This
document
from Microsoft Technet describes how you can share a wired Internet
Connection with your other computers by setting up an ad-hoc wireless
network.
Step 1: Enabling Internet Sharing on the Host Computer
To enable Internet sharing on the host computer, do the following:
1.From the Windows XP desktop, click
Start, click
Control Panel, click
Network and Internet Connections, and then click
Network Connections.
2.Right-click the Ethernet network connection that is used to access the Internet, and then click
Properties.
3.On the
Advanced tab, select the
Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s Internet connection check box and clear the
Allow other network users to control or disable this shared Internet connection check box.
4.Click
OK to save changes to your connection.
5.You might be prompted with a
Local Network message box that explains how your computer’s configuration is being changed. Click
Yes to enable Internet sharing.
Step 2: Creating an Ad Hoc Wireless Network on the Host Computer
To
create an ad hoc wireless network to share Internet access with the
other WLAN computers on a computer running Windows XP, do the following:
1. From the Windows XP desktop, click
Start, click
Control Panel, click
Network and Internet Connections, and then click
Network Connections.
2. Right-click the wireless network connection, and then click
Properties.
3. Click the
Wireless Networks tab.
4. In the wireless network adapter properties dialog box, click
Add under
Preferred networks.
5. On the
Association tab, type the name of your ad hoc wireless network in
Network name (SSID). For example, you could name your wireless network
AdHocInternet.
6. Select the
This is a computer-to-computer (ad hoc) network check box and clear the
The key is provided for me automatically check box.
7. In
Network Authentication, select
Open.
8. In
Data encryption, select
WEP.
9. In
Network key, type the WEP key. The WEP key should be a random sequence of hexadecimal digits or numbers, letters, and punctuation.
10.In
Confirm network key, retype the WEP key.
11.Click
OK to save changes to the wireless network.
12.Click
OK to save changes to the wireless network adapter.
These
instructions configure an encryption key for wireless communications on
the ad hoc wireless network. You must tell the other users who want to
access the Internet the WEP key. You can create an ad hoc wireless
network without requiring encryption and an encryption key, but it is
not recommended.
Step 3. Connect other Computers to your new Ad Hoc Wireless Network
To connect each other laptop computer to the newly created ad hoc mode wireless network, do the following:
1. Once the new ad hoc wireless network is created, Windows XP on other laptop computers should detect it and prompt you with a
One or more wireless networks are available or
Wireless networks detected message in the notification area of your taskbar.
2. Click the notification message.
If you are not notified, right-click the wireless network adapter in Network Connections and click
View Available Wireless Networks.
You should see the
Wireless Network Connection dialog box (for Windows XP with SP2), a dialog box with the name of the wireless connection (for Windows XP with SP1), or the
Connect to Wireless Network dialog box (for Windows XP with no service packs installed). An example of the
Wireless Network Connection dialog box for Windows XP with SP2 is shown in the following figure.
3. For Windows XP with SP2, click the name of the new ad hoc wireless network in the list, and then click
Connect. When prompted by the
Wireless Network Connection dialog box, the WEP key in
Network key and
Confirm network key, and then click
Connect.
For Windows XP with SP1, click the name of the new ad hoc wireless network in
Available networks, type the WEP key in
Network key and
Confirm network key, and then click
Connect.
For Windows XP with no service packs installed, click the name of the new ad hoc wireless network in
Available networks, type the WEP key in
Network key, and then click
Connect.
Now
that the laptop computer is connected to the ad hoc wireless network,
you must configure it for either Windows Firewall or ICF and automatic
addressing by doing the following:
1. From the Windows XP desktop, click
Start, click
Control Panel, click
Network and Internet Connections, and then click
Network Connections.
2. Right-click the network connection that corresponds to the wireless network adapter, and then click
Properties.
3. For computers running Windows XP with SP2, click the
Advanced tab, and then click
Settings. From the
Windows Firewall dialog box, click
On, and then click
OK.
For computers running Windows XP with SP1 or Windows XP with no service packs installed, click the
Advanced tab, and then select the
Protect my computer and network by limiting or preventing access to this computer from the Internet check box.
4. Click the
General tab, double-click
Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) in the
This connection uses the following items list.
5. On the
General tab, click
Obtain an IP address automatically and
Obtain DNS server address automatically.
6. Click
OK to save the changes to the configuration of Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).
7. Click
OK to save the changes to your connection’s configuration.
The
laptop computer should receive an IP address configuration from the ICS
host computer and have Internet connectivity. Test Internet
connectivity by using a Web browser to view Web pages.
