Turn Windows 7 Laptop into Wireless Repeater with One Wireless Adapter

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  1. Posts : 2
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
       #1

    Turn Windows 7 Laptop into Wireless Repeater with One Wireless Adapter


    Nowadays, wireless router is a basic device at home because wireless access point (AP) is required. Sometime, a wireless repeater is also needed in a big house especially that with a big yard. Actually, without wireless router, only a Windows 7 laptop can be turned into a WiFi hotpot or a wireless repeater. Many discussions can be found online regarding how to turn Windows 7 laptop into a WiFi AP or virtual WIFI hotpot, however, the internet surfing is based on a local area connection. If wanna extend a WIFI signal to an enhanced new wireless AP, generally two wireless adapters are considered.

    Here, differently, with only one wireless adapter but without 3rd-party software, we can setup a wireless repeater in a Windows 7 Home Basic or Home Premium laptop with only one wireless adapter. This can boost the wireless signal to smartphones, tablet computers, or other wireless devices. Also, the mobility and flexibility allow extending the signal to a yard or a garage conveniently as you want.

    It is known that a virtual wireless adapter can be created with a third party software or only Windows 7 built-in commands. But in Windows 7 Home Basic or Home Premium, usually the virtual wireless adapter cannot be created or a hosted network cannot be started. I found a specific approach to clear the issues.

    We can follow the steps (successful setup in my two Windows 7 Home laptops),

    1. Click Start, point to All Programs, click Accessories, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator.

    2. A virtual wireless adapter can be created by command of,

    netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=sameabcd key=12345678

    where sameabcd is your new ssid of the virtual AP, key is the password for virtual AP.

    If the virutal adapter named 'Microsoft virtual WiFi miniport adapter' cannot be created, we have a specific method here.
    Delete all temporary point to point ssid at Manage wireless networks in Network and Sharing Center, and change all static IP to dynamic IP. Then bridge Local Area Connection to Wireless Network Connection (see Fig. 1), again run the command above, usually, the virtual wireless adapter can be created. If not, update the driver of the wireless adapter. If no again, it means the wireless adapter does not support hosted network. When the 'Microsoft virtual WiFi miniport adapter' is created, delete the bridge immediately.

    Turn Windows 7 Laptop into Wireless Repeater with One Wireless Adapter-fig.png

    Fig. 1

    3. Start hosted network by

    netsh wlan start hostednetwork

    If the hosted network cannot be started, similarly, we still have a specific approach here.
    Delete all temporary point to point ssid at Manage wireless networks in Network and Sharing Center, and change all static IP to dynamic IP. Then bridge Wireless Network Connection to Wireless Network Connection 2 (as shown in Fig. 1), run the above command again, usually the hosted network can be started. Then delete the bridge immediately, and run the command again.

    4. Go to Control Panel > Network and Sharing Center > Change adapter settings. Right click on Wireless Network Connection and select Properties. Go to the Sharing tab and check "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection." Then at the "Select a private network connection" drop down menu, select Wireless Network Connection 2 and click the OK button.

    5. Searching the new created wireless signal, you can now get your smartphone, tablet computer, or any wireless device connected to the new WiFi AP.

    If do not need wireless repeater, just stop it by

    netsh wlan stop hostednetwork

    to stop the wireless hosted network.


    This method is free and no any 3rd-party software is required.

    After you set up the hosted network for the first time, you can just start or stop it by running following two batch files as administrator.


    start.bat

    netsh wlan start hostednetwork


    stop.bat

    netsh wlan stop hostednetwork


    Or only one batch file as attached. start-stop.zip
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 2
    Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
    Thread Starter
       #2

    This method is available for starting soft AP of Windows 7 Home Premium laptop when set up repeater, some third party softwares or methods can create soft AP for Windows 7 Professional or Ultimate only.
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 2
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64 Spanish
       #3

    I know it's an almost 3yo post, but i had to say thanks, i had a terrible unused laptop in my house, now is an energy unefficient net repeater, but it works!
    Thanks a lot, also, works with Win7Ultimate
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 1
    windows 7 64 bit
       #4

    Hi i know that this post is old, dnt know its alive. But i created a wireless network 2 as said in the procedure and its showing up in the available wifi networks but it shows the pass key as well as when i put the password in my tab it shows authentication problem. how to solve this ...
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 5
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit, Windows 8.1 x64 Bing Edition, Windows 8.1 x64 Home Edition
       #5

    Dear wdmaocn

    We have a Win7 Laptop as a Database Server (SQL) and several Laptops connected to it through cables and Switch (Standard Wired LAN).

