How to find network card vendor by OUI lookup/MAC address

What is an OUI?

The Organizationally Unique Identifier (OUI) is the first 24 bits of a MAC address (out of a total of 48 bits). This identifier uniquely represents the manufacturer of the network card.

Steps to Identify the Vendor

  1. Locate the MAC Address: Find the MAC address of your network device. It usually appears in the format XX:XX:XX:XX:XX

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  2. Extract the OUI: The first six characters of the MAC address represent the OUI.
  3. Use Online Lookup Tools: Enter the OUI into an online lookup tool to find the corresponding vendor. Here are two reliable tools:

Why Identify Network Card Vendors?

Knowing the vendor can help in troubleshooting, network management, and ensuring device compatibility. It provides insights into the origin and quality of the network hardware.

Example

For a MAC address 00:1A:2B:3C:4D:5E, the OUI is 00:1A:2B. By entering this into an OUI lookup tool, you can identify the manufacturer.

 

http://www.macvendorlookup.com/

http://www.wireshark.org/tools/oui-lookup.html

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