Difference Between LAN, MAN, and WAN

Parameter LAN MAN WAN

Full Form LAN is an acronym for MAN is an acronym WAN is an acronym

Local Area Network. for Metropolitan for Wide Area Network.
Area Network.

Definition and LAN is a network that MAN is a The WAN network

Meaning usually connects a comparatively spans to an even
small group of wider network that larger locality. It has
computers in a given covers large the capacity to
geographical area. regions- like towns, connect various
cities, etc. countries together. For
example, the Internet
is a WAN.

Network The LAN is private. The MAN can be The WAN can also be
Ownership Hospitals, homes, both private or both private or public.
schools, offices, etc., public. Many
may own it. organizations and
telecom operators
may own them.

Maintenance Very easy to design Comparatively Very difficult to design

and Designing and maintain. difficult to design and maintain.
and maintain.

Speed LAN offers a very high MAN offers a WAN offers a low
Internet speed. moderate Internet Internet speed.
speed.

Delay in It faces a very short It faces a moderate It faces a high

Propagation propagation delay. propagation delay. propagation delay.

Faulty The LAN exhibits a The MAN exhibits a The WAN also exhibits
Tolerance better fault tolerance lesser fault a lesser fault
than the rest of the tolerance. tolerance.
networks.
 Congestion The congestion in the It exhibits a higher It exhibits a higher
network is very low. network congestion. congestion in the
network.

Communication LAN typically allows a MAN allows multiple A huge group of

Allotment single pair of devices computers to computers can easily
to establish a interact interact with each
communication. But it simultaneously with other using the WAN.
may also support each other.
more computers.

Uses Schools, homes, It basically covers a It covers an entire

colleges, hospitals, city, a small town, or country, a
offices, etc., can any given area with subcontinent, or an
privately use it. a bigger radius than equivalent area.
the LAN.

What is Multiplexing?
Multiplexing is the sharing of a medium or bandwidth. It is the process in which multiple signals
coming from multiple sources are combined and transmitted over a single communication/physical
line.

Types of Multiplexing
There are Five types of Multiplexing :

• Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM)

• Time-Division Multiplexing (TDM)
• Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM)

1. Frequency Division Multiplexing :

 2. Frequency division multiplexing is defined as a type of multiplexing where the bandwidth of
a single physical medium is divided into a number of smaller, independent frequency
channels.

3.
4. Frequency Division Multiplexing is used in radio and television transmission.
5. In FDM, we can observe a lot of inter-channel cross-talk, due to the fact that
in this type of multiplexing the bandwidth is divided into frequency
channels. In order to prevent the inter-channel cross talk, unused strips of
bandwidth must be placed between each channel. These unused strips
between each channel are known as guard bands.

2. Time Division Multiplexing :

Time-division multiplexing is defined as a type of multiplexing wherein FDM,
instead of sharing a portion of the bandwidth in the form of channels, in TDM, time
is shared. Each connection occupies a portion of time in the link.
In Time Division Multiplexing, all signals operate with the same frequency
(bandwidth) at different times.

There are two types of Time Division Multiplexing :

1. Synchronous Time Division Multiplexing
 2. Statistical (or Asynchronous) Time Division Multiplexing
Synchronous TDM :
Synchronous TDM is a type of Time Division Multiplexing where the input frame
already has a slot in the output frame. Time slots are grouped into frames. One
frame consists of one cycle of time slots.

3. Wavelength Division Multiplexing :

Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) is a multiplexing technology used to
increase the capacity of optical fiber by transmitting multiple optical signals
simultaneously over a single optical fiber, each with a different wavelength. Each
signal is carried on a different wavelength of light, and the resulting signals are
combined onto a single optical fiber for transmission. At the receiving end, the
signals are separated by their wavelengths, demultiplexed and routed to their
respective destinations.
WDM can be divided into two categories: Dense Wavelength Division
Multiplexing (DWDM) and Coarse Wavelength Division Multiplexing (CWDM).
DWDM is used to multiplex a large number of optical signals onto a single fiber,
typically up to 80 channels with a spacing of 0.8 nm or less between the
channels.

CWDM is used for lower-capacity applications, typically up to 18 channels with a

spacing of 20 nm between the channels.

What is Bandwidth?
Wireless communications are normally carried out over a limited range of frequencies, known
as a frequency band. This frequency band is known as the bandwidth. It is a networking term
that refers to the maximum quantity of data that may be sent per unit of time. In technical
terms, bandwidth is frequency range within a given band that is typically used for signal
transmission. Signal bandwidth refers to the frequency range that makes up a specific signal.
Its measure unit is bits/sec.

What is Frequency?
The term "frequency" defines the number of oscillations that happen in a data transmission
per second. In terms of networking, the data is transmitted in the form of signals, which are
composed of waves. The number of oscillations per second specifies the signal frequency.
It is commonly measured in Hertz (Hz).

