• How To Ping Mac Address
• Ping Ip For Mac Addresses
• Ping Ip For Mac Address Labels

How to find an IP address when you have the MAC address of the device.

Type 'arp -a' in the command prompt. This lists a number of MAC addresses with the associated IP addresses. Since you have the MAC address, scroll down the list to find the associated IP address. The MAC address is shown in the 'Physical Address' column with the IP address in the 'Internet Address' column. An example of a table record is in Step 4. IP is a key source of communication to ping MAC address with local devices to the network, thus every device you have does maintain a local IP address, and the record of Mac Address along with associated IP address is saved in the device and that can be found using some ping options. ARP Ping first pings an IP address on your LAN with a broadcast MAC address in the ARP packet. If an ARP response packet is received from the device, it continues to ping using the unicast ARP packet (by unicast we mean the target MAC address came from the first response to our broadcast). On Windows 10, you can find this information more quickly than you could on previous.

4 Steps total

Step 1: Open the command prompt

Click the Windows 'Start' button and select 'Run.' In the textbox, type 'cmd' and click the 'Ok' button. This opens a DOS prompt.

How To Ping Mac Address

Step 2: Familiarize yourself with arp

Type 'arp' in the command prompt. This gives you a list of options to use with the arp command.

Step 3: List all MAC addresses

Type 'arp -a' in the command prompt. This lists a number of MAC addresses with the associated IP addresses. Since you have the MAC address, scroll down the list to find the associated IP address. The MAC address is shown in the 'Physical Address' column with the IP address in the 'Internet Address' column. An example of a table record is in Step 4.

Step 4: Evaluate results

The following is an example of ARP output. The first column is the IP address. The second column is the MAC address, and the third is the type of IP assigned--static or dynamic.

Internet address Physical Address Type

192.168.0.1 01-a3-56-b5-ff-22 static

References

• How to Use a MAC Address to Find an IP Address

16 Comments

• Datil
  Krizz Jan 21, 2013 at 10:36pm

  You've forgotten about one little thing: arp keeps mac<>ip association of recently contacted peers, so it's quite often not to find the mac<>ip association we're looking for, of machine that exists in the network. Prior to using arp -a it's wise to ping the host first.

• Habanero
  Twon of An Jan 21, 2013 at 11:24pm

  Used in conjunction with ping (thanks Krizz), this is a good basic walk through. I can't go wrong with these steps!

• Cayenne
  Syldra Jan 22, 2013 at 03:17pm

  I'm sorry but... if the thing is to find the IP address from the MAC, how will you ping the host first ?

• Serrano
  Enzeder Jan 22, 2013 at 04:37pm

  I thought the aim of this exercise was to FIND an IP address. Doesn't using PING imply you already know the IP (or hostname) which makes ARP redundant? How do you PING a MAC?

  Assuming no IP or hostname info, I have used a portscanner (like LanSpy or Zenmap) to get MAC > IP info. Currently my preferred method if the device isn't listed in Spiceworks :-)

  There was a time when I was a baby admin and I didn't want to raise alarms by installing a scanner that I wrote a batch file (yes, that long ago) that PINGed every IP on a subnet, then immediately ran ARP redirecting output to a text file. But that depends on the device in question being set to respond to PING requests.

• Pimiento
  christian.mcghee Dec 23, 2013 at 03:47am

  This does not work for any host on the other side of a router. Any hosts on the other side of the router will show the routers MAC address.

• Serrano
  @Greg Mar 11, 2014 at 03:11pm

  I realize this is an old topic, but someone like myself may be looking for an answer. I became admin of a network with little over 200 devices, which none of the cabling was mapped. I was told I was responsible for the cabling, so I began looking for a way other than toning out all the cables. I was fortunate to have Cisco switches and Windows Server 2008. I was able to use the Cisco Network Assistant to grab MAC addresses and the port number, then in DHCP on the Server 2008 I could find the MAC and corresponding IP. Furthermore I could also get the computer name from DHCP and correlate that to which user was on the machine using PDQ inventory to see who was logged in to the machine. Most of this of course depends on the devices being in use. I've been able to create an accurate map of about 90% of my network without touching the cables.

