Getting Started With Wi-Fi Sense in Windows 10
Wi-Fi Sense lets you silently share Wi-Fi passwords with your friends. Previously a Windows Phone-only feature, Wi-Fi Sense uploads your passwords to a Microsoft server and then distributes them to your friends. The next time they come within range of that network, their devices connect automatically. Wi-Fi Sense should be on by default on your Windows 10 PC, but check that it’s active.
You Go First
Before you can receive any shared Wi-Fi networks from your friends, you first have to share a Wi-Fi network with them. Wi-Fi Sense is not an automated service: It is opt-in in the sense that you have to elect to share a Wi-Fi network with your friends. The Wi-Fi network passwords your PC knows will not be automatically shared with others. You can only share Wi-Fi passwords using consumer-grade technology — any corporate WI-Fi networks with extra authentication cannot be shared. After you do share a network login, however, any networks shared by your friends will be available to you.
The Lowdown on Sharing Passwords
So far we’ve said you’re sharing your Wi-Fi password with others. That was mostly for the sake of clarity and simplicity. More precisely, your password is uploaded to a Microsoft server over an encrypted connection. It is then stored by Microsoft in an encrypted form and sent to your friends back over an encrypted connection. That password is then used in the background on your friends’ PCs to connect to the shared network. Unless you have friends who have some serious hacking chops, they will never see the actual password. In some ways, Wi-Fi Sense is more secure than passing around a piece of paper to house guests since they never get to see or write down your password. However, to be of any use, your guests first have to be using Windows 10 and already sharing Wi-Fi networks through Wi-Fi Sense themselves. If they’re not, Wi-Fi Sense will not help you. That said, don’t think that you’ll be able to just turn on this feature and start using it on the spur of the moment. Microsoft says it takes a few days before your contacts will see shared networks on their PC. If you want to coordinate some Wi-Fi Sense sharing make sure you do it ahead of time. Wi-Fi Sense sharing only works if you know the password. Any networks you share with your friends via Wi-Fi Sense cannot be passed on to others. Wi-Fi Sense requires some very specific actions before it will be of any use, but if you have a group of friends that need to share network passwords Wi-Fi Sense can be a helpful tool — as long as you don’t mind letting Microsoft manage your Wi-Fi passwords.
