How does my laptop connect to my internet box for the first time if it has no IP and no cable
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Your laptop’s wireless card may not have an IP address, but it does have a MAC address — a mostly unique identifier attached to the actual hardware.
Your laptop reaches out to the wireless access point and provides its MAC address, and receives its IP address.
Your laptop connects to your internet box for the first time using a process called DHCP, or Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol. This protocol assigns an IP address to your laptop from a pool of available addresses, and it also assigns other network information like the default gateway and DNS servers. Your laptop sends out a DHCP request when it’s connected to the network, and the router responds with the assigned IP address.
The first request is handled over WiFi, whenever there is WiFi in range. It’s called a handshake and it’s just an “I’m here, are you there?” “Yes, I’m here” kinda thing. Next comes the “Can we talk?” bit…then they exchange information about *how* to talk…which protocols they both understand, before settling on one to use. Usually this first “settling: is DHCP. And see other comments for what happens next…
This isn’t the 90s, you don’t have to manually assign an IP to every machine. Your router will do that automatically using DHCP.
All you need is a wi-fi equipped device, the network’s name (SSID) and the password. The router will perform the handshake and pair your device’s MAC address with an available, local IP address. That’s why you can simply connect your phone to the McDonalds Wi-fi without any hassle, same process for a computer.
Note that this address is different from the IP address your entire network is using, and the one websites will see.
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