Windows 10, as well as Windows 7 and Windows 8, allows you to start a Wi-Fi router on your computer . This function is very convenient, in the absence of a real router, to share the wireless connection with different devices.
This mode is especially useful if the PC is connected to the internet via a USB stick .
Being a hidden feature, it is still little known and, above all, a configuration menu is missing that easily activates and deactivates it.
To set up the Wifi router on Windows 10, you don't need to download any programs, just open the command prompt and follow the instructions below.
Without getting too scared, open command prompt with administrator privileges.
To do this, press the " Windows + X " keys together or right-click the Start button and open " Command Prompt (Administrator) ".
Write (or copy and paste) the following command and press Enter:
netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode = allow ssid = navigaweb key = password
The SSID is the name of the Wi-Fi connection and how the password (which must have at least 8 characters) can be changed as you prefer.
Immediately after also execute this command:
netsh wlan start hostednetwork
You can check its status from the network connection center located in the control panel.
The hosted network is recognizable by displaying the icons with the details and has the name Connection to the local network (LAN) .
At this point, close the command prompt, open the network connection center (press the right mouse button on the network icon near the clock) and click the " Change adapter settings " link.
Press the right mouse button on the icon of the network active on the internet, which can be the Wifi or the Ethernet one, go to the Properties and then to the sharing tab.
Click the option to share the network and select the newly active one, the hosted network, from the available networks.
To finish the configuration, right-click on the hostednetwork LAN connection, press the Properties button, find and select Internet Protocol version 4, press Properties and set an IP address manually by writing: 192.168.111.1.
In the primary and secondary DNS field write 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4 instead (they are google DNS)
At this point the WiFi hotspot should be activated and usable.
From a smartphone or from another computer you should now find the network created, with the indicated name, which will be usable to access the Internet in Wifi and surf the browser or open applications.
Obviously the Windows 10 PC, which acts as a virtual router, must remain on and must be connected to the internet via cable or via wifi.
To disable the Windows 10 hotspot when not in use open the command prompt and run:
netsh wlan stop hostednetwork
If the procedure is not successful or there are difficulties, there are some programs that allow you to transform Windows 10 into a wifi router automatically.
Then try Connectify, one of the best known programs to create a wireless hotspot with Windows
UPDATE: After the anniversary update, you can activate the hotspot directly from the Windows 10 settings .
Then go to Settings from the Start menu, then to the Network and Internet section to find the mobile hotspot option, only to be activated.
Network name and password are automatically assigned, but can be changed by pressing the Edit button.
