How to use Hotspots

Hotspots are a convenient tool that most phones are capable of performing now, dependent on if your phone carrier plan has the option available for use and the model of phone can support the functionality. Please double-check your plan details before continuing, as using a hot-spot may incur extra charges to your account. They can be especially helpful in the event of whenever your current home network is unavailable, and in this guide we will be going over the steps of how to connect your mobile hotspot!

iOS Devices:

1. Click on the "Settings" app icon within your mobile device. The easiest way to find it if you're having trouble is to scroll down, then type in "settings" to the search menu.
2. Within the general menu, click on "Personal Hotspot."
3. Update the password for the hotspot to be more secure. An efficient password is typically 8-12 characters, one capital letter, and one special character (i.e. ! or #). 
4. Once the password is set, click on "Allow Others to Join" if it's not already enabled.
5. Open the "Quick Settings" menu. To do this, swipe down on the top-right side of your screen.
6. Click on the top-left portion of the "Quick Settings" menu to access the network and other options.
7. Once it's open, click on "Personal Hotspot" and it will allow your hotspot to be connected with!
8. Once it's on and discoverable, it'll look like this and pop up as an option within the Wifi networks at the bottom of your device. See the bottom of the guide for next steps within your Windows device!

Android Devices:

Android has a few different variations. For the most part, the general concept remains the same, but per your specific model of phone and operating system, there may be slight differences navigating through the menus.

1. Open the "App Drawer" and select the "Settings" app.
2. Within the "Settings" menu, click on "Connections."
3. Scroll down to "Mobile Hotspot and Tethering", then click on it to open the hotspot menu.
4. Within the hotspot menu, click the button to turn it on. Once it's on, you'll have the same option to update the password like above to make it secure.
5. Once everything is on and enabled, please navigate to the bottom of this guide and see the next steps for accessing the hotspot within your Windows device.

Once the Hotspot is Turned On:

Within your laptop, you can navigate to the network and internet options in the bottom-right of the screen.

Click on the bar to open the menu,

 

The name of your hotspot will be displayed, and you'll be able to input the password you created earlier as the security key.

From there, you should be connected to your hotspot successfully!

*Please note, it will likely connect if it's available for your phone plan, but might have issues with the VPN staying connected. If that's the case, something you can try to launch is an AVD (Azure Virtual Desktop) session. More information about installing and signing in to an AVD session can be found here.