Downloading and installing Appel Ethernet Driver for Windows

That didn't work, but I did mor research found something that did.

On my Windows 10 PC (on which the USB hotspot is working), I looked under

C:\Program Files\Common Files\Apple\Mobile Device Support

In this folder, there were two subfolders, Drivers and NetDrivers. I copied these two folders and their contents to my Windows 11 PC. Each folder contains a driver. I right-clicked on the .inf file in each folder and selected Install to install the drivers. After that, I rebooted. When the PC came back up, it began using the hotspot on my iPhone connected by USB.

I don't know if both drivers are necessary to use the hotspot, but I do know that the driver in NetDrivers is necessary. My surmise is that the first driver installed Apple Mobile USB Device Driver under Universal Serial Bus controllers in Device Manager, and the second (NetDrivers) driver installed the Apple Mobile Device Ethernet driver under Network adapters.

Unfortunately, I do not know why these folders were present on the Windows 10 machine but not the Windows 11 machine. Perhaps I installed some other product on the Windows 10 machine (iCoud?) that created and populated these two folders with these drivers. Who knows?

hanks so much for the update and I’m glad to hear that you found a solution!

Copying the Drivers and NetDrivers folders and manually installing the .inf files was a smart move. You're right that the NetDrivers folder contains the Apple Mobile Device Ethernet driver, which is key for USB tethering.

As you suspected, those folders likely came from a previous install of iTunes or iCloud on your Windows 10 machine, which quietly adds the needed drivers in the background.

Really appreciate you sharing what worked, this will definitely help others in the same situation. Let me know if you need anything else.

Regards,

Udit

Hello Anthony,

Thank you for reaching out. My name is Udit, and I’m here to help you with this issue. Since your Windows 11 device cannot access the internet and is waiting for the Apple Ethernet driver through Windows Update, we can take a manual approach to install the necessary components using another computer that has internet access.

Here’s a step-by-step method you can follow:

1- On a separate computer that has internet access, go to the official Microsoft Store page for iTunes. This version is maintained by Microsoft and is available for Windows.

2 - Download the iTunes installer from the Microsoft Store or, if necessary, from the Apple support website. Make sure you download the version that is compatible with Windows 11. If you are downloading from Apple's site, choose the version for Windows 64-bit for older video cards, as it typically includes the required drivers.

3 - Once the installer is downloaded, copy it to a USB flash drive or any external storage device.

4 - Plug that USB drive into your Windows 11 machine that currently lacks internet access.

5 - Run the installer and complete the installation process. This should install iTunes along with the necessary Apple Mobile Device Support components, which include the Ethernet driver used for USB tethering.

6 - After installation, connect your iPhone to the Windows 11 machine using a USB cable. Make sure Personal Hotspot is enabled on your iPhone before connecting.

7 - Wait a few moments, then open Device Manager on your PC. Under Network Adapters, you should see a new entry related to Apple Mobile Device Ethernet or similar. This indicates that the driver was successfully installed.

8 - Your PC should now be able to use your iPhone’s internet connection via USB tethering.

Please let me know how it goes, or if you need further clarification on any of the steps.

Best regards,

Udit