How do I use my laptop as a wireless hotspot?

[jmmL]

Currently my laptop is connected via ethernet to our router. I recently got a phone which has wifi and I'd like to avoid expensive carrier charges by connecting via wifi to my laptop's internet connection.

I found a page in the community documentation, but the instructions were written for feisty. I'm wondering if there is a different or more simple way to do this now in karmic. Thanks!

[garvinrick4]

Your phone is a WIFI router? Or your router is WIFI enabled?

[amp_man]

I think his router is wired-only, and he wants to use his laptop to bridge from the wifi phone to the router. I'd just go buy a wifi router, you can get a decent Netgear/Linksys/DLink/etc unit at Walmart or Best Buy for like $50, or cheaper if you hop on newegg.

[jmmL]

I think his router is wired-only, and he wants to use his laptop to bridge from the wifi phone to the router. I'd just go buy a wifi router, you can get a decent Netgear/Linksys/DLink/etc unit at Walmart or Best Buy for like $50, or cheaper if you hop on newegg.

Yeah, my phone is wifi-enabled. Effectively I want to make my laptop the router.
I know wireless routers are cheap (and I have one at home, but not here) but this is an opportunity for FOSS to save me £40!

[DrMelon]

Logically speaking it should work.

[jmmL]

Looks like it already is included in ubuntu by default, and it's as simple as it should be.

Left click on the nm-applet and select "Create New Wireless Network".

NetworkManager has had this feature for a while:

network-manager (0.7.1~rc4-0ubuntu1) jaunty; urgency=low

  * upstream release 0.7.1 rc4
    + http://git.freedesktop.org/NetworkManager/NetworkManager/
    + NETWORKMANAGER_0_7 (branch)
      - dont send AT commands to serial consoles that are not using a modem driver 
      - nozomi probing (LP: #351803)
      - allow users with polkit authorization to view/edit secrets for system connections
      - fix crash that might be LP: #319918
  * allow connection sharing out of the box; we add dnsmasq-base to Recommends:
    - update control

[madnoob]

Looks like it already is included in ubuntu by default, and it's as simple as it should be.

Left click on the nm-applet and select "Create New Wireless Network".

NetworkManager has had this feature for a while:

network-manager (0.7.1~rc4-0ubuntu1) jaunty; urgency=low

  * upstream release 0.7.1 rc4
    + http://git.freedesktop.org/NetworkManager/NetworkManager/
    + NETWORKMANAGER_0_7 (branch)
      - dont send AT commands to serial consoles that are not using a modem driver 
      - nozomi probing (LP: #351803)
      - allow users with polkit authorization to view/edit secrets for system connections
      - fix crash that might be LP: #319918
  * allow connection sharing out of the box; we add dnsmasq-base to Recommends:
    - update control

Hi, jmmL! Can you please post the exact steps you did to accomplish that? I'm trying to share the laptop internet connection to a a wi-fi enabled phone (LG gt505) and it just won't connect in vista, so i really want to give it a try in ubuntu.Sorry for the noobish request, but a noob i am. Thanks in advance!

[jmmL]

1. Left click on the NetworkManager icon in the panel.
2. Enter a name for your network.
3. Choose the security you want your network to have (if any)
4. Enter a key for the security (if applicable)
5. Click "create"
6. Wait for NM to set it up (takes 5 or so seconds on my laptop)
7. Scan on your phone for the new network
8. Connect!

It's funny. I was re-visiting this today. I wanted to connect my android phone (a T-Mobile Pulse) to my laptop, but it turns out android doesn't (currently) support connecting to ad-hoc networks by default. There are work-arounds available for the G1 and the Hero, but none for the pulse yet, which uses a different wifi chipset. Oh well.

[Ekeluo]

1. Left click on the NetworkManager icon in the panel.
2. Enter a name for your network.
3. Choose the security you want your network to have (if any)
4. Enter a key for the security (if applicable)
5. Click "create"
6. Wait for NM to set it up (takes 5 or so seconds on my laptop)
7. Scan on your phone for the new network
8. Connect!

Thank you so much for this. Well there's one less need for win xp. Never thought it could be that easy.