Internet Connection Sharing Alternative to Share WiFi Over Ethernet in Windows 10
Do you have devices around the house or office that can’t connect to the Internet over Wi-Fi? Older smart TVs, media players, desktop PCs and some game consoles need a wired Ethernet connection.
If your home or office is wired from a router to each device’s location, you just plug the cable in. Often it’s more convenient to connect those devices to a laptop right on the spot instead, so you need a way to share Wi-Fi over Ethernet.
Connectify Hotspot, a Windows app that turns a PC into a router, does this with its Wired router mode, part of Connectify Hotspot PRO. Download Connectify Hotspot and follow the steps below.
Wired in, Wi-Fi out
No router? Connectify Hotspot makes your Windows PC the router.
A Windows PC with a working connection already has everything a router has. Connectify Hotspot takes the connection coming in over the cable and hands out a Wi-Fi network your other devices can join.
Wired in Wi-Fi out
-
At the office
A desk with a network port and no wireless you are allowed to join. The Windows PC on that port can put your phone on the same connection.
-
In a hotel room
Older rooms still have an Ethernet socket behind the desk and little else. One cable covers everything you travelled with.
-
At home
A modem with no Wi-Fi built in. The Windows PC already plugged into that modem can hand out a network to the rest of the house.
For 64-bit Windows 10 and 11
Wired in, Wi-Fi out works in the free Hotspot Lite. If you use it every day, Connectify Hotspot PRO removes the time limit.
Why Share WiFi Over Ethernet in Windows 10 with Connectify Hotspot?
Windows has a built-in way to do this, Internet Connection Sharing, which is free but fiddly to set up. Connectify Hotspot is virtual router software that does the same job from one screen, on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11, with more besides.
Connectify Hotspot can share Wi-Fi, Ethernet, a VPN or a USB-tethered phone, plus 4G and 5G modems with PRO, over Wi-Fi or Ethernet. It can share with your game consoles (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo), streaming media devices (Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku), tablets, e-book readers (Kindle, Nook), laptops, smartphones and smart TVs.
Five Steps to Share WiFi Over Ethernet in Windows 10
No running wires under the carpet, and no extra routers to configure as bridges. You need a Windows PC with a Wi-Fi connection and an Ethernet port, and Connectify Hotspot PRO:
- Download and install Connectify Hotspot on your 64-bit Windows 10 or 11 PC, and get Connectify Hotspot PRO or MAX (Wired router mode is a PRO feature).
- Open Connectify Hotspot and choose Wired router.
- Under Internet to share, select your Wi-Fi connection (or a 4G or 5G modem).
- Under Share over, select your Ethernet adapter. It has to be a different adapter from the one you share: if your internet also comes in over Ethernet, add a USB Ethernet adapter.
- Click Start hotspot, and plug the TV, console or switch into the PC’s Ethernet port.
Connectify Hotspot: More Than a Tool to Share WiFi over Ethernet in Windows 10
Along with the Wi-Fi hotspot functionality, here are other benefits for users of Connectify Hotspot:
- See every connected device with its traffic and data used, and switch internet access off for any one of them.
- A gaming mode that forwards the ports consoles need, to help fix strict NAT type issues. Free in every edition.
- Extend the range of your existing Wi-Fi network with Wi-Fi repeater mode (MAX).
- Put consoles and smart TVs directly on your home network with Bridged mode (MAX).
- Share any type of Internet connection with all your devices: existing Wi-Fi networks, LAN, DSL, tethered smartphones, and 4G and 5G modems with PRO.
Looking for an easy way to share Wi-Fi over Ethernet in Windows 10? Get started with Connectify Hotspot and you’ll be up and running in minutes.
Free, PRO or MAX
Which version of Connectify Hotspot you need
A phone plugged in by USB works in the free Hotspot Lite. A 4G or 5G USB modem, or a hotspot that has to stay up all day without restarting, needs Connectify Hotspot PRO.
Recommended: MAX covers everything PRO does and adds Wi-Fi repeater mode and Bridged mode, so one purchase covers the next setup too.
For 64-bit Windows 10 and 11