A virtual router is software that turns your computer into a Wi-Fi router. Your PC shares its internet connection over Wi-Fi with any other Wi-Fi device, using the computer’s own Wi-Fi adapter. Download Connectify Hotspot free to try it on Windows 10 or 11.
What a Virtual Router Does and Why You’d Use One
If you’re like us, you carry several Wi-Fi devices every day. But how do you get your smartphone or tablet online when you only have a wired Ethernet connection, or the Wi-Fi is weak in your room? That’s where the Connectify Hotspot virtual router helps. Your PC becomes a router and shares its connection as Wi-Fi.
No Hardware Necessary
There’s no reason to carry a travel router to stay connected on the road or at job sites. With the Connectify Hotspot virtual router, the router is already inside your Windows PC. Turn your laptop into a Wi-Fi hotspot and get iPads, smartphones and other devices online with a few clicks. Like your home router, the hotspot is protected with a password.
Setup · about two minutes
Get Connectify Hotspot running on your Windows PC
Three steps, no command prompt, no netsh commands to remember.
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Install and open Connectify Hotspot
Run the installer and let the install finish. Connectify Hotspot opens on its own.
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Pick what you are sharing
Choose the connection your Windows PC is already using, then set a hotspot name and password.
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Start Hotspot
Your phone, tablet or console now sees the network name you just typed. Connect to that network like any other Wi-Fi.
Available for Windows 10 and 11
Stay Connected, No Matter Where You Are
Say your hotel room has only a wired Ethernet connection. Connectify Hotspot’s virtual router shares that wired connection as Wi-Fi from your computer. With PRO, wired router mode also works the other way: it shares the PC’s connection over an Ethernet cable to a wired-only device, such as an older game console.
To learn how to set up Connectify Hotspot as a virtual router, see Part 2 of this post.
Available for Windows 10 and 11