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If your Windows Media Player media library becomes corrupted it will break the DarkMatter widgets. Here's how to spot and fix the problem.

Problem: widget will not display playlist during Windows Media Player 11 playback or will cease to function in iTunes mode or generally seem 'broken'.

Cause: the WMP media library has become corrupted or contains a single corrupt entry. This can happen for many reasons and will not usually prevent WMP from functioning properly. However, the widget reads the information across the entire media library, so corrupt entries will cause it to break.

Fix: you will need to clear and rebuild the media library. Rebuilding your library will not delete your music and video files, but it will clear all your entries so that you will need to add all your files again. You can read more about the issue on this Microsoft KB article.

Here are instructions on how to clear and rebuild the media library (Windows XP & Windows Media Player 11 only):

First step is to close Windows Media Player and the widget. If you are sharing your library with Media Center or XBOX 360 or any other network device, you'll need to turn that off. You can easily do that through the WMP options. Select the "Library" tab and click on the "Configure Sharing" button. Deselect the "Share my media" checkbox.

Next step is locating the library database. You'll be able to find it within this directory path:


C:\Documents and Settings\[user name]\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Media Player


replace [user name] with your specific user name.

You will see one or several files called CurrentDatabase_xxx and with the *.wmdb extension along with some folders. This is your media library database. It's a good idea to back it up. To do that, simply move the contents of that folder into another folder of your choosing. Moving the files might take a while depending on the size of your library.

Once you have done that, make sure the folder is completely empty and start Windows Media Player. This will automatically rebuild the library and you're all set.

When you run the widget you will see the default WMP playlists show up when clicking the playlist button. You can now add your files to Windows Media Player or choose to open them through the widget by using the 'Open Media Files' button (folder icon) or by drag & drop -- the widget accepts individual files or folders. The widget is designed to index (add) your files to the media library as it plays them, so you can repopulate your new library by simply playing your songs through the widget!