A MAC address is an address that is burned into an Ethernet NIC by the manufacturer. The first three (it is three, right?) octets identify the manufacturer. This address is completely independent of any network layer address you assign to the interface. That's why you can assign an IP address, a secondary IP address, an IPX address, and an AppleTalk address all to the same interface. It will still have the same MAC.
The MAC is used in network segments to identify the next hop a frame must take, whereas a network layer address identifies the starting and ending points only.
- Don
-----Original Message-----
From: Sisqo [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Friday, November 24, 2000 12:15 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Need help with converting IP address to MAC address
Cisco press book (BCMSN) does not really explain well the concept. I was
wondering if someone can help me break the barrier.
Example in the book:
224.163.163.45 = 01-00-5E-23-A3-2D
I thought 163=A3, why is the 2nd octet converted to 23?
Any help this would be appreciated. Thanks
_________________________________
FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html
Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]