Technology Tips – Published October 2019 in the Guide and Digest
By Don Trauger – Kennett
A PECO power outage not only affects the lights, appliances and the garage door opener, but it can also affect any electronic device when the power is restored. Devices such as computers, wireless phones (not cell phones) and most of all the FIOS equipment is subject to power interruptions. Power interruptions can cause devices to freeze, exhibit strange behavior, or just not work at all when the power comes back on.
Here’s a procedure to follow with the FIOS equipment after the power is restored.
- After power is restored wait about 10-15 minutes to make sure the power stays on and is stable before checking your FIOS equipment.
- If the TV, phone and Internet are not working check the ONT box. This FIOS box is usually located adjacent to your power panel in your basement or closet.
- The ONT assembly actually consists of 2 boxes. One is the power supply for the ONT and the other is the main ONT. The power supply has a blue reset button and a green power light on it. Locate the power cord from the power supply and remove it from the receptacle. Wait about 15-20 seconds then plug it back in. Allow 2-3 minutes for it reinitialize and become operable. Referenced below is the light pattern of a normally working ONT. Don’t press the blue button on the power supply as this button does not allow a full reset compared to removing and then plugging in the power cord.
- If you power reset the ONT it makes sense to do the same to your FIOS router. The light pattern on the FIOS router has 2 white lights, one for power, the other other for the Wi-Fi. Again, wait for 15-20 seconds after you pull the power cord before plugging it back in. It also takes 2 minutes or so to reboot and become operable. The router directly affects Internet operation and some TV operation such as On Demand, the Channel Guide and the DVR.
- You may have to power reset the Set Top Boxes (STB). Follow the same power reset procedure above. Start with the main box (Media Server) and continue with the smaller client boxes as needed.
- You don’t have to necessarily identify which lights are solid green as long as there is 5 of them. If you are unable to achieve normal operation after power resetting your FIOS equipment, call Verizon at 1-888-553-1555.
Here’s the normal status of the ONT lights.
The following are ON and solid green:
Pwr
Bat
Data
Ntwk
Mgmt
The following lights should be OFF:
Fail
Vid
Moca
One exception, the following light will be solid green when you pick up the phone to make a call:
Pots
We can discuss FIOS issues as well as Windows 10 issues at our PC Club meetings. We meet on the 3rd Tuesday of every month at 7 PM in the Ardmore room of the Community Center.