How Can I Reliably Retrieve a Machine's MAC Address in C#?

Robustly Obtaining a Computer's MAC Address in C#

Getting a machine's MAC address reliably in C# can be tricky due to OS and language inconsistencies. While ipconfig /all might seem like a solution, its output format varies across systems, making it unreliable.

A Dependable Approach

A more robust method leverages the NetworkInterface class in C#. This provides a consistent way to retrieve MAC addresses irrespective of the operating system or language. Here's how:

<code class="language-csharp">var macAddr = 
    (
        from nic in NetworkInterface.GetAllNetworkInterfaces()
        where nic.OperationalStatus == OperationalStatus.Up
        select nic.GetPhysicalAddress().ToString()
    ).FirstOrDefault();</code>

This code retrieves all network interfaces, filters for active ones, and selects their physical addresses (MAC addresses). FirstOrDefault() returns the first MAC address found.

Alternative Implementation (More Explicit)

A slightly more detailed approach offers the same result:

<code class="language-csharp">string firstMacAddress = NetworkInterface
    .GetAllNetworkInterfaces()
    .Where(nic => nic.OperationalStatus == OperationalStatus.Up && nic.NetworkInterfaceType != NetworkInterfaceType.Loopback)
    .Select(nic => nic.GetPhysicalAddress().ToString())
    .FirstOrDefault();</code>

This explicitly excludes inactive and loopback interfaces, ensuring only valid MAC addresses are considered.

The above is the detailed content of How Can I Reliably Retrieve a Machine's MAC Address in C#?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!