The MAC address is a unique
hardware address. If you have network problems, we'll probably need to
know your MAC address, so that we can search for activity. MAC addresses
are 12 characters, of digits 0-9 and letters A-F. They are normally
presented as 6 groups of 2, separated by colons or hyphens. For example:
- 00:11:22:33:44:55
- 00-11-22-33-44-55
Occasionally you may see different presentations, such as:
- 0011.2233.4455
- 001122334455
Many
modern machines have multiple network adapters, and it's important to
select the right one - that is, the one you're reporting a problem for.
For example, a machine might have some or all of:
- wired
- wireless
- bluetooth
- "virtual" network cards, such as VPN etc.
Follow the instructions below to find the MAC address for your machine.
Windows (Vista, 7)
- Open the "Start" menu
- Type "network and sharing", and hit return
- Select "change adapter settings" at the top-left
- Right-click the adapter you want, and select Status
- Click the Details... button
- The MAC address is listed as "Physical Address"
- You can copy this information to the clipboard by pressing Ctrl+C and then paste it into an email
Windows XP
If you have a "My Network Places" icon on the desktop:
- Right-click "My Network Places" icon and select "Properties" from the menu
- Right-click the adapter you want, and select Status
- Select the Support tab, and click the Details... button
- The MAC address is listed as "Physical Address"
- You can copy this information to the clipboard by pressing Ctrl+C and then paste it into an email
If you don't have "My Network Places", use the instructions below
Windows (2000, XP, Vista, 7)
- Open the "Start" menu
- Select the "Run..." item
- Type "cmd" in the box and click "OK"
- A command prompt will open up
- Type "ipconfig /all" at the prompt and hit return
- A
list of information will be printed - you may need to scroll back up,
or alternatively, try running "ipconfig /all | more" instead. Note down
the MAC address of the correct network adaptor (there may be more than
one - see note below)
Windows legacy systems (95/98/ME)
- Open the "Start" menu
- Select the "Run..." item
- Type "winipcfg" in the box and click "OK"
- A
program will start that lists the network adaptors attached to your
machine. Select the correct adaptor from the dropdown list and note down
the MAC address
MacOS X (Tiger)
- Go to the Apple Menu and select System Preferences
- Click Network
- From the Show menu, select the adapter you want
- For wireless - select Airport. The MAC address will be listed as the "Airport ID"
- For wired - select Built in Ethernet. The MAC address will listed as the "Ethernet ID."
MacOS X (Snow Leopard)
- Go to the Apple Menu and select System Preferences
- Click Network
- From the Show menu, select the adapter you want
- For wireless - select Airport
- For wired - select Ethernet
- Click on the Advanced button
- Go to the Ethernet tab
- The MAC address will be show as the "Ethernet ID"
MacOS (older versions)
Go Apple Menu => Control Panels => Appletalk => Info.
Alternatively, Apple Menu => Apple System Profiler, under Network Overview/Appletalk/Hardware Address
iPhone
- Select Settings, General, About
- MAC addresses are listed at the bottom of the page
Nokia phones (with wifi)
Dial *#MAC0WLAN# or *#62209526# - your MAC address will be shown
Blackberry (OS 6 and above)
- From the home screen, select Options
- Select Device Options, then Device and status Information
- Under Wi-Fi Information, look for WLAN MAC.
Blackberry (earlier versions)
- From home screen, press menu
- Choose "Options", "Status"
- Select "WLAN MAC"
Android
- From the Home screen, press Menu
- Tap Settings
- Slide the screen upward, and then tap About phone
- Tap Status
- Tap and slide up to view the Wi-Fi MAC address
Unix/Linux
Most
versions of Unix can find the MAC address by typing "ifconfig -a" at a
root prompt. The adaptor may be named eth0 (linux) le0/hme0 (Solaris) or
some other similar mnemonic.
Printers
Most
printers with embedded network hardware will print the MAC address as
part of the self-test page. Often, the MAC address can be obtained
through the front-panel configuration if the printer has one.
Alternatively, the MAC address is usually either the last 12 digits of
the serial number (of the network card, if it is a separate item) or is
marked somewhere (usually hard to find).
Try looking for a string of the form "00-11-22-33-44-55" or "00:aa:bb:cc:dd:ee".
