PHANTOM SHARE / PRACTICAL GUIDES

Share files over Wi-Fi without internet

Phantom Share’s Offline Connect (LAN Only) lets an Android phone host a local sharing session. Another device opens the page served by that phone and enters a four-digit PIN. This flow can work on a shared Wi-Fi router without an internet connection.

Offline does not mean disconnected from Wi-Fi

Both devices must still be on the same reachable local network. The Android app hosts the page and local pairing service; the other device uses its browser. The joining browser does not need to load the public Phantom Share website first.

You need the Android app installed before going offline. The public website’s normal Create/Join invitations use internet discovery and are a different connection flow.

Start sharing on your local network

1. Connect the Android host and the receiving device to the same LAN or Wi-Fi router.
2. In the Android app, choose Connect → Offline Connect (LAN Only), then Host from this phone.
3. On the other device, open the local HTTPS address shown by the phone. Use that address, not phantomshare.app.
4. The browser may warn about the phone’s local HTTPS certificate. Confirm the address is the one shown on your own phone; its certificate fingerprint is available in the host’s certificate details for comparison.
5. Enter the phone’s four-digit PIN on the served page. A PIN lasts four minutes and admits one device.
6. Once connected, select files on either device. Keep the phone app and joining browser open until the transfer finishes.

Where do received files go?

The Android app saves received files to Downloads. In a computer browser, choose Save and check the browser’s downloads. A transfer completing in the page is separate from a browser confirming that a file was saved.

What has been tested?

In an isolated-router test with no WAN connection, an Android host paired with desktop Chrome and transferred files. Automated tests also exercise the native HTTPS server, PIN pairing and exact-byte file transfer in both directions with external requests blocked.

A Fire TV/Silk test paired and opened a received image, but saving was unsupported in that setup. Do not assume a TV browser can download a file just because it can display one. Browser certificate handling and local-network permissions vary by device.

If the local page will not open

• Check that the host is still running and that you copied its complete address, including its port.
• Check that both devices are on the same reachable network. Guest-network isolation can prevent them from reaching each other.
• Allow local-network access when requested. A browser that cannot accept the local certificate may not support this flow.
• After a network change or ended session, create a fresh connection on the host.

This guide covers Android-hosted LAN sharing. It does not promise automatic nearby discovery, Bluetooth transfers, or compatibility with every hotspot and TV browser.