Virtual Wi-Fi. Free virtual router for distributing wi-fi from any computer

Virtual router manager is designed to help if you do not have a real one wi-fi router, but it needs to be distributed. Its main task is to simulate a wi-fi router, so you can forget about any wires and inconveniences. The program is reliable and licensed, there are no viruses in it, and you can download virtual router manager completely free of charge. The program is compatible with the operating system Microsoft Windows XP, Seven and above.

What devices is the program compatible with?

Where can I download Virtual Router?

How to get started with virtual router manager?

• indicate the correct name of your network;
• enter password;
• Click on the “Start” button.

Entering a password is necessary for the security of the transmitted data, so that another person cannot unauthorizedly connect to your virtual distribution. All devices that you connect via virtual wifi will be displayed in the program window. If necessary, you can even find out the IP and MAC addresses of each device by looking at them in the program window.

Working with the program

Setting up the program

• to create a wifi network, you need to come up with any name for it in the top field;
• in the next field we come up with a password consisting of at least 8 characters;
• in the “Shared Connection” drop-down menu, select the connection through which the computer connects to the Internet;
• in the bottom drop-down menu select desired type connections.

How to choose the right connection type?

• Ad hoc. This mode provides a point-to-point connection. Translated into simple language, only one device can be connected to a virtual router.
• access point. This mode will allow you to connect to an “access point” (distributing wi-fi device) a large number of receiving devices. Possible problems and their elimination

Currently, wireless networks are becoming increasingly widespread: they work at train stations, airports, and enterprises, and for many users at home. In Windows 7, an option appeared called “virtual WiFi” - a software layer that creates several virtual adapters from the wireless network card installed in the computer. But first, a little theory.

Wireless networks can operate in two modes:

The devices are connected directly to each other. It turns out simple network(ad-hoc mode). This mode is called "point-to-point". This mode is used quite rarely and mainly for data exchange in cases where it is not possible to use an access point.

Devices are connected via an access point (Access Point-AP).
This mode is called infrastructure mode and, as a rule, is used in conjunction with wireless router connected to the Internet.

It should be noted that the simultaneous use of two modes of wireless network operation on one physical wireless adapter is not provided for by the WiFi concept itself, and this is where the virtualization technology used in Windows 7, which expands the capabilities of adapters, comes to the rescue.

What is Virtual WiFi technology

Without going into technical details: in Windows 7, one physical wireless adapter can be turned into several virtual ones, and - attention! - Each of these virtual adapters can be configured to connect to different wireless networks.

What is it for

Hmm... The question is, of course, interesting.
Example one: the radio signal from an existing access point does not cover the required distance between it and wireless devices. In this case, a computer or laptop with Virtual WiFi can act as a repeater (repeater), expanding the coverage area of ​​the wireless network.

Example two: creating a personal network (Wireless Personal Area Network), to which you can very quickly connect a phone, camera, printer, laptop or any other device with a wireless adapter for simple information exchange.

Example three: an existing wireless network with static IP addresses of devices, but sometimes you need to quickly connect new devices, without any adjustments or adjustments (this can be done if the mode for allocating dynamic IP addresses was enabled. But alas) .

How Virtual WiFi is implemented in Windows 7

By the way: Virtual WiFi technology is included not only in Windows 7, but also in Windows 2008 R2.

Virtual WiFi is implemented in the operating system at the kernel level and allows for a very simple implementation of a software access point (SoftAP), while the only thing required from wireless adapter manufacturers is to implement SoftAP support in their drivers (many, by the way, have already done this).

So far - in the current implementation - Virtual WiFi has the following limitations: it is allowed to create only one virtual adapter, operating only in access point mode and only with WPA2-PSK/AES encryption.
By the way, Virtual WiFi technology allows you to connect up to 100 clients to an access point versus 8 clients in the one promoted by the corporation Intel technology My WiFi.

Installing, enabling and configuring Virtual WiFi

Testing the operation of Virtual WiFi - installing, enabling and configuring a wireless network - was carried out on an ASUS eeePC 1000H netbook with a built-in Ralink WiFi adapter.

