The Help Desk » How to find your computer’s Ethernet Address

How to find your computer’s Ethernet Address

If you tried to register your computer and the registration page left the "Ethernet number" field blank, you may already be registered. Try going to an off-campus web address such as http://www.yahoo.com. If you cannot get off-campus, follow the directions below.

Every network card has a unique, hexadecimal, 12-character identifying address, commonly called, interestingly enough, one of many different names: an Ethernet address, MAC address, adapter address, physical address, or hardware address. That number identifies your network card on any network to which you connect. It usually starts out with “00″ or “01,” and most of the number identifies the manufacturer of your network card.

Windows XP or 2000
Go to the command prompt (Start Menu > Run > “cmd” > OK), type in “ipconfig /all” and hit Enter. Look for the Physical Address of your Local Area Connection. That is the Ethernet address unique to your computer’s network card. Write that down (without the dashes) and type that into the registration page, if necessary. If you see two or more physical addresses, you have more than one network card installed (most likely a wired card as well as a wireless one). If you wish to register both, write them down separately. The wired card is normally listed under Local Area Connection whereas wireless may be under WAN or Wireless Network Connection.

Macintosh OS X
Go to System Preferences > Network, select Built-in Ethernet and click Configure. Select the Ethernet tab and note the Ethernet ID listed. That address is unique to your computer’s network card. Write that down (without the colons) and type that into the registration page, if necessary.

Windows 95/98/ME
Go to the Start Menu and select Run. Type “winipcfg” in the Open box, and click OK. In the next window, IP Configuration, select the Ethernet adapter (not the PPP adapter) from the drop-down list, and look for the Adapter Address. That is the Ethernet address unique to your computer’s network card. Write that down (without the dashes) and type that into the registration page, if necessary.

Macintosh OS 8 or 9

Go to the AppleTalk or TCP/IP control panel (Apple Menu > Control Panels > AppleTalk). With AppleTalk or TCP/IP open, go to the File Menu and select Get Info. Note the Hardware Address listed in the middle. That address is unique to your computer’s network card. Write that down (without the dashes) and type that into the registration page, if necessary.

Last revised on 08/20/04