1.3.1 SOHO Routers

What is a Local Area Network (LAN)?

A LAN is a network in a single location. This is a broad definition that can cover everything from a small home network to a massive enterprise network with thousands of devices.

• Example: The network inside your house, or the network covering a single university campus. 🏫

What is a Small Office/Home Office (SOHO) network?

A SOHO network is a specific category of LAN. It has a small number of devices and typically relies on a single integrated appliance (like a home Wi-Fi router) to handle all local connectivity and access to the internet.

• Example: Your home setup with a laptop, a printer, and a smart TV all connecting to one Wi-Fi router.

What is a Wide Area Network (WAN)?

A WAN is a network, like the Internet, that spans different geographic regions but connects them with shared links. It's a network of networks.

• Analogy: If your home network (LAN) is a single house, a WAN is the entire national road system that connects all the different towns (LANs) together. 🌎

What is a SOHO router?

A SOHO router is the single appliance used in a SOHO network. Its primary job is to be an intermediate system that forwards traffic between the local LAN and the wider Internet (WAN). It actually performs functions at multiple OSI layers, not just routing (Layer 3).

• Example: The Virgin, BT, or Comcast box in your living room that provides Wi-Fi and connects you to the internet.