How to Share an Internet Connection

wikiHow to Share an Internet Connection
If you're trying to share your internet connection with multiple devices at your house, you may be wondering how to do it without complicated networking. Luckily, your Windows or Mac computer can easily share its internet connection with the rest of the network. You can even turn your computer into a wireless access point so you don't need a router to connect your wireless devices.

Sharing a Windows Computer's Connection
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1
Configure your devices on the network. When sharing internet through your network, it will require a slightly different layout than a standard network. The basic layout is as follows:[1]
Connect the computer that is sharing the connection (the "host") to the broadband modem via Ethernet or 4G hotspot via USB. If you are connecting a modem to the host computer via Ethernet, it will need two Ethernet ports (one to connect to the modem, and the other to connect to the hub or router).
Connect the host computer to the WAN port of a wired hub or wireless router using an Ethernet cable.
Connect the other computers to the hub or router using Ethernet or a wireless signal. Note that the connecting computers don't need any special settings, and can be running any operating system.
If you're just connecting two computers, connect them directly via Ethernet.

2
Open the Network Connections window on the host computer. You can quickly open this window by pressing the Windows key + R and typing ncpa.cpl.

3
Right-click on the adapter that is connected to the internet source. This could be your modem or your USB hotspot. Make sure that you are only performing these steps on the adapter that is actually connected to the internet, not the adapter that will be connecting the host to the rest of the network.

4
Select "Properties" and click the .Sharing tab.

5
Check the "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection" box. Click Apply to save your changes.
At this point, you can turn your host computer into a wireless access point if you have an unused wireless adapter. Click here for instructions.

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Click the .Settings... button to enable specific services. This is important if the other computers need to access email, FTP, or other special services. Check the box for each service that you want to enable.

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Open your wireless router's configuration page. Now that the host computer is set up, you'll need to configure the router to allow it to pass the connection through. Click here for detailed instructions on opening the router's configuration page.
If you're using a hub or switch, you won't need to perform any additional configuration.

8
Open the Internet Settings page on the router. The exact wording will vary from model to model.

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Ensure that the "IP Address" section is set to "Get Automatically". Again, the wording will vary slightly depending on your exact router.

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Connect your other computers and devices to the router or hub. Your host and router have been configured, and now it's time to connect your other devices.
If connecting via Ethernet, connect each additional computer to the LAN ports on the router or hub.
If connecting wirelessly, connect to the router as if you were connecting to any wireless network

1
There is no .Sharing tab. This is typically the case if you only have one network adapter installed. You must have at least two different network adapters installed to use internet connection sharing.

2
The other computers on the network are not getting an internet connection. This is typically caused by the computer not getting a correct IP address.
Make sure that you only have internet connection sharing enabled on the host computer, and only on the adapter that's connected to the internet. All of the other computers on the network should not have internet connection sharing enabled.
Open the Network Connections window on the computer that cannot get an internet connection