AppleTalk Addressing
Like the other protocols discussed, the AppleTalk protocol uses a two-part addressing schemea node and a network section. The node portion of the address is assigned automatically when the system is first brought up onto the network. It is a randomly generated number and then broadcast to the entire network. If a duplicate node address is assigned, another will be assigned and rebroadcast to the network. The network portion of the address is assigned by the network administrator.
The actual AppleTalk address is 24 bits long with 16 bits used for the network address and 8 bits for the node address. AppleTalk addresses are expressed in decimal format, with the network and node addresses separated by a period. An example of an AppleTalk address might be 4.67. The 4 represents the network number, and 67 is the node number.