This key facts covers LAN - Local Area Network within LAN and WAN for GCSE Computer Science. Revise LAN and WAN in Networks for GCSE Computer Science with 15 exam-style questions and 16 flashcards. This topic appears less often, but it can still be a useful differentiator on mixed-topic papers. It is section 4 of 10 in this topic. Use this key facts to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Topic position
Section 4 of 10
Practice
15 questions
Recall
16 flashcards
LAN - Local Area Network
What is a LAN?
A network covering a small geographical area, typically a single building or campus. All devices are close together, usually within the same location.
Key Characteristics:
- Geographic spread: Single building, office, school campus, or home
- Coverage area: Typically up to 1km radius
- Ownership: Privately owned by one organization or individual
- Infrastructure: Organization provides own hardware (cables, switches, routers, WiFi)
- Speed: Very fast - typically 100 Mbps to 10 Gbps (Gigabit Ethernet common)
- Connection: Wired (Ethernet cables) or wireless (WiFi)
- Latency: Very low (< 1ms typically) - data travels short distances
Common LAN Examples:
- Home network: Your WiFi router connecting laptops, phones, smart TV, printer
- School network: All computers in computer labs, library, staff rooms connected
- Office network: Company computers, printers, servers in one building
- Internet café: Customer computers sharing a local connection
- University campus: Multiple buildings connected with fiber optic cables
Typical LAN Components:
- Network cables: Ethernet (Cat5e, Cat6) for wired connections
- Switches: Connect multiple devices together in star topology
- Router: Connects LAN to external networks (WAN/Internet)
- Wireless Access Points (WAPs): Provide WiFi coverage
- NICs: Network Interface Cards in each device