A [ MAN ] or ip metropolitan area network is a computer network of high performance that covers an area of a city, metro or a campus larger than a Local Area Networks (LAN). It is bigger than LAN and smaller than Wide Area Network (WAN).
To consider a MAN, one can just assume it is:
- A MAN connects buildings across a city the same way a LAN connects devices inside a building.
Example of a Metropolitan Area Network
An interconnection of a city government can be done using MAN:
- City hall
- Police stations
- Traffic control systems
- Public Wi-Fi zones
Adoption to use a MAN may also be considered so as to offer real time connection between patient databases, imaging and telemedicine systems of a group of hospitals that are located in a metro area.
Where MANs Are Mainly Used
Applications of MANS in most commonly used in are:
- Colleges and universities.
- Financial districts
- Hospital networks
- Infrastructure (smarter cities).
- Local (metropolitan-based) data centers.
They will be mainly interested in providing high speed, reliable and secure connectivity to the various geographical locations within the same city.
MAN vs WAN vs LAN: Key Differences, Speed & Use-Cases
Understanding how MAN fits into modern networking requires knowing the three main network types:
| Network Type | Coverage Area | Typical Use |
| LAN (Local Area Network) | One building or floor | Offices, homes, schools |
| MAN (Metropolitan Area Network) | One city or metro area | Hospitals, banks, universities |
| WAN (Wide Area Network) | Multiple cities or countries | Cloud services, global enterprises |
Which Network Type Is the Fastest?
- The lowest speed is LAN (long distance and carrier networks).
- Then there is MAN (high speed fiber, short distance of metro).
- Long distance paths and congestion are also the reasons why WAN is slow.
Types of WAN
WAN are of three important types which include:
- Public WAN (internet-based)
- Yen or personal WAN (MPLS, leased lines)
- VPN WAN (SD-WAN on publics).
A MAN offers WAN type coverage and the performance of LAN which is the reason why IP MAN solutions are gaining popularity among the enterprises.
Examples of WAN and MAN Networks in the Real World
WAN Examples
- The internet itself
- The network of Google Data centers which are distributed all over the world.
- AWS, Azure and Google Cloud.
Yes- Google is a WAN by the sense of the fact that it connects the world-wide data centers.
MAN Examples
- The college unites 12 structures of a city.
- Clinic network imaging and a hospital network.
- There is a bank which is interconnected in one metro.
Such organizations are dependent on MANs in regards to low latency, high security and high speed file transfers.
Who Owns and Operates Metropolitan Area Networks?
Traditionally, the running of MANs and the owners is run by:
- Telecommunication (AT&T, Lumen, Verizon, Comcast)
- Municipal governments
- Utility companies
- Privatized Business consortia.
When people are purchasing an IP MAN service, they rent out a privately based fiber based metro network service.
Why Businesses Use IP Metropolitan Area Networks Instead of Traditional WANs
It is a new form of MAN known as IP MAN and is made up of IP routing of fiber-based metro networks.
The significant advantages over the conventional WANs are:
- The gap in time in the city is considerably smaller.
- Better bandwidth (10 Gbps 100 or more Gbps).
- An increase in security (coding, partitioning, secret path).
- Disparities with long-haul MPLS circuits.
- Cloud-ready architecture
This makes IP MANs ideal for:
- Data replication
- Video conferencing
- Cloud access
- Business-critical applications
Best IP Metropolitan Area Network Providers in the United States
The leading IP MAN service providers in the U.S are:
- Excellent government and business coverage by ATT.
- Massive capacity fiber metro networks CenturyLink Lumen (CenturyLink).
- Verizon Business- Financial and healthcare is a specialist.
- Zayo – Metro fiber High capacity.
- Cogent Network- Low cost IP transmissions.
- Comcast Business Etisalat SMB access to Metro.
The most preferred providers by the technology startups are the ones that:
- Flexible contracts
- Fast provisioning
- Direct cloud on-ramps
Choosing the Right IP MAN for Different Industries
Mid-Sized Businesses
Look for:
- Scalable bandwidth
- Simple management portals
- Affordable metro Ethernet
Financial Institutions
Require:
- Low latency
- High uptime SLAs
- Regulatory compliance
- Encrypted traffic
Healthcare Systems
Need:
- HIPAA-compliant security
- High availability
- Wholesale file transfer functions (imaging, EHRs)
There are no homogenous IP MAN providers in the industry and therefore compliance, redundancy, and performance is applicable.
Security, Performance & Scalability in IP MAN Solutions
A good IP MAN should have:
- End-to-end encryption
- Isolation of the network (Vlan, VRF)
- DDoS protection
- Private routing
- High availability (99.99%+)
The aspect of scalability is also required. The MAN vendors necessary to the IP will upgrade you on:
- 1 Gbps → 10 Gbps → 100+ Gbps
and no refurbishment of the infrastructure.
This is why the implementation of IP MANs can be applied to the creation of healthcare networks, fintech companies and SaaS companies.
How to Upgrade or Expand an IP Metropolitan Area Network
The extensions of an IP MAN are:
- Bandwidth expansion (new fiber wavelengths or Ethernet ports)
- Hardware upgrades (routers, switches)
- Redundancy additions (ring topologies, backup routes)
- Cloud integration (direct cloud connect services)
The New IP MANs are configured to a manner that they can upgrade without interruption and this is very flexible unlike the old WANs.
FAQs about IP Metropolitan Area Network
A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a computer network that connects computers within a metropolitan area, which could be a single large city, multiple cities and towns, or any given large area with multiple buildings.
What is the primary purpose of a Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)? The primary purpose of a MAN is to connect multiple local area networks (LANs) within a city or large campus, facilitating efficient data transfer and communication.
MAN is a comparatively wider network that covers large regions- like towns, cities, etc. The WAN network spans to an even larger locality. It has the capacity to connect various countries together. For example, the Internet is a WAN.
A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy.
