Raspberry Pi Wi-Fi Hotspot Setup

This repository provides instructions on setting up your Raspberry Pi as a Wi-Fi hotspot that uses the internet from your existing Wi-Fi network, similar to a range extender. By following these steps, you can share your internet connection with other devices by connecting them to your Raspberry Pi's Wi-Fi hotspot.

Prerequisites

• Raspberry Pi with Raspbian (or a compatible operating system) installed.
• Internet connection available through Ethernet or another Wi-Fi network on the Raspberry Pi.

Additional files

• /etc/dhcpcd.conf: Contains the configuration for the static IP address of the Wi-Fi interface.

• /etc/dnsmasq.conf: Contains the configuration for the DHCP server.

• /etc/dnsmasq.conf.orig: This file is a backup of the original dnsmasq.conf file created during the setup process.

• /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf: Contains the configuration for the Wi-Fi access point.

Steps

1. Update your Raspberry Pi:

   sudo apt update
   sudo apt upgrade

2. Install the necessary software packages:

   sudo apt install hostapd dnsmasq

   Install hostapd (if it doesn't exists)

   sudo apt install hostapd

   This command will install the hostapd package, which is required for setting up the Wi-Fi hotspot.

3. Configure a static IP address for the Wi-Fi interface:

   Open the /etc/dhcpcd.conf file:

   sudo nano /etc/dhcpcd.conf

   Add the following lines at the end of the file:

   interface wlan0
   static ip_address=192.168.4.1/24
   nohook wpa_supplicant

   Save and exit the file.

4. Configure the DHCP server:

   Create a backup of the default dnsmasq.conf file (if it exists):

   sudo mv /etc/dnsmasq.conf /etc/dnsmasq.conf.orig

   Create a new dnsmasq.conf file:

   sudo nano /etc/dnsmasq.conf

   Add the following lines to the file:

   interface=wlan0
   dhcp-range=192.168.4.2,192.168.4.20,255.255.255.0,24h

5. Configure the access point:

   Create and edit the hostapd configuration file (if it exists):

   sudo nano /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf

   Add the following lines to the file:

   interface=wlan0
   ssid=YourSSID
   hw_mode=g
   channel=7
   wmm_enabled=0
   macaddr_acl=0
   auth_algs=1
   ignore_broadcast_ssid=0
   wpa=2
   wpa_passphrase=YourPassword
   wpa_key_mgmt=WPA-PSK
   wpa_pairwise=TKIP
   rsn_pairwise=CCMP

   Save and exit the file.

   In some Raspberry Pi configurations, the hostapd service is started using a different method that doesn't involve modifying the /etc/default/hostapd file. In such cases, the hostapd service can still be started with the correct configuration file (/etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf) by specifying it directly.

   You can proceed with the remaining steps without modifying the /etc/default/hostapd file. Just make sure to start the hostapd service using the appropriate command, specifying the configuration file explicitly:

   sudo hostapd /etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf

   This command will start the hostapd service with the specified configuration file.

6. Configure the hostapd startup file:

   Open the hostapd default configuration file:

   sudo nano /etc/default/hostapd

   Change the #DAEMON_CONF="" line to:

   DAEMON_CONF="/etc/hostapd/hostapd.conf"

   Save and exit the file.

7. Enable IP forwarding:

   Open the /etc/sysctl.conf file:

   sudo nano /etc/sysctl.conf

   Uncomment the line #net.ipv4.ip_forward=1 by removing the # at the beginning.

   Save and exit the file.

   Apply the changes:

   sudo sh -c "echo 1 > /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward"

8. Set up network address translation (NAT):

   sudo iptables -t nat -