How to share wired Internet connection in hotel using two wireless PCs

Cindy,

Here's the information on how to connect two computers and share Internet connection wirelessly without additional equipment:

The info seems to be up to date.

You might consider a small travel type wireless router. Here is an example of one made by Netgear. There may be others...

Hi Al Sooner (Sooner Al?),

I like your suggestion.

Not only is this deck-of-card sized wireless router an interesting potential addition to my travel kit, but, it also would give me the freedom to move around the room while connected.

Currently, I'm "tethered" to the desk by wire; but I vastly prefer to work on the bed with all those fluffy pillows spread around (not to mention my VOIP calls back to the states tethered to the computer via headphones and a mic to avoid the pillaging and plundering that goes on with overseas phone calls from my room). It would be great to make those VOIP calls lying down in my nice comfortable bed with the convenience bar only an arms' length away.

I have one theoretical question with this method ... I called the hotel who said they key off the MAC address. If I were to use the wireless router (which I don't have, but I ask this to better understand the solution) ... would the hotel then key off the MAC address of the wireless router and not off the two wireless laptops "connected" to the wireless router?

Would that solution be any better (or different theoretically) than if I purchased a small hub (switch?) and some long CAT5 ethernet cable?

This is very interesting to me, so I hope you respond, so we all benefit, Cindy

Hi S. Pidgorny,

Oh my. You do have a great potential answer here! You are just what the doctor ordered. A great many people would benefit from this discussion as it applies even to home or office use to have one wired Internet connection work with two computers in the same room (one at a time).

Reading your suggested web page about building an ad hoc 802.11b wireless network using the graphical user interface in Windows XP was very interesting:

According to your document, the main steps to follow are:

1. Set the 1st PC as an ad-hoc (pc-to-pc) wireless connection
2. Ensure the wireless card is working properly in the second PC
3. Enable Internet Connection Sharing on the first PC

More specifically, it seems, first, on PC1, we:

• Ensure PC1 is hooked to the Internet via the Ethernet wire

• Start > Settings > Network Connections

• Rightclick on the wireless network icon

• View Available Wireless Networks > Change Advanced Settings

• Select the "Wireless Networks" tab

• Hit the "Advanced" button

• Select "Computer to computer (ad hoc) networks only"

• And clear the "Automatically connect to non-preferred networks" box

Ooops. I hit the return button too soon. Here for all to benefit, are the steps as I understand them (please fix where I make mistakes) to create and share an ad-hoc computer-to-computer wireless network without need for a wireless router or wired hub.

A) To set up the HOST computer (the one with the wired connection):

• Ensure the host PC1 is hooked to the Internet via the Ethernet wire

• On WinXP PC1, press Start > Settings > Network Connections

• Then rightclick on the wireless network icon and select

• View Available Wireless Networks > Change Advanced Settings

• Select the "Wireless Networks" tab

• Hit the "Advanced" button

• Select "Computer to computer (ad hoc) networks only"

• And clear the "Automatically connect to non-preferred networks" box

• Again select the "Wireless Networks" tab

• Under "Preferred Networks", hit the "Add" button

• Enter in a "Network Name (SSID)" of "Hotel"

• Notice the grayed-out checked box indicating "This is a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network; wireless access points are not used"

• For now, leave the "Network Authentication" as "Open"

• Likewise, leave the "Data encryption" as "Disabled" for now

• OK your way out of these forms

B) To set up the CLIENT computer (the one that will be wireless):

• On WinXP PC2, press Start > Settings > Network Connections

• Then rightclick on the wireless network icon and select

• View Available Wireless Networks

• You should see "Hotel" as an "Unsecured computer-to-computer network"

• Select "Hotel", press the "Connect", & "Connect Anyway" buttons

• You'll see the message "Acquiring network address"

• Soon you should see the message "Connected"

C) To Share the Internet connection:

• Go back to the host WinXP computer, PC1

• Make a note of the wired connection's name (e.g., Local Area Connection)

• Press Start > Settings > Control Panel

• Switch to classic view > Network Connections.

• Rightclick the connection to be shared

• Under Network Tasks, click "Change advanced settings"

• Select the "Advanced" tab

• Select the "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection" check box.

