Introduction (1.0)
Businesses must connect LANs to provide communications between them, even when these LANs are far apart. Wide-area networks (WANs) are used to connect remote LANs. A WAN may cover a city, country, or global region. A WAN is owned by a service provider, and a business pays a fee to use the provider’s WAN network services.
Different technologies are used for WANs than for LANs. This chapter introduces WAN standards, technologies, and purposes. It covers selecting the appropriate WAN technologies, services, and devices to meet the changing business requirements of an evolving enterprise.
Class Activity 1.0.1.2: Branching Out
Your medium-sized company is opening a new branch office to serve a wider, client-based network. This branch will focus on regular, day-to-day network operations but will also provide TelePresence, web conferencing, IP telephony, video on demand, and wireless services.
Although you know that an ISP can provide WAN routers and switches to accommodate the branch office connectivity for the network, you prefer to use your own customer premises equipment (CPE). To ensure interoperability, Cisco devices have been used in all other branch-office WANs.
As the branch-office network administrator, you are responsible for researching possible network devices for purchase and use over the WAN.