Tethering your Windows 7 device

Garikai Dzoma Avatar
Windows Tethering

Windows TetheringFollowing controversial articles in which I mentioned the juggernaut (otherwise known as they-who-shall-not-be-named) I have had this odd feeling I am being followed. Art was never one of my strong suits but I did try to make a sketch of the guy here. So until the disguise I ordered from Amazon is shipped I will stick to neutral articles. In case you are confounded by my choice of disguise. I should confess I am a fan of Two and Half Man ( I got this show legally from thepiratebay.se) and Charlie Sheen so inspired me.

Now to the matter at hand: Various ISPs and IAPs offer the option of a portable and mobile WiFi modem that you can use to connect a number of devices to the internet. It is possible however to tether one of your own devices for example a laptop connected to the internet. And contrary to popular belief: Windows does have a command line shell-cmd. My bounty of $50 000 for the guy who removed the telnet utility from Vista upwards is still good but I divagate.

  • Open the run box by pressing: Windows Button+R
  • Type cmd and press enter
  • In the shell enter the following command and press enter: netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=network_name key=network_key

N.B Replace network_name and network_key with your desired network name and key respectively.

  • Now to start the network type the command: netsh wlan start hostednetwork
  • To stop the network use the command:netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=disallow ssid=network_name key=network_key
  • Open network connections and select network_name, right click on it and select the sharing tab.
  • In the sharing tab check the Allow other users to connect to the internet using my computer.

It is that simple! If you keep this up for our next article we will be looking at how you can compile your own GNU toolchain. Who knows maybe you will be the new team leader for the grep and awk projects the last guy just quit! Goodluck handling St Stallman.

34 comments

  1. ic0n1c

    Thanx! Simple, straight forward and it works!!!! One more thing though, what do I have to do in order not to repeat this process seems the settings are not saved…. I am using Win8 Pro.

    1. Chris Mberi

      batch file + startup just my guess

    2. Garikai Dzoma

      You can create a .bat file that can be run at startup.

    3. Concern Shoko

      Copy these 2 commands to a text editor and save file as “StartHotspot.bat”

      netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=WiFiyangu key=h@ulume
      netsh wlan start hostednetwork

      Now add the file to your startup as follows:

      For ALL Users copy to :

      “C:ProgramDataMicrosoftWindowsStart MenuProgramsStartup”

      Right Click Start Button – Explorer All Users and navigate to that folder.

      ————————————

      For specific Users copy to :

      “C:UsersThe User NameAppDataRoamingMicrosoftWindowsStart MenuProgramsStartup”

      Use Windows Explorers to navigate to that.

  2. fourwallsinaroom

    your article is vague at best. If you are talking about ICS well thats been a feature since Windows Millenium. why not just use the GUI and do it the easy way?

    IMHO not a very useful article at all or did i miss something?

    1. Chris Mberi

      command line has always been the best and quickest way to give instruction remotely hands down….

    2. tinm@n

      My thoughts as well. It is very easy using the built in wizards. Like you say, has been in existence for ages. Depending on your versions, you can even share your connection wirelessly for connectionless sharing.

      1. Garikai Dzoma

        @d99ecc101df0f3f31b0dbc7a5d8a6c1d:disqus and @99cc7ce3550f7e6b3e22161a5bcdb561:disqus I do not understand what you mean by vague but I am not above learning. In Perl they say TimTowTdi. BTW please help @ic0n1c:disqus to use these alternative methods if they save settings

        1. tinm@n

          Just to be clear, I agreed on Internet Connection Sharing(ICS) having been in existence for a very long time on windows(98 SE,2000, XP, Vista) and moreso easier to setup on windows 7. Offering many capabilities including sharing a connection with devices.

          References:
          http://goo.gl/QDUt
          http://goo.gl/5wTcf
          http://goo.gl/MDjeb
          http://goo.gl/kn66r
          http://goo.gl/t87fv

          1. Garikai Dzoma

            I did n’t disagree with your assertion nor was I being sarcastic. The appeal to help @ic0n1c:disqus was and is still real. The intention of the article was not to be petty or serve some kind of selfish purpose. ( Like the I got spanked as a kid and now I am out to get attention pettiness.) It was written with the intention to be helpful so you should understand this is not some ploy to challenge your knowledge this is an appeal to use your knowledge to help a person in need.

            1. tinm@n

              I understand fully. Was just clarifying that I agree there is an existing alternative(not agreeing with the “vague” assertion). Just adding to your insightful article. No offence intended 🙂

    3. Concern Shoko

      I think the writer forgot to tell us why we are “tethering” with the device.

      “…It is possible however to tether one of your own devices for example a laptop connected to the internet…”

      He should at least have mentioned that we are creating a Wifi hotspot.

