An ONT (optical network terminal) works similarly to a modem (you might be familiar with that from your cable internet connections!). The device is a small black box, probably located in your IT closet. It is the device Pilot installs, and serves as a termination point for your connection! The ONT that Pilot installs acts as a bridge between the internet and your internal network.
The ONT’s job is to convert light pulses into electrical pulses - but why? Pilot sends light through our fiber into your ONT, but your internal network runs on electricity. An ONT allows you to plug your internal network equipment using ethernet cables, into a high-speed fiber-optic network that uses light to transmit data!
In practical applications, you can plug in all your devices (firewalls, switches, additional routers, etc.) into the ethernet ports of the ONT, and connect to the world wide web!
ONTs can vary in features. They can act as gateway devices and provide IP addresses to your devices, or they can bridge the connection between your provider and your internal network.
