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Hack GPON – how to access, change and edit fibre ONTs

(hack-gpon.org)
250 points pabs3 | 2 comments | 25 Sep 24 00:41 UTC | HN request time: 0.422s | source
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pabs3 ◴[25 Sep 24 03:48 UTC] No.41643508[source]▶
BTW: in the EU there is movement towards mandating ISPs allow BYOD, including fibre ONTs.

https://fsfe.org/activities/routers/

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the_mitsuhiko ◴[25 Sep 24 07:32 UTC] No.41644682[source]▶
I think it's vital that you can run your own modem but I'm not convinced that it's a good idea to force a custom ONT. An ONT is about as dumb as it gets and it's entirely transparent on the stack.

The benefit with an ONT (or even DOCSIS dumb modem) managed by the ISP is that they can do fleet upgrades much quicker as they don't have to keep all old protocols running. For instance the GPON -> XGSPON upgrade that some ISPs are running right now (or DOCSIS 3 upgrade) really only works well if you can turn off the old protocol which requires swapping out all ONTs/DOCSIS modems.

If customers bring their own stuff then you're stuck with these things for much longer.

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pbasista ◴[25 Sep 24 08:52 UTC] No.41645271[source]▶
> If customers bring their own stuff then you're stuck

Why? There is nothing preventing an ISP from saying that from date X, only protocols A, B and C are supported. If you want to use your own device, make sure it supports these protocols.

In other words, the requirement to allow customers to use their own devices does not mean that they can choose all available protocols. The allowed protocols can still be controlled by the ISPs.

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1. naming_the_user ◴[25 Sep 24 12:02 UTC] No.41646384[source]▶
You are at the end of the day still running a business.

It's like saying that Spotify could suddenly decide to retire support for Android 12 or something. They could, but how many customers are they going to lose and how much support burden is that going to generate?

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2. pbasista ◴[26 Sep 24 18:58 UTC] No.41661898[source]▶
I am unsure if the analogy you have offered is relevant here.

The major difference is that the ISPs in this particular case do not need to offer any support apart from listing standardized protocols which are supported. If someone brings in their own device, it is on them to set it up and make sure it works with the currently supported protocols.

Also, this business model is nothing new. For example, mobile network operators have been using it for decades. Their base calling services might remain working even on the oldest phones. But when it comes to data services, they are gradually upgrading. Many of them are switching off their 3G networks to free up frequencies, for instance. Millions of people are affected. And yet, there is no drama around it.

One of the reasons might be that these phase-outs are announced and planned very long time in advance so the customers have the time to prepare. And they have a choice. Either upgrade their phones or live without fast-ish data or switch carriers if possible. Which is fair, in my opinion.

It seems to me that the ISPs could use a similar approach and be just fine.