The Mac, whether it be a MacBook Pro, MacBook Air or any range of iMac, is a device that serves many things, capable of carrying out practically any idea that comes to mind, it can even be the key to solve your WiFi problems in your room or area of the house since you can use your Mac as if it were a router. Keep reading that we tell you how you can do it.
The frustration of a bad Wi-Fi connection
Currently most people spend all day connected to the internet, whether through the computer, mobile, console, tablet or smartwatch, everything is connected and all, or practically all, are connected. However, one of the biggest frustrations in this connected world is just that this connection is poor, causing long waiting periods to load a page, download a photo or even send a message. One of the factors that trigger this frustration is usually a poor Wi-Fi connection due to the very weak signal you receive. Well, if you have a Mac, this may be the solution to your connectivity problems, since you can make the Mac itself responsible for providing Wi-Fi to your room or area of the house.
Use your Mac as if it were a router
What do you need?
To make your Mac work as a router, that is, for this device to be in charge of providing an internet connection via Wi-Fi, you need the Mac itself to have an internet connection, but not just any one, but rather to be connected through an Ethernet cable to the internet. This is essential, since the Wi-Fi ports have to be free to work as signal emitters and not as receivers.
Later we will tell you the options you have to connect your Mac via cable to the internet and which one may interest you the most depending, above all, on the distance from your Mac to the router at home or where you are.
Once you have your Mac, remember, it can be any Mac, be it a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, iMac Pro … connected to the network through an Ethernet cable, all you have to do is configure it so that the ports Wi-Fi function as signal emitters. We explain it to you in the next point.
Steps to transform your Mac into a router
The process to transform your Apple computer into a router is really simple, in fact it is more at hand than you imagine. You just have to follow the following steps.
- On your Mac, open System Preferences.
- Click on the Share tab.
- In the list of Services on the left, select Internet Sharing and activate it.
- Next, in the “Share connection from” section, choose the port through which you are connected to the Ethernet cable.
- Now in the “With other computers via” section, choose the Wi-Fi option.
- Finally, click on Wi-Fi Options to set the security and password that all devices that want to connect to the Wi-Fi network that your Mac will provide will have to enter.
Recommendations for connecting your Mac to the internet
One of the limitations of this process to improve your Wi-Fi connection thanks to your Mac is its distance from the router since, as we have mentioned before, the Mac has to be connected via cable to the internet and that only the router can provide.
Connect the Mac directly to the Router
On many occasions, the rooms already have an ethernet cable incorporated that connects to the router, thus providing users with a way to enjoy the maximum contracted speed without having to move to the side of the router and connect. So if this is your case, everything is perfect, you just have to connect your Mac the cable, configure it and that’s it.
Use a PLC
However, in most cases, you do not have a cable connection from the room, nor is the room in question close enough to be able to connect an ultra-long cable directly to the router, something that also aesthetically leaves a lot to do. to wish.
For these cases the ideal solution is a PLC. PLCs are a device that is capable of transmitting the internet signal through electrical current, so you can connect one of the two to the side of the router via cable as well, and the other in a socket in your room, that way you get a cable from this second PLC to your Mac and you can enjoy an internet connection via cable to be able to make your Mac a router that provides Wi-Fi.
You will say goodbye to AirDrop as the main disadvantage
One of the disadvantages of this is that, since the Mac itself is in charge of providing the Wi-Fi signal, you will not be able to enjoy one of the functions provided by the Apple ecosystem, AirDrop. Perhaps this is a hassle since it is a very useful function when working with different Apple devices and achieving such fantastic synergies.
Warnings about this use on your Mac
Lastly, be careful how you use this. The Mac is a computer, not a router, so don’t treat it as the 2nd. If you are going to adopt this solution as a definitive measure to improve the Wi-Fi connection in certain areas, do not keep your Mac on without interruption for days, weeks or even months. Our recommendation is that, despite the fact that you run out of Wi-Fi for a few minutes before sleeping, when you go to bed turn off the Mac, especially if we are talking about a portable model since keeping the computer on and demanding energy to carry Performing this function may end up damaging the battery and causing an premature change.