OUI MAC Address Lookup CLI

13.1.7 · active · verified Wed Apr 22

The `oui` package provides a command-line interface (CLI) tool for looking up vendor information associated with MAC addresses within the IEEE Organizationally Unique Identifier (OUI) database. As of version 13.1.7, this package is exclusively a CLI utility, meaning it does not expose any JavaScript or TypeScript APIs for programmatic usage. For developers requiring programmatic access to the OUI data or a library interface, the `oui-data` package is the designated alternative. The project maintains an active development status, with major versions often introducing breaking changes such as Node.js version requirements, removal of features like `search` and `update`, and changes in data sources. Its primary differentiator is its simplicity as a direct command-line lookup tool, relying on the official IEEE data source since version 12.0.0.

Common errors

```
TypeError: oui is not a function
```
cause Attempting to import or require the `oui` package as a JavaScript module after v13.0.0.

fix The `oui` package is CLI-only. Run it from your shell or use `child_process.exec('oui ...')`. For programmatic data access, install and use the `oui-data` package.
```
Error: `oui` requires Node.js 18 or higher. You are using vX.Y.Z.
```
cause Running the `oui` CLI on a Node.js version older than 18.

fix Upgrade your Node.js environment to version 18 or newer. Use `nvm install 18` and `nvm use 18` if you use nvm.
```
Error: unknown command 'search'
```
cause Attempting to use the `oui search` command, which was removed in v13.0.0.

fix The `search` feature is no longer available in the `oui` CLI. Provide the full MAC address for direct lookup, e.g., `oui 20:37:06:12:34:56`.
```
Error: no MAC address provided or invalid input
```
cause Invoking `oui` without a MAC address, or attempting to pipe input via stdin, which is no longer supported.

fix Provide the MAC address directly as a command-line argument: `oui 20:37:06:12:34:56`. Stdin input was removed in v11.0.0.

Warnings

breaking Since v13.0.0, the `oui` package is strictly CLI-only. Any attempt to `import` or `require` it as a JavaScript module will fail.
Fix: For programmatic access to OUI data, use the `oui-data` package instead. To run `oui` from code, use `child_process.exec()` or similar.
breaking Node.js version 18 or higher is now required to run the `oui` CLI.
Fix: Update your Node.js environment to version 18 or newer. Consider using a Node Version Manager (nvm) for easy switching.
breaking The `search` and `update` commands/features were removed in v13.0.0.
Fix: Direct MAC address lookup is the primary function of the CLI. For data updates, the `oui` package handles this internally when new versions are released. For programmatic search, use `oui-data`.
breaking The web version of `oui` was removed in v12.0.0.
Fix: Use the command-line interface or the `oui-data` package for data access.
gotcha The data source for OUI lookups switched to the official IEEE source in v12.0.0. This may lead to slight differences in vendor information compared to older versions if a custom or unofficial source was previously used.
Fix: No specific fix needed, but be aware that data integrity and consistency were improved by this change.
breaking Stdin support on the CLI was removed in v11.0.0, meaning MAC addresses must be passed as command-line arguments.
Fix: Always provide the MAC address directly as an argument to the `oui` command: `oui 20:37:06:12:34:56`.

Install

npm install oui npm
yarn add oui yarn
pnpm add oui pnpm

Imports

oui

wrong:

import { oui } from 'oui';
import oui from 'oui';
const oui = require('oui');

correct:

This package is CLI-only. Do not import `oui` into JavaScript/TypeScript code.

Since v13.0.0, the `oui` package is CLI-only. For programmatic access to OUI data, use the `oui-data` package.

search
wrong:
```
import { search } from 'oui';
```
correct:
```
This feature has been removed. Use the CLI directly for lookup.
```
The `search` function was removed in v13.0.0. The CLI itself only supports direct MAC address lookup.
update
wrong:
```
import { update } from 'oui';
```
correct:
```
This feature has been removed.
```
The `update` function, previously used to refresh the OUI database, was removed in v13.0.0.

Quickstart

Demonstrates how to install and use the `oui` CLI via the command line and programmatically using `child_process` in Node.js, highlighting the CLI-only nature and suggesting `oui-data` for API usage.

// This package is CLI-only. For direct programmatic access to OUI data,
// consider using the 'oui-data' package (npm install oui-data).

// Example: Using the 'oui' CLI tool via Node.js child_process
const { exec } = require('child_process');

const macAddressToLookup = '20:37:06:12:34:56';

console.log(`Looking up vendor for MAC: ${macAddressToLookup}...\n`);

exec(`oui ${macAddressToLookup}`, (error, stdout, stderr) => {
  if (error) {
    console.error(`Error executing oui CLI: ${error.message}`);
    return;
  }
  if (stderr) {
    console.error(`CLI stderr: ${stderr}`);
  }
  console.log(`Vendor Information:\n${stdout.trim()}`);

  // Example of how you would use 'oui-data' if installed:
  /*
  import { lookupMacAddress } from 'oui-data';
  (async () => {
    try {
      const vendorInfo = await lookupMacAddress('20:37:06:12:34:56');
      console.log('\n(Programmatic lookup via oui-data):', vendorInfo);
    } catch (e) {
      console.error('Error looking up via oui-data:', e);
    }
  })();
  */
});

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