How to set up a wireless hotspot on Ubuntu?

@lonzo 

To set up a wireless hotspot on Ubuntu, you can follow the steps below:

1. Check if your computer supports creating a hotspot: First, make sure your wireless card supports creating a hotspot. To do this, run the following command in the terminal:

1

sudo iw list | grep -A 8 "Supported interface modes" | grep -oP "^[	s]**[	s]*K.*$"

If you see "AP" listed a**** the supported interface modes, then your wireless card can create a hotspot.

1. Install necessary packages: Install the hostapd package and the dnsmasq package. Hostapd is used to create the wireless access point, while dnsmasq is used to assign IP addresses to the devices that connect to the hotspot.

1
2

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install hostapd dnsmasq

1. Configure dnsmasq: Open the dnsmasq configuration file in the text editor of your choice:

1

sudo nano /etc/dnsmasq.conf

Add the following lines to the end of the file:

1
2

interface=wlan0
dhcp-range=10.0.0.2,10.0.0.30,255.255.255.0,12h

Save and close the file.

1. Configure hostapd: Create a new hostapd configuration file:

1

sudo nano /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf

Add the following lines to the file:

 1
 2
 3
 4
 5
 6
 7
 8
 9
10
11
12
13

interface=wlan0
driver=nl80211
ssid=<your_ssid>
hw_mode=g
channel=6
macaddr_acl=0
auth_algs=1
ignore_broadcast_ssid=0
wpa=2
wpa_passphrase=<your_password>
wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
wpa_pairwise=TKIP
rsn_pairwise=CCMP

Replace <your_ssid> with the name you want to give to your hotspot, and <your_password> with the password you want to use to secure the hotspot.

Save and close the file.

1. Start the hotspot: Start the hostapd service and the dnsmasq service:

1
2
3
4
5
6

sudo systemctl unmask hostapd
sudo systemctl enable hostapd
sudo systemctl start hostapd

sudo systemctl enable dnsmasq
sudo systemctl start dnsmasq

Your hotspot is now up and running. Other devices can connect to it using the SSID and password you configured in step 4.

@lonzo 

Please Note: The provided steps assume that you are using Ubuntu version 20.04 or later and have administrative privileges. Additionally, ensure that you have a compatible wireless card that supports creating a hotspot.

1. Check wireless card support: Open a terminal and run the command:

1

sudo iw list | grep -A 8 "Supported interface modes" | grep -oP "^[	s]**[	s]*K.*$"

If "AP" is listed as a supported interface mode, your wireless card can create a hotspot.

1. Install necessary packages:

1
2

sudo apt update
sudo apt install hostapd dnsmasq

1. Configure dnsmasq:

1

sudo nano /etc/dnsmasq.conf

Add the following lines at the end of the file:

1
2

interface=wlan0
dhcp-range=10.0.0.2,10.0.0.30,255.255.255.0,12h

Save and close the file.

1. Configure hostapd:

1

sudo nano /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf

Add the following lines to the file, replacing <your_ssid> with the desired hotspot name and <your_password> with the preferred password:

 1
 2
 3
 4
 5
 6
 7
 8
 9
10
11
12
13

interface=wlan0
driver=nl80211
ssid=<your_ssid>
hw_mode=g
channel=6
macaddr_acl=0
auth_algs=1
ignore_broadcast_ssid=0
wpa=2
wpa_passphrase=<your_password>
wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
wpa_pairwise=TKIP
rsn_pairwise=CCMP

Save and close the file.

1. Start the hotspot:

1
2
3
4
5
6

sudo systemctl unmask hostapd
sudo systemctl enable hostapd
sudo systemctl start hostapd

sudo systemctl enable dnsmasq
sudo systemctl start dnsmasq

Your wireless hotspot should now be active and visible to other devices. Users can connect to it using the SSID and password specified in the hostapd configuration.

Remember to adjust the settings based on your specific requirements, such as the SSID, password, and IP range, to create a personalized wireless hotspot.