      1. Garikai Dzoma

        I doubt @d99ecc101df0f3f31b0dbc7a5d8a6c1d:disqus is a RL person who wld be confused by the term tether http://mobileoffice.about.com/od/phonesformobileworkers/f/what-is-tethering.htm .

  3. fourwallsinaroom

    oh by the way… telnet is still very much available in all versions of windows, you just need to activate it using the add remove windows features in control panel… so no your $50 000 wont go very far.

    1. Garikai Dzoma

      Thanx for the tip man I am a Windows newbie remember. Oh and about the $50 000 I dont understand what you mean???

  4. Chris Mberi

    Pulling this off in front of mortals makes one look real nerdy and geeksome

    1. Tapiwa ✔

      which is probably the motivation of this article…

      1. Garikai Dzoma

        Maybe and maybe not. Even I am not sure anymore. There are, it seems, people who are better qualified to comment on my motivations than myself. FYI I use these commands every other day when I am with my friends not for ICS bt to create a WLAN. You probably think an adhoc network is most suited 4 those situations but I always get problems with it and this solution, which I got from Microsoft seems to work better so I decided to share it!

        1. Tapiwa ✔

          There are, it seems, people who are better qualified to comment…

          Between the passive voice and and passive-aggressive tone, I’m not sure what point I was supposed to get from your reply.

          There are a lot of commands I use every other day – and some seemed novel when I discovered them, but they too do not deserve an article on this esteemed website, in my opinion. I’m guessing there’s a mismatch between what I think TechZim is, and represents and what it really is; a recalibration is in order on my part.

          As a thought experiment, how many page views did this article receive? In your opinion, how many people are likely to have found this useful? My uneducated guess would be <8 people, and as a percentage probably way less than 1%

          1. Garikai Dzoma

            According to some pple less than 2% of desktop users use linux. We should just stop making linux then.

            1. Tapiwa ✔

              Straw man argument, but I’ll bite. No, we don’t stop making Linux – but we shouldn’t splash kernel module loading articles on the sport’s page of a tabloid. ‘Linux Journal’ would be a more fitting platform

              1. Garikai Dzoma

                I understand fully what you mean. I took no offense from your comment. Comments are expected and useful. This (the list of comments and replies between ourselves) was what I would consider an intellectual engagement not an exercise in hostility. I like debates they add respective to life and sometimes like Shakespeare’s Dr Johnson things can get …

                Rest assured I take no offense in readers being candid in comments section. As I have said elsewhere I am not above learning and some of your comments are incorporated in future publications.

                FYI There is an Editor and some of my articles are rejected and rightly so.

  5. chirau

    The site is fast becoming a DIY/LifeHacker instead of TechCrunch/Verge for Zimbabwe techonology. Perhaps just establish a how-to section and throw in this and many other articles on workarounds, hacks etc and keep the news as the front of the site.

    1. Garikai Dzoma

      Variety is the spice of life-Joseph Conrad.

      1. chirau

        The about us section of this wonderful blog states:

        “Techzim is a news blog focusing on covering information technology news,
        views and reviews about products/services in Zimbabwe and the
        surrounding region.”

        Nothing about DIYs. Let’s stick to the script.

        1. Garikai Dzoma

          I can see you are an expert and conveniently omitted the parts about “early adopters” and “novices” being helped. I can understand the temptation to be brusque and contemptuous when dealing with items that some might deem trivial matters that should,as you have said “thrown”, to some dark section hidden away like some shameful secret. As some would do their disabled relative. Whenever such temptation creeps in please feel free to recall your primary school teacher esp grade 1 when you where still finding your feet.

          1. chirau

            Surely you can’t tell me you went through that page and did not find the primary emphasis on ‘news’ and not only that, ‘news on ICT in Zim and the surrounding region’ and they clear state that is their niche.

            Anyway, I have no problem with TechZim covering DIYs, but if they are going to be that then perhaps they should let us know. I have TechZim in my ‘news’ feed because that is how they define themselves. But it is annoying when is start getting ‘news’ on setting up equipment, tethering laptops, configuring Linux amidst real news. That is how blogs get axed from people’s feeds. I love TechZim and would not want to do that. That’s just me perhaps, but as much as l love agriculture and mining, I don’t expect to see stories of how to pan gold or harvest rapoko on the front of my agriculture and mining news feed.

    2. Concern Shoko

      how about you contribute what you feel is missing? Wont harm I believe.

      1. chirau

        I am neither a writer, blogger nor researcher. TechZim folks are. I’ll let them be. But in so doing, I will throw in my advice on whether they are in keeping with their promise. It is up to them to take it or not.

        1. Garikai Dzoma

          Noted!

  6. Garikai Dzoma

    Noted! Thanx!

  7. tinm@n

    +1 on tagging! Why oh why did u get rid of them@Techzim?

    1. L.S.M. Kabweza

      Will definitely be bringing it back. thanks for the feedback.

  8. L.S.M. Kabweza

    working on it. thanks a mil for the feedback.

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