There was a time where AOL ran rampant as the number one Internet Service Provider in the United States, and by that notion, worldwide too. While the company has had to deal with the emergence of several ultra competitive rivals that have taken customers off its back, it remains a key identity in the ISP world.

AOL, however, has received a lot of criticism for its walled garden approach to allowing customers to access the Internet. Not least for its requirement that an Internet connection be made from within the existing AOL software suite.

When you sign up to AOL’s Internet package, you won’t just receive the necessary software to connect to the Internet. You’ll also receive a software suite which is AOL branded to the max, and it’s this that is used to connect to the Internet. AOL will control how you get online, and by that token, when AOL decides that it wants to update its software, there’s not much you can do but go along with it happily or refuse the update. And of course, most customers are all too willing to accept upgrades in the false knowledge that it won’t compromise their ability to connect.

It shouldn’t compromise their connection, at least. But there are known problems with AOL upgrades whereby a failed software download can cause huge problems. For example, to break things down, if an upgrade crashes during the installation period, you may lose your original connection when you try to re-access the AOL connection utility. Half copied files and half meddled settings can quickly add up to a long phone call with AOL support.

The latest AOL Desktop, in particular, caused an enormous amount of trouble with existing customers. After AOL migrated to their new CPW servers, a forced download was required for users to switch over to the new settings. The stability of this system was put under close scrutiny after many customers complained of the upgrade crashing during download and resulting in a broken connection. Other users managed to connect, but with great irregularity and the speed was down significantly.

The AOL upgrade resulted in an error that looked like the below:

“Authentication Failure” Error 47-DUN-0691

When you strip away the error code and examine what AOL has changed, it appears that the suite is now attempting to connect through TCP/IP rather than the normal DSL.

To tackle the issue, go to Start and then enter your Settings.

Choose the Control Panel.

Go to Network Connections.

You will need to choose Dial BB and connect manually, as opposed to using the typical AOL suite. Assuming there are no existing complications with your configuration settings, the connection will be made and you’ll be able to browse normally.

If this doesn’t work, you will need to roll your AOL software site back to version 9.0 when the problem was non-existent. It’s far from a satisfactory solution, but once you’ve rolled your software back, you can wait for the request to re-download the update and as long as it doesn’t crash, you should be able to successfully migrate across to the CPW servers and regain full connectivity from within AOL’s suite.

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If you’re having trouble with AOL, you need not feel alone. There are vast expanses of resources available for those looking for a nudge in the right direction. AOL, having been the dominating industry force that it is for the last ten years, has put together a huge collection of help articles and an online knowledge-base to help you.

Whether you’re an a AOL subscriber, a user of its software, or even a participant in its AIM program - you can brush up on the best practices by visiting the help website. This can be located at help.aol.com, although it may be different depending on your international domain (for example UK users should go to help.aol.co.uk).

AOL help is divided in to several categories. It covers basic account settings as a priority. That means, if you’ve subscribed to AOL but are suffering from login problems or simply can’t activate your account, it’s possible to come here and view the knowledge-base or post a support ticket.

You’ll also find help when it comes to connecting to the Internet and configuring your settings. AOL offers both Broadband and Dial-up (yes, some people still use it!) to its customers, and the website has a section dedicated to each. AOL has considered many of the problems that its customers are likely to be faced with at some point or another. You’ll find a selection of hot topic articles that answer the majority of basic issues. Unsure of how to setup your wireless network? Need to know how AOL Broadband works with Windows Vista? The AOL help in this section will provide the answers.

Each help category also serves up a handy Troubleshooting sub-section. Sometimes we don’t know what the root of a problem is. For example, if the Internet isn’t working, we might not know where to start in detecting the issue. So the AOL Troubleshooter is designed for beginners to enter some basic details and then be presented with a list of potential problems and best courses of action.

The AOL website doesn’t stop at providing technical advice. It also presents a list of support topics that will surely be relevant to the modern day Internet user. Help exists for getting started with a blog, communicating safely online (great for the kids), and how to send instant messages. As you can imagine, the later feeds nicely in to a marketing campaign for their AIM software.

AOL help topics can also be found via the A to Z help map which categorizes problems nicely. You shouldn’t have to look too deep for an answer. Out of the many ISPs on the market, AOL is arguably the most comprehensive for customer support topics.

Best of all, if you have a problem that simply won’t go away while using the AOL services, it’s possible to register as a member and receive direct live support. Simply sign up for a free AOL account and contact a member of AOL Member Services who will be more than happy to help you.

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