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Frequently Asked Questions

Which Wifi Devices are Supported?

The device support is dependent on you having a driver installed that is Certified for Windows 7. As far as we know, part of the requirement for a wireless driver to be "Certified for Windows 7" is must support the Virtual Wifi and Wireless Hosted Network features of Windows 7.

Unfortunately, in regards to using Virtual Router, any driver that is "Certified for Windows Vista" will work with your Wifi device in Windows 7, however it will not support the Virtual Wifi and Wireless Hosted Network features.

You can view a list of devices here: Supported Devices

Virtual Router will not start after installation

There are some cases that Virtual Router is unable to start immediately after installation. First you should make sure that you have the latest device drivers installed from the manufacturer of your Wifi device, then if that still doesn't work you should try restarting/rebooting you machine if you havn't already done so.

You can find links to some of the latest drivers for some of the more commonly used Wifi devices here: Supported Devices

How do I know if my computer/hardware supports Virtual Router?

First, you need to have a Wifi device and driver that both support the Windows 7 Virtual Wifi and Wireless Hosted Network features.

You can view a list of known supported devices here: Supported Devices

Can I use Virtual Router with Windows Vista or Windows XP?

Unfortunately, Virtual Router will not work on Windows Vista or Windows XP, or any older version of Windows. Virtual Router is only compatible with Windows 7 since the Virtual Wifi and Wireless Hosted Network features are new in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.

What About Windows 7 Starter Edition?

Unfortunately, Microsoft has disabled the Virtual Wifi features in Windows 7 Starter Edition so Virtual Router will not work. This is the only edition of Windows 7 that the software will not work with.

Is the connection encrypted? How secure it this?

The wireless connection is encrypted with WPA2 encryption. Encryption is also required, with no method of disabling it. The security of you "Virtual Router" is dependent on the strength of you Password / Passphrase.

How To Change Device (Connected Peer) Icon

You can open the Device "Properties" dialog one of two ways:
  1. Double Click the Device / Connected Peer
  2. Right Click the Device / Connected Peer and Select "Properties..."

VirtualRouter_09_Screenshot002.png

Then click on the "Change Icon..." Button, and Select the Icon you want and click "Save".

VirtualRouter_09_Screenshot003.png
Last edited Apr 11 2010 at 2:23 PM by crpietschmann, version 14
Comments
drakorg Jan 5 at 7:22 AM 
hi, is there any setting where I can configure some options of the internal DHCP? I'd like to have some ips fixed for some devices when they connect to the wireless network.

skaurus Dec 31 2011 at 1:56 PM 
Virtual Router isn't worked for me, and following console guide I found out that it's because hostednetwork won't started.

Problem was with disabled Microsoft Virtual WiFi Miniport adapter.

raid1970 Oct 1 2011 at 12:59 PM 
i have 2 isp and have internet explorer and firfox browser how i can make first isp work the explorer and the 2th isp work firfox some one help me

eis0r Sep 8 2011 at 11:09 AM 
Intel® Centrino® Advanced-N 6205 unfortunately not working here on windows 7 64bit with latest driver 14.1.1.0
is there any alternative?

Iason2020 Aug 31 2011 at 11:11 AM 
Very helpfull tool, thx a lot!
I agree with vjudragon, you need an activated Microsoft Virtual Wifi Miniport Adapter, when having issues in starting virtual router.
As an alternative to the approach describes by vjudragon I recommend the following tool for fast setting creation:
http://virtualwifi.sourceforge.net

hardysmooch Aug 2 2011 at 11:51 AM 
Excellent. Works like a dream. I have been using Connectify up until recently but have grown tired of adverts with this "free" product. Well done!

vjudragon Jul 23 2011 at 5:59 PM 
If getting problem in starting Virtual Router, I may recommend you to use first cmd lines for Creating Microsoft Virtual WiFi Miniport Adapter

Windows 7 has an excellent in-built utility, Wireless Hosted Network (Virtual Wifi) technology, that makes your computer, a wireless access point and you can connect all your network devices by sharing a single internet connection thorough your computer or laptop.

Here’s how to set it up.

1. Open command prompt with Administrator privileges. (You can do it by going to start menu, right clicking on command prompt and selecting “Run as administrator”).

