Allocation of local MAC addresses to client devices

1. A method comprising:

at a network device connected with a network:

obtaining from a client device an authentication request including identity credentials and a temporary media access control (MAC) address of the client device; and

in response to successfully authenticating the client device based on the identity credentials:

selecting a new MAC address of the client device from among a plurality of available MAC addresses stored in a MAC address server in the network;

providing the new MAC address to the client device in an address allocation frame;

obtaining a data frame;

determining whether the client device is using the new MAC address based on the data frame; and

if it is determined that the client device is using the new MAC address:

granting the client device access to the network; and

generating a record including the new MAC address, a time at which the new MAC address was selected, and a time at which the new MAC address became available for reselection.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the record further includes the identity credentials.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the client device was successfully authenticated based on the identity credentials.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the record further includes a flag indicating whether the new MAC address is currently selected.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the flag was set to indicate whether the new MAC address is currently selected.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the record further includes the temporary MAC address.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the temporary MAC address was obtained.

8. An apparatus comprising:

a network interface unit configured to communicate with a client device and a network; and

a processor coupled to the network interface unit, and configured to:

obtain from the client device an authentication request including identity credentials and a temporary media access control (MAC) address of the client device; and

in response to successfully authenticating the client device based on the identity credentials:

select a new MAC address of the client device from among a plurality of available MAC addresses stored in a MAC address server in the network;

provide the new MAC address to the client device in an address allocation frame;

obtain a data frame;

determine whether the client device is using the new MAC address based on the data frame; and

if it is determined that the client device is using the new MAC address:

grant the client device access to the network; and

generate a record including the new MAC address, a time at which the new MAC address was selected, and a time at which the new MAC address became available for reselection.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the record further includes the identity credentials.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the client device was successfully authenticated based on the identity credentials.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the record further includes a flag indicating whether the new MAC address is currently selected.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the flag was set to indicate whether the new MAC address is currently selected.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the record further includes the temporary MAC address.

14. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the temporary MAC address was obtained.

15. A tangible processor readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

obtain from a client device an authentication request including identity credentials and a temporary media access control (MAC) address of the client device; and

in response to successfully authenticating the client device based on the identity credentials:

select a new MAC address of the client device from among a plurality of available MAC addresses stored in a MAC address server in a network;

provide the new MAC address to the client device in an address allocation frame;

obtain a data frame;

determine whether the client device is using the new MAC address based on the data frame; and

if it is determined that the client device is using the new MAC address:

grant the client device access to the network; and

generate a record including the new MAC address, a time at which the new MAC address was selected, and a time at which the new MAC address became available for reselection.

16. The tangible processor readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the record further includes the identity credentials.

17. The tangible processor readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the client device was successfully authenticated based on the identity credentials.

18. The tangible processor readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the record further includes a flag indicating whether the new MAC address is currently selected and a time at which the flag was set to indicate whether the new MAC address is currently selected.

19. The tangible processor readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the record further includes the temporary MAC address.

20. The tangible processor readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the record further includes a time at which the temporary MAC address was obtained.