MAC – Media Access Control Address:
The full form of MAC is Media Access Control Address; it is an identifier that uniquely identifies each device on a network. This MCA address is used within the partition of the network as a network address in the majority of the network technology, which includes Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. It is assigned to the NIC (Network Interface Card) The major three types of MAC addresses are unicast, Multicast and Broadcast.
How to find MAC address on Windows:
- The first step is, Open the start menu and search the command prompt and open the command prompt.
- The screen will display, type “getamac” and press the enter button.
- You will receive a series of 12-digit numbers in 2 sets, this is the MAC address. These are the steps to find the MAC address in the window.
How to find the MAC address on Apple:
Same as the steps we followed on windows.
- First click on the Apple icon, which is located in the top left of the home display.
- Open the system preference tab.
- Now, click on “Network”. Select “Ethernet” and a pop-up notification will display and select “Advanced”.
- Click on the “Hardware” tab and the result of the MAC address will be displayed in 12-digit numbers.
Format of MAC address:
The format of MAC address is 12 digit hexadecimal numbers, which is mostly represented in colon-hexadecimal notation. The first six-digit reassembles of MAC address identified the manufacturer, called OUI (Organizational Unique Identifier).
Conclusion:
The Media Access Control address is a unique identifier assigned to most network adapters. Meanwhile, the serial interfaces do not use a MAC address, because it doesn’t contain a network and host portion with the address. Hence, it is used for the delivery purpose of frames to the assigned destination device.