Wireless LAN adaptor to WIFI spot.

[Bigbear1]

I have an unused Trendnet TEW-424UB USB wireless LAN adapter. My son has an IPhone 4S and it would be nice if it could either pick up a home WIFI or wireless LAN signal to browse the internet or download large files. It would save bandwidth costs when he is using it at home. Can the adapter be modified to be a WIFI hot spot? Or can the IPhone 4S be modified to pick up a home wireless LAN? Thanks.

 

[bigdogguru]

Yes, the iPhone does offer a feature to allow it to connect to a WiFi access point.

I do not personally own an iPhone, however I've configured numerous clients iPhones and iPads for VPN connections, using both 3G, 4G and WiFi.


How to Save Time and Money Using Wi-Fi On the iPhone.


BigDog

 

[Bigbear1]

Can the IPhone 4S be used with a home LAN instead of a WIFI hotspot? Can the LAN adapter I have be configured to become a hot spot? I am a rank newbie. Is a VPN the same as a home LAN created if I use the adapter?

 

[yura717]

I'm not sure about your adapter if it will work in AP mode

 

[bigdogguru]

Can the IPhone 4S be used with a home LAN instead of a WIFI hotspot?

Yes, as I've mentioned in my previous post, both the iPhone and iPad can attached to a WiFi Access Point (AP) if available in your Home LAN. A WiFi AP is the same connection you would use to connect a laptop to your Home LAN.

Can the LAN adapter I have be configured to become a hot spot?

Using an WiFi Adapter to create a WiFi AP is as much of a function of the OS as the WiFi Adapter itself.

The OS must offer a method of creating a bridge or route TCP/IP packets from one network connection to another network connection.

Reference: yura717's post above.

Reference:

What Are Wi-Fi Hotspots?

A Wi-Fi hotspot is defined as any location in which 802.11 (wireless) technology both exists and is available for use to consumers. In some cases the wireless access is free, and, in others, wireless carriers charge for Wi-Fi usage. A hotspot is defined as a specific geographic location in which an access point provides public wireless broadband network services to mobile visitors through a WLAN. Hotspots are often located in heavily populated places such as airports, train stations, libraries, marinas, conventions centers and hotels. Hotspots typically have a short range of access.

Access Point

The access point is where the wireless network links to the wired system. If you enable an access point to allow only certain connections you will not connect to public Wi-Fi hotspots unintentionally and also will prevent unauthorized users from connecting to your notebook or PC.

VPN

It is recommended that business professionals connect to their office VPN before accessing or sending information over a public hotspot. The encryption offered by the VPN will prevent others from reading any data you transmit.

I am a rank newbie. Is a VPN the same as a home LAN created if I use the adapter?

No.

However, VPNs can utilize the same physical infrastructure as your WiFi AP to implement the VPN connection.

A virtual private network (VPN) extends a private network across a public network, such as the Internet. It enables a computer to send and receive data across shared or public networks as if it were directly connected to the private network, while benefitting from the functionality, security and management policies of the private network.[1] This is done by establishing a virtual point-to-point connection through the use of dedicated connections, encryption, or a combination of the two.

A VPN connection across the Internet is similar to a wide area network (WAN) link between the sites. From a user perspective, the extended network resources are accessed in the same way as resources available from the private network.

BigDog