A MAC address is a unique number that identifies a network card for network communication. This number is branded my the network card manufacturer and cannot be changed or tampered with. There can only be one unique MAC address per network card in the world!!
If you have already purchased an Ethernet network card but it has not yet been installed in your computer, open the package and look for a sticker label directly attached to either sides of the card. This label will display the MAC address as an Ethernet ID number, a MAC address number or a Physical address number. The MAC address consist of 12 digits in either 00-C0-4F-48-7A-88 or 00C04F487A48 format.
If you have an Ethernet network card installed or built-in and the network software drivers already installed in your computer, then select from below the correct option for you in order to obtain the MAC address.
Windows 95/98/ME
Run winipcfg (click on Start,
then Run, then type winipcfg
in the text box.) Select your ethernet card adapter (NOT
the PPP Adatper), and look for a box marked Adapter Address.
This is your MAC address.
NOTE:
Do NOT use the "PPP Adapter" MAC address. That is your
modem address! You need use the pull down menu on the winipcfg IP Configuration
Window and select your network ethernet adapter.
Example: 3Com 3C90x Ethernet Adapter
Windows
NT/2000
Run ipconfig /all from an MS-DOS shell
window (click on Start,
then Run, then type cmd in
the text box.) Once the new window appears
type ipconfig
/all at the shell prompt. In
the "Ethernet Adapter" section, look for the line that begins with Physical
Address and you will see the MAC address.
Macintosh with Open Transport
First, open the TCP/IP control panel. Select info from the main control
panel. The MAC address is displayed as the hardware address.
Macintosh with MacTCP
Open the MacTCP control panel. You should see an icon labeled Ethernet.
Hold down the option key and click this icon. A number should appear
beneath the icon, this is your MAC address.
Solaris/SunOS
On Solaris and SunOS systems, the ethernet device is typically called le0
or ie0. In order to find the MAC address of the ethernet device, you
must first become root, through the use of su. Then, type ifconfig
-a and look up the relevant info. For example:
# ifconfig -a
le0: flags=863 <UP,BROADCAST,NOTRAILERS,RUNNING>
inet 131.225.220.144 netmask ffffff00 broadcast 131.225.255.255
ether 8:0:20:f:c2:f8
Note: Solaris and SunOS strip off the leading 0 commonly
included in the MAC address. In the case of this machine, the MAC address is
08:00:20:0f:c2:f8
Linux
On Linux systems, the ethernet device is typically called eth0. In order
to find the MAC address of the ethernet device, you must first become root,
through the use of su. Then, type ifconfig -a and
look up the relevant info. For example:
# ifconfig -a
eth0 Link encap:Ethernet HWaddr 00:60:08:C4:99:AA
inet addr:131.225.84.67 Bcast:131.225.87.255 Mask:255.255.248.0
UP BROADCAST RUNNING MULTICAST MTU:1500 Metric:1
RX packets:15647904 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0
TX packets:69559 errors:0 dropped:0 overruns:0
Interrupt:10 Base address:0x300
The MAC address is the HWaddr listed on the first line.
In the case of this machine, it is 00:60:08:C4:99:AA.
FreeBSD
On a FreeBSD machine the command dmefg will display the MAC address.
HP
On HP systems, the ethernet device is typically called lan0. In order
to find the MAC address of the ethernet device. Then, type lanscan
and look up the relevant info. For example:
$ lanscan Hardware Station Dev Hardware Net-Interface NM Encapsulation Mjr Path Address lu State NameUnit State ID Methods Num 2.0.2 0x08000935C99D 0 UP lan0 UP 4 ETHER 52
Note: HP systems remove the :'s from the MAC address. In the case of this system, the MAC address is 08:00:09:35:C9:9D.