• Pimiento
  christopherblouch Jun 4, 2014 at 05:08pm

  I am interested in this thread, hopefully someone can help. There are 4 types of arp message: arp request, arp reply, rarp request, rarp reply. So, that being said, is it possible to manually send a rarp request? Sort of a arp based ping?There is arping, but we need rarping... if it exists. Of course, I understand that I can't arp outside my default gateway, but if there is a rarp request, how is it used inside the local network? Thanks to whatever guru can explain what we're missing.

• Serrano
  Maxwell Brotherwood Jul 18, 2014 at 10:07am

  Great for finding an IP if you have the MAC address.

  My instance where I found this useful was after updating the firmware on a switch remotely via TFTP, the IP of the switch would change (making pinging redundant, obviously). Trying a network scan over Spiceworks or rescanning the single device would not update the IP and I needed an alternate way to find it.

  This method worked perfectly. Thank you. Hopefully this helps those trying to understand the purpose of this practice and how it was in-fact useful.

• Pimiento
  robertrobinson2 Aug 4, 2014 at 04:30pm

  I understand the issues in attempting to use a MAC address to locate a device from outside of its local network.
  What puzzles me is how Honeywell Total Connect does this with their WiFi connected thermostats. The hardware configuration is: a Honeywell WiFi thermostat that is WiFi connected to a Netgear N600 router which uses DHCP to assign an IP adddress. The router is connected to Comcast with a Motorola SB6120 modem. Comcast assigns a system wide (dynamic) IP. There is no static IP.
  On initial setup, a WiFi connection is first established between the thermostat and the router. The thermostat's MAC and CRC and a username and password are entered into the Total Connect software setup. It is then possible to read or set thermostat values using Total Connect Web pages.
  I know how to do this with a static IP or a DNS service that automatically tracks changes in dynamic IP addresses.
  Does anyone understand how this works with Total Connect?

• Tabasco
  Joe979 Sep 4, 2014 at 01:05pm

  This post was extremely helpful, thanks itdownsouth :) I used show interface to find MAC addresses on our switches (reason for this is poor network documentation and mis-labeled switchports and wall jacks...). I took the MAC addresses that I could not locate the hosts or ip addresses for, ran arp -a to list the address<>mac list, then one by one, nbtstat -A for each IP address I matched a MAC to from the unlabeled ports. Tedious, but found 5 or 6 now (seeing hexadecimal thoughts now though...).

• Tabasco
  Joe979 Sep 4, 2014 at 01:12pm

  By the way, the reason this is working great for me is the lack of routers -- all switches, so if you have only one subnet like we do, this will do -- otherwise, you will probably need to login to the router or switch on the other side of the router to find MAC address tables on the other networks. You may not be able to see them all on the local host, as far as arp -a on the local host, but looking up the arp or hosts tables on switches and routers could be a possible solution for those with multiple subnets.

• Jalapeno
  Jay196 Oct 21, 2014 at 03:28pm

  Use SuperScan to do a bulk ping of the entire network range. SuperScan 3 (I recommend) is a free tool by McAfee.

  Then use arp -a | Find '5c-d9-98' to get for example all ping nodes with a manufacturer of Asus.

• Datil
  WealthyEmu Mar 25, 2015 at 07:55pm

  There's also this:

  http://www.advanced-ip-scanner.com/

  It should be able to find most devices on the network. You can specify the range to scan and scan across subnets. I won't try to share all the features because quite frankly I don't know them all.

• Pimiento
  amiruli Jul 4, 2015 at 10:18am

  If you want you can ping the broadcast address to ping everyone on the network then do arp -a

• Pimiento
  chrisdahlkvist Nov 23, 2015 at 09:56am

  @RobertRobinson I'm the lead designer and project manager on the Honeywell systems.

