Internet sharing? (hotspot)

[Racing Snake]

Hi Guys,
does the SP3 support internet sharing? - in that it'll create it's own wifi hotspot?

 

[hopmedic]

Windows 7 had it, though I was never successful in setting it up (Only tried once - that was the only time I ever thought I might need it, and it didn't work right away, and I didn't have time to figure out what I did wrong). I believe 8 has it as well, but I haven't tried it because I don't need it - my phone is my hotspot. I'm thinking I've seen it in there somewhere, but I'm at work on a 7 machine, so I can't look right now.

EDIT:
Here ya go:
how to enable wi fi internet sharing in windows 8

 

[jrohland]

I can't say it will not work but, I doubt it will. The problem is the SP3 has only one Network Interface Card (NIC). Generally, Windows Internet sharing requires one NIC to connect with the Internet and another NIC to connect with the internal network. You could get a USB Ethernet adapter and try doing it with that. Anyway, why do you want to? If you have access to Wi-Fi (which you must if the SP3 is connected to the Internet), why not just attach the other devices to the same Wi-Fi?

Anyway, please report your success in doing this so others may learn.

 

[hopmedic]

The time I was trying to do it, I was in a room where there were more people needing wifi than there was capacity for those users. Other people in the room were sharing wifi through their laptops (which only have one wifi card), so I tried it. It could be that I failed due to the huge number of people, but I didn't investigate. My point is that it does work with one NIC. Of course, as a by-product, speed will suffer, but in this case, where the AP was maxed out, speed already suffered.

 

[jonty12]

Also, travelers, which I believe is a SP market, are often in hotels/airports/airplanes that charge for WiFi per device. So far I've avoided it by using my BlackBerry and "Bridge", and I'll now use bluetooth tether unless I can get this hotspot to work on my SP3.

Using the Phone's hotspot doesn't work on a plane, because it shares the cellular/LTE connection not the WiFi connection.

 

[stephen_az]

Hi Guys,
does the SP3 support internet sharing? - in that it'll create it's own wifi hotspot?

Unless something has changed specifically for Surface Pro 3, yes you can. There is a somewhat cumbersome way to enable in Windows; however, you can also download something like Connectify Hotspot and it will do the work for you. I tested that application recently with a Surface Pro 2 and it worked fine. It is a desktop app though, not Windows Store, so it is easier to just search and download. This app in particular has a free version and a "pro" version for $12.00....

 

[AndyCalling]

If a hotel wants to charge per device, register your phone then change your tablet's MAC to match your phone's. The only issue is that you can only connect one of these devices at a time.

 

[jonty12]

If a hotel wants to charge per device, register your phone then change your tablet's MAC to match your phone's. The only issue is that you can only connect one of these devices at a time.

If you're connecting one device at a time, it's not an issue. You logout with the first, in with the second, out, in, etc. The issue is having multiple devices connected at once.

 

[strollin]

My phone doesn't have a Hotspot feature but I can tether it to my SP3 via USB to get internet access. I've tried various ways of enabling the SP3 as a Hotspot (Connectify, VirtualRouter, netsh commands, etc...) but have not been successful at creating a Hotspot on the SP3. I have several netbooks and a laptop that this works on but haven't gotten it to work on the SP3.

I haven't tried it since I got the new firmware update yesterday so I need to test to see if the update had any effect.

Update: I just tried it with the new firmware but the Hotspot won't start. VirtualRouter reports "An attached device is not working"..

 

[hopmedic]

The other day when connecting my SP3 to my phone with the phone acting as wifi hotspot (SSID: National Security Agency Mobile :wink I noticed that for a brief moment, less than a second, the computer flashed something like, "Unable to configure wifi sharing." At first I thought that meant it couldn't connect to my phone, but then when I realized that it indeed had connected, I wondered if that meant that it knew that the connection was from a phone or a cellular device, and that somehow the system would not allow that connection to be shared. I don't know - just throwing out a possibility.

 

[strollin]

As I said, I am able to create a Hotspot on other machines I own (with both Win 7 & Win 8). I can't imagine MS would somehow put into the Surface a way to block sharing of cellular connections.

 

[Cleavitt76]

Virtual Router - Wifi Hot Spot for Windows 8, Windows 7 and 2008 R2 - Home

I have used this to share WiFi that required authentication with a device that couldn't authenticate on its own. Works great.

