How to Create a Wi-Fi Hotspot on your Windows 10 PC

Like in previous OS versions, in Windows 10 user can create a software Wi-Fi hotspot (access point). This hotspot can be used for creating a local wireless network or sharing Internet connection (wired or cellular 3G / 4G connection) by several devices (smartphones, tablets and other devices). In the first releases of Windows 10, you could create and manage such a hotspot only from the command prompt. In Windows 10 1607 a simple graphical interface for creating an access point – “Mobile hotspot” appeared.

So, today we’ll consider how to create a Wi-Fi hotspot (virtual access point) based on Windows 10 without additional third party tools. We assume that your system has two network adapters — a wired Ethernet network card (connected to a provider’s network) and a wireless Wi-Fi adapter. We want our computer with a Wi-Fi adapter to be usedas a Wi-Fi access point by other devices and share its Internet connection.

Verify that your Wi-Fi Adapter Driver Supports Ad-Hoc Mode

Before you start to create a Wi-Fi hotspot make sure your Wi-Fi adapter driver supports a virtual access point (Ad-Hoc) mode. To do it, run this command:

netsh wlan show drivers

The command prompt window will display information about the Wi-Fi adapter driver used and the supported technologies (for details about the supported Wi-Fi driver standards, see How to Troubleshoot 5GHz Wi-Fi Not Showing Up in Windows 10). “Hosted network supported: Yes” message means that this driver supports access point mode. Otherwise, try to update the driver version or install another Wi-Fi adapter.

How to Enable Mobile Hotspot in Windows 10

In Window 10 1607 (Creators Update) a simple GUI for sharing the Internet over Wi-Fi appeared. This function is called “Mobile Hotspot”. Go to the Settings -> Network & Internet -> Mobile hotspot. To turn on the access point, it is enough to click the toggle “Share your Internet connection with other devices“. The name of the new Wi-Fi network and the password will be generated automatically (you can change them). Select the Internet connection that you want to share with other devices (Share my Internet connection from). If your computer has only one internet connection, it will be automatically selected.

In the same window, the list of devices that are connected to your WiFi hotspot is displayed. The name and MAC address of the device, as well as the IP address assigned to it, are displayed. As you can see, up to 8 devices can be connected to the access point on Windows 10 at the same time.

Common Windows 10 errors when Creating a Mobile Hotspot

If the error “We can’t set up mobile hotspot. Turn on Wi-Fi” appears when you trying to create an access point, try to update the driver for your Wi-Fi adapter and / or remove the virtual Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter according to the instruction. After that, restart your computer and try to turn on the mobile hotspot again.

Another common error: “We can’t share this Internet connection because we can’t connect to the cellular network“. Just try to restart your Internet connection.

Another error: “We can’t set up mobile hotspot because your PC doesn’t have an Ethernet, Wi-Fi or cellular data connection“. Most likely there are problems with your internet connection (no network), so you need to check the connection. Also this error appears in case you are connected to the provider through PPPoE, this type of connection is not supported by the Windows 10 mobile hotspot.

How to Create a Virtual Wi-Fi Network Using Command Prompt

You can create a virtual Wi-Fi hotspot in Windows using command prompt. Suppose that you want to create a wireless network named Hotspot (this is the network SSID) with the password ZiZiPass. Run the command prompt (with the Administrator privileges) and execute the command:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=Hotspot key=ZiZiPass

If everything is correct, the command will return the following message:

This command will create a new virtual Wi-Fi adapter in the system (Microsoft Wi-Fi Direct Virtual Adapter), which will be used by other wireless devices as a hotspot. Now, enable the created virtual adapter:

netsh wlan start hostednetwork

“The hosted network started” message tells that a Wi-Fi access point has been successfully started.

A new wireless connection named Hotspot will appear in Network and Sharing Center.

Now, other Wi-Fi devices can see and connect to this access point. Devices connected to such a network can share documents and hardware peripherals, but the Internet access through such WiFi hotspot is still impossible.

How to Share Your Internet Connection using Wi-Fi Hotspot

Now you need to allow to use a wired network connection to access the Internet for all devices connected to the Wi-Fi virtual access point. To do it, in Network and Sharing Center click the name of the network adapter, which provides the Internet connection. In our example, it is connection Ethernet.

In a network adapter statistics window click Properties.

In the network adapter properties window you must share your Internet connection. Go to Sharing tab in the Ethernet Properties window. Check the box “Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s Internet connection” and select the name of the virtual adapter created previously in the dropdown list.

Save the changes. In the Network and Sharing Center, the type of Hotspot network will be changed to Internet and that’s mean that this network (and all devices connected to it) now have an access to the Internet .

Now all the devices that are connected to the created hotspot on Windows 10 can access the Internet through the external network interface of the computer. Try to connect to your hotspot from your phone, tablet or other laptop.

Viewing Mobile Hotspot Settings

The current settings for the Wi-Fi access point you have created can be viewed using the command:

Netsh wlan show hostednetwork

The command displays the network name (SSID), supported authentication and encryption types, the maximum number of devices that can simultaneously use this hotspot (Max number of clients) and the current number of connected clients (Number of clients).

The following command displays the various security settings for your Wi-Fi hotspot and connection keys:

Netsh wlan show hostednetwork setting=security

Possible Errors and Troubleshooting Wireless Access Point on Windows 10

Answer. To restore the wireless network, run the hosted network with the command:
netsh wlan start hostednetwork
You don’t need to re-enter the network name and password.

Answer. Run WLAN AutoConfig service from services.msc console or the command prompt:
net start WlanSvc
and start a virtual access point once again.

Answer. Make sure that your Wi-Fi adapter is turned on. After that run Device Manager, select Show hidden devices in the View menu. Find Microsoft Hosted Network Virtual Adapter in network adapters section and enable it. If it didn’t help, run these commands one by one:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=disallow
netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow

After that re-create the hotspot:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=Hotspot key=ZiZiPass
netsh wlan start hostednetwork

Answer
netsh wlan show hostednetwork

Answer. To stop an access point, run the command:
netsh wlan stop hostednetwork

To delete a hotspot in Windows 10 (SSID and network password are deleted), do the following:
netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=disallow

Answer: Check DNS server settings on your device (try to specify the address of the public Google DNS server (8.8.8.8) manually in your client’s settings). Also, try to restart Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) service, or disable and re-enable the adapter through which your Windows 10 computer is connected to the Internet.

Another few typical problems:

• Some of antivirus software has a built-in firewall that can block the Internet sharing. Try to temporarily disable the firewall and check if the problem occurs when it is disabled;
• Make sure that you have enabled sharing exactly in the properties of your Internet connection;
• Verify that the Internet Connection Sharing service is enabled on Windows 10. The easiest way to do this is by opening the services management console – services.msc;
• Run the Network Adapter Troubleshooter utility (Network Adapter Troubleshooter: Troubleshoot -> Network Adapter -> Run Troubleshooter). This utility will check the current adapter settings and try to fix the problems automatically.