Leap Year Bug Disables Microsoft Zune Music Players

Has your Microsoft Zune music player suddenly stop working? You aren't the only one. Today, Microsoft stated that a glitch disabled thousands of Zune players because of a bug in the device's internal clock driver which is affected by leap years. Microsoft stated that the problem only affects the 30Gb Zunes and no other devices were known to be affected. The issue should be resolved as the device moves into January 1st. Microsoft is advising customers to allow the battery to run completely down before recharging to make sure the device resets properly.

"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, and then turn it back on," Matt Akers of Microsoft Zune said. "If youre 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." Microsoft also said they plan to fix the bug so that when the next leap year comes around in 2012 the issue should not occur again.

If you must have your music working by Midnight then a Microsoft Support Engineer, Corey Gouker, has provided instructions on how to manually address the issue before then. Be warned, these instructions instruct you to open your Zune player which will void your warranty.

Update: Microsoft has provided customers with some feedback and information on the Zune Site.