What unique address does an Ethernet cable provide to the computer?

An Ethernet cable provides a Media Access Control (MAC) address to the computer, which is a unique identifier assigned to network interfaces for communications on the physical network segment. This address is important because it allows devices on the same local area network (LAN) to identify each other and to communicate effectively.

The MAC address is typically hard-coded into the network interface card (NIC) and consists of six pairs of hexadecimal digits, making it unique to each device. Unlike IP addresses, which can change based on the network a device is connected to, the MAC address remains consistent, providing a reliable means for devices to interact within the same network.

In contrast, an IP address is assigned based on the network configuration and can change, a domain name is a human-readable address that corresponds to an IP address, and a subnet mask is used to determine the network and host portions of an IP address. These elements are essential for network routing and management, but they do not serve the same primary purpose as the MAC address in the context of local network identification and communication.