So, first you have to play around a little - call the command prompt with administrator rights and enter the following command:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid="MS Virtual WiFi" key="softodrom" keyUsage=persistent

“MS Virtual WiFi” here is the name (SSID) of the virtual network being created, and “softodrom” is the password for accessing the network. Of course, both of these parameters can be changed at your own discretion.
The last parameter - keyUsage=persistent - determines that the password will be saved and will not have to be specified every time you need to start a virtual network.

After executing this command, the system will detect new hardware and a new one will appear in the Device Manager network adapter called "Microsoft Virtual WiFi miniport adapter".

By way of clarification: naturally, a virtual adapter will appear in Device Manager only if the driver is installed on you wireless adapter has support for Virtual WiFi technology.

To be more reliable, let’s look at the Control Panel -> Network Control Center and shared access–> Changing adapter parameters:

As you can see, a new connection “Wireless network connection 2” has appeared here with the status “No connection” (it is already there in the picture. More on that below).

Let's move on to launching the network. In a command prompt running with administrator rights, run the following command:

netsh wlan start hostednetwork

After this, a) the network will start (Microsoft called it “Hosted Network”) and b) the software access point will work, which you can verify by going to Control Panel -> Network and Sharing Center.

As we can see, the computer is connected to several wireless networks simultaneously, and now other wireless devices can connect to our newly created software access point.

To provide Internet access to others wireless devices that will connect to our software access point, you should go to the Control Panel tab -> Network and Sharing Center -> Change adapter settings and in the properties of the adapter through which the computer - in our case, the eeePC netbook - accesses the Internet ( We have this connection via WiFi, but it can be any of the available ones - Ethernet, WiMax, 3G, etc.) in the “access” tab, check the box “Allow other network users to use the Internet connection of this computer".

In addition, in "Connection" home network"you need to specify which network adapter - in our case it is "Wireless network connection 2" - Internet must be provided.

The clients used in the test were a laptop and mobile phone WiFi enabled; in both cases, access to the Internet via virtual WiFi network did not cause any difficulties.

Simplifying virtual WiFi network management

Despite the obvious advantages of Virtual WiFi, using the command line to configure and start a network for Windows users who are accustomed to pressing buttons is not convenient and familiar, especially since they will have to start the network every time after rebooting the computer, as well as waking it up from sleep or standby mode.

Built-in GUI for Virtual WiFi in the operating system, alas, no, but, as always in such cases, they came to the rescue third party developers, which released graphical shells for Virtual WiFi - Connectify and Virtual Router Manager. We recommend using the first one (Connectify), since its developer is constantly working to improve it and regularly releases new versions, and the development of Virtual Router Manager is still in the beta stage, with the last beta version dating back to 2009.

The principle of using both utilities is very simple: in the appropriate fields you need to indicate the network SSID and password for access and click on the Start button, after which the program will load along with the startup of the operating system, ensuring the launch of the virtual network. In addition, both utilities, Connectify and Virtual Router Manager, show current connections to the virtual network.

Commands for Managing a Hosted Network

Finally, for command line connoisseurs, there are new commands for managing a hosted network that appeared in Windows 7 and Windows 2008 R2:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork allowed/disallowed – allow or deny network use

netsh wlan set hostednetwork persistent/temporary - setting up network parameters, where SSID is the SSID of the network; key - security key (password) used by the network; keyUsage – indicates whether the security key is permanent or temporary

netsh wlan show settings – shows network properties and its status

netsh wlan show hostednetwork settings=security – displays the security settings of the hosted network, including the password specified in key when configuring netsh wlan set hostednetwork

netsh wlan start hostednetwork - start a hosted network

netsh wlan stop hostednetwork - stop the hosted network.

Virtual WiFi Router is a simple and easy to use utility that, as the name suggests, can turn your computer or laptop into a hotspot. Wi-Fi access and "distribute the Internet" to short distance. The program is extremely easy to use and configure.

