Types of Network

 There exist different kinds of computer networks with them varying from a network of personal devices (such as mobile phones or tablets) being connected via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth in the same room to the millions of computers located across the world. Others are wireless connected while others are wire connected.On the basis of the geographical coverage area and rate of data transfer, computer networks are typically classified as:

•    PAN ( Personal Area Network

•    LAN (Local Area Network)

•    MAN (Metropolitan Area Network)

•    WAN (Wide Area Network)

Personal Area Network (PAN)

It is a network that is created by interlinking some personal devices such as computers, laptops, mobile phones, smart phones, printers etc. All the devices are in an approximate range of 10 metres. 
An individual area network can either be wired or wireless.
For instance, a mobile phone plugged into the laptop via USB creates a wired PAN whereas two smart phones talking with one another via Bluetooth technology create a wireless PAN or WPAN.



figure- Personal area network


Local Area Network(LAN)

It is a network that connects computers, mobile phones, tablet, mouse, printer, etc., placed at a limited distance. The geographical area covered by a LAN can range from a single room, a floor, an office having one or more buildings in the same premise, laboratory, a school, college, or university campus. The connectivity is done by means of wires, Ethernet cables, fibre optics, or Wi-Fi.



Figure- Local Area Network 


LAN is relatively secure since only legitimate users within the network can access other computers or shared resources. Users can print files using a shared printer, upload/download files and programs to and from the local server. Such LANs offer the short range communication with the high speed data transfer rates. These networks can be expanded up to 1 km. Data transfer in LAN is quite high, and typically ranges between 10 Mbps (referred to as Ethernet) to 1000 Mbps (referred to as Gigabit Ethernet), where Mbps refers to Megabits per second. Ethernet is a group of conventions that determines how computers and other devices attach with each other using cables in a local area network
or LAN.

 Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) is an expanded version of LAN that extends over a broader geographical area such as a city or town. Rate of data transfer in MAN also varies between Mbps, but it is significantly lower compared to LAN. Cable TV network or cable based broadband internet service is an example of MAN. This type of network can be expanded up to 30-40 km. Oftentimes, numerous LANs are interconnectedcombined to become MAN.

Figure- Metropolitan Area Network 

 Wide Area Network (WAN)

Wide Area Network links computers and other LANs and MANs, which are dispersed in various geographical locations of a nation or in various nations or continents. A WAN may be established by linking a LAN to other LANs (Figure 10.7) through wired/wireless media. Large business, educational and government organizations link their various branches in various locations around the globe through
WAN. The Internet is the biggest WAN which links billions of computers, cell phones and millions of
LANs across continents.

Figure- Wide Area Network











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