A Verizon Fios Optical Network Terminal (ONT) is the fiber-optic equivalent of a modem. It is a small rectangular box—usually white or black—that features LED indicator lights and ports for fiber, coaxial (TV), Ethernet, and telephone lines.

Depending on when your home was wired and where the installation took place, your ONT will fall into one of the following categories:

1. Indoor ONT (Apartments & newer homes): Typically mounted on a wall in a closet, utility room, or garage, this is a sleek, black, router-sized box. It requires a dedicated power cord that plugs directly into a grounded power outlet.

• Appearance: Looks similar to a modern Wi-Fi router, roughly the size of a hardback book.

• Placement: Typically found indoors on a desk, in a closet, a garage, or mounted on an apartment wall.

• Lights: Features a series of LED indicator lights on the front (such as Power, Data, Network, and Fail).

• Connections: The bottom or side will have a thin fiber-optic cable, a power cord, and an Ethernet cable running to your router.

2. Outdoor ONT (Older single-family homes): This is a larger, ruggedized off-white or gray box mounted on the exterior of your house. It will connect to a power supply box and battery backup unit located inside your home.

• Appearance: A large, grey, weather-proof box.

• Placement: Bolted directly to the exterior of your house.

• Connections: Wires run through a drilled hole in your wall to an indoor power supply box (which sometimes includes a battery backup).

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Left - Right:

1. FiOS Router

2. Battery Backup Unit (BBU)

3. Power Supply Unit (PSU)

NID, ONT, PSU, BBU

⭐ How one box can be BOTH the NID and the ONT

1. What the ONT does

The Optical Network Terminal is the brains of the fiber connection. It:

• Converts fiber‑optic light into Ethernet, coax, and phone signals

• Acts like a modem for fiber

• Feeds my router and any TV/phone equipment

• Requires power (which is why I have the PSU inside)

Think of the ONT as the fiber modem + signal converter.

2. What the NID does

The Network Interface Device is the boundary point between Verizon’s network and my home. It:

• Marks the legal demarcation between Verizon’s responsibility and mine

• Provides grounding and surge protection

• Gives techs a place to test the line without entering my home

• Houses the transition from outside wiring → inside wiring

Think of the NID as the official handoff point.

⭐ Why Verizon combines them

In older copper systems, the NID and modem were separate. With FiOS, Verizon designed the ONT to include the demarcation point inside the same enclosure.

So my gray box outside is:

• The fiber modem (ONT)

• The legal boundary box (NID)

• The grounding point

• The service test point

All in one weather‑sealed unit.

⭐ How the inside boxes fit into this

Inside my house:

• The big black box is the PSU — it sends power to the ONT outside

• The small black box is the BBU — optional battery backup for phone service

These do not act as NIDs or ONTs. They’re just power equipment.

So in closing:

Outdoor gray box: ONT (Optical Network Terminal) & NID (Network Interface Device)

Indoor white tower: FiOS Router

Indoor small black box: Battery Backup Unit (BBU) (you only need this if you have a landline)

Indoor large black box: Power Supply Unit (PSU) for the Optical Network Terminal (ONT)

Microsoft is officially ending Samsung Gallery sync with OneDrive on September 30, 2026.

After that:
• Samsung Gallery will no longer back up photos directly to OneDrive

• Users must switch to the standalone OneDrive app for camera backups

• Existing photos stay safe in OneDrive, but the seamless Gallery integration is going away

This partnership replaced Samsung Cloud back in 2021.

Now Samsung may be preparing to bring its own cloud backup system back again with One UI 8.5

https://x.com/techieultimatum/status/2059152605654421771

The built-in sync between the Samsung Gallery app and Microsoft OneDrive ends on September 30, 2026. While existing backups are safe, automatic Gallery-to-OneDrive uploads will stop, and your synced photos will disappear from the native Gallery app.

Follow these steps to keep backing up your camera roll:

1. Open the standalone OneDrive app on your Samsung device.

2. Tap your Account Profile in the top-left corner.

3. Select Camera backup and toggle it on.

You can still access all previously synced photos via the Microsoft OneDrive website or the standalone app, but if you want photos saved to your phone locally, download them using the "Download originals" feature in the Gallery app.

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https://www.samsungcloud.com/en/about/sync-with-onedrive-ending-soon

Background App Refresh

Background App Refresh is an iPhone setting that allows suspended apps to periodically check for new content and updates while you aren’t actively using them. It ensures feeds are preloaded and ready to view instantly when you open an app, at the cost of some battery and cellular data.