• Disable the setting to "Allow other network users control or disable the shared Internet connection"

• Optionally turn on the Windows Firewall

• In the "Home networking connection", select a private network connection of "Local Area Connection" (i.e., the connection to the wired network)

• OK your way out of the forms

If the planets align, after you've completed this ICS configuratoin, the Network Connection window on the host PC1 should display the original wired Ethernet connection and display the status as Shared as well as Enabled.

Likewise, the Network Connection window on the client PC2 should display the connection on the host as an Internet Gateway. The client PC2 should now receive a private class, non-routable IP address in the

192.168.0.* address range via DHCP from the host computer and should have full Internet connectivity. Multiple client PCs can be connected in this manner.

Bear in mind, all this is theoretical. I tried it, but it didn't work (so I'm debugging as we speak). I'll let you know what I find out.

Note: For some inexplicable reason, I lost my wired connection when I ran the steps above but I got it back by turning off "Enable IEEE

802.1x authentication for this network" in the "Local Area Connection" "Authentication" tab on the host PC1; and then by selecting in the "Advanced" tab in the "Internet Connections Sharing" section to "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection".

But, so many settings happened, that I'm not sure all the steps above were exact as I still don't have PC2 connected to PC1 wirelessly without a router.

Cindy

I now have PC1 connected again but PC2 says its connected to the "Hotel" network but it doesn't work. I need to debug.

Maybe I'll just change the MAC address so that both PCs are the same MAC address.

That would, of course, only work with the ethernet cable connected to one at a time (which is OK ... just not as convenient as being wireless in the hotel room).

I found a freeware MAC address changer here:

Cindy

you are making it far too difficult.....

wireless router and you are done.......

or just create a vpn connection to whichever computer is online......

30 bucks a day? Shoot, I would just find a coffee shop around the corner.......I bet in the lobby if it is a remotely populated area, you could jump on someones unsecured netowork....

Chuck

I've used a linksys WTR54GS for this purpose for several years now.

Or using tinyurl to shorten that hideously long URL:

The nice thing about this unit is it's built-in AC plug. So you don't have to carry along yet ANOTHER wall wart AC adapter (or forget to bring it, as experience shows...) Plug it into the wall and run the ethernet cable into it. If there's a PC already using that outlet, no problem, just plug the PC into the second outlet on the WTR54GS.

Works great.

-Bill Kearney

Hi Chuck,

Thanks for the advice; but I don't understand two of your three suggestions:

SUGGESTION 1: - Wireless router - I'm fifteen countries away from my home; where would I get a wireless router?

SUGGESTION 2:

- Create a vpn connection.

- I do not understand this at all. Yes, I have the Nortel Networks Contivity VPN client.

- But, without a network, how would I use this to connect my two computers?

SUGGESTION 3:

- Jump on someone elses' unsecured network.

- I always wondered how to do that.

- If I "see" someone else's network, just connecting to it doesn't give me Internet access.

- Am I doing something wrong?

Chuck ... I do appreciate your help. But, can you clarify how I could use the Nortel VPN software to connect a second PC to the first PC's wired ethernet connection?

Same with jumping on someone else's network. Once I "connect" ... why don't I have any Internet access when I connect to someone's unsecured connection? What am I doing wrong?

Cindy

Hi Bill Kearney, Thank you for your advice. When I left on this trip two weeks ago, that's when I should have thought of it. As it was, I had to buy a whole bunch of British-style three square prong adapters to fit the American-style two-blade plug of my computer.

At the moment, I'm in a strange city (Singapore) and I don't have a clue what is where as I just arrived today. In two days, I'll fly to the Philippines and then to Beijing so I'm trying to travel ligthly.

Next time I might pick up the router in the states as far too many hotels have wired but not wireless Interner connections in the rooms (and wireless is so very nice when you're relaxing in bed).

Thanks for your advice. At the moment, I'm stuck trying to get the second computer to connect to the first via the wireless. I already tried the MAC address change and that worked, but, it's wired and I prefer to be wireless by far.

But, for want of a setting or two I would be wireless, Cindy

Yes, in this case you would give them the MAC address of the router.

