Types of Network | PAN, LAN, MAN, WAN

In this tutorial, we will teach you some Network types like PAN, MAN, WAN, SAN, LAN, etc., and their usage where they are used.

What is a Network?

A network is a communication between two or more two Systems or computer devices, In simple terms when two devices want to communicate with each other, they need a network.

You can read from here: What is a Network and why we need it?

Types of Network

If one system wants to communicate with another then there is a need for a network and there are different types of networks that fulfill the different needs of different devices.

There is a need for different types of networks because networks are categorized in Size, Structure, Distance, and Purpose, therefore, there is a different need for every device connected to the network.

Generally, there are four types of networks.

PAN (Personal Area Network)
LAN (Local Area Network)
MAN (Metropolitan Area Network)
WAN (Wide Area Network)

PAN (Personal Area Network)

PAN refers to a personal area network, a network that is used personally or in a short range like in-home or in a room. The range of the personal area network is not more than 10 meters, maximum of 15 meters.

Personal Area Network as it is defined by its name that cannot use by others only used by personal purpose or a short-range.

Devices like Bluetooth, Infrared Devices, Which includes, TV remote, Home Theater Bluetooth, or whatever in your house which is accessed by a remote has a limited range and this is known as personal area network, which creates a network around us only at a personal space.

Some Devices like Wireless Keyboard/Mouse, Infrared touch screen, TV remotes, Bluetooth, etc.

LAN (Local Area Network)

LAN local area network which is also used at a small network area but more than PAN area. Local area network includes office, school, college, buildings, etc.

Devices like printers, Servers, and many more devices can be connected to each other through a system with cables.

This type of network is used in such institutions that have their personal use from one room to another.

Local area network is easily established by using some Ethernet Cables or central devices like Switches or Hub. The speed of the local area network is also very fast and can reach up to a speed of 1000Mbps.

And by using the Ethernet cables, the data transfer speed can reach up to 10 Mbps and by using FDDI, Gigabit Ethernet, the data transfer speed can reach up to 1 Gbps.

Where Is Local Area Network used?

LAN networks are mostly used in offices, schools, colleges. etc.
LAN is used for business purposes where company data is stored in servers.
LAN is used in our homes also where we connect our computers, printers, mobile phones, routers, and other devices to exchange data.

Client/Server LANs Vs Peer-to-Peer LANs

LAN networks are established as client/server LAN or Peer-to-peer LAN.

Client/Server LANs network is generally used to store a big amount of data where central servers are used as storing the data. In business companies, all the client’s computer systems are connected to a central server where all important information about their work or projects is stored from there they can access anytime.

Peer-to-Peer LANs are the networks that are used in our homes and small area like cafes in which computers are joined together with each other through a hub/switch without any server.

For example, when your PC, tablet, iPhones, mobiles, printers, TV, or all other media devices are connected to a single Wi-Fi it means you are using LAN Network and through which you can transfer your data from one computer to another easily.

MAN (Metropolitan Area Network)

MAN means a metropolitan area network that is much bigger than LAN, which is used for a much bigger area.

Here, two or more two LAN networks are connected with each other to form a big area network such as the MAN network.

Simply, we can take an example of a company or in IT industries where more than two LANs networks are connected to each other because the area of each department is much bigger and there is a separate LAN network for it, and all these LANs networks are connected with the telephone lines and form a big area network MAN.

Where the Metropolitan area network is used.

MAN network is widely used in your home television networks, which is for the whole city.
MAN is used in Universities or Colleges Or the School which is a big organization.
MAN is used for Military areas for better communications.
MAN is used in Railway Stations, Airlines, and big Organisations.

You can read this topic: What is network topology and its types?

WAN(Wide Area Network)

Wide area network is the most popular area network and we all are aware of it, which is used in large geographical areas like the whole world, country which is accessed by telephone lines or satellites, etc.

In simple terms, LANs and MAN’s networks connected to each other form a wide area network.

It is widely distributed in States, Countries, Continent.

And you are accessing the internet because of this WAN network even you are reading this article with help of WAN.

Here are some more types of Networks other than above.

WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network)
Storage Area Network
System Area Network
Home Area Network
POLAN- Passive Optical LAN
Enterprise private network
Campus Area Network
Virtual Area Network

WLAN

WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network) gives access to multiple devices by using a single wireless device in your homes, colleges, schools, or in a building. WLAN systems are basically based on IEEE 802.11 standards.

Storage-Area Network (SAN)

A Storage Area Network is a type of network that is used for storing data, block-level data storage. Basically, it is used for storing and to make it a storage device like a disk, etc.

System-Area Network

System Area Network is used as a local network. It gives high-speed connection in server-to-server and processor-to-processor applications. The computers which are connected to a SAN network operate as a single system at quite high speed. The computer networks that want high speed prefer SAN.

Passive Optical Local Area Network

POLAN is a networking technology that helps you to integrate into structured cabling. It is basically made to resolve the issues regarding Ethernet protocols and networking apps.

POLAN allows you to use an optical splitter which helps you to separate an optical signal from a single-mode optical fiber. It converts this single signal into multiple signals.

Home Area Network (HAN)

A Home Area Network is connected by two or more two computers to form a local area network (LAN) for use of the home. For example, in India, about 1 million homes have more than one computer.

You can join multiple computers with it. This network allows sharing files, programs, printers, and other peripherals.

Enterprise Private Network

Enterprise private network (EPN) networks are their own network by businesses who wants to securely connect their system in order to share various computer resources.

Campus Area Network (CAN)

A Campus Area Network is made up of more than one LAN in a specific geographical area. For example, a university campus is linked with various campus buildings to connect with all the academic departments.

Virtual Private Network

A VPN is a private network that works on a public network to connect remote sites or users together. VPN is an encrypted network that is fully secured and use to share sensitive data over the internet. VPN secures your browsing data and history.