How It Works & What It Impacts

• Better App Experience: When you switch to a different app, the previous one goes into a suspended state. Background Refresh allows that app to wake up briefly to pull the latest emails, weather updates, or social media posts so you do not have to wait for them to load upon opening.

• Battery & Data Usage: Because apps are pulling data in the background, this feature consumes extra battery life and mobile data.

• Push Notifications: Note that this setting does not control your notifications. Text messages, calendar alerts, and breaking news notifications will still push through even if Background App Refresh is turned off entirely.

How to Manage Your Settings

You can tweak this feature to fit your battery and data needs by navigating to Settings > General > Background App Refresh.

From there, tap Background App Refresh at the top to choose from three options:

1. Off: Completely disables the feature for all apps.

2. Wi-Fi: Allows apps to refresh only when you are connected to a Wi-Fi network, which saves your cellular data.

3. Wi-Fi & Cellular Data: Allows apps to refresh on both Wi-Fi and mobile data.

You can also scroll down on the main settings page and toggle the switch to "Off" for specific apps—allowing you to keep it on for essential apps (like Maps or Mail) while disabling it for power-draining games or shopping apps.

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The Difference Between Push and Fetch Notifications

The difference between push and fetch notifications lies in who initiates the communication. Push means a server "sends" information to your device the moment it arrives. Fetch means your device periodically "checks" the server at set intervals to see if there is any new information.

Push Notifications

• How it works: Your device maintains an open, quiet connection to the server. As soon as a new message or event occurs, the server instantly "pushes" it to your screen.

• Pros: You get real-time alerts without delay. It is highly efficient in terms of battery if you receive very few notifications per day.

• Cons: Can consume more battery life and data if you receive hundreds of emails or alerts daily, as your device is constantly being activated.

• Example: Instant messages (like iMessage or WhatsApp), breaking news alerts, and direct server-to-client email push protocols (like Exchange or iCloud).

Fetch Notifications

• How it works: Your device ignores real-time updates and instead periodically wakes up (e.g., every 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or hourly) to go "fetch" data from the server.

• Pros: Saves battery and cellular data by preventing constant, unpredictable background activity. You can control exactly when your device works.

• Cons: You will not get instant notifications. There will always be a delay based on your chosen time interval.

• Example: Many standard email accounts (like Gmail) are set to fetch periodically, or can be set to "Manual" so they only refresh when you open the app.

Which should you choose?

You can usually configure these settings in your device's mail or app settings (e.g., in your iPhone's Fetch New Data menu).

• Use Push if supported and instant communication is critical (like work emails or important chats).

• Use Fetch to prevent battery drain or save on cellular data, especially if you only need updates a few times a day.

For deeper dives into your device's settings, check out the Apple Support Community Guide for iPhone Mail or BlueMail Notification Explainer.

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Live Activities

Live Activities are interactive, glanceable notifications on your iPhone that display real-time information. Instead of cluttering your screen with individual text notifications, they act as a persistent widget so you can easily track the progress of ongoing events right from your Lock Screen or the Dynamic Island.

How They Work

• Continuous Updates: Rather than sending multiple push notifications, the app continuously refreshes the information within the same persistent space.

• Dynamic Island Integration: On iPhone models with the Dynamic Island (iPhone 14 Pro/Pro Max and all iPhone 15 and 16 models), these updates shrink into a small, pill-shaped display at the top of your screen. You can tap and hold to expand them or swipe to dismiss them.

• Interactive: Some Live Activities allow you to interact directly with the widget (e.g., pausing a timer, skipping a song, or checking off a grocery item) without unlocking your phone.

Common Use Cases

• Sports: Track live scores, game periods, and play-by-play updates.

• Travel: Monitor real-time progress of an Uber/Lyft (including ETA) or keep track of your flight's boarding time and gate.

• Health & Fitness: View your current workout metrics, heart rate, or a visual countdown for focus timers.

• Daily Tasks: See live status updates on food delivery, laundry progress, or your smart shopping list.

How to Manage Live Activities

You can easily enable or disable this feature on a per-app basis, or turn it off entirely for your Lock Screen:

1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.

2. Tap Face ID & Passcode and enter your passcode.

3. Scroll down to the Allow Access When Locked section.

4. Toggle Live Activities on or off depending on your preference.

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