Why isn’t Hosted Network supported on Windows 10?

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Windows 10 Hosted Network Depreciation

Microsoft has depreciated wireless Hosted Network (Soft AP) features in Windows 10, so driver level support for this feature has changed from required to optional:

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows-hardware/drivers/network/wdi-features-not-carried-over-in-wdi?

Following this news all major Wi-Fi IC vendors including Realtek, Intel and Marvell have dropped support for the feature in their latest products. All new Wi-Fi devices must use the new driver model with Windows 10.

Affected LM products that follow the new driver model (Hosted Network not supported) include:

    • LM007
    • LM808
    • LM809
    • LM811
    • LM813
    • LM816
    • LM817
    • LM822
    • LM823
    • LM842

Suggested Alternative – Mobile Hotspot (via Wi-Fi Direct)

The Windows 10 Mobile Hotspot feature can be used to share an internet connection:

    1. Select the Start button, then select Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile hotspot.
    2. For Share my Internet connection from, choose the Internet connection you want to share.
    3. Select Edit > enter a new network name and password > Save.
    4. Turn on Share my Internet connection with other devices.
    5. To connect on the other device, go to the Wi-Fi settings on that device, find your network name, select it, enter the password, and then connect.

Please note the Mobile Hotspot feature requires Windows 10 version 1607 or later.

What if I want to keep the Windows 10 Mobile Hotspot permanently on?

If you want to keep the Mobile hotspot permanently on (even without an internet connection) there are two possible ways of doing this.

Option 1: PersistentHotspot Application

Download a simple desktop application that keeps the hotspot permanently on:

https://github.com/ashvin-bhuttoo/PersistentHotspot

Option 2: PowerShell Script

Use a PowerShell script to keep the hotspot on such as the one below (using admin privileges):

powershell -windowstyle hidden -command “Start-Process cmd -ArgumentList ‘/s,/c,net stop “icssvc” & REG ADD “HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\icssvc\Settings” /V PeerlessTimeoutEnabled /T REG_DWORD /D 0 /F & net start “icssvc”‘ -Verb runAs”

 

Products that still support Hosted Network on Windows 10

Some of LM Technologies previous generation adapters and modules still support the Hosted Network feature. This includes the following products:

    • LM005
    • LM006
    • LM820
    • LM821

If you are interested in any of the above EOL products, please contact our sales team for more information. LM Technologies may have limited stock available on certain models.

For any further technical questions please contact our dedicated support team.