• A WAN connects devices through cables."Lemon LAN" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: ryan_franklin_az (Ryan Franklin) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
  
  

Considerations

• A WAN is used to connect devices that are separated by several miles. WANs are made up of dedicated phone lines, which are leased from the local phone company. Most WAN networks are made up of at least two connected Local Area Networks, or LANs.
  
  

WAN vs. LAN

• A LAN connects devices in close proximity to one another. A WAN connects devices separated by many miles. For example, a LAN network would connect the computers at the main bank branch, but a WAN network would connect all of the bank branches to one another.
  
  

Mobile WAN

• Mobile providers have begun using Wi-Fi and wireless access points to support these networks for smart phones.
  
  

Prevention/Solution

• It can take a great deal of time to back up files within the system, putting information in jeopardy. WANs are susceptible to hacking, so most businesses use remote storage and encryption software to ensure client confidentiality as well as data safety.
  
  

Fun Fact

• As of 2009, the largest WAN available is the Internet.