One way to categorize the different types of computer network designs is by their scope or scale. For historical reasons, the networking industry refers to nearly every type of design as some kind of area network. Common examples of area network types are:
- LAN - Local Area Network
- WAN - Wide Area Network
- MAN - Metropolitan Area Network
Local area network (LAN)
Local Area Network (LAN) is a computer network covering a small physical area, like a home, office, or small groups of buildings, such as a school, or an airport.
The defining characteristics of LAN s, in contrast to wide area networks (WAN s), include their usually higher data-transfer rates, smaller geographic area, and lack of a need for leased telecommunication lines
Wide Area Network (WAN)
A wide area network (WAN) is a computer network that covers a broad area (i.e., any network whose communications links cross metropolitan, regional, or national boundaries ). This is in contrast with personal area networks (PAN s), local area networks (LAN s), campus area networks (CAN s), or metropolitan area networks (MAN s) which are usually limited to a room, building, campus or specific metropolitan area (e.g., a city) respectively.
Metropolitan Area Network ( MAN)
A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a large computer network that usually spans a city or a large campus. A MAN usually interconnects a number of local area networks (LAN s) using a high-capacity backbone technology, such as fiber-optical links, and provides up-link services to wide area networks
(or WAN) and the Internet.
(or WAN) and the Internet.