If you're not going to be using both computers connected to the internet at the same time, then you could spoof the Mac address of the computer keyed off by the hotel on your other computer.

Cindy,

I picked up your message in rec.travel.usa-canada. Until I opened my reply I wasn't aware that you have cross-posted to two technical groups as well. I was going to suggest that you post to one.

All the same I will post a list of some non-Usenet http forums that I have found very useful.

Windows BBS -

Annoyances Network FAQ - is also a discussion forum for Windows Annoyances at: - Hope that this helps.

:>Can you help me network a single wired Internet connection at my hotel :>with my :>two wireless computers?

:>The hotel charges $30/day for the wired Internet connection, which is :>OK.

You are OK with $30/day????

I ain't happy with $12/day.

:> However, they charge for each laptop which I find to be highway :>robbery especially since they only supply wired Internet so there's no :>way to share between rooms.

:>Luckily, both Windows XP computers are wireless.

:>Is there any way to use the wireless part of the WinXP computers to :>SHARE the initial connection?

Yes.

:>Is this too basic a question?

Probably.

Do it just like you do at home - use a router. It can clone your MAC address.

Curios minds wish to know - which hotel (it has got to be in NYC) charges that much?

Hi Binyamin Dissen,

I should have noted these are $30 Singapore dollars per day for the wired hotel network.

That's about 30 x 2/3 = $20 US dollars a day which is OK by me for a wired hotel network.

What I'm taking as a theoretical study (which is eating into my vacation because I hate to lose a technical challenge) is how I can use my second laptop to connect wirelessly to the first laptop which is connected to the wired network.

Achieving the most of wireless is what wireless is all about; so that's why I'm trying this.

I've already agreed these OTHER approaches work: a) Buy a compact wireless router to be wireless on BOTH PCs by hooking the NAT to the hotel network and using the two wireless PCs anywhere in the hotel room

b) Spoof the MAC address on the second PC & connect one PC at a time to the short wired network

c) Connect wirelessly from the second PC to the wired first PC.

It is the third approach I'm trying to get working as the other two are (by now) obvious.

It would be great to make the most of our wireless cards like God herself intended us to do by giving us electromagnetic waves in the first place! I'm still trying to implement the steps in the Microsoft article cited.

An alternative source for the same setup would be wonderful as something is missing from the instructions at that Microsoft web site.

Cindy

That's a joke. Right?

It's my understanding that the MAC address is used to verify the equipment you registered w/ the Front Desk is actually getting the IP address they set aside for you.

In other words, giving them the MAC address from the Wireless Router would be the way to go; it should 'shield' your downstream laptop(s) from view by the Hotel's Networking and 'bing, bing- Bobs your Uncle.

While the Netgear device looks sexy enough you should perhaps study and verify if what it's putting out meets your hardware's needs or not. (Likely it'll be OK.)

Lastly, all things being equal there remains the common experience of wired being faster than wireless and too many cooks on the wire spoiling the soup (there may be a time when the wireless device represents a device too many between you and the Internet for example. I mention it but I myself find it a _remote_ possibility.)

Enjoy, hth. TBerk

I would purchase one of the small travel routers with wireless and a wired switch. you would then plug the hotels wired ethernet connect into the wan port of your router. the wan ports mac then becomes registered with the hotel and you are free to setup your own private network in your room with both wired and wireless clients.. This would enable you to share files and have both machines on the internet at the same time..

Adair

Hi Doug Jamal,

We don't know what God looks like (or do you?) ... so God, who created

802.11b,g in the first place, can be male or female or neutral for all we know.

As you inferred, I was just being a bit too subtle by referring to God in the feminine sense when referring to her all-mightly creation of the supreme power of periodicity ...

I've been on the Singapore circuit tour all day; now that I'm back in the hotel, I'll attack the electromagnetic problem again of trying to wirelessly connect with one Windows XP computer to another WinXP computer wired to the hotel network sans a wireless router ...

Any advice, short of an act of God, that shows me the way to connect one computer wirelessly to another which is wired so that they can share the Internet connection would be greatly appreciated.

Cindy