The LAN emerged to serve the needs of high-speed interconnections between the computer systems. While there have been many types of LAN transports, Ethernet became the favorite of businesses starting in the early 1990s. Since its introduction, Ethernet bandwidth has scaled from the original shared-media 10 Mbps to 400 Gbps in Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switches for the data center.
區域網路（LAN）的出現，是為了滿足電腦系統之間高速互連的需求。雖然曾出現過許多種 LAN 傳輸技術，但乙太網路（Ethernet）自 1990 年代初期起便成為企業的首選。自問世以來，乙太網路的頻寬已從最初共享媒介的 10 Mbps，擴展到資料中心用 Cisco Nexus 9000 系列交換器的 400 Gbps。
A LAN is a network of endpoints and other components that are located relatively close together in a limited area.
LAN 是由端點及其他元件組成的網路，這些元件彼此位置相對接近，範圍有限。
LANs can vary widely in size. A LAN may consist of only two computers in a home office or small business, or it may include hundreds of computers in a large corporate office or multiple buildings. A LAN is typically a network within your own premises (your organization's campus, building, office suite, or even your home). Organizations or individuals typically build and own the whole infrastructure, all the way down to the physical cabling.
LAN 的規模差異很大。一個 LAN 可能只由居家辦公室或小型企業中的兩台電腦組成，也可能包含大型企業辦公室或多棟建築物中的數百台電腦。LAN 通常位於你自己的場域內（你的組織園區、大樓、辦公套房，甚至是你家中）。組織或個人通常會自行建置並擁有整個基礎架構，一路到實體纜線。
The defining characteristics of LANs, in contrast to WANs, include their typically higher data transfer rates, smaller geographic area, and the lack of need for leased telecommunication lines.
與 WAN 相比，LAN 的主要特徵包括：通常有較高的資料傳輸速率、較小的地理範圍，以及不需要租用電信線路。
A WAN is a data communications network that provides access to other networks over a large geographical area. WANs use facilities that an ISP or carriers, such as a telephone or cable company, provides. The provider connects locations of an organization to each other, to locations of other organizations, to external services, and remote users. WANs carry various traffic types such as voice, data, and video.
WAN 是一種資料通訊網路，可在大範圍地理區域內提供對其他網路的存取。WAN 使用 ISP 或電話公司、有線電視公司等電信業者提供的設施。此類業者將組織的各據點彼此連接，也連接到其他組織的據點、外部服務與遠端使用者。WAN 承載語音、資料、視訊等多種流量類型。