Re: --solved-- ; well , mostly ; was: my isp has trouble with its own dhcp assignment

On Mon, 7 Nov 2022 02:01:49 +0000, spellberg_robert wrote:
> never_the_less , i --do-- have a question .
> 
> 	is there some kind of security issue w/ nic mac_addresses ?
> 
> i have been trying to imagine one .
> if so , then i suspect that
>    it relates to activities , which i do not do .
> this would explain my lack of imagination .
> i do not do lap_tops [ hardware configuration is nearly impossible ] ;
>    i do not do wi_fi [ eavesdropping ] ;
>    i do not do windows [ now , really ; do you have to ask why ? ] .
> please note that
>    i am not against these things , for those who wish them ;
>    different peoples have different ways .
> i have programmed ms_dos ; i have used ms_win ;
>    i have considered lt/wf ; these are not for me .
> make mine a dozen of a several_hundred_char_wide xterm .

Depending on the NIC in question, you can typically instruct
it to use any MAC address you want; see "man ifconfig" for
the "ether", "lladdr" or "link" address setting. So you can
"impersonate" a different network interface based on the
MAC address. You can even add a permanent setting in /etc/rc.conf
if you require a certain network interface to have a specific
MAC address...



> here is another one .
> 
> 	regard_less of the answer to the above question ,
> 	  do other isps do this [ check the mac_addr ] ?

Yes. We had an ISP here in my home town which you would need
to provide your MAC address as an "access token" to their
Internet connection, i. e., if you used a different computer,
or your computer's network card broke and you replaced it,
you couldn't get Internet access until you told them your
new MAC address... The corresponding setting was remote-controlled
in the "modem box" they gave you (connected to TV cable on
their side, and to your computer's network card on your side).

Luckily, those "modem boxes" were decommissioned years ago.
Now a common DHCP handshake is used. Like normal people. :-)





-- 
Polytropon
Magdeburg, Germany
Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0
Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ...