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Using MAC address to identify wireless connections on wireless network
Posted on 6/23/22 at 7:12 am
Posted on 6/23/22 at 7:12 am
Good day everyone. Just wanted to pass along a little tip that I stumbled across that might help some folks here.
As I go further and further down the smart home rabbit hole, the devices connected to my home network wireless network look like an alphabet soup of connections.
My network software allows me to edit the original but they were so generic, I had no real way of know what device each connection was. Until I used my brain and figured out I could identify each one by the MAC address. Most of the apps I use to control the devices from my phone will proved the MAC address of each device. You just have to use your browsers search function to find the right MAC address. I came across this solution because I kept losing connection to several of my 2.4 ghz wireless devices in the app, and I wanted to see if they were really offline or, just not talking to the app.
I can't speak to every piece of software but googling the software/app name and MAC address provided good results.
Anyway, I just wanted to pass this little tip along in hopes that it might help someone else...
As I go further and further down the smart home rabbit hole, the devices connected to my home network wireless network look like an alphabet soup of connections.
My network software allows me to edit the original but they were so generic, I had no real way of know what device each connection was. Until I used my brain and figured out I could identify each one by the MAC address. Most of the apps I use to control the devices from my phone will proved the MAC address of each device. You just have to use your browsers search function to find the right MAC address. I came across this solution because I kept losing connection to several of my 2.4 ghz wireless devices in the app, and I wanted to see if they were really offline or, just not talking to the app.
I can't speak to every piece of software but googling the software/app name and MAC address provided good results.
Anyway, I just wanted to pass this little tip along in hopes that it might help someone else...
This post was edited on 6/23/22 at 7:14 am
3
Posted on 6/23/22 at 7:19 am to Lonnie Utah
MAC address is unique, not sure what good googling it will do.
Posted on 6/23/22 at 7:23 am to j1897
quote:
MAC address is unique, not sure what good googling it will do.
I think you misunderstood what I was trying to say. You can use google to find out how to identify the mac address of each device that is connected to a particular application. For example here is the search on how to find the MAC address of your echo devices or fireTV devices using the Alexa app. Sorry about the confusion.
This post was edited on 6/23/22 at 7:38 am
Posted on 6/23/22 at 7:37 am to Lonnie Utah
Most routers will also let you choose which MAC addresses are allowed to connect to you network, known as MAC address filtering.
You can use this as an added layer of security for you home network, but keep in mind that MAC addresses can be spoofed.
You can use this as an added layer of security for you home network, but keep in mind that MAC addresses can be spoofed.
Posted on 6/23/22 at 7:38 am to MaroonWhite
quote:
but keep in mind that MAC addresses can be spoofed.
Ahh. This is good to know.
The other useful part of this (for our family) is that now I have the ability to add these devices to my routers parental controls (which means I can pause YouTube on our FireTV devices when it's time to get school work done.
)This post was edited on 6/23/22 at 7:44 am
Posted on 6/23/22 at 9:04 am to j1897
quote:
MAC address is unique, not sure what good googling it will do.
A lot of good. The first half of a MAC address is the organizationally unique identifier. If I see traffic on my network coming from 9C:8E:CD:XX:XX:XX and I don't know what it is, I can look up 9C:8E:CD and find out that's the organizationally unique identifier for Amcrest Technologies, so that narrows it down to one of my IP security cameras.
Posted on 6/23/22 at 10:07 am to efrad
quote:
A lot of good. The first half of a MAC address is the organizationally unique identifier. If I see traffic on my network coming from 9C:8E:CD:XX:XX:XX and I don't know what it is, I can look up 9C:8E:CD and find out that's the organizationally unique identifier for Amcrest Technologies, so that narrows it down to one of my IP security cameras.
You learn something new everyday. Thanks for the info.
Posted on 6/23/22 at 10:36 am to Lonnie Utah
Here's a tool you can use to look up the manufacturer by MAC address.
LINK
FYI for security reasons, many devices randomize their MAC address. You might find a device you identified yesterday might be unidentified tomorrow.
LINK
FYI for security reasons, many devices randomize their MAC address. You might find a device you identified yesterday might be unidentified tomorrow.
Posted on 6/23/22 at 11:37 am to Lonnie Utah
Use Advanced IP Scanner (freeware) from a computer on your network. It will give you IP address, MAC address, most of the time correct manufacturer info, and it the device has a webpage or not.
I also have Net Analyzer installed on my phone which will do the same thing as above.
BTW all those ESP devices, if you give them hostnames in tasmota or ESPHome that's how they will show up in your routers DNS table so it's not as bad to find out what they are.
I also have Net Analyzer installed on my phone which will do the same thing as above.
BTW all those ESP devices, if you give them hostnames in tasmota or ESPHome that's how they will show up in your routers DNS table so it's not as bad to find out what they are.
This post was edited on 6/23/22 at 11:41 am
Posted on 6/23/22 at 11:49 am to mchias1
quote:
BTW all those ESP devices, if you give them hostnames in tasmota or ESPHome that's how they will show up in your routers DNS table so it's not as bad to find out what they are
Definitely a good practice to do something like this. Personally I'm a psycho and for every device on my network I grab the MAC address, assign a static IP address in my DHCP server, then add a subdomain for that device in my local DNS server. Every single permanent device can be accessed that way from network printers to IP cams (e.g. cam3.myhomedomain.net).
Posted on 6/23/22 at 1:35 pm to mchias1
quote:
Use Advanced IP Scanner (freeware) from a computer on your network. It will give you IP address, MAC address, most of the time correct manufacturer info, and it the device has a webpage or not.
One of the best pieces of free software out there IMO. I'll be using that and Kali Linux for some network discovery when I start a new job in a couple weeks.
This post was edited on 6/23/22 at 1:37 pm
Posted on 6/23/22 at 1:56 pm to jdd48
Btwn the IP scanner and "sh mac table" on cisco switches I've been able to draw out network diagrams without disconnected cables to figure out what is connected to what. Unfortunately not all switches will tell you what are the mac addresses connected to each port like cisco ios switches will.
Posted on 6/24/22 at 2:05 pm to mchias1
quote:I have that and Angry IP Scanner. Sometimes one or the other will not populate vendor info when the other does.
Use Advanced IP Scanner
Posted on 6/27/22 at 10:48 am to Vlad
This is one of those thread where you post something hoping to help folks and realize that folks know WAY more about the subject than you do and you end up being the one that learns the most along the way... 
Posted on 6/29/22 at 5:01 pm to Lonnie Utah
quote:
Lonnie Utah
So what layer are you tinkering with in this exercise?!
Posted on 6/30/22 at 10:18 am to Lonnie Utah
Lol that’s what these forums should be for instead of people constantly demeaning each other or acting like people are stupid for asking questions.
There are a lot of features in these routers nowadays that do all kinds of neat shite if you dig around and learn about it. It’s fun. Intimidating at first but once shite starts working and you figure it out, it’s cool shite.
There are a lot of features in these routers nowadays that do all kinds of neat shite if you dig around and learn about it. It’s fun. Intimidating at first but once shite starts working and you figure it out, it’s cool shite.
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