Re: Tutorial: Query the Apple database with Python for your access point BSSID

Char,

> It helps greatly if a MAC address is unique within its local
> network segment,

I would say that!

Examples of 'puters who could not communicate over the LAN because either 
their ethernet-cards MAC was already present, or they had a hard-set IP that 
clashed are aplenty.

> but a duplicate MAC appearing somewhere else shouldn't cause
> any problems.

As long as it would not be a duplicate there, you would be correct. :-)

There are a few problems with your suggestion though : it only works for 
devices that do not move around, which would make Arlens statement that he 
can track anyone a bit of a joke.

If they hoever *do* move around (hello smartphones!) there is a rather good 
chance that they will, sometimes, enter a network segment where their BSSID 
is alread present - which could lead to a denial of service for one, or even 
all of the devices being copies of each other.

> *Many years ago,
...
> it didn't cause any problems. It simply moved certain
> tasks farther up the network stack

I think it did a bit more.  Like negotiating which server would handle the 
request, and how to mark it that a certain ethernet packet was part of an 
ongoing conversation with a specific server.

iow, all those servers would need to /activily work together/ so they would 
not yell over each other and try to hijack each others conversations.

You know, it does sound odd : that sofware (that was bought) would need to 
add markers to make sure ongoing conversations would go to the server which 
first serviced it, in effect duplicating what the ethernet MAC and the 
puters IP are for ...

Regards,
Rudy Wieser