A modern phone can perform a lot of different functions, thereby replacing a large number of other devices. For example, a phone can replace a Wi-Fi hotspot. To do this, you just need to set up Wi-Fi distribution from your phone to other devices.

How to share Wi-Fi from an Android phone

In order to do this you need to open Android settings. This can be done by launching the Settings app from the list of all installed apps. You can also open settings using the top curtain or desktop icon.

After opening the settings, you need to go to the “Other networks” section. It should be noted that on your phone this section may have a slightly different name. If you cannot find this section, look through all the settings sections that are located next to the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth settings.

Next, open the subsection called “Modem and access point.” Again, the name of this section may be slightly different on your device. It may be called “Modem”, “Modem Mode”, “Access Point Connection” or simply “Access Point”.

After this, you must activate the Portable Hotspot feature. To do this, move the switch to the “On” position.

Once your portable hotspot is activated, you will see a pop-up warning you to turn off Wi-Fi. In this window, click on the “Yes” button.

At this point, the setup is complete, now your phone distributes Wi-Fi. All you have to do is look at the password to access the Wi-Fi network created by your phone. To do this, open the “Portable Access Point” section.

After this, a window with information about the access point will open in front of you. Here you can view and change the access point name and password.

How to distribute Wi-Fi from an iOS phone

If you have an iPhone, then in order to set up Wi-Fi distribution you need to go into the settings and open the “Modem Mode” section. If this section is missing, this may mean that mobile Internet is not turned on or not configured on your phone.

In this section, you need to activate the “Modem Mode” function. To do this, move the switch to the on position.

In the same settings section, you can see the password that you need to use to connect to Wi-Fi.

This completes the iPhone setup. Now you can connect to the created Wi-Fi network.

How to distribute Wi-Fi from a phone on Windows Phone 8

If you have a phone based on the Windows Phone operating system, then in order to distribute Wi-Fi you need to open the “Settings” application.

After this, you need to open the “Internet Sharing” section.

This completes the Windows Phone setup. The Wi-Fi network is working and you can connect to it.

Today we will talk about an important skill that every PC or laptop user needs to master. How often do you encounter the need to transfer a file? (book, video, film) from one PC to another? You have a file that needs to be opened on another laptop. There is only WI-FI. All. No cords, no USB flash drives. In our advanced world, when there are 2 or more computers in the house, very often there is a need to connect devices into one network. Is it possible to connect two computers via WI-FI network? And how to do this simply, quickly and safely?

Every confident user will give you a whole lecture about the many options for transferring files. But that's not for this article. Let's briefly look at what methods are available for the inexperienced user. How to quickly, without bothering with advanced methods, having only the Internet and two laptops at your disposal, transfer any type and format of a file. And which one is simple and accessible to everyone. So, I will list the most famous methods:

• Home network of 2 or more computers. We will consider this method first and in more detail.
• Email.
• Torrent.
• Cloud storage.

Since we have an article about transferring files between computers via Wi-Fi, we will consider this method in detail and first.

Local network between two computers via Wi-Fi

I have already written two instructions on the topic of setting up a local network:

It's a useful thing. Once set up, you will no longer bother with other methods. This will allow you to seamlessly transfer files from one computer to another.

If you have (according to the “crossover” scheme, for connecting computers directly) or there is a router installed in the room, then doing this is as easy as shelling pears. It is enough that the computers are connected to the same router. It doesn't matter via cable or Wi-Fi. Or stretch a cable from one computer to another. But if it is not possible to do both, there is another solution. Create a wireless network between computers. It is called . A local network is a very useful thing. Allows you to exchange files and play games.

Since I already wrote detailed instructions on setting up a local network (from the links above), then I see no reason to duplicate this information here. Go ahead and set it up.

Email

Perhaps the most ancient and still used by many method of transferring files. All of us have email. Many - and more than one. Go to your email, click - write a letter, attach a file to the new letter, send it to a friend.

Or save it for yourself as a draft. You can open it on any device by simply logging into your email. One BUT. There are restrictions for attached files. You can send a few photos or an essay. But video or large text formats are out of the question.

Torrent

A little-used but very effective method for transferring bulky files (movies, for example). Many people use this program to download files from the Internet. But you can also upload your files from your computer. To do this, you must have Torrent installed on both PC devices. Upload your file for distribution. Your friend is downloading.

Pros: no queues for downloading, high speed, ability to stop downloading and then continue. Of the minuses: the program has access to all your programs, the download speed depends on the number of distributors. And not everyone wants to fool themselves by downloading a dubious program, and at the risk of accidentally catching all sorts of evil spirits like Amigo, mail.ru, Odnoklassniki. So, the choice is yours.

Cloud storage

Perhaps the simplest and safest way to store information with the ability to access it from any device that has access to the Internet. This is actually what these applications were created for. So that we don’t have to run from home to the office and back with a flash drive in hand. In order to protect us from unexpected loss of saved information (due to a virus or a burned out hard drive).

With the creation of these services, we now have the opportunity to store photos, documents and other files without cluttering up our computer with megabytes. Have 24-hour access to them from any gadget. And transfer files to other Internet users. This is a convenient and optimal option because it provides reliable protection for your files.

Whatever you say, wired connections between computer and mobile devices, even with the creation of local networks, are disappearing into oblivion. This is understandable, because to establish a connection you will not always be able to carry the appropriate cord or even several different cables with you. That is why today wireless technologies are increasingly used for data exchange, in particular, file transfer via WiFi, despite even the lower speed when compared with wired connections. Read on to learn how such operations are performed and what is needed for this.

Transferring files over WiFi: basic options

To begin with, we should consider the basic actions that are supposed to be performed to exchange data between different devices, without delving too much into the technical details of the processes taking place.

In general, modern technologies allow you to use WiFi file transfer from computer to computer, mobile device, or even set-top boxes or panels in several basic ways:

• opening shared files and folders directly on the device with the ability to copy the necessary data, as is done on a regular local network;
• sending and receiving information using a direct connection between devices via WiFi, similar to what is provided when using Bluetooth-based connections.

The first method is more suitable in cases where computers are involved in the data exchange process, and the other two are most often used for mobile gadgets, although if you install the appropriate software and meet certain conditions, they are equally suitable for the same laptops. As is already clear, the main condition for using any of the described options is the presence of a working WiFi wireless communication module on the device. We do not consider connections to television panels based on LAN technologies, since this is a separate conversation.

So, first, let's look at transferring files via WiFi between computers. Initially, we assume that the router is configured correctly. For convenience, you can create a VPN server on one of the terminals, but this is not a prerequisite. It will be enough that both computer terminals, laptops or mobile devices can connect to the existing connection. To exchange data, you just need to enable device detection on the network and set shared access to the necessary disks, files and folders. Of course, in the literal sense this cannot be called file transfer over WiFi, but this option is the simplest.

To set options, you must enter the network connections section and use the advanced settings settings. In the new window, you should enable the items to enable network discovery of devices and enable file and folder sharing.

For ease of connection, you can disable password protection. But that is not all.

Sharing files and directories

Despite the fact that sharing seems to be activated in the network settings, file transfer via WiFi remains unavailable. Why? Yes, only because it is necessary to indicate which folders or files will be available for viewing from other computers or mobile gadgets. To set these options, you should use the properties section, which is called up on the selected directory or file through the RMB menu on the corresponding tab, and then set the access options by clicking the advanced options button (rather than the usual opening).

The main setting here is to set permissions to perform certain actions for all users.

If we talk about setting up shared access, it should be noted that you can also use the creation of a home group for this. In this case, files and folders will be accessible only to devices included in it.

The setup is made from the same network management section, but in this case the operating system will generate a password that will be used to gain access to the open resources of the first PC from other devices. Now, if you want, on another PC in the same “Explorer” you can select to connect a network drive, after which all available networks and connected devices will be displayed in the list. By selecting the desired resource and entering the access password, you can work with them as with regular sections.

Using Wi-Fi Direct

Finally, a few words about direct data transfer. Without going into technical details of the functioning of Wi-Fi Direct protocols, we can only note that using such a connection allows you to do without a router. Typically, this type of data exchange is used in mobile devices running Android operating systems. Activation of the mode, if it is supported, of course, is done in the WiFi section with a selection of additional parameters, both on the transmitting and receiving device. When you long press on the file, the sending menu will be displayed, which will be carried out after searching and selecting the device to be synchronized. In practice, however, this does not always work (mostly only on Samsung gadgets). But for devices from other manufacturers, you can use additional software utilities.

