Article ID: 927001 - Last Review: March 26, 2009 - Revision: 13.0

How to restore your Zune device software

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SUMMARY

This article describes how to restore your Zune device software. You may want to restore your Zune device software when the device does not operate as expected.

To view steps for more-specific issues, please visit the following Zune Web site:
http://zune.net/support/topissues.htm (http://zune.net/support/topissues.htm)

MORE INFORMATION

When possible, we recommend that you sync your Zune device with the Zune client software on your computer to back up any Zune Marketplace content before you perform the following steps. For more information about how to back up your content, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
952590  (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/952590/ ) How to back up content that you purchased from the Zune Marketplace
When you restore your Zune device software, the startup partition and the data partition are removed and rebuilt. In addition to removing the Zune device software, this process also erases all content, including music, videos, pictures, podcasts, friends, games, and audio books that are stored on the Zune device.
Warning To restore the Zune device software, you must have a Windows-based computer that has an Internet connection. That computer must have the Zune software installed. And you must be able to connect the Zune device to a USB port on that computer by using a Zune Sync Cable. Do not perform the following steps if you do not have any one or more of these things immediately available.

After you start to restore the Zune device software, you cannot again use the device until you complete all the steps. You will not receive any confirmation or warning on the Zune device after you start the following procedure.
To restore the Zune device software, follow these steps:
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1. Set the Hold Switch to unlocked.
2. Press and hold the Back button
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Back
while you press and hold the top of the Zune Pad. When the Zune device begins to power up, release the buttons.
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zune_restart
3. Immediately after you release the buttons in step 2, press and hold the following combination of buttons, depending on your Zune model:
- If you have the Zune 4GB, the Zune 8GB, the Zune 16GB, the Zune 80GB, or the Zune 120GB, immediately press and hold the Back button while you press both the Zune Pad and the Play/Pause button. Continue to hold these buttons until your Zune device restarts and "Please wait" appears on the screen.
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zune_gen2_restore
- If you have the 30GB Zune, immediately press and hold the Back button while you press both the left side of the Zune pad and the center of the Zune pad. Continue to hold these buttons until your Zune device restarts and "Please wait" appears on the screen.

Note "Clearing contents. Please wait" appears, followed by “Connect Zune to your PC."
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zune_gen1_restore
4. After “Connect Zune to your PC” appears, connect the Zune device to the computer that has the current Zune software installed, and then update the device to the current Zune device software.
For more information about how to update the device software on a Zune device, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
926770  (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/926770/ ) How to update your Zune device
This completes the restore process. After you give your Zune device a name and pick your sync option, you can again use the device.
APPLIES TO
  • Zune Digital Media Player
  • Zune software
  • Zune 4GB Digital Media Player
  • Zune 8GB Digital Media Player
  • Zune 16GB Digital Music Player
  • Zune 30GB Digital Media Player
  • Zune 80GB Digital Media Player
  • Zune 120GB Digital Media Player
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Keywords: 
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