Hi everyone,
I’ve been observing the recent improvements to the GNOME Quick Settings, and I’d like to propose an enhancement to the Wi-Fi Hotspot functionality to bring it at par with the “Mobile Hotspot” experience found in Windows 10/11.
Currently, GNOME’s hotspot usually requires a wired connection to share internet via Wi-Fi. However, many modern Wi-Fi adapters support “Station/AP” concurrent mode, allowing a user to stay connected to a Wi-Fi network and broadcast a hotspot simultaneously using a single card.
The Proposal: I suggest integrating the capabilities found in the linux-wifi-hotspot project into the GNOME Control Center and Quick Settings:
- Wi-Fi Sharing: Allow users to share an existing Wi-Fi connection via a virtual interface (where hardware supports it), rather than requiring an Ethernet source.
- QR Code Integration: Automatically generate a QR code in the Network Settings so users can connect mobile devices instantly without typing long passwords.
- Band Selection: A simple toggle between 2.4GHz and 5GHz within the Hotspot setup.
Why this matters for GNOME:
- Travel/Work use cases: Many hotels or public spaces limit the number of devices per account. Being able to “bridge” the connection through a GNOME laptop is a major productivity win.
- Modern UX: QR codes for network sharing are now a standard expectation for mobile and desktop OSs.
The technical groundwork exists (verified by projects like lakinduakash/linux-wifi-hotspot), but having this as a first-class feature in GNOME would significantly polish the networking experience for many users.
I’d love to hear the developers’ thoughts on the feasibility of integrating this into gnome-control-center or nm-connection-editor.
Best regards,
Naeem Ur Rahman Pechuho