Required Software

For example, a very interesting application that has the highest data transfer speed without any restrictions on file size is the ShareIt utility. It simply generates an access point on the basis of which synchronization and transmission are performed. No less popular programs include WiFiShooT, SuperBeam, etc. But keeping an app with just one function is sometimes unprofitable.

Therefore, you can use the universal X-Plore client, which performs both the role of a file manager and the role of organizer of an access point for connecting via Wi-Fi.

As is already clear, there is no need to install a similar application on computers for transferring files over WiFi. In such situations, you can get by using Windows operating systems.

If you have several Android devices at home and you need to quickly and conveniently transfer files between them, then there is nothing easier than doing it over Wi-Fi on your local network.

And we only need one file manager ES Explorer. By the way, everything that will be described in this article can be done using the same Solid Explorer or. You can learn more about them from reviews of the best file managers:,.

Also, I simply cannot help but recommend paying attention to our previous articles on the topic of transferring files between PC and Android and remote computer control:

Now let's move on to the instructions themselves. Using ES Explorer, you can not only send files via Wi-Fi between devices, but also completely manage them (delete, view, edit, etc.) on one gadget from another. Therefore, we will tell you about two methods at once.

Method 1: Easily send files over Wi-Fi

1. Install ES Explorer on both smartphones or tablets: the one from which you are going to transfer files and the one that will receive them. On both devices, open this application.

2. Select the files you want to transfer and click on the “More” button in the lower right corner (on tablets) or on the three dots in the upper right corner (on smartphones). In the list of options, click on “send” (there are 2 such options, so note that you need to select “send”, which begins with a small letter “o”).

3. Scanning devices on your local network will begin.

4. After scanning is completed, mark the desired phone or tablet and click on the “send” button in the lower right corner.

5. A notification about the file transfer will appear on the smartphone or tablet receiving the files. Click OK.

6. After that, select the folder where you want to save them and click “OK”.

7. Sending will begin and at the end a message indicating successful file transfer will appear.

Okay, we've got that sorted out. But it’s much more interesting to manage files from one Android device to another. This can also be done using ES Explorer.

Method 2. Connect to Android from another smartphone or tablet

Remember, at the beginning of this instruction, I recommended that you read the article on our website, which described how to connect to Android from a computer. In it, we first created an FTP server, that is, we opened access to files on a smartphone or tablet, and then connected from a computer. Now we will do the same, but now we will connect from another Android device.

First you need to start an FTP server on your device. We did this using the convenient My FTP Server application. You can use it now, but since we have already installed ES Explorer, we will do everything through it. And it copes with this task no worse than My FTP Server.

1. Swipe from the left edge and in the “Network” section open “Remote access”.

2. You can start the server immediately. To do this, click “Enable”.

3. The server will be launched and its address will appear on the screen.

4. But (if you want) you can set the following parameters: username and password. To do this, click “Settings” at the bottom.

5. Select "Account Management".

6. Create and enter your username and password, then click OK.

7. Now let’s move on to the device from which you will connect to the newly created server. Select "FTP" from the side menu.

8. Click on the “Create” button in the lower right corner.

9. Select "ftp".

10. Enter the server address (see step 3), username and password. If you have not specified these parameters, then check the box next to “Anonymous”. And then click "OK".

Very often, PC users need to connect their smartphone to their computer. There are several options here: using a USB port, Bluetooth connection, Wi-Fi. Our article will look at the Wi-Fi connection of an Android smartphone to a computer using applications that can exchange files between devices or even control a computer/laptop equipped with Wi-Fi through an Android smartphone and vice versa - control a smartphone from a computer.

AirDroid– using the application, you can control your Android device from a computer/laptop equipped with Wi-Fi, as well as exchange files.

The main functions of the program are free, in addition there is a set of additional options that can be activated for an additional fee. The AirDroid program is installed first on the computer and then on the phone. The program has a user-friendly, intuitive interface, and, importantly, it is possible to select the Russian language.

