It is also possible to initiate the message from another network by using subnet directed broadcasts or a WoL gateway service. The message is usually sent to the target computer by a program executed on a device connected to the same local area network. If the computer being awakened is communicating via Wi-Fi, a supplementary standard called Wake on Wireless LAN (WoWLAN) must be employed. Wake-on-LAN ( WoL or WOL) is an Ethernet or Token Ring computer networking standard that allows a computer to be turned on or awakened from sleep mode by a network message.Įquivalent terms include wake on WAN, remote wake-up, power on by LAN, power up by LAN, resume by LAN, resume on LAN and wake up on LAN.
Mechanism to wake up computers via a network A physical Wake-on-LAN connector (white object in foreground) featured on the IBM PCI Token-Ring Adapter 2
