



Once inside the command prompt, type ipconfig/all, and hit Enter.For older versions of Windows, right-click on the Start button, and select command prompt from the menu. Type cmd or command prompt in the search box of the taskbar.The OSI model shows the MAC address is located at the data link layer. For example, if a laptop has both an Ethernet cable port and built-in Wi-Fi, there will be two MAC addresses shown in the system configuration. The MAC address belongs to the data link layer of the Open Systems Interconnection ( OSI) model, which encapsulates the MAC address of the source and destination in the header of each data frame to ensure node-to-node communication.Įach network interface in a device is assigned a unique MAC address, so it's possible for a device to have more than one MAC address.

A MAC address is required when trying to locate a device or when performing diagnostics on a network device. Primarily specified as a unique identifier during device manufacturing, the MAC address is often found on a device's network interface card ( NIC). What is a MAC address (media access control address)?Ī MAC address (media access control address) is a 12-digit hexadecimal number assigned to each device connected to the network.
