Classifying networks by scale
Networks can be classified by geographical scope, meaning the area in which they operate. This distinction organizes their uses, technologies, complexity, and requirements. The classification comprises four categories, from a personal network to one spanning the globe.
PAN (Personal Area Network), a personal network
A is the smallest of the types discussed here and is typically used in homes and small offices.
- Range It usually covers up to about 10 meters (33 feet) in a short-range wireless connection.
- Primary goal It supports one person by connecting a computer to peripherals such as printers and scanners, as well as to other personal devices including laptops, palmtops, mobile phones, and VoIP phones.
- Transmission media PANs use wired and wireless media. Common examples include:
- Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP) cables, used less often for PANs.
- Wireless technologies such as Bluetooth and infrared. Wi-Fi is normally classified as WLAN; in personal connections, it can link a user's devices.
LAN (Local Area Network), a local network
A is one of the most common solutions within one organization or building.
- Scope A LAN covers one building or a group of buildings in a small area, such as a school campus or office park.
- Application It connects personal computers and workstations so that users can share resources such as files and printers and exchange information.
- Reliability With controlled infrastructure, local networks can provide high operational reliability.
- Topology A modern LAN often uses a star topology in which computers connect to a central device such as a switch.
MAN (Metropolitan Area Network), a metropolitan network
A connects LANs or users distributed across an urban area. It is larger than a LAN and smaller than a WAN.
- Definition A MAN connects separate LANs within one city or metropolitan area. It can provide Internet access for individual users and institutions.
- Construction A metropolitan network often uses a high-speed backbone, for example a fiber-optic ring connecting nodes distributed across the city.
- Technology MANs often use Ethernet. In example deployments, capacity ranges from 100 Mb/s to 10 Gb/s or more, depending on the technology. Users include institutions from different areas of economic and social activity.
- Examples A city-wide fiber-optic network can connect business LANs, government buildings, and university campuses to the Internet and to one another. Polish academic metropolitan networks such as POZMAN in Poznań and BYDMAN in Bydgoszcz use fiber connections. POZMAN is operated by the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center (PCSS), and BYDMAN participates in the PIONIER consortium.
WAN (Wide Area Network), a wide-area network
A covers the largest area in this classification, connecting LANs and MANs at national, continental, or global scale.
- Other termsA WAN is sometimes called a "long-haul network."
- Characteristics WAN connections often provide lower throughput than LAN connections and may be managed by multiple service providers.
- Global example The Internet is the largest WAN in the world.
- Other examples National Research and Education Networks (NRENs), such as Internet2 in the US and GÉANT in Europe, connect academic institutions over WAN links. In Poland, the NASK-PIB telecommunications network, a national infrastructure with dozens of nodes distributed across Polish cities, and PIONIER illustrate national infrastructures. Large multinational corporations operate private WANs between global offices.