connection" menu.

This will display your available network connections. Select your active network connection. Select whichever connection your laptop is receiving internet from in the "Shared Connection" menu. This will ensure that connected devices can access your internet connection.

Click "Start Virtual Router. Connect other devices to your new network. Other wireless-capable devices will see your new hotspot in the list of available networks. Select the network and enter the password you created a few steps back. This will allow the device to connect to your computer and access the shared internet connection. Connected devices will not be able to see your computer's files. Troubleshoot problems with Virtual Router. Since Virtual Router isn't an official program, there are several things that may be causing it to not work for you: [3] X Research source Try rebooting your computer, especially if you haven't rebooted since installed Virtual Router.

Make sure you have the latest available drivers for your laptop's wireless adapter. See Find and Update Drivers for detailed instructions. If you get the "group or resource is not in the correct state to perform the requested operation" error, download and install the hotfix from Microsoft.

Make sure you're not using Windows XP, Vista, or Virtual Router only reliably works on Windows 7 and 8. Windows 7 Starter is not supported. Yes, you'll still have access to the internet while your hotspot is active.

You may notice slower speeds if multiple devices are connected and using bandwidth. Yes No. Not Helpful 2 Helpful 3. To connect to a WiFi hotspot using your phone, turn on your phone's WiFi and then find the name of the network you want to connect to. If it has a password, you'll need to ask the owner of the hotspot what that is. To use your phone as a WiFi hotspot, most US carriers and likely some overseas carriers will force you to buy a tethering package. If you have such a package or otherwise don't need one, search for a WiFi tethering app on your phone or download one from your app store.

The program uses password-protected WPA2 Encryption for privacy and security. One thing to remember here is that software is only said to compatible with Windows 7, 8 and 8. Platform: Windows Downlaod: Free 5. And yes, Maxidix HotSpot supports dual-mode i. On top of that, you can also track all the devices that are connected to your hotspot and further, you can block them as well. Just set your network name and password and you are done.

Platform: Windows Download: Free 6. The connection is blazing fast and it does not bog down your computer. There is also an option to create a hotspot using the WLAN connection.

There is some sort of client management as well where you can scan and blacklist users from eating your internet bandwidth. But the best part about this WiFi hotspot is that it also brings local file sharing between your smartphone and PC which is amazing. Platform: Windows Download: Free. If you are looking for an open-source solution to create a WiFi hotspot on Windows then check out Virtual Router by Codeplex. In case you are unaware, Codeplex was a project developed by Microsoft itself for creating and sharing open-source programs and Virtual Router is the product of that endeavor.

So, if you want a simple and effective WiFi hotspot tool for Windows then look no further than Virtual Router. Note: You might require. NET Framework to run this application on Windows Platform: Windows Download: Free 8.

MyPublicWiFi By now, you have got the idea. Apart from Connectify, all the other programs on our list today are completely free to use without any feature restrictions, and this particular software is no exception either. It allows users to set up an internet access point much like the other programs on this list, but it offers a few interesting possibilities for its users that none of the others offer.

The app actually comes with a built-in firewall that can be configured to restrict access to specific websites or protocols.