MAN Full Form
MAN stands for metropolitan area network and it is basically a computer network that is made by connecting multiple LAN’S. MAN covers a geographical area which is known as the metropolitan area. It serves as a connection which is larger than LAN(Local Area Network) but smaller than WAN(Wide Area Network). It generally covers the area of a city. It connects different LAN’s in an area by point to point connection. MAN also provides sharing of regional resources. MAN is very effective to use in large area like a city or a large campus.
Examples: Cable TV network and telephone networks
Characteristics :
- Area Covered –
It covers an area from 5 km to 50 km which can cover a city. - Ownership –
MAN is owned by a group of users rather than a single company. - High speed –
MAN provides high speed network which uses shared regional resources. - Size –
Size of MAN is in between WAN and LAN.
Advantages :
- MAN covers a larger area than LAN.
- It has less implementation cost and it uses less resources.
- It provides higher security than WAN.
- It can cover area as large as a city.
- MAN is a faster way to connect two fast LANs together. This is due to the fast configuration of links.
- In some installation of MANs, users can share their internet connection. So multiple users can get the same high-speed internet.
Disadvantages :
- MAN is not easily manageable as it becomes very complex.
- It requires highly skilled people to look after it.
- It requires more cables for connecting the LAN’s.
- It has high management cost
- It covers smaller area than WAN.
- It is only used in metropolitan areas.
Examples of metropolitan area network (MAN) :
Some of the examples of MAN are:-
- Digital cable television
- Used in government agencies
- Used to connect several branches of the local school
- A network of fire stations
- University campuses
- Networking between community colleges within the country
- Cable broadband