N900 Ad-hoc WiFi Hotspot

This method works but is not usable for more than a proof of concept because it suffers 40% packet loss at close range between the N900 and the laptop.

On the N900

  1. Enable extras-devel
  2. Install iptables at a terminal with root access:
    apt-get install iptables
  3. Install kernel-power-settings (see the detailed installation instructions):
    apt-get install kernel-power-settings
  4. Connect to the Internet with GPRS
  5. Setup iptables to allow forwarding: 
    echo 1 > /proc/sys/net/ipv4/ip_forward
iptables -t nat -A POSTROUTING -o gprs0 -j MASQUERADE
  6. Bring up te ad hoc wireless network: 
    iwconfig wlan0 mode ad-hoc channel 3
ifconfig wlan0 192.168.4.15 up
iwconfig wlan0 essid N900

On the laptop

Connect to the ad hoc wireless network: 

sudo iwconfig wlan0 mode ad-hoc channel 3
sudo ifconfig wlan0 192.168.4.14 up
sudo iwconfig wlan0 essid N900
sudo route add default gw 192.168.4.15
Retrieved from "http://wiki.maemo.org/N900_Ad-hoc_WiFi_Hotspot"