    Let's say the Server Laptop has an IP 192.168.1.1 (SQL Server).
    all the client Laptops are 192.168.1.2, 192.168.1.3, etc.

    We are using a custom application to connect all the client Laptops to the SQL Server.
    Recently my Boss were planning to move our Office to another location.

    i hate to rebuild the LAN cables and rejack them with RJ-45 all over again.
    so i want to set the SQL Server Laptop as a Virtual Wireless AP.

    My question is:

    1. After the SQL Server Laptop has been set into a Virtual Wireless AP, can it still be used as Database Server? Because all the client Laptops has 192.168.1.1 as their target IP to read/write through a custom application.

    2. Without stopping the service, can it run automatically after restarting the Windows? -or- should i put the batch file on Startup?

    3. Let's say i put the batch file on Startup, creating the same SSID and Password everytime the Windows starts, i wonder if the SSID can generate the same frequency or signal kind, so that all the client Laptops can automatically connect to it everytime the Windows starts?

    Thank you very much for the tutorial and help.

    Any help and solution will be much appreciated :)
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 5,656
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64 SP1
       #6

    How much does a real wireless access point cost?
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 5
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit, Windows 8.1 x64 Bing Edition, Windows 8.1 x64 Home Edition
       #7

    GokAy said:
    How much does a real wireless access point cost?
    Of course purchasing a single Wireless Router is enough..it will be the cheapest solution for most cases.

    But in our case, in my city, we often got electricity Blackout during the day, it happens twice or three times every day, with each time the duration of the blackout is about 3-4 hours.

    We have many damaged UPS and Wireless Routers (for Internet) due to the unstable electricity.
    This is also why we didn't use PC, we did in the past, resulting in many broken UPS, Power Supplies, Motherboards and in rare case, Processor and RAM.

    With Laptops, we only plug-in the power cord when the battery level hits 15%.
    by doing so, we can avoid the damage.

    Another thing is, if the Windows built-in solution can do the job, we don't have to turn the Wireless Router On and Off everyday. Wireless Router was built for 24/7 of usage, with a stable electricity of course, while in our case, it can only last a month or so.

    But of course if i can't get this Virtual Wireless Router to work as expected, buying a real one will be my final and best solution.


    P.S.
    With the Windows dedicated & built-in solution, we can sometimes bring the Server & Client Laptops to another place, take them home if there's an urgent, we can work overtime without having to stick at the office..we can work everywhere :)
    Last edited by kimdonghwan; 03 Aug 2015 at 01:52. Reason: P.S.
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 5,656
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64 SP1
       #8

    Alright, well, just image backup the SQL laptop (in case something unexpected happens) and try it? I am not sure if you can get IP like 192.168.x.x, possible you will end up with APIPA (169.254.x.x) IPs. But that shouldn,t stop communication with the SQL server, any foreign network should be routed to 192.168.1.0 network through 192.168.1.1 interface, and immediately captured back. Maybe you will have to add 169.254.0.0/16 network to firewall.

    Only issue this may have is 169.254.0.0 IPs are random and it will be a trouble to see another client laptop?

    By the way, I am not even sure if you get APIPA. You need a DHCP like service to assign private IPs.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 5
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit, Windows 8.1 x64 Bing Edition, Windows 8.1 x64 Home Edition
       #9

    Yes..i'm using Aomei Backupper..it's completely free and powerful..clean and simple..not a huge one like Acronis..
    it can create a single image with three different compression level and password protection too..
    it can also create a bootable recovery disc as well as USB flashdrive.

    Meanwhile the SQL Server is a Hewlett-Packard laptop..it comes with HP Recovery Manager which i never use before.
    it's already twelve midnight here, will give it a try tomorrow.

    i'm going to use this command:

    Code:
    netsh interface ip set address "Connection Name" static ipaddr subnetmask gateway
    
    netsh interface ip add dns "Connection Name" ipaddr
    
    netsh interface ip add dns "Connection Name" ipaddr index=2
    So in my case, it maybe:
    Code:
    netsh interface ip set address "Wireless Connection" static 192.168.1.1 255.255.255.0 0.0.0.0
    
    netsh interface ip add dns "Wireless Connection" 0.0.0.0
    
    netsh interface ip add dns "Wireless Connection" 0.0.0.0 index=2
    If by any chance i still got a weird IP like 169.254.x.x, i will try to put the batch file on Startup and see if it generates the same IP or not..if the IP persists everytime the Windows start then mission accomplished!
    But if got a random address each login, maybe i have to buy a real Router.

