Find MAC address using arp command inside LAN?

In Networking IP address and MAC address plays an important role. Each and every Networking Device has its own Unique IP and MAC address. The MAC address is a unique value associated with a network adapter. MAC addresses are also known as hardware addresses or physical addresses. They uniquely identify an adapter on a LAN. MAC addresses are 12-digit hexadecimal numbers (48 bits in length). By convention, MAC addresses are usually written in one of the following formats: MM:MM:MM:SS:SS:SS MMMM-MMSS-SSSS The first half (24 BITS) of a MAC address contains the ID number of the adapter manufacturer. These IDs are regulated by an Internet standards body (see sidebar). The second half (24 MORE BITS) of a MAC address represents the serial number assigned to the adapter by the manufacturer. In the example, 00:A0:C9:14:C8:29 The prefix 00A0C9 indicates the manufacturer is Intel Corporation.

What is the Difference between MAC and IP address?

Whereas MAC addressing works at the data link layer, IP addressing functions at the network layer (layer 3). It’s a slight oversimplification, but one can think of IP addressing as supporting the software implementation and MAC addresses as supporting the hardware implementation of the network stack. The MAC address generally remains fixed and follows the network device, but the IP address changes as the network device moves from one network to another. IP networks maintain a mapping (association) between the IP address of a device and its MAC address. This mapping is known as the ARP cache or ARP table. ARP, the Address Resolution Protocol, supports the logic for obtaining this mapping and keeping the cache up to date. DHCP also usually relies on MAC addresses to manage the unique assignment of IP addresses to devices. The method used to find a MAC address depends on the type of network device involved. All popular network operating systems contain utility programs that allow one to find (and sometimes change) MAC address settings. Usually we can get our Own mac address by this command getmac. This article shows how to find MAC address of any other networking device. This Method includes arp command.using arp command its easy to find Find MAC address.

What is ARP in Networking?

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) is a protocol for mapping an Internet Protocol address (IP address) to a physical machine address that is recognized in the local network. For example, in IP Version 4, the most common level of IP in use today, an address is 32 bits long. In an Ethernet local area network, however, addresses for attached devices are 48 bits long. (The physical machine address is also known as a Media Access Control or MAC address.) A table, usually called the ARP cache, is used to maintain a correlation between each MAC address and its corresponding IP address. ARP provides the protocol rules for making this correlation and providing address conversion in both directions. So I think now you get some idea about this method. Yes, we are trying to get the MAC of the address of know devices within the ARP cache. This means you can get the MAC address within the Local area Network.

STEPS:

Open command Prompt and try to ping to any IP address within the LAN. So this will create the ARP cache in your system. Then type the Below mentioned command arp -a If you need MAC address of any specific IP address Just type the IP address after the arp command. arp -a 192.130.12.2 

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How to Clear ARP Cache using Command prompt in Windows 11?