Any Zune 30GB owners?

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12-31-2008
Pistons < Spurs

Any Zune 30GB owners?

Microsoft better fix my shit!

Quote:

Right, so this is a weird one: we're getting tons of reports—tons—about failing Zune 30s. Apparently, the players began freezing at about midnight last night, becoming totally unresponsive and practically useless.

The crisis has been dubbed by Zune users 'Y2K9', due to the apparently synchronized faceplantings across the country. According to tipster Michael, the Zune users experienced something like this:

Apparently, around 2:00 AM today, the Zune models either reset, or were already off. Upon when turning on, the thing loads up and... freezes with a full loading bar (as pictured above). I thought my brother was the only one with it, but then it happened to my Zune. Then I checked out the forums and it seems everyone with a 30GB HDD model has had this happen to them

This report is consistently corroborated by literally hundreds of others across the various Zune support and fan forums.

What hasn't emerged yet, largely due to the fact that MS's support lines aren't yet open for the day, is why these devices are failing. The evidence seems to point to a software glitch, but simple resets aren't providing any relief. Some reports indicate that only Zunes with the latest firmware are affected, but this hasn't yet been confirmed.

The proximity of the events to the New Year, which inspired the Y2K9 moniker, provides little more than a colorful backdrop; it's unlikely that the switching of years in the Zune's internal calendar has anything to do with the failures (besides, it hasn't even happened yet).

If not for the uniform representation of events across the internet, I'd be tempted to suspect this as a hoax, but it just doesn't look that way. The story, assuming the described problem is of the magnitude reported, will probably take a turn for the large when the majority of Zuners start waking up. Let us know about your experiences in the comments.

http://gizmodo.com/5121311/reports-3...re-all-at-once
12-31-2008
robino2001

Re: Any Zune 30GB owners?

I have one but yesterday was the one time I've ever left it at work... I hope at least. I tore up the house this morning looking for it to go run with but I never found it. I don't remember leaving work with it - so I can't check to see if this is happening to mine.

Unless by being "totally unresponsive and practically useless" they mean disappearing out of my site to where I can't fuckin find it... then yes, it's true
12-31-2008
leemajors

Re: Any Zune 30GB owners?

i would imagine if it can't be fixed with a hard reset you're hosed until a repair or a software update... :lmao
12-31-2008
Pistons < Spurs

Re: Any Zune 30GB owners?

Quote:

Originally Posted by leemajors

i would imagine if it can't be fixed with a hard reset you're hosed until a repair or a software update... :lmao

I don't think it'll be as easy as a software patch as it's completely locked up. Snycing it does absolutely nothing, so it can't download any new firmware :(

They'll probably have us ship it in and then send us refurbed units :(
12-31-2008
Pistons < Spurs

Re: Any Zune 30GB owners?

Problem Fixed ... or will be by tonight.

Quote:

Hi guys,

I just got an update from the team that I want to share with you. Great news! It looks like this issue will resolve itself over the next 24 hours. Please read the response below. Thank you all for your extreme patience with this!

-Matt

=-=-=-=

Early this morning we were alerted by our customers that there was a widespread issue affecting our 2006 model Zune 30GB devices (a large number of which are still actively being used). The technical team jumped on the problem immediately and isolated the issue: a bug in the internal clock driver related to the way the device handles a leap year. The issue should be resolved over the next 24 hours as the time change moves to January 1, 2009. We expect the internal clock on the Zune 30GB devices will automatically reset tomorrow (noon, GMT). By tomorrow you should allow the battery to fully run out of power before the unit can restart successfully then simply ensure that your device is recharged, then turn it back on. If you’re a Zune Pass subscriber, you may need to sync your device with your PC to refresh the rights to the subscription content you have downloaded to your device.

Customers can continue to stay informed via the support page on zune.net (zune.net/support).

We know this has been a big inconvenience to our customers and we are sorry for that, and want to thank them for their patience.

Q: Why is this issue isolated to the Zune 30 device?

It is a bug in a driver for a part that is only used in the Zune 30 device.

Q: What fixes or patches are you putting in place to resolve this situation?

This situation should remedy itself over the next 24 hours as the time flips to January 1st.

Q: What’s the timeline on a fix?

The issue Zune 30GB customers are experiencing today will self resolve as time changes to January 1.

Q: Why did this occur at precisely 12:01 a.m. on December 31, 2008?

There is a bug in the internal clock driver causing the 30GB device to improperly handle the last day of a leap year.

Q: What is Zune doing to fix this issue?

The issue should resolve itself.

Q: Are you sure that this won’t happen to all 80, 120 or other flash devices?

This issue is related to a part that is only used in Zune 30 devices.

Q: How many 30GB Zune devices are affected? How many Zune 30GB devices were sold?

All 30GB devices are potentially affected.

Matt Akers
Zune Product Team

http://forums.zune.net/408989/ShowPost.aspx