Types of Networking

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:

1.    LAN - Local Area Network

2.    WLAN - Wireless Local Area Network

3.    WAN - Wide Area Network

4.    MAN - Metropolitan Area Network

5.    SAN - Storage Area Network, System Area Network, Server Area Network, or sometimes Small Area Network

6.    CAN - Campus Area Network, Controller Area Network, or sometimes Cluster Area Network

7.    PAN - Personal Area Network

8.    DAN - Desk Area Network

LAN and WAN merged over many years of technology evolution

LAN - Local Area Network

A LAN connects network devices over a relatively short distance. A networked office building, school, or home usually contains a single LAN, though sometimes one building will contain a few small LANs (perhaps one per room), and occasionally a LAN will span a group of nearby buildings. In TCP/IP networking, a LAN is often but not always implemented as a single IP subnet

 

WAN - Wide Area Network

A WAN differs from a LAN in several important ways. Most WANs (like the Internet) are not owned by any one organization but rather exist under collective or distributed ownership and management. WANs tend to use technology like ATM, Frame Relay and X.25 for connectivity over the longer distances.