Wi-Fi/Mobile Hotspot & Tethering

Tethering
Tethering refers to connecting one device to another. In the context of mobile phones or Internet tablets, tethering allows sharing the Internet connection of the phone or tablet with other devices such as laptops. Connection of the phone or tablet with other devices can be done over wireless LAN (Wi-Fi), over Bluetooth or by physical connection using a cable for example, through USB. If tethering is done over Wi-Fi, the feature may be branded as a Mobile Hotspot. The Internet-connected mobile device can thus act as a portable wireless access point and router for devices connected to it.

Wi-Fi Hotspot
A hotspot is a site/location/office/building/shop etc. that offers Internet access over a wireless connection through the use of a router connected to an Internet Service Provider (ISP). It could be setup as a single router with Wi-Fi enabled and password protected to an enterprise type solution with multiple routers/repeaters & EAP authentication to provide access to wide area like an airport/college/office etc. These hotspots can either be free or paid, open or password protected, provided privately or by an ISP/company.

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Below is an image that shows two different types of Wi-Fi networks.

Public access wireless local area networks (LANs) were first proposed by Henrik Sjdin at the NetWorld+Interop conference in 1993. The term hotspot is a relatively new term but was originally referred to as a publicly accessible wireless LANs.

Types of Hotspots
Free Wi-Fi Hotspots
Free hotspots operate in two ways: a) The most basic setup requires only a Wi-Fi router. Private users of wireless routers can turn off their authentication requirements, thus opening their connection, intentionally or not, for sharing by anyone in range. The disadvantage is that access to the router cannot be controlled. b) Closed public networks use a HotSpot Management System to control the HotSpot. This software runs on the router itself or an external computer. Operators can also limit each user's available bandwidth/data usage - each user is therefore restricted to a certain speed/amount of data or both to ensure that everyone gets a good quality service.

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Commercial Hotspots
A commercial hotspot may feature: A Login Screen that users are redirected to for authentication and payment. A payment option using credit card, PayPal, iPass, or other payment service. A walled garden feature that allows free access to certain sites.

Major airports and business hotels are more likely to charge for service. Most hotels provide free service to guests; and increasingly, small airports and airline lounges offer free service. Roaming services are also expanding among major hotspot service providers. With roaming service the users of a commercial provider can have access to other provider's hotspots with/without extra fees.

Security & Legal Concerns

Some hotspots authenticate users. This does not secure the data transmission or prevent packet sniffers from allowing people to see traffic on the network. Some vendors provide a download option that deploys WPA support. This conflicts with enterprise configurations that have solutions specific to their internal WLAN. In some countries the hotspot providers are required to authenticate users and store their information for a certain period of time. In order to provide robust security to hotspot users, WiFi Alliance is coming up with a new hotspot program which aims to encrypt hotspot traffic with the latest WPA2 security. The program is planned to launch in the first half of 2012. - http://www.wi-fi.org/media/pressreleases/wireless-broadband-alliance-and-wi-fi-alliance%C2%AE-collaborate-hotspotinnovations

Setup & Connectivity

Setup
Before you start, determine: Who you want to connect?

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Where you want them to connect? What your ISP's connection-sharing policy is for your service? Which network resources on your network require protection from hot-spot users?

Required attention span: 1 hour or more (depending on the complexity of your setup) Read more here http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6603_7-5023845-1.html http://www.hotspotsystem.com/en/hotspot/wifi_hotspot.html http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-set-up-and-secure-your-own-wi-fi-hotspot/

Connectivity
Connecting to a hot spot is either extremely easy or multi-step in nature depending on the setup. Sometimes its as simple as turning on Wi-Fi on your device and selecting the Wireless Network. As we have seen above the type and complexity of the hotspot setup determines the number of steps a user would need to perform, to access internet.

Personal/Mobile Hotspot
The personal hotspot feature on smartphones or through dedicated devices provides a way to share an Internet connection with other devices. A software basically turns a smartphone/laptop into a WiFi access point / hotspot. There are now available devices, which accept a SIM card or are preprogrammed to use a cellphone signal (3G & above) and create a personal hotspot. An example of such a device is a MiFi - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MiFi. Its important to note that there is usually a limit on the number of devices (approx. 5) that can connect through such a hotspot.

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These MiFi type devices are dedicated to sharing Internet access, where as a smartphone has multiple functions, and may also provide hotspot functionality. The benefit of a personal hotspot is that it enables Internet sharing using through the common WiFi technology currently availabe. Any device that has a WiFi radio can access a personal hotspot, once it is configured. Below is a diagram that shows how such a dedicated device works.

How Wi-Fi Tethering Works

Dedicated mobile hotspot devices & smartphones with the feature connect to a mobile data network and then act as a Wi-Fi router, distributing the bandwidth to nearby clients. This feature/device can be used only when data services are available through the service provider. In the above diagram one can simply replace the MiFi type device with a smartphone with the feature enables as well. Wi-Fi tethering/hotspot requires that the phone have a Wi-Fi chip built in, but smartphones already have this for connecting at Internet cafs or at the office. The hotspot ability is enabled by software and doesn't add to the bulk of a phone. Similar softwares are available for Windows PCs http://www.mhotspot.com/ which can share any kind of internet connection coming into the PC with other devices. Again the number of devices that can be connected using this feature is limited to usually 5 only with arrange of usually 30-40 feet. Some devices like the ones sold by http://www.clear.com claim to have an unobstructed range of up to 100 feet.

USB/Bluetooth Tethering
This form of tethering is done on mobile phone which have this functionality enabled. For Bluetooth tethering, Bluetooth radios must be present in both devices, turned on and paired (synced/connected) to each other. For USB tethering, the drivers for the mobile phone/device must be installed. Most manufacturers usually provide applications for their mobiles to connect to the service providers data network. These applications may also contain the drivers necessary for the operating system to enable connectivity between the phone and the PC.

Troubleshooting Wi-Fi Tethering

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For the purpose of support, our scope would be similar to what we do in a home environment. If the hardware is working and the O/S can see/detect the network, then thats where we draw the line. However, to go the extra mile you can do a few things to help the customer 1) Remove networks that are similar to the hotspot the customer is trying to connecting to, if its already saved. It may happen that the customer is connecting to the same hotspot provider but in a different location where a different authentication or type of authentication is required. a. One example would be Boingo Wireless www.boingo.com where you can have an account with them and use the same authentication across the world at locations where they provide service. 2) Ask if the user has authenticated or if an authentication page/website loads up every time they need to go online. They sometimes may need to pay for the service and then get authenticaed. 3) Have they contacted the local administrator, or support office in that location? Hotels, Conference Sites, Airports, Corporate Offices, all have some staff available on hand to help. Different places have different requirements. 4) If the customer is using a Wi-Fi Hotspot device (e.g. Mifi ) or a smartphone, then they would need to enable that feature and also make sure that they have a data plan that allows them to use this feature.

Troubleshooting Bluetooth/USB Tethering

To reiterate, a data connection from the service provider and the hardware/software requirements must be met. Follow normal troubleshooting for a USB/Bluetooth connection. The scope of support is limited to proving functionality of our devices and ports.