I have an iPad Pro (2018 3rd Gen) with a USB-C Port and a 2018 Macbook Pro with a USB-C Port. Can I tether the iPad to my Macbook's Internet connection using a USB-C cable?
IPad USB-C Internet Connection: Tethering to Macbook
internet-sharingipadmacbook protetheringusb
Related Solutions
If you plug any cellular enabled iOS device with Personal Hotspot turned on to a Mac via USB, the Mac will automatically open a network connection using the Personal Hotspot.
So yes, your Macbook Air will be the 1 connection you see.
The second part of your question is a little trickier and the answer is both complex and confusing but I will try to explain as best I can.
.
Based on older knowledge with other multiple interface *nix systems is that it will be a complete toss up as to which connection your Mac will use since both active connections could possible provide the same route to the destination for any network query.
I have even seen, on both Windows and Unix networks, traffic coming in on one network connection and going out on another, which rarely works well.
To get round this, in the Network panel you could disable the "iPad USB" in your default location, but then set up a new location where your "iPad USB" is not disabled.
Finally, the order of your devices should mean that if your wifi is above the iPad USB device in your list when both are enabled, it will get priority over the hotspot, but there are still caveats and this could still use cellular data, but of a lesser amount.
You'd have to be on the Personal Hotspot menu from Settings. This "forces" the broadcast and allows devices to connect while you're on this menu.
AFAIK I'm afraid you can't make it discoverable while it's off, though I think there is some sort of timeout after leaving the Personal Hotspot settings that allow connections from other devices.
Related Question
- macOS – How to Share Mac’s Internet Connection with iPhone or iPad via Lightning Cable
- USB – Connect iPad Pro to Older MacBook Pro Using USB-C to USB-A Cable
- How to Share Mac Internet with iPad Using USB
- MacBook to iPhone – Fixing USB Internet Sharing Issues
- IPhone – Sharing Mac internet connection from wifi to Iphone USB not working (Mac OS Catalina)
- IPad – Sharing MacBook internet to iPad via USB
- IPad – Internet sharing from Macbook to iPad Pro via usb cable (Tethered caching) not working on Catalia 10.15.6
Best Answer
Yes, you can use a USB-C cable to share Macbook's Internet connection with the iPad just like the USB to lightning cable does on iPhones and older iPads.
Benefits:
The USB-C cable powers the iPad directly from the Macbook reducing the number of mains sockets you need to just one.
WiFi & Bluetooth can be completely turned off on the iPad.
Traffic is proxied to the iPad via the Macbook (which has a firewall in front of it).
Negatives:
Parts Required:
Standard USB-C charging cable that came with your iPad will work
Or this short (and tidy) Anker USB-C cable I've found works well
Internet Connection:
You Macbook should have a non-802.1x Internet connection to share, ie: straight WiFi. If your WiFi connection is secured using EAP-TLS (with certificates) or other 802.1X security to stop this sort of thing, the USB-C Internet connection sharing won't work.
Configuration:
On Macbook Pro: "System Preferences" > "Sharing" > "Internet Sharing" and tick "iPad USB" as below:
Connect the USB-C cable between them and you're done.
It's a tidy, secure solution.