Tethering

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tethering (  [ ˈteðəɹɪŋ ] , from English from to tether , to German leash , to bind ) refers to the connection of a smartphone (or another mobile device) to another device (e.g. tablet computer ) in order to give it an Internet connection via the cellular network or to enable the network ( LAN ) connected to the terminal device . The mobile phone thus takes on the role of a modem . This feature is also known as Internet Sharing in Microsoft Windows Mobile . Please click to listen!Play

Type of connection

The two devices can be connected with a cable (wired) or wirelessly via:

The use of a serial interface and infrared are no longer of particular relevance today, as modern smartphones no longer have such an interface. The use of Bluetooth also plays only a minor role due to the limited data transfer rate (2 Mbit / s with Bluetooth 5.0; as of October 24, 2017). In the case of tethering connections, it is mainly the mobile phone that is temporarily configured into a full-fledged hotspot via software , which can then be used to connect several computers to the mobile phone. Encryption according to the WPA2 standard is supported from the WebOS program Mobile Hotspot (for the Palm Pre device ), the operating systems Android from version 2.2, Windows Phone from version 7.5 or Blackberry from OS10 . The first tethering connections via WLAN supported by a smartphone, on the other hand, were pure ad-hoc connections , with a maximum of encryption with WEP (according to the IEEE 802.11 standard) being possible.

Contractual and technical restrictions

The use of the cell phone as a connection for a computer to the Internet is basically possible with any GSM or UMTS tariff of a cell phone provider. Under certain circumstances, however, it leads to considerably more data volumes being transferred and thus has an effect on the capacity utilization of the mobile network provider's facilities and on its economic situation. The tethering is therefore sometimes contractually or technically restricted by the mobile operator. The contracts of some mobile phone providers contain provisions according to which tethering is only permitted to a limited extent or is prohibited entirely.

  • Offered O 2 Internet Rates M and M + use is prohibited along with a notebook since June 1, 2010 for new customers. This applies both to the use of the SIM card in a UMTS modem and to the use of tethering. Tethering is permitted in the "Blue" tariffs that have been in effect since January 17, 2012.
  • In Switzerland, tethering in connection with the iPhone has been possible at Swisscom since July 2009 . In the meantime (April 27, 2015) tethering can be carried out on practically all Swiss mobile networks.

Technically, tethering is restricted or made impossible in some mobile radio devices by their firmware or other software. Methods called rooting ( Android OS ) or jailbreaking ( Apple iOS ) may help. The manufacturers warn that this could jeopardize the functionality of the device and that warranty- related problems could arise if follow-up problems arise.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b What Is Tethering? - about.com
  2. ↑ Ingo Pakalski: Palm Pre: WLAN hotspot software for free in the App Catalog. Mobile hotspot connects up to five devices to the Pre via WLAN. In: Golem.de. Klaß & Ihlenfeld Verlag GmbH, April 1, 2010, accessed on October 2, 2011 .
  3. ↑ Android 2.2 Platform Highlights. Google Inc., accessed on June 11, 2018 ("Portable hotspot" section).
  4. ↑ Ben Peter: Android 2.2 Froyo comes with WiFi tethering. In: nodch. Benjamin Peter, May 13, 2010, accessed October 2, 2011 .
  5. ↑ What's new in Windows Phone 7.5. Microsoft Corporation, accessed October 2, 2011 . in connection with sharing my connection. Microsoft Corporation, accessed October 2, 2011 .
  6. ↑ Small Internet Packs: O2 also forbids notebook use via tethering - golem.de
  7. ↑ New smartphone tariffs from O2
  8. ↑ Surf subscriptions in comparison - comparis.ch

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