Difference between LAN and WAN

koOp

koOp

New Member
u could always search for it here, or on google
LAN = local area network
WAN = wide area network

lan eg. would be ur your set up at home were multiple computers are set up to a router, or a local lan place (computer place were u game)
wan eg. the internet its linked to pretty much everything, not as limited to lan
 
tlarkin

tlarkin

VIP Member
Lets say you own a company that has 5 different locations in town. You are a small local chain. Each store has it's very own LAN, which is local to the computers in that store. All access from computer to computer in the same building will be over the LAN. Now, each building has their own separate LAN. When a computer talks to another computer across the buildings they are traveling over the WAN network. Each of them are still connected, buildings 1 through 5, but they are so over a WAN. So, if I am in building 2 and need a file off of a computer in building 5, I would have to travel over the WAN to get to that file.

Typically WAN traffic is a lot slower than LAN. So, a lot of network admins will set up replica servers at each site and they will replicate down from the master server in the central office. This reduces a lot of WAN traffic and keeps it on the local network.
 
Geoff

Geoff

VIP Member
tlarkin said it best, but just as another example a LAN would be an office or building, and a WAN would consist of more then one office or building that are spread out over a greater distance.
 
Geoff

Geoff

VIP Member
Theres no set limit for the distance of a LAN or WAN, you could have a LAN span several miles if everything is tied locally, or you can have a WAN that uses VPN over T1 for instance when the buildings are right next door.
 
tlarkin

tlarkin

VIP Member
A WAN can connect London, to NY, to LA, to Hong Kong, to Bombay, to Ghana, to Spain, then back to London.
 
W

whansen02

New Member
tlarkin said:
Lets say you own a company that has 5 different locations in town. You are a small local chain. Each store has it's very own LAN, which is local to the computers in that store. All access from computer to computer in the same building will be over the LAN. Now, each building has their own separate LAN. When a computer talks to another computer across the buildings they are traveling over the WAN network. Each of them are still connected, buildings 1 through 5, but they are so over a WAN. So, if I am in building 2 and need a file off of a computer in building 5, I would have to travel over the WAN to get to that file.

Typically WAN traffic is a lot slower than LAN. So, a lot of network admins will set up replica servers at each site and they will replicate down from the master server in the central office. This reduces a lot of WAN traffic and keeps it on the local network.
Click to expand...

nice description tlarkin
I've been doing quite a bit of studying on networking these days.
I am always amazed at what I learn on this forum, so finally I decided to start posting.
Cheers. Will
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top