Q1. What is a LAN?
A LAN, or Local Area Network, is a network that connects devices within a limited local area to allow them to communicate with each other.
Q2. What determines whether a network is a LAN?
There is no fixed distance rule. A network is generally considered a LAN if it operates within a limited geographic area under a single administrative control.
Q3. What is the criterion for a limited geographic area in a LAN?
It is not a fixed distance. It means a single local site, such as a home, office, building, campus, or facility, rather than multiple distant sites connected over a wide area.
Q4. What is a local site?
A local site is a single physical or operational location, such as a home, office, building, campus, or facility, that can be treated as one nearby network operating area.
Q5. Does a LAN have to be one physically continuous area?
Not strictly. A LAN usually belongs to one continuous or adjacent local operating area, but it does not have to be a perfectly unbroken physical area.
Q6. Can nearby buildings across a road be part of the same LAN?
Yes, if they are operated as one local site, such as a campus or facility. If they are treated as independent sites, they are usually separate LANs connected through a WAN.
Q7. Is a network a LAN solely because one organization controls it?
No. Single administrative control is not enough. The network must also operate within a limited local site.