The terms LAN and WAN are commonly found on the screens for configuring modems , routers and access points . The term LAN refers to the configuration of the local network provided by the router while WAN refers to the configuration of the external network, the internet, which is not part of the internal network.

LAN is Local Area Network. This term generally refers to computer networks restricted to a physical location defined as a home, office or business in the same building. A company's wireless network is also part of the LAN. What really limits the LAN network is an IP range restricted to it, with a common netmask.

WAN is Wide Area Network. It means a network that covers a larger physical area, such as a university campus, a city, a state or even a country. It is often used in router configurations to refer to the company's external network, which is not considered part of the LAN, as stated above. WAN is also used to refer to the Internet network in general, although this is too generic a designation. WAN networks became necessary because large companies with thousands of computers needed to transfer large amounts of information between branches in different geographic locations. This new demand could not be met within the capabilities of a LAN network and new protocols to meet the requirements for speed and quality of WAN networks were created.

The IT Engineer should prioritize and work on client issues without disturbing their workflow. Troubleshooting relies on a step-by-step procedure. They should always look for causality to identify the problem.

WAN and LAN

How two LAN and WAN networks are "connected”

Today in any block of a large city there are dozens of LAN networks, many of them wireless and practically all connected to the internet, the largest existing WAN network and possibly other corporate WAN networks using some type of VPN or even by remote access.

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