 

[anon(7901790)]

Also, travelers, which I believe is a SP market, are often in hotels/airports/airplanes that charge for WiFi per device. So far I've avoided it by using my BlackBerry and "Bridge", and I'll now use bluetooth tether unless I can get this hotspot to work on my SP3.

Or in my case, a hotel that had wired internet in the room, but only one connection. However, I couldn't get the built in internet sharing to work, so I found a third party app that allowed me to share the connection without having to use my LTE data.

 

[Racing Snake]

Wow, great stack of replies!

At the moment, only my laptop can do this for me (running win8 - but I use the pre-loaded intel wifi adapter software to enable sharing).... but it's a bit cumbersome to lug around, and since the sp3 was going to replace this, it's something I'd definitely be using. (the lack of it won't stop me buying though ).


Also, I do have sharing on my phone, but I travel a lot, so need to avoid those pesky international data charges! hence the hotel room wifi sharing

 

[jonty12]

Wow, great stack of replies!

At the moment, only my laptop can do this for me (running win8 - but I use the pre-loaded intel wifi adapter software to enable sharing).... but it's a bit cumbersome to lug around, and since the sp3 was going to replace this, it's something I'd definitely be using. (the lack of it won't stop me buying though ).


Also, I do have sharing on my phone, but I travel a lot, so need to avoid those pesky international data charges! hence the hotel room wifi sharing

Can you tether from your phone? That may be the best bet. Connect your phone to the WiFi, turn off cellular, then tether via Bluetooth or USB to your SP3. Should solve the problem. Uses a lot of battery on both, but if plugged in in the hotel room, no big deal.

 

[strollin]

I see posts where some people say they "have used" Virtual Router to share their connection BUT have you used Virtual Router on the SP3 to create a hotspot? I have used various packages over the years such as Virtual Router, Connectify and even using Windows buit-in netsh commands to create a Hotpsot on other machines I own but I am unable to create a Hostpot with the SP3.

Can anyone say they have been successful at creating a Hotspot on the SP3?

 

[hopmedic]

One idea for those who travel a lot is to get a small router and take it with you. Yes, I realize that it's an extra device to pack, but it could be worth it for the convenience in the hotel rooms. Yes, I realize that you're wanting to do this through the PC, but I'm just throwing an option out there. Also, I've seen more than a few hotel rooms that had no Ethernet connection - if you buy a router with a firmware like DD-WRT (there are others), you can make the router repeat the wifi in the hotel. Again, yes, I know this is not the ideal situation, and you're looking for ideal. I'm just throwing an option out there.

 

[Racing Snake]

Can you tether from your phone? That may be the best bet. Connect your phone to the WiFi,

No, as the phone definitely can't share it's own wifi when it's in use (I started a thread about that about a year ago!)

Either way it's not really what I'm after - as if (for example), we're on holiday, then my wife might also want a connection.
This works great with this laptop, I can connect as many things to it as I want to... was just hoping for a similar feature.


And yes, thought of the portable router idea - as you say, not ideal, but definitely an option.

 

[jonty12]

No, as the phone definitely can't share it's own wifi when it's in use (I started a thread about that about a year ago!)

Either way it's not really what I'm after - as if (for example), we're on holiday, then my wife might also want a connection.
This works great with this laptop, I can connect as many things to it as I want to... was just hoping for a similar feature.


And yes, thought of the portable router idea - as you say, not ideal, but definitely an option.

Every time I start to forget why I use a BlackBerry another reason comes back to remind me! :wink: Not really, I don't actually forget.

Yeah, I think the portable router may be the best bet. I used one last year before I had a reliable 4G card in my laptop. Worked pretty well and they come credit card sized now with tons of features.

 

[jonty12]

No, as the phone definitely can't share it's own wifi when it's in use (I started a thread about that about a year ago!)

Either way it's not really what I'm after - as if (for example), we're on holiday, then my wife might also want a connection.
This works great with this laptop, I can connect as many things to it as I want to... was just hoping for a similar feature.


And yes, thought of the portable router idea - as you say, not ideal, but definitely an option.

Every time I start to forget why I use a BlackBerry another reason comes back to remind me! :wink: Not really, I don't actually forget.

Yeah, I think the portable router may be the best bet. I used one last year before I had a reliable 4G card in my laptop. Worked pretty well and they come credit card sized now with tons of features.