تشغيل صفحة إعداد Access Point

How does a device with no screen learn your WiFi password? You cannot hardcode it for every user. Access Point mode solves this. 🥚

In Access Point mode, the ESP creates its own WiFi network instead of joining one. Your phone connects directly to the board.

Switch roles with WiFi.mode() set to access point. Now the chip broadcasts a network rather than searching for one.

Create the network with WiFi.softAP(), giving it a name your users will recognize, like SmartSensor-Setup.

You can add a password to softAP so only trusted people connect. Leave it open only for quick, local testing.

As the host, your ESP picks its own IP address, often 192.168.4.1. Users type that into a browser to reach the page.

A small built-in WebServer hands out an HTML form. That form is where the user types their home WiFi details.

Tell the server what to show at the root path using server.on(). This links the address slash to your setup form.

Inside loop() you call server.handleClient() on every pass. This is what answers each visitor's request promptly.

When the user submits, you read the typed credentials and store them so the device can join their network next boot.

That self-hosted setup screen is called a captive portal. It is exactly how smart plugs and bulbs onboard onto your WiFi.

What is the main reason a device runs its own Access Point at first boot?

You hosted a setup hotspot: set AP mode, called softAP, served a form on a WebServer, and captured the user's WiFi details. 🎉