What is a VLAN?

VLAN stands for Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) and is a broadcast domain that is partitioned and isolated in a computer network at the data link layer and is logically sorted by function, area, or application, regardless of the physical locations of the users. A 802.1Q-based VLAN is a standard method for tagging Ethernet frames with VLAN membership information, and defines the operation of VLAN bridges that permit the definition, operation, and administration of VLAN topologies within a bridged LAN infrastructure.