  I can tell you exactly how I designed it. It's actually quite simple. Nothing is sent back to the unit. The unit is allowed access to the Internet via your setup and the router. As long as the unit has permission to make an outbound connection it will work. What happens is the unit makes a report to the server. If it needs to make a request then it gives the server a unique key. The server puts any needed data in an xml (readable) and the thermostat (or quite a few other devices) hits that URL a few seconds later (the device told the server where it would pick up that info).

  All your device needs is a simple read-only connection to the outside world. No need to download anything.
  It's a VERY simple process that I developed back in 1992 when the Interwebs were still pretty new to most people. There were many processes built off of this simple idea (it was pretty cutting edge when I first designed it). Store and forward, offline browsing, push technology, etc. all are based on this simple technology.

  Am I rich? Not even close. I was working on my PhD at the time and was hired by Honeywell to implement my design. I literally gave it away to the general public as is right.

  I hope that clears it up for you. If not, feel free to contact me for more information.

  Chris Dahlkvist
  chris@usarf.org

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MAC and IP are the addresses that uniquely defines a device and a connection in a network. A MAC address is a number assigned to the NIC card by the manufacturer. IP address is a number assigned to the connection in a network. The basic difference between MAC address and IP address is that a MAC address uniquely identifies a device that wants to take part in a network.

On the other hand, an IP address uniquely defines a connection of a network with an interface of a device. Let us study some other differences between MAC address and IP address with the help of comparison chart shown below.

Content: MAC address Vs IP address

Comparison Chart

Definition of Mac Address

Address that uniquely defines a hardware interface is called MAC (Media Access Control) Address. MAC address is purchased by the manufacturer, producing interface hardware and assign the MAC addresses sequentially to the interface hardware as they are produced. MAC address is burned into the ROM of Network Interface Card (NIC). NIC is an interface hardware that is used by the computer to become a part of a network.

MAC address is a 48-bit hexadecimal address. The format of a MAC address is MM:MM:MM:SS:SS:SS, where MM:MM:MM is a 3-byte address of the manufacturer. On the other hand, SS:SS:SS is a serial number of NIC card. MAC Address of each computer on a network is unique. When you change or replace the NIC card of your computer, your MAC address also gets changed.

MAC address is used at the data link layer of OSI/TCP/IP model. ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) is a protocol used to receive MAC address of a device.

Definition of IP Address

The address provided to a connection in a network is called IP (Internet Protocol) address. IP address does not uniquely identify a device on a network but, it specifies a particular connection in a network. IP address is provided by the administrator of the network or by Internet Service Provider (ISP).

Ping Ip For Mac Addresses

IP address identifies both a network and the host on that network. IP address is used while routing as it specifically identifies a network connection. If your computer is on two networks so, it will have two IP addresses.

IPv4 address is 32-bit address whereas IPv6 is 128-bit address. Your IP address will get changed each time you connect to the network as it is dynamically allocated to your device when it participates in the network. IP address for a particular connection in a network can be retrieved by RARP (Reverse Address Resolution Protocol).

Key Differences Between MAC Address and IP Address

Ping Ip For Mac Address Labels

1. The full form of MAC address is Media Acess Control whereas, the full form of IP address is Internet Protocol address.
2. The IP address identifies a connection to a device in a network. On the other hand, Mac address identifies a device participating in a network.
3. MAC address is 48 bits (6 bytes) hexadecimal address whereas, IP address has two versions, IPv4 a 32-bit address and IPv6 a 128-bit address.
4. MAC address is assigned by the manufacturer of interface hardware. On the other hand, IP address is assigned by the network administrator or Internet Service Provider (ISP).
5. ARP protocol retrieves the MAC address whereas RARP protocol retrieves IP address.

Conclusion

MAC and IP address both are equally required when a device wants to communicate with another device in a network.