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Running a wireless ad-hoc network from an osx machine, can I programmatically access level 2 data (specifically mac address) of other wifi devices within range?

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You'll only have a layer two link if they associate to you (most will not). But you can certainly capture MAC addresses on traffic from packets flying by you for other access points; have a look at Kismet. In any case, this kind of question is not on topic for Server Fault, please review the faq. – Shane Madden Dec 28 '11 at 6:28
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If you get one answer closed, it's not polite or fruitful to re-ask the same question moments after the first one is closed. – WesleyDavid Dec 28 '11 at 6:30
@WesleyDavid The question wasn't closed, I deleted it. The wording was obviously confusing to people so I re-wrote the whole question. Thank you for your concern. – fancy Dec 28 '11 at 6:37
@Shane Thanks for the great information -- hrrm, this questions doesn't seem to fit anywhere... – fancy Dec 28 '11 at 6:40
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@WesleyDavid I disagree that this is a power user question, programmatically accessing level 2 network data seems much more like a networking question. Serverfault is for networking questions. The only other place I think it might fit is stack overflow. – fancy Dec 28 '11 at 6:54
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closed as off topic by WesleyDavid, EEAA, Ward, Scott Pack, mailq Dec 28 '11 at 20:44

Questions on Server Fault are expected to relate to professional server, networking, or related infrastructure administration within the scope defined in the FAQ. Consider editing the question or leaving comments for improvement if you believe the question can be reworded to fit within the scope. Read more about closed questions here.

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You could interrogate the ARP table. The is not a guaranteed method, but it's a fairly reliable way of mapping IP addresses to MAC addresses for active machines.

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