What is “ARP” (Address Resolution Protocol) used for in networking?
a) To map an IP address to a MAC address
b) To assign IP addresses to devices
c) To encrypt data packets
d) To monitor network traffic
Answer:
a) To map an IP address to a MAC address
Explanation:
ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) is a network protocol used to map an IP address to a device’s MAC address (Media Access Control address). The MAC address is a unique identifier for network devices, while the IP address is used for communication across networks.
When a device wants to communicate with another device on the same local network, it uses ARP to find the MAC address associated with the destination device’s IP address. This allows data to be transmitted to the correct physical device.
ARP is a crucial component of local area networks (LANs) and ensures that devices can communicate with each other by resolving IP addresses to their corresponding hardware addresses.