Campus area network

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A campus area network (CAN) is a computer network that interconnects local area networks throughout a limited geographical area, such as a university campus, a corporate campus, or a military base. It could be considered a metropolitan area network that is specific to a campus setting. A campus area network is, therefore, larger than a local area network but smaller than a wide area network. The term is sometimes used to refer to university campuses, while the term corporate area network is used to refer to corporate campuses instead.

Although not considered a wide area network, a CAN extends the reach of each local area network within the campus area of an organization. In a CAN, the buildings of a university or corporate campus are interconnected using the same types of hardware and networking technologies that one would use in a LAN. In addition, all of the components, including switches, routers, and cabling, as well as wireless connection points, are owned and maintained by the organization.

University campuses

In the case of a college or university, its campus area network is likely to interconnect a variety of campus buildings, including administrative buildings, academic buildings, university libraries, campus or student centers, residence halls, gymnasiums, and other outlying structures, like conference centers, technology centers, and training institutes.

Corporate campuses

Much like a campus area network, a corporate area network serves to connect buildings. Examples of such are the networks at Googleplex and Microsoft's campus. In most cases, it is more economical to interconnect multiple buildings wirelessly than it is to lay cable between them.

See also

• Wireless campus