What is internetworking?

Networks under same administration are generally scattered

geographically. There may exist requirement of connecting two different
networks of same kind as well as of different kinds. Routing between two
networks is called internetworking.

Tunneling
If they are two geographically separate networks, which want to
communicate with each other, they may deploy a dedicated line
between or they have to pass their data through intermediate
networks.

Tunneling is a mechanism by which two or more same networks

communicate with each other, by passing intermediate networking
complexities. Tunneling is configured at both ends.

Difference between Analog Communication and Digital Communication:

S ANALOG DIGITAL
.No. COMMUNICATION COMMUNICATION

In analog communication analog In digital communication digital

01. signal is used for information signal is used for information
transmission. transmission.

Analog communication uses Digital communication uses

analog signal whose amplitude digital signal whose amplitude is
02.
varies continuously with time of two levels either Low i.e., 0 or
from 0 to 100. either High i.e., 1.

It gets affected by noise highly It gets affected by noise less

03. during transmission through during transmission through
communication channel. communication channel.

In analog communication only

It can broadcast large number of
04. limited number of channels can
channels simultaneously.
be broadcasted simultaneously.
 S ANALOG DIGITAL
.No. COMMUNICATION COMMUNICATION

In analog communication error In digital communication error

05.
Probability is high. Probability is low.

In analog communication noise In digital communication noise

06.
immunity is poor. immunity is good.

In digital communication coding

In analog communication coding is possible. Different coding
07.
is not possible. techniques can be used to detect
and correct errors.

Separating out noise and signal in

Separating out noise and signal in
08. analog communication is not
digital communication is possible.
possible.

Analog communication system is Digital communication system is

09. having complex hardware and having less complex hardware and
less flexible. more flexible.

In analog communication for In Digital communication for

multiplexing multiplexing
10. Frequency Division Multiplexing Time Division Multiplexing
(FDM) is used. (TDM) is used.

Analog communication system is Digital communication system is

11.
low cost. high cost.

12. It requires low bandwidth. It requires high bandwidth.

13. Power consumption is high. Power consumption is low.

14. It is less portable. Portability is high.

No privacy or privacy is low, so Privacy is high, so it is highly

15.
it is not highly secured. secured.

Not assures an accurate data It assures a more accurate data

16.
transmission. transmission.

17. Synchronization problem is hard. Synchronization problem is easier.

What is a Network Switching?
A switch is a dedicated piece of computer hardware that facilitates the process of
switching i.e., incoming data packets and transferring them to their destination. A
switch works at the Data Link layer of the OSI Model. A switch primarily handles
the incoming data packets from a source computer or network and decides the
appropriate port through which the data packets will reach their target computer or
network.

Process of Switching
The switching process involves the following steps:
Frame Reception: The switch receives a data frame or packet from a computer
connected to its ports.
• MAC Address Extraction: The switch reads the header of the data
frame and collects the destination MAC Address from it.
• MAC Address Table Lookup: Once the switch has retrieved the MAC
Address, it performs a lookup in its Switching table to find a port that
leads to the MAC Address of the data frame.
• Forwarding Decision and Switching Table Update: If the switch
matches the destination MAC Address of the frame to the MAC address
in its switching table, it forwards the data frame to the respective port.
However, if the destination MAC Address does not exist in its forwarding
table, it follows the flooding process, in which it sends the data frame to
all its ports except the one it came from and records all the MAC
Addresses to which the frame was delivered. This way, the switch finds
the new MAC Address and updates its forwarding table.
• Frame Transition: Once the destination port is found, the switch sends
the data frame to that port and forwards it to its target
computer/network.
Types of Switching
There are three types of switching methods:
• Message Switching
• Circuit Switching
• Packet Switching
• Datagram Packet Switching
• Virtual Circuit Packet Switching

Let us now discuss them individually:

Message Switching: This is an older switching technique that has become
obsolete. In message switching technique, the entire data block/message is
forwarded across the entire network thus, making it highly inefficient.

Circuit Switching: In this type of switching, a connection is established between

the source and destination beforehand. This connection receives the complete
bandwidth of the network until the data is transferred completely.
This approach is better than message switching as it does not involve sending
data to the entire network, instead of its destination only.

Packet Switching: This technique requires the data to be broken down into
smaller components, data frames, or packets. These data frames are then
transferred to their destinations according to the available resources in the
network at a particular time.
This switching type is used in modern computers and even the Internet. Here, each
data frame contains additional information about the destination and other
information required for proper transfer through network components.

Datagram Packet Switching: In Datagram Packet switching, each data frame is

taken as an individual entity and thus, they are processed separately. Here, no
connection is established before data transmission occurs. Although this approach
provides flexibility in data transfer, it may cause a loss of data frames or late delivery
of the data frames.