The program doesn't have many options at all. The developers allowed the user to assign a name to the access point, set a password and limit the number possible connections. The main window of Virtual WiFi Router displays all connected devices with brief information about them. Immediately after configuration, the application can be minimized to the notification panel. It will continue to work in background. It is also important that the program is completely free. Its only drawback can be considered the fact that it is only compatible with Windows 7 (including the 64-bit version).

Key Features and Functions

• allows you to turn your computer into an access point in a couple of minutes;
• allows you to assign a name and password;
• displays all active connections;
• can work in the background;
• convenient to use and easy to configure.

To distribute Wi-Fi, just download Virtual Router Plus in Russian and install it as an Internet distributor. Download and try the stable version of this program.

Do you only have a cable connection to the Internet, but still want to use a smartphone or tablet in addition? Now this problem can be easily solved. By installing a small utility called Virtual Router Plus on your laptop, you can create a full-fledged Wi-Fi access point, which is no different from that provided by a regular router.

Virtual Router Plus download in Russian

All you need to do in order to enjoy wireless Internet without any hindrance is to install the above-mentioned application on your laptop and, immediately after launching, execute simple settings. Namely, in the appropriate fields, indicate the login and password for subsequent connection to the newly created access point.

Thus, having Virtual Router Plus among the list installed programs on your device, you can provide yourself and your friends with high-quality wireless Internet at any time. And most importantly, you will get all these privileges absolutely free, since the utility is freely distributed and does not have a paid license.

If Virtual Router Plus is not suitable for your purposes, then you can go to the "" section of our website and select other, more suitable applications there, for example -.

A virtual router plus will allow you to distribute the Internet using an access point on a computer or laptop. Take advantage of the free latest version programs in Russian to distribute Wi-Fi.

Png" data-category="Programs for WiFi distribution" data-promo="/templates/Pisces-kamazox/images/dw..html" target="_blank">Download Virtual Router Plus

Now it is difficult to imagine how you can do without the use of wireless networks. The discovery of wireless networking technology made a significant contribution to the industry and changed the way we use the personal computer. Virtual Wi-Fi is a software layer that abstracts the wireless network card and creates multiple virtual adapters. What can this technology be useful for?

Over the course of their existence, wireless networks (Wireless Local Area Network-WLAN) have gone through many changes that affected security, range and speed, but the basic principles of operation have remained unchanged.

Wireless networks can operate in two modes: when two or more devices are connected directly to each other - point-to-point, or when they are connected through an access point (Access Point-AP). In the first case, they talk about a simple network (ad-hoc mode). Usage this mode work is quite rare and is used mainly for data exchange when it is not possible to use an access point. The second mode, using an access point, is called infrastructure mode and in most cases is used in conjunction with a wireless router that is connected to the Internet. But using two operating modes simultaneously on one physical wireless adapter is not provided for by the Wi-Fi concept itself.

In search of new ways to use wireless networks, the concept of virtualization has been proposed, which removes certain restrictions on the use of such networks and thereby expands their capabilities. This approach to using wireless adapters has been implemented by several companies with corresponding technology names. At Intel, it's Intel My WiFi, and at Microsoft, it's Virtual WiFi.

Virtual Wi-Fi is a software layer that abstracts wireless network card and creates several virtual adapters. Each virtual adapter can be separately configured to connect to different wireless networks, but they will all use the resources of only one physical wireless adapter.

What can this technology be useful for? For example, creating a personal network (Wireless Personal Area Network - WPAN) in which you can quickly connect a PDA, phone, printer, camera, laptop and other device with a wireless adapter for simple information exchange; use a laptop as a hotspot to provide Internet access to wireless devices using an Internet connection on the laptop, be it Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 3G or WiMax. Another example would be when the radio signal is not stable enough or does not cover the required distance between the access point and wireless devices. In this case, a computer or laptop with Virtual Wi-Fi technology can act as a repeater, thereby improving the radio coverage of the wireless network.