Rice. 1. AirDroid application interface on the Android smartphone screen

It should be noted that on a computer the application can be opened from a browser or using an icon that is added to the PC desktop after installing AirDroid. On a smartphone, AirDroid is launched using the application icon.

The main free features of AirDroid are:

• viewing files located on the phone from a computer, exchanging files between devices;
• viewing on a computer the history of calls, contacts, audio and video recordings, information about the free space of the phone’s internal memory, viewing and sending SMS messages;
• determining the location of the phone (the function visually displays the location of the phone on the map);
• opening links specified on a PC on a smartphone;
• visual display of the smartphone on the PC screen (in this case, all operations performed on the screen of the virtual smartphone will be displayed on the mobile device);
• installation, viewing and deleting system and user applications on a smartphone.

Rice. 2. Interface of the AirDroid application installed on a PC: (a) the application is launched from the browser, (b) the application is launched using the desktop icon

If desired, you can activate paid features:

• unlimited traffic (200 MB in the free version);
• transfer files up to 1 GB in size (in the free version up to 30 MB);
• the ability to exchange not only files, but also entire folders;
• connecting up to 6 phones to one PC (2 in the free version);
• the ability to use the phone's video camera from a computer.

TeamViewer– the program allows you to control a computer/laptop equipped with Wi-Fi using an Android smartphone or vice versa. The program is installed first on the phone, then on the PC.

It should be noted that there are two versions of the program for smartphones:

Quick Support – the program is designed to control a smartphone using a PC;

TeamViewer - for controlling a PC using a mobile device.

After setting up a connection between your PC and your phone, you can control your Android device directly from your PC screen if you have the Quick Support app installed on your phone.

Rice. 3. Control your smartphone using a PC

You can also access your home PC from your phone if the TeamViewer application is installed on your smartphone.

Rice. 4. PC control using a smartphone

In the first case, all actions that are performed on the screen of a virtual smartphone on the computer desktop will be displayed on the screen of a real smartphone, in the second case, vice versa. The program is free.

Wifi File Transfer– a program for exchanging files via Wi-Fi between an Android smartphone and a PC. This is a file manager with which you can perform the following functions: deleting, downloading, renaming, copying files, creating folders and archives, moving files and folders, viewing images on your phone on your computer.

Rice. 5. Wifi File Transfer program interface

It is even possible to download files from your computer to your phone. The Pro version allows you to work with files regardless of their size. The program is launched on a computer from a web browser. The program has a Russian interface.

SambaDroid– the program connects the Android smartphone to the local Windows network via Wi-Fi, as a result of which it becomes possible to exchange data between the smartphone and the PC. The application allows you to delete, copy, move folders and files on your Android device from your computer using a wireless connection.

To perform any actions with files on a smartphone from a computer, you need to define the Android device in the PC system as a network drive. To do this, first of all, you need to set up an SMB server on your phone, which automatically creates a network hard drive when you start the program and mounts the contents of the smartphone’s memory card to the computer’s operating system. The memory card of the connected phone will be detected on the computer, after which it needs to be connected as a network hard drive.

Rice. 6. Interface of the SambaDroid program running on an Android smartphone and the contents of the phone’s memory card in Windows Explorer on a PC

If you set the “Startup” option in the program settings, after turning on the smartphone, the device will automatically work as a network hard drive. It should be noted that data exchange between a smartphone and a PC can be performed two-way. The program is free and has a Russian interface.

MyPhoneExplorer– the program provides access from the computer to such sections of the Android device as files, applications, incoming/outgoing messages and calls, contacts. Allows you to visually display a smartphone on a PC screen (in this case, all operations performed on the screen of a virtual smartphone will be displayed on the mobile device). It is possible to connect several smartphones to one computer. Installation and configuration of the program is performed first on the Android device, then on the computer. MyPhoneExplorer has a Russian interface.

Rice. 7. Interface of the MyPhoneExplorer program running on a PC

The program allows you to communicate with your computer not only via Wi-Fi, but also via Bluetooth and USB connections. MyPhoneExplorer has two versions: for smartphone and for PC.

Alexander Bobrov

WiFi