An Intranet that is partially accessible to authorized outsiders. Where an Intranet resides behind a firewall and is accessible only to people who are members of the same company or organization, an extranet provides various levels of accessibility to others outside the company. Extranets are becoming a very popular means for businesses and their partners to exchange corporate information.

Private TCP/IP networks designed for outside use by customers, clients, and business partners of an organization. These networks are typically for electronic commerce.

Extranets allow your clients to access parts of your internal networks, which are normally inaccessible to people outside the company. They are useful for online ordering and payment systems. In addition, clients can have access to work in progress or training and product information appropriate to them.