Types of network (tutorial)

                                   TYPES OF NETWORK

     Depending on the size and coverage area of the network, it can be classified into the following:-

1. Local Area Network (LAN)

                      LAN is a computer network that spans a relatively small area. Most LANs are confined to asingle building or group of buildings area such as office building, manufacturing plant,
educational institutions etc. Hence most LANs connect workstations and personalcomputers. Each computer in a LAN has its own CPU with which it executes programs, but
it is also able to access data and devices anywhere on the LAN. This means many users can
share expensive devices, such as laser printers, as well as data. Users can also use the LAN

to communicate with each other, by sending e-mail or engaging in chat sessions.
LANs are capable of transmitting data at very fast rates, much faster than what can be
transmitted over a telephone line, but the distances are limited, and there is also a limit on
the number of computers that can be attached to a single LAN.

2. Wide Area Network (WAN)

         A WAN is a computer network that spans a relatively large geographical area. When one
LAN is connected to other LANs via telephone lines and radio waves (satellites), it is
called a wide-area network (WAN). A WAN may sometimes be restricted to a country but
may also extend beyond political boundaries of a nation. The largest WAN in existence is
the Internet. Thus the main difference between LAN and WAN is the geographical area
covered by the network.

3. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

        Metropolitan Area Networks are the networks spread over a city. They are large computer
networks usually spreading over a campus or city. Usually MAN includes one or more
LANs, covering larger geographical area than LAN but a smaller area than a Wide Area
Network (WAN). Thus a university or college may have a MAN that joins together many
of their LANs situated around several hectares site.
Cable TV networks that are spread over a city or town can also be called as Metropolitan
Area Network. The main objective of MAN is to share the hardware and software
resources among its users.

4. Personal Area Network (PAN)

             Personal Area Network is a computer network used for communication among computer
devices (including telephones and personal digital assistants) close to one person. The
devices may or may not belong to the person in question. The reach of a PAN is typically a
few meters. PANs can be used for communication among the personal devices themselves
(intrapersonal communication), or for connecting to a higher level network and the internet.

5. Virtual Private Network (VPN)

                   A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is private data network that makes use of the public
telecommunication infrastructure. It is also a WAN but it is private and only company
people have access to it. It maintains the data privacy through the use of security
procedures. The idea of the VPN is to give the company the capabilities of full access at
much lower cost by using the shared public infrastructure like public telephone lines or
internet, rather than their own.

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