OK, so, after three rounds of emails telling me my subscription had expired (it hadn't), many attempts to uninstall and reinstall only to get "oops- there was a problem..." and the better part of an entire workweek wasted on the phone being shunted all over
Asia and South America, mine is actually now working, at least for the time being.
I don 't know that other people's problems are being caused in the same way, but if you signed up for a free trial like I did (big mistake) and then tried to jump over to a permanent license, the problem is that you have to fully delete the trial software before
permanent setup, which is virtually impossible without some top-secret, classified removal tool (available at http://support.microsoft.com/kb2739501) - I'd found it prior to my calls, but it did not work
either) you need clearance to use.
If you've had problems and started all over again, then it will think you have multiple licenses or versions of the software as well; in fact, I suspect that even if you've had some other or older software that you've been running, it STILL thinks you have duplicate,
conflicting programs. Here's how I finally fixed it:
- Call Microsoft and have them set you up with a "Case Number." Do not lose this number - your life might depend on it. They will send you around and around to various "technicians" who you are assured will help you. Yell at them.
2. Lose patience with said "technicians," hang up and call 800-865-9408. Tell them the nature of your problem (here's where the case number comes in). They will connect you with yet another technician. Demand to speak with a supervisor. Be insistent;
tell them how frustrated you are and that if your problem is not resolved by the end of this phone call, you'll find other software, go to the news media and maybe team up with some good class action lawyers (seriously, I told them this).
- If this method doesn't work, hang up again and try calling 866-449-7320. By this time you should have come to be able to recite the exact nature of your problem in your sleep; if you're lucky you can accomplish the rest while getting some shuteye. If
not, be insistent; make clear to them that the problem is NOT DIAGNOSTIC - you know what's wrong - the problem is that THEIR SOLUTIONS DO NOT WORK. If they want to go through their "troubleshooting" process again, that's fine, but you've already been through
dozens of times so can they kindly allow you to just put them on hold on a speakerphone while they run their diagnostics?
- Sit back, relax, have a cup of coffee and watch your favorite TV show. About 45-60 minutes later, they will reappear and help you by giving you an ISP address and a code to access a page, which will in turn enable you to find some other ISP address,
where you will click on a link and they will run the uninstall tool. The process will then take about half an hour to uninstall and then reinstall from your dashboard.
I hope this helps - good night and good luck!
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