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Global Roaming

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What is Global Roaming?

Global roaming is a service that allows to you connect to the Internet whilst overseas, without having to dial back into Australia or make arrangements with a local provider. With global roaming, you connect to an ISP in the country you are visiting and the charges are billed to your normal dialup account with AAPT.

To provide global roaming access to customers, AAPT is affiliated with a roaming networks named iPass. When you travel, you connect to local ISPs that are also part of the iPass. To make it easier to connect, special dialler software is available that lets you select a dialin number for your current location and initiates the modem connection for you.

PLEASE NOTE: global roaming connectivity depends on services in the country you are visting. Since you are connecting to a local Point Of Presence (POP) rather than a AAPT POP, we cannot be responsible for the stability and quality you may experience outside of Australia. If collection of email whilst roaming is imperative, you should be aware of possible alternatives, such as dialling back to Australia or using an Internet Café. For more information, please call Support on 1300 731 111 (Intl: +61 3 8308 4400).


Roaming with iPass

iPass allows you to roam in many overseas locations for an hourly rate that depends on which country you are in. This charge is billed against your normal dialup account. iPass dialler software is available here for both Windows and Macintosh users. Other users can create an iPass connection manually instead of using the dialler.

Using the iPass Dialler

Note that the iPass dialler software has been customised for use by AAPT customers. It will only authenticate AAPT customers and is therefore not suitable for use by users from other ISPs.

Before you leave Australia, it is a good idea to install and test the dialler so that you know it's ready for use when roaming. Here are the basic steps for making a connection with iPass:

  1. Install and run the iPass dialler (Windows and MacOS versions are available for download).
  2. In the Modem tab, you should see a Location section. Select the country and city you are visiting.
  3. In the Phone Book section, you should see one or more dialin numbers for the selected location. Select one and click Connect.
  4. You should be prompted for login details. Enter your username, domain and password, then click OK.
  5. iPass will now establish a connection.
  6. The first time you use the iPass dialler, you should update the Phonebook. If this doesn't happen automatically, select Update Phonebook from the Options menu. This ensures you have a current list of POPs.

Using the iPass dialler in Australia

The iPass dialler can also be used within Australia to access AAPT POPs. When you select an Australian location, the dialler will make a normal connection, rather than a roaming connection. This makes the iPass dialler suitable for interstate travel. Note that if you are testing the dialler before travelling overseas, you should dial into the foreign POP, not a AAPT one.

Troubleshooting

Dial Properties
When you select a POP, the actual number to be dialled is displayed. Check that it is in the correct format. (ie. starts with 0011 + country code if you are testing from within Australia, or has no international and country codes if you are in the selected location.) Click the Dial Properties button to change your current location so the dialler can determine the correct number.

Modem settings
If you have more than one modem driver (Windows) or modem configuration (MacOS) installed, iPass will choose the default. You can change this by selecting Settings from the Options menu.


Email and proxy settings

Web Browsing

In most cases, you should be able to access web sites with no change to your existing settings. If you are unable to browse, the problem is likely to be one of the following:

Checking Email

You should be able to retrieve email without changing your email settings, because AAPT's mail server is accessible from anywhere on the Internet. If you retrieve mail from a different mail server (eg. if your company runs its own), it may or may not have access restrictions. You should check with your mail server administrator before travelling.

Sending Email

To minimise unsolicited email (SPAM), AAPT's mail server has restrictions on who can use it to send email. Normally this means you must be directly dialled into AAPT to send email. However, there is an exception: if you check for mail first, you should then be able to send email for a brief period (approx. one minute).

Some email clients, such as Netscape and Eudora, check for email before sending, so you should have no problem. Others, including Outlook and Outlook Express, try to send first, so they will fail. You should be able to tell your mail client to check without sending. In Outlook Express try: Tools -> Send/Receive -> Receive All.

Which server? Normally AAPT customers use a mail server like mail.example.com, where example.com is their domain name. When roaming, you can continue to use that mail server name, but you should enable SMTP authentication on your mail client (eg Outlook or Outlook Express) before you leave.

See our Email Configuration page if you need help with configuring up your mail program.


Obtaining Support

As mentioned earlier, it is advisable to test global roaming before you travel. This way you can be sure that your software and hardware is in working order, and you can discuss any issues with AAPT Support while you are in Australia. Note that to test properly, you must dial into the country you are planning to visit. Dialling into an Australian POP works differently to dialling into an overseas POP.

For iPass roaming, all support is handled by AAPT Support. If you need to call us from overseas, our international number is +61 3 8308 4400. If you are able to access the Internet, but encounter some sort of problem, you can email support@connect.com.au to lodge a support request.


Roaming Terms and Conditions

In addition to AAPT's standard Terms & Conditions and our Acceptable Use Policy, please note the following:




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