Roles and permissions

Moodle 1.8.4, Using IMAP Aithentication from our mail server. Users can log in, it creates the user, lets them update their profile info, and grants them access to the system. The problem is it doesn't assign them the default role of student, or anyting else I define in the default roles section, I tried Authenticated Users, still no dice.

The way I understand it should assign them to the default role of student if I set it as such in the user policies Screen.

What is happening is it doesn't assign them to a role of any kind, and also when they go to a course it doesn't ask if they want to be enrolled in the course, and lets them do everything automatically. I have to go in and manually add them to the Student Role globally or in that course, for the results of any exams etc to show up inthe gradebook.

Our system is just being used for company competencies and we want all authenticated users to be able to log in and self enroll in the course they need at that time. Then take the Quizzes and have it post to the gradebook.

This used to work but i cannot figure out why it's not now.

Thanks

Kevin