NEXT-GENERATION LOCAL-AREA NETWORKS

Many people now consider the local area network (LAN) to which their d esktop personal computer (PC) is attached to be more important to them than the telephone network, resulting in a drive to increase both the performance and the reliability of LANs. This paper examines the key drivers for new LAN technologies, summarising LAN developments over pr evious years. It then looks at possible options for future LANs, which will need to evolve to meet changing traffic patterns brought about b y widespread use of intranets and multimedia applications This encompa sses both new technologies such as Gigabit Ethernet, and new architect ures such as virtual LANs (VLANs), multi-protocol over ATM (MPOA) and multi-protocol over LANs (MPOL).