How to create a wireless hotspot on your laptop

Do you have an internet connection on your laptop and would like to share this connection to other devices like your smart phone, tablet pcs, blackberry phones, android devices, Iphones and so many others through wifi?

There are two ways of achieving this:
1. Using the "netsh" command on cmd.exe
2. Using a special 3rd party software called Virtual wifi router.

Lets start with method 1, Using the "netsh" command:

The Network Shell utility was developed to help users configure network devices in both client and server editions of Windows. The support for configuring WLAN using netsh was first introduced in Windows Vista, and it’s now available in Windows Server 2008, Windows 7 and Windows 8. Using netsh wlan command, one can easily use hosted network (virtualization) feature to create a virtual wireless connection. 
 
Step 1: Run cmd.exe as administrator.

just type cmd on Start Screen, right-click it and select Run as administrator.

Step 2: Confirm weather your network interface can support virtualization by typing the following command

 netsh wlan show drivers

 If it  says No, you need to update your network adapter’s driver. If your NIC supports virtualization, you’re are lucky . Now, enter the following commands to configure an ad hoc wireless connection.

Step 3: Create the network by typing in the following:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=<network name> key=<passkey> 

This creates the network "adhocnetwork" and makes "password1" the network password.

Step 4: Then start your hotspot by typing this command:

netsh wlan start hostednetwork

You will get the message "The hosted network started". If it says “hosted network couldn’t started”, you need to 
disable current wireless network device and then enable it. You may also need to refresh network adapter list from Device Manger to install a 
virtual network device driver.

You are good to go.

Step 5: Now, you have to share your internet connection, 

To enable ICS feature,Network and Internet –> Network Connections, Open properties . Now, open Sharing tab, enable Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s Internet connection, and then choose the newly created ad hoc connection from the list.as shown in the screenshot above .

Once the internet connection is shared, check the IP address assigned to newly created ad hoc connection from TCP/IPv4 Properties. If it doesn’t assign IP address, then run netsh wlan start hostednetwork command in CMD.

Method 2: Using virtual wifi router:
People who use USB dongle modems to connect to the Internet often cannot use the same Internet on their phones. A quick and easy solution to this is creating a Wi-Fi hotspot through your computer.  Virtual router pro is a free, open-source program that does the geek work for you, allowing you to quickly fire up an ad-hoc network whenever you need one.
Download the software and install. At this point, setup is easy. Enter a name for your network, then choose a secure password with at least eight characters. Finally, choose the connection you want to share (there will most likely only be one choice), and click Start.

Also remember that your computer needs to stay awake and running to keep its ad-hoc network alive. So, change your power settings if there is need

To test your wireless network, pick up your phone or tablet and connect to your newly create Wi-Fi hotspot. If it doesn’t show up, stop the connection on your computer, and hit Start again.

Try it out and post your comment. Don't forget to share.