2. Enter the following command:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid=Test key=Passkey
(This will create a wireless access-point with SSID of “Test”

Windows-7-Wifi-Setup

3. Open the Networks and Sharing Center

4. Select your mode of connecting to the internet (ethernet, wi-fi, cable etc.)

5. Enable sharing and select special ‘hosted’ interface or Wireless Connection (i.e. Virtual Wifi miniport)

6. Start it

netsh wlan start hostednetwork

Source: http://www.techylabs.com/setting-up-a-virtual-router-in-windows-7.html

And you’re Done!

Tips:
1. Disable IP6 in Microsoft Virtual WiFi Miniport Adapter or other wireless network.
2.Don't use any Wifi connections before starting Virtual Router may create Problem.
3.In Device Manage download Online, Latest Microsoft Virtual WiFi Miniport Adapter in case of problem.

Then after few days try to connect through Virtual Router

pppoe, you can. Just see this pic to share http://i54.tinypic.com/15moh77.jpg ; My wireless connection 4 is Microsoft Virtual WiFi Miniport Adapter.

First you need to connect Internet and then start virtual router and then start.
When You successfully share Internet with virtual router you will see this. http://i53.tinypic.com/300y0ck.jpg

Network Connections Page: http://i56.tinypic.com/m93gbt.jpg

Virtual Router Screen Shot: http://i54.tinypic.com/spzrtj.jpg
Color Red: Confidential
Color Black: This may confuse you because I already :)))

Hope it Helps and will save time. :))

zhang024 Jul 11 2011 at 2:57 PM 
Sir, which is really useful for me, thanks so much. I have another question, can we create dynamically password for each customers? I have a cafe and I want to give them different password when they use my wifi AP. thanks again.

dushy4 May 4 2011 at 5:31 AM 
The best software to share connection,,,,,i was struggling with ad-hoc connections which had to be manually conected everyday. Also tried to use Internet Connection Sharing but it changes IP address of wireless card and disabled DHCP which make it hard to connect to other wifi networks.

This works like charm,,,, Very helpful,,,keep the good work,,,

Rollyd Mar 8 2011 at 8:06 PM 
I have windows 7 home and a 2wire.com wireless router and after downloading the program all I get is Cannot start router or similar. What am I doing wrong

Gigabyte Mar 1 2011 at 1:28 PM 
How do I share a dial-up connection?
It doesn't show up in the shared connection dialog box.

ladiciusevol Dec 16 2010 at 5:11 AM 
Hi I tried using virtual router, but the service starts, then immediately stops, any ideas on why this happens?

kustardking Oct 30 2010 at 5:52 PM 
I would actually like to use this software, but it doesn't (or I can't figure out how to) configure the subnet for clients. Also, I'd like to be able to have clients reserve IP addresses so they're consistent between sessions.

Thanks for at least starting an alternative to Connectify. My usage is a VMWare server on a laptop that needs to have iThing devices connect in a "closed circuit" environment when on the road.

tjcool Oct 24 2010 at 3:40 AM 
Sir i want to develope same app for windows phone.....can u suggest me resources....Thank u

bonalaw Sep 15 2010 at 10:42 AM 
Sir, I read from www.withinwindows.com that even though the the Virtual Wifi features in Windows 7 Starter Edition is disabled, but still there is way to enable & setup adhoc wifi in Windows 7 Starter edition. So will this change your position that Virtual Router can now run also in Windows 7 Starter Edition?

salwensko Aug 13 2010 at 2:33 AM 
The program run, but my netbook dont connect. The network is ok, but dont connect to internet. The netbook connect to network, but dont work. in peers conected, i see the netbook. The hostname and ip could not be found. Help. Sorry my english

Kryztoval Jul 8 2010 at 4:23 PM 
sayoji01: you can only have multiple instances of the Client... but hey, I'll add it as a modification and send it back to the project owner.

BTW: I do believe that this project rocks.

sayoji01 Jun 7 2010 at 3:31 PM 
in addition, multiple instances of the program is quite not good.

sayoji01 Jun 7 2010 at 3:29 PM 
hey guys, i suggest that the virtual router have many options to choose from (start with windows, creating profiles....) and i noticed that it only starts the virtual router when you have a network connection... maybe it's better if it can start VR even when not connected on a network.

defza May 24 2010 at 7:55 AM 
>how can i share my ppoe connection with this?
You should be able to, I did it to share my PPPoE connection dialed by my PC with my PS3 wifi, but I used Connectify (http://connectify.me). But I assume this one can do the same.

abv Feb 21 2010 at 3:27 PM 
how can i share my ppoe connection with this?

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