Nmap Development mailing list archives
Re: How to find MAC address
From: Andreas Ericsson <ae () op5 se>
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2006 12:59:17 +0200
Martin O'Neal wrote:
There isn't an nmap option to gather a MAC remotely, but your original response said:There is none. As soon as a packet passes a router the only MAC you're gonna see is the one of the router. ARP-packets simply cannot be routed.Which is misleading; ARP isn't the only mechanism. There are ways of gathering the MAC from higher level protocols, and not just proprietary extensions either; MS NetBIOS name service, SNMP, blah blah blah...
For nmap, ARP *is* the only mechanism. The question was "why doesn't nmap detect the MAC of this and that host on a different network?" and the answers given are totally correct. How is that misleading? Other tools can (try to) determine MAC addresses through other means, but nmap can't. FYI, MS NetBIOS is broadcast which also only works on local subnets, possibly with the exception that someone may actually be daft enough to put a windows box as router (the horror!). Never having tried this, I'm not sure if it would report hosts on both networks as beeing in the "neighbourhood". SNMP is not really an option (not necessarily running everywhere, info can be spoofed, etc. etc. - same problem as with all other solutions based on anything but ARP) and I doubt Fyodor will accept a patch to support it. nmap being opensource, you're ofcourse free to write one and submit it for inclusion. -- Andreas Ericsson andreas.ericsson () op5 se OP5 AB www.op5.se Tel: +46 8-230225 Fax: +46 8-230231 _______________________________________________ Sent through the nmap-dev mailing list http://cgi.insecure.org/mailman/listinfo/nmap-dev
Current thread:
- How to find MAC address uday kumar kunta (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Andreas Ericsson (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Brandon Enright (Mar 31)
- <Possible follow-ups>
- RE: How to find MAC address Martin O'Neal (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Andreas Ericsson (Mar 31)
- RE: How to find MAC address Martin O'Neal (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Andreas Ericsson (Mar 31)
- RE: How to find MAC address Martin O'Neal (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Fyodor (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Andreas Ericsson (Mar 31)
- RE: How to find MAC address Martin O'Neal (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Martin Mačok (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Kurt Grutzmacher (Mar 31)
- Re: How to find MAC address Martin Mačok (Mar 31)
- RE: How to find MAC address Martin O'Neal (Mar 31)
- RE: How to find MAC address Yudson, Marc CTR MDA/ION (Mar 31)