In Windows 7 and Windows 2008 R2, Virtual WiFi technology was included in the system and implemented at the kernel level, in addition, work was done on a simple implementation of a Software Access Point (SoftAP), while from wireless device manufacturers, Now you only need to implement SoftAP support in your drivers. In this regard, in the current implementation of Virtual WiFi in Windows 2008 R2, it is possible to create only one virtual adapter that will only work in access point mode, while providing WPA2-PSK-AES encryption.

By the way, support for Virtual WiFi in drivers is a mandatory requirement for certification of wireless adapters for compatibility with Windows 7.

Virtual WiFi is designated as Wireless Hosted Network, in Russian designation as Hosted Network. Due to the introduction of Virtual WiFi in new OS from Microsoft, new commands have been included in the network shell for managing a distributed network. Here are some of them:

• netsh wlan set hostednetwork allowed/disallowed - Allow or deny use of the network.
• netsh wlan set hostednetwork<идентификатор_SSID> <парольная_фраза>persistent/temporary - Configure network parameters, where SSID is the network SSID; Key - User security key used by the network; keyUsage indicates the security key is permanent or temporary
• netsh wlan show settings - Shows the network property and its status.
• netsh wlan show hostednetwork settings=security - Displays the security settings of the hosted network. (Shows, including the password specified in key when setting up netsh wlan set hostednetwork)
• netsh wlan start hostednetwork - Start hosted network.
• netsh wlan stop hostednetwork - Stop network hosting.

What does setting up Virtual Wi-Fi look like in practice: we need a laptop or a regular Personal Computer with wireless devices, and a driver that supports Virtual WiFi.

If the above criteria are met, then call the command line with administrator rights and run the following command in it:

netsh wlan set hostednetwork mode=allow ssid="MS Virtual Wi-Fi" key="Pass for virtual wifi" keyUsage=persistent

IN in this example"MS Virtual Wi-Fi" is the name of the wireless network, "Pass for virtual wifi" is the password to access this network. You can set these values ​​at your discretion.

After executing this command, the system will find new equipment and a new network adapter will appear in the device manager, or rather a virtual one - Microsoft Virtual WiFi miniport adapter. But again, this virtual adapter will only appear if our wireless adapter driver supports Virtual WiFi.

By going to Control Panel - Network and Sharing Center - changing adapter settings, we will see a new connection, Wireless Network Connection 2, which will show the status - no connection. Therefore, the next step will be to launch the network. To do this, in a command prompt run with administrator rights, run the following command:

netsh wlan start hostednetwork.

After this, the network will start and the software access point (SoftAP) will work. You can verify this by going to Control Panel - Network and Sharing Center. Since we use a Wi-Fi Internet connection, we found that Windows 7 was connected to several wireless networks at the same time. Now other wireless devices can connect to our access point.

If we want to provide access to the Internet to other wireless devices that are connected to our software access point, that is, to organize a Hotspot, then we need to go to the Control Panel tab - Network and Sharing Center - changing adapter parameters and connection properties , which is connected to the Internet (in our case, this is a Wi-Fi connection, but it can be anything: ethernet, 3G, WiMax, etc.). On the access tab, check the Allow other network users to use the Internet connection of this computer, and in Connecting a home network, specify which network adapter to provide (share) the Internet to, in our case, it will be Wireless Network Connection 2, which refers to the virtual wireless adapter.

On the client side, you can see several wireless networks, and when connecting to our organized access point, the client will automatically receive an IP address from the internal DHCP server and will be separated from the external network by NAT (Network address translation).

The convenience of using Virtual Wi-Fi is obvious, but here's how to use command line for configuring and starting a network (and you need to start a hosted network every time after rebooting the computer with administrator rights), it’s not entirely convenient. Yes, and a built-in graphical shell for Virtual settings Unfortunately, there is no WiFi. Therefore, it is not surprising that third-party utilities appear that perform the function of this very shell. Now there are several such utilities - Connectify and Virtual Router Manager. Their configuration is kept to a minimum - you need to specify the SSID and password for access. They are loaded along with the system and immediately enable the distributed network and are able to display all connections to our distributed network.

Connectify