A local area network (LAN) consists of several computers and peripherals cabled together in a limited area, such as a department of a company or a single building. Networking allows people to share resources such as files and printers, and to use interactive applications such as scheduling and e-mail.

There are many benefits to networking, including:
 Cost cutting through sharing data and eripherals.
 Standardization of applications.
 Timely data acquisition.
 More efficient communications and scheduling.

Today, networks have expanded beyond the LAN to stretch across the country and around the world into wide area networks (WANs).