Optimizing Connectivity: A Guide to Router & ONT Maintenance

In today’s age of digital connectivity, it is more important now than it ever was before to make sure that our home connectivity devices are in tip-top shape! This includes doing regular maintenance on our routers and knowing when to perform maintenance on your modems/ONTs. Performing maintenance on any device can seem intimidating, especially when it comes to the devices that help connect you to the internet! If this task seems scary or daunting you are not alone, and that’s why we are here to walk you through the best practices for taking care of your router and ONT unit.

Router Maintenance

Before we get too deep into router maintenance practices let’s go over what your router does for your internet connection. Most routers you get today have different functions built in, but its main function is to be a networking device that connects multiple devices together forming a local area network (LAN). It is responsible for routing traffic between the different devices on your home network and ultimately to the internet. Most routers will also come with a built-in wireless access point or Wi-Fi access point, which is important if connecting remotely is a big part of your internet usage.

Now that we know what your router is let’s get into how to maintenance it. To help keep your router in tip-top shape you will want to reboot or restart your router. The easiest way to do this is to simply unplug your router, wait one to two minutes and then plug it back in. That’s it! Allowing your router to reboot/restart allows it to take a break and perform any system updates it may need. We recommend setting your router up to reboot automatically during a time you’re not using the internet. A great way to do this is by using an outlet timer to cut power to your router during the times you aren’t using it (ex. middle of the night).

The next thing you need to know is when you should perform router maintenance. A good rule of thumb is to restart your router at least once a month. It’s also a good idea to restart your router if you are ever experiencing connectivity issues or after you have experienced an internet outage.

ONT Maintenance

Now on to your ONT and what its function in your home network is. Your ONT is the device that we install in your home that functions like a modem but specifically for fiber-optic connections. What the ONT does is convert the light signals coming through fiber-optic cables into digital signals that your router and computer can understand. It then converts the digital signals sent out by your network into light signals that can be transferred over the fiber infrastructure. It acts as a sort of bridge between the fiber-optic network and your equipment.

When it comes to ONT maintenance, you are going to follow the same steps you did for your router reboot. Simply unplug your ONT for one or two minutes and plug it back in.

The big difference between your router and ONT maintenance is when you perform it. You only want to do a reboot (aka power cycle) on your ONT if you have exhausted other avenues. Before you think about rebooting your ONT you will want to make sure that you have tried restarting your router and contacted your ISP to troubleshoot other causes of connectivity issues. This precaution is mainly due to the fact that when you power cycle your ONT, it will lose its logs which can make it more difficult for UTOPIA Fiber and your ISP to further troubleshoot any issues. Power cycling your ONT can solve issues with connectivity as long as it is done correctly and after other options have been tried. Another important note when restarting your ONT is to NEVER hit the reset button that is on the ONT. Pressing this button will erase the configuration on your equipment and may require a technician to come out and fix it.

We hope this helps you feel more confident in maintaining your network equipment and will help you out the next time you need to perform maintenance on your router or ONT unit! For more troubleshooting tips and tricks, make sure to check out our troubleshooting page! You can also give our customer service team a call if you ever encounter an issue with your internet connectivity, they are happy to walk you through the steps to get you back up and running, you can find their contact information on our contact page!