    Thank you very much..i will post the result soon :)
      My Computer


  10. Posts : 1
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit
       #10

    Turning windows 7 Laptop into a wireless repeater


    wdmaocn said:
    Nowadays, wireless router is a basic device at home because wireless access point (AP) is required. Sometime, a wireless repeater is also needed in a big house especially that with a big yard. Actually, without wireless router, only a Windows 7 laptop can be turned into a WiFi hotpot or a wireless repeater. Many discussions can be found online regarding how to turn Windows 7 laptop into a WiFi AP or virtual WIFI hotpot, however, the internet surfing is based on a local area connection. If wanna extend a WIFI signal to an enhanced new wireless AP, generally two wireless adapters are considered.

    Here, differently, with only one wireless adapter but without 3rd-party software, we can setup a wireless repeater in a Windows 7 Home Basic or Home Premium laptop with only one wireless adapter. This can boost the wireless signal to smartphones, tablet computers, or other wireless devices. Also, the mobility and flexibility allow extending the signal to a yard or a garage conveniently as you want.

    It is known that a virtual wireless adapter can be created with a third party software or only Windows 7 built-in commands. But in Windows 7 Home Basic or Home Premium, usually the virtual wireless adapter cannot be created or a hosted network cannot be started. I found a specific approach to clear the issues.

    We can follow the steps (successful setup in my two Windows 7 Home laptops),

    1. Click Start, point to All Programs, click Accessories, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator.

    2. A virtual wireless adapter can be created by command of,

    netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=sameabcd key=12345678

    where sameabcd is your new ssid of the virtual AP, key is the password for virtual AP.

    If the virutal adapter named 'Microsoft virtual WiFi miniport adapter' cannot be created, we have a specific method here.
    Delete all temporary point to point ssid at Manage wireless networks in Network and Sharing Center, and change all static IP to dynamic IP. Then bridge Local Area Connection to Wireless Network Connection (see Fig. 1), again run the command above, usually, the virtual wireless adapter can be created. If not, update the driver of the wireless adapter. If no again, it means the wireless adapter does not support hosted network. When the 'Microsoft virtual WiFi miniport adapter' is created, delete the bridge immediately.

    Turn Windows 7 Laptop into Wireless Repeater with One Wireless Adapter-fig.png

    Fig. 1

    3. Start hosted network by

    netsh wlan start hostednetwork

    If the hosted network cannot be started, similarly, we still have a specific approach here.
    Delete all temporary point to point ssid at Manage wireless networks in Network and Sharing Center, and change all static IP to dynamic IP. Then bridge Wireless Network Connection to Wireless Network Connection 2 (as shown in Fig. 1), run the above command again, usually the hosted network can be started. Then delete the bridge immediately, and run the command again.

    4. Go to Control Panel > Network and Sharing Center > Change adapter settings. Right click on Wireless Network Connection and select Properties. Go to the Sharing tab and check "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection." Then at the "Select a private network connection" drop down menu, select Wireless Network Connection 2 and click the OK button.

    5. Searching the new created wireless signal, you can now get your smartphone, tablet computer, or any wireless device connected to the new WiFi AP.

    If do not need wireless repeater, just stop it by

    netsh wlan stop hostednetwork

    to stop the wireless hosted network.


    This method is free and no any 3rd-party software is required.

    After you set up the hosted network for the first time, you can just start or stop it by running following two batch files as administrator.


    start.bat

    netsh wlan start hostednetwork


    stop.bat

    netsh wlan stop hostednetwork


    Or only one batch file as attached. start-stop.zip


    I have tried the above and created the SSID (sameabcd) and I can see it with my iphone or SamsungTab2, but when I enter the Password (12345678) they try to connect but fail to do so.
    On top of My Currently connected to: (Bottom Right Hand Corner) I can see the SSIDs for
    "MoonbaseWiFi" - Internet Access & "Sameabcd" - No Internet Access.

    Can you please give me any advice on what the problem might be?
    Thank you in anticipation.
      My Computer


 
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