A local area network is a group of computers connected together located in a certain limited area, for example, in a building. The size of such a network may vary. It can include from two workstations located in one room to several hundred workstations that are located on different floors of the same administrative building. In most cases, different types of cables can be used to combine computers into a single network. However, the use of wireless channels is also acceptable, which will also be discussed. So, let's figure out what is a local area network? It is important to note that if the network leaves the borders of one building, then it would be more correct to call it global. In general, from specialized literature it can be determined that the local network is limited by the limits of the structure, and there are no such restrictions for the global one.
The literary definition is not always consistent with accepted standards, since the network is usually determined by functional rather than physical features. In this sense, which is the most common, such networks are a means of communication between computers, allowing them to access various equipment. That is, such computers gain access to various kinds of network resources, for example, printers, scanners, as if they are locally installed. Naturally, access to equipment also means access to the data available on this equipment.
So, in the question of what is a local area network, everything may already seem clear. However, there are many nuances here. All computers of such a network can not only access the installed network components, but also use them in the same way as with a local installation, which implies mandatory joint implementation of data.
The first local area network connected office computers of the first generation - mainframes to the network, however, it was customary to install the first personal computers as separate devices. It is worth mentioning the most primitive form of a local network, when a user transferred data to a diskette on one device to transfer data , and then switched to another one to print information or simply save it there. This decision could not be called bad, especially considering the ability to copy large amounts of information. However, there are also flaws here, and very serious ones:
- the risk of information loss due to loss or accidental formatting of data was very high;
- difficulties arose with the synchronization of different versions of the document, when several people had to work on it simultaneously;
- the size of the diskette was only 1.44 MB, and the size of the required data file could significantly exceed it;
- the inability of users to work with documents when using various pre-installed applications on computers;
- the data was difficult to protect, since the diskette could just be stolen;
- A significant amount of time is spent on the processes of copying files, transferring them to another machine, as well as subsequent operations with it.
That is why such networks were suitable exclusively for solving primitive problems. So what is a local area network in the current sense? Modern office tools must meet new requirements:
- sharing, protection and data transfer;
- applications should be available for sharing;
- users should be comfortable interacting with each other;
- peripheral devices must be made available to all machines.
Now you know not only what a local area network is, but also what are the principles underlying it.