Differentiate between LAN and WAN

LAN and WAN:

Here are the key differences between LAN and WAN :

Scope: A LAN (Local Area Network) is a group of network devices that allow communication between connected devices in a small area. A WAN (Wide Area Network) covers a larger area than a LAN, such as a country or continent.

Ownership: A LAN is owned privately, whereas a WAN can be owned privately or publicly.

Speed: LANs have a higher speed than WANs due to the geographical distance covered by the latter.

Propagation delay: LANs have a shorter propagation delay than WANs.

Congestion: There is less congestion in LANs than in WANs.

Fault tolerance: LANs have more fault tolerance than WANs.

Design and maintenance: LANs are easier to design and maintain than WANs.

Operating principle: LANs operate on the principle of broadcasting, whereas WANs work on the principle of point-to-point.

Transmission medium: LANs use co-axial or UTP cable as the transmission medium, whereas WANs use PSTN or satellite links.

Data transfer rate: LANs have a higher data transfer rate than WANs.

Cost: LANs are cheaper than WANs.

Use cases: LANs are suitable for private IoT networks, bot networks, and small business networks, whereas WANs are suitable for disaster recovery, applications with global users, and large corporate networks.

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