Difficulty: Medium - Hard
Time: ~20-30 minutes
As we promised, the Zune Non-US Character Hack is now here. No need for Zune dissembly, no need for anything hardware-related. This hack is all software. Now all Zuners, from the noobies to the skilled can get Korean, Japanses, and Chinese characters to display correctly on their Zunes without having to buy expensive zif enclosures. Ok, let's get started.
First off, you'll need some files that are necessary for this hack.
Zune.RE.zip - Download
Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 6 Update 2 - Download
Microsoft Cabinet Software Development Kit - Download
Zune Firmware v.1.2 - Download
Make sure these fonts exist in your computer. If not, you must download the East Asia Language Pack from Microsoft:
%systemroot%\fonts\gulim.ttc
%systemroot%\fonts\mingliu.ttc
%systemroot%\fonts\msgothic.ttc
%systemroot%\fonts\simsun.ttc
1. Run the Microsoft Cabinet Software Development Kit (cabsdk.exe) you have downloaded. When asked to unzip/extract, create a folder and extract the files into that folder.
2. Then, copy firmware 1.2 and "makearc.bat" from Zune.RE.zip into the folder "BIN" that was made from the Microsoft Cabinet Software Development Kit (MCSDK).
3. Run "makearc.bat," and wait a few minutes. You should see the following, and a new firmware called "Zune01050485.cab" should be made inside of the same folder:
4. Create another directory and copy "Zune01050485" firmware made in step 3, and "ZuneFirm.jar" from Zune.RE.zip into the directory. We will comeback to this step later.
5. Execute "ZunePatcher.exe" from Zune.RE.zip. Keep on clicking next until it asks for you to find the directory where your Zune program is installed, which is normally "C:\Program Files\Zune\." After, it should patch your Zune Software into thinking that your firmware needs to be updated.
6. Next go to your network setting, open up TCP/IP and change your DNS to 165.132.120.124. Then in cmd, ping go.microsoft.com to check if it's directed to yourself (127.0.0.1).
Now, we are ready to start the firmware update. First, go to the directory that was made in preparation step 6 and launch java -jar ZuneFirm.jar. You should see the following:
Next, turn your Zune on and reset it by pressing back+up for a few seconds. When the Zune logo appears, press back+left+center for a few seconds to format the hard drive. After you format, it will ask you to connect to a computer. Connect it. Open the Zune software, and something like “update time” and “Zune 1.5 firmware” will appear. (If it doesn’t load automatically start “Check for zune device update”)
Press Next and wait. You WILL get an error message, like below:
Press cancel. If you are on Vista, go to the following directory:
C:\Users\NAME\AppData\Local\Temp\{EEC098DC-FD4E-44B6-B2C4-0BA0E79D55B4}
If you are on XP, go to the following directory:
C:\Documents and Settings\NAME\Local Settings\Temp\{DCC90E02-B748-4CDA-9BD6-34E87CEBD20F}
Make sure you replace "Name" with your Windows Login Name. In the folder, there will be 3 bins, and the firmware we made called "Zune01050485.cab." Extract the Zune01050485.cab and try updating the Zune again. This time, there won't be any errors. Your Zune will reboot a few times, and the firmware will be downgraded to 1.2 and the fonts will be uploaded.
Return the DNS back to normal, and connect the Zune. It will ask you to update your Zune to 1.4. Go ahead, and update to 1.4--the fonts will remain on the Zune, and will not affect the hack.
Congratulations, you now have Unicode Support for Non-US characters.
For help and support, please go here.
Last updated: 9/9/07
