Identifying MAC Addresses

  • Given an example, identify a Media Access Control (MAC) address.

This chapter many times refers to MAC addresses and how certain devices use them. However, it has not yet discussed why MAC addresses exist, how they are assigned, and what they consist of. Let's do that now.

A MAC address is a 6-byte address that allows an NIC to be uniquely identified on the network. The MAC address forms the basis of network communication, regardless of the protocol used to achieve network connection. Because the MAC address is so fundamental to network communication, mechanisms are in place to ensure that there is no possibility of duplicate addresses being used.

EXAM TIP

A MAC Address Is the Physical Address A MAC address is sometimes ...

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