Ethernet Frame and MAC Address

Ethernet Frame and MAC Address

Packet Data Units encapsulated from all 7 layers in OSI

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The encapsulated packet from the OSI layer is seen as below in Ethernet Frame

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1. Preamble

  • Length: 7 bytes 9 ( 56 bits ).
  • It's a series of alternating 1's and 0's = 1010101.
  • synchronizes the receiver block to make them ready to receive data

2. SFD

  • SFD - Start Frame Delimiter.
  • Length: 1 byte ( 8 bits ).
  • Binary form = 10101011.
  • Separates preamble with the rest of the frame.

3. Destination and Source

  • Consist of the destination and source ‘MAC address.
  • MAC = Media Access Control.
  • = 6 bytes (48-bit) address of the physical device

4. Type / Length

  • 2 byte (16-bit) field
  • A value of 1500 or less in this field indicates the LENGTH of the encapsulated packet (in bytes).
  • A value of 1536 or greater in this field indicates the TYPE of the encapsulated packet usually IPv4 or IPv6, and the length is determined via other methods.

5. CRC

  • A cyclic redundancy check (CRC) is an error-detecting code commonly used in digital networks and storage devices to detect accidental changes to raw data.
  • Happens at the Data link layer.
  • AKA FCS ( Frame Check Sequence ).
  • 4 bytes ( 32 bits ) in length.

6. MAC Address

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  • A 6-byte (48-bit) physical address is assigned to the device when it is made.
  • A.K.A. ‘Burned-In Address’ (BIA).
  • Is globally unique
  • The first 3 bytes are the OUI (Organizationally Unique Identifier), which is assigned to the company making the device
  • The last 3 bytes are unique to the device itself

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