How to find MAC address of new AirPort time capsule from Macbook Air with Yosemite

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skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

How to find MAC address of new AirPort time capsule from Macbook Air with Yosemite

I have MacBook Air (purchased few months ago), and now I just got a new 2TB AirPort Time Capsule.

My laptop OS sustem is OS X 10.10.4 (Yosemite).

I was trying to set up this time capsule, but I need to know the MAC address to connect to eithernet

connection from my work. But using the AirPort Utility App, I can't find the MAC address at all.

I could not find any other way of finding this MAC address.

I can only find the part and serial numbers from the box or from the bottom of the time capsule.

Is there any way to find the MAC address of new time capsule?

Thank you!

MacBook Air, OS X Yosemite (10.10.4), AirPort Time Capsule

Posted on Jul 6, 2015 4:22 PM

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Answer 1

Jul 6, 2015 5:37 PM in response to skybluewhite

For your MacBook Air......do you have a USB to Ethernet adapter, or a Thunderbolt to Ethernet adapter that could be used to set up a special type of workaround to allow direct access to the Time Capsule?

If not, we can try to use wireless, but I do not have a MacBook Air here to know whether things might work this way or not. Worth a try though.

Otherwise, it is goofy, but you will have to go through a "dummy" type of setup for the Time Capsule, then once that is done, you should be able to access the information that you need.

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Answer 2

Jul 6, 2015 5:51 PM in response to skybluewhite

I no longer have the newest TC, but the MAC address should be printed on the label on the bottom.. in microfine print... like apple is taking lessons from CIA on microdot technology.

Look for ethernet ID.. Apple as usual has decided not to use standards..

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Answer 3

Jul 6, 2015 6:06 PM in response to LaPastenague

Ethernet ID and AirPort ID are not there on my Time Capsule. I can find the usual 100-240 Volt, 50/60 Hz stuff and other stuff regarding regulations, etc....and a serial number.

Really hard to read anything there......even using reading glasses, a magnifying glass and good lighting.

I also squinted at the bottom of an AirPort Express. No Ethernet ID or AirPort ID there either.

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Answer 4

Jul 6, 2015 6:31 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Ok.. strange as it is usually considered important info to have. And sometimes required before you get access as per the OP.

The best way then is as per your first post. connect to it via wireless and use airport utility.. then hold option key and double click the icon.. that should show all the base info for the unit. Even if connected by wireless it will give you the Ethernet MAC address.. and the same one is used WAN and LAN.. which is maybe where some of the routing issues arise from.

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Answer 5

skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 7, 2015 11:02 AM in response to Bob Timmons

Dear Bob Timmons and LaPastenague,

Thanks! You are correct there is no MAC address on the bottom of the Time Capsule any more. Older ones did. I don't know why they removed that information, which is annoying. Thank you for your reply!

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Answer 6

skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 7, 2015 11:08 AM in response to LaPastenague

Dear LaPastenague,

Thank you!

Yes, that's the way to find it. Unfortunately the new version of Airport Utility did not show the eithernet MAC address. None appears. So the solution was to download OLD version of Airport Utility from non Yosemite OS. Then we could find the MAC address finally.

So the problems were: 1) missing MAC address on the bottom of the Airport Time Capsule (tower shaped) *AND* 2) the current version of Airport Utility in Yosemite, since this version of Airport does NOT show MAC address of time capsule. VERY weird.

So the solution is to connect from computer (laptop) to the time capsule using eithernet cable, and to use older version of Airport Utility to find out the MAC address...

We are still trying to connect this time capsule to internet at my work.

Thank you!

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Answer 7

Jul 7, 2015 11:16 AM in response to skybluewhite

Unfortunately the new version of Airport Utility did not show the eithernet MAC address

Either you are looking in the wrong place, or you are looking for the wrong Item. You want to look for Ethernet on the main Summary Page of the new version AirPort Utility.....just as LaPastenague's screen shot illustrates above. The code next to Ethernet is the MAC Address of the WAN port of the Apple router.

Post back if you need more tips on this.

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Answer 8

skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 7, 2015 11:22 AM in response to Bob Timmons

We (system admin and I) did look at the screen and chose the main summary page.

The summary page did not show the MAC address of time capsule.

So system admin took my time capsule, connected to another MAC, used an older version of Airport Utility, then he found it!

So we have MAC address now.

I will try to find the MAC address again when it comes back to my office. Thanks!

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Answer 9

Jul 7, 2015 11:33 AM in response to skybluewhite

You may have left out a step if you are using the newer version of AirPort Utility.

Open AirPort Utility

Hold down the option key on your Mac while you double-click on the Time Capsule icon

That will display the Summary Page that we are talking about. Look for Ethernet there. That is the MAC Address

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Answer 10

skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 7, 2015 12:08 PM in response to Bob Timmons

Possible! I will try it again. Thank you!

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Answer 11

skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 7, 2015 12:38 PM in response to Bob Timmons

THAT IS the answer to find the MAC address with new Airport Utility for this time capsule

while HOLDING the Option key + double click the mouse is the way to see MAC address.

Thanks a lot!

I still had to use a static IP address to connect to internet at work (just adding MAC address to our system did not work somehow), but that may be a problem for just my work place. It works now. Thanks!

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Answer 12

skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 7, 2015 12:41 PM in response to LaPastenague

Thank you for help!

While HOLDING the option key and double click the mouse worked. Eithernet MAC address and Wi-Fi MAC addresses appeared. In my case the Wi-Fi addresses were correct MAC address.

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Answer 13

Jul 7, 2015 2:03 PM in response to skybluewhite

skybluewhite wrote:

Thank you for help!

While HOLDING the option key and double click the mouse worked. Eithernet MAC address and Wi-Fi MAC addresses appeared. In my case the Wi-Fi addresses were correct MAC address.

You do realise that the WAN port is a different MAC address though, and that is the one your remote connection will see.. not the wireless..

If you are having issues then it is the perhaps worth doing a traceroute to the company server and see if you have multiple private IP addressing in the way.

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Answer 14

skybluewhite Author

Level 1

8 points

Jul 7, 2015 2:17 PM in response to LaPastenague

I got it. I think that's why the MAC address for Wi-Fi did not work.

Tomorrow I will try Eithernet MAC address. Thanks a lot for your help!

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Answer 15

Jul 7, 2015 2:21 PM in response to skybluewhite

If the Time Capsule connects to the network using a wired Ethernet connection, then you need the Ethernet address.

If the Time Capsule connects using wirelessly to the network (it probably cannot do this) then you will need either the 2.4 GHz Wireless or 5 GHz Wireless address......whichever is being used at the location there.

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