Accessing Computer Identification Information

If your computer is stolen you should contact the Division of Public Safety to report the incident. They will work with CITES Security to try to locate your computer, but in order to do that the Police and CITES will need the following information. Once your laptop is stolen you can't access this information, so record it now; don't wait until it is too late. Keep this information separate from your computer. You may want to make multiple copies and keep one at home or in another safe location.

Download a computer information card here.

Print a copy of this web page so that you can easily follow along.

Computer Manufacturer

The manufacturer is the brand name of your computer. DELL, Sony, Apple are all examples of manufacturers.

Make/Model

This is the type of computer you have and the model. For example, a Presario V214045 is a Make and Model of a DELL computer, MacBookPro A1150 is the make and model of a Apple computer. The make and model number of your computer should be visible on the outside of the CPU. For Apple users, you can also access this information via System Profiler (see below for details).
Serial Number

This information is also visible on the outside of the computer. You will most likely find it on a small sticker on the back or underside of your computer. Again, Macintosh users can access this information via the System Profiler

MAC Address

Your MAC (Media Access Control) Number is a unique identifier permanently assigned to most forms of networking hardware. A MAC address is written as 12 characters arranged in six pairs. They are separated by colons, but in Windows they may be displayed with hyphens and called a physical address instead. To retrieve your MAC address:

Windows

1. From the START Menu, select Run and type in cmd
2. You should then see a small black window with information about your operating system and then a line that looks like this: C:\Documents and Setting\User Account>
3. Type ipconfig /all after the >
4. You will now see all the pertinent information about your computer. The entry after Physical Address is your MAC Address. It will be combination of numbers and letters.
5. If you have a default configuration of Windows the entry after Ethernet Adapter Wireless Network Connection is your Wireless MAC Address.

Apple

1. From the Apple Menu open About this Mac, click on the More info button
2. Select Network
3. Select Built in Ethernet. To view your wireless MAC address select Built in Airport
4. Your MAC address is at the bottom of the list under Ethernet