You're listening to music in Windows Media Player or an app that uses its metadata service, and suddenly you can't see album art, song titles, or genres. Instead, you get the error NS_E_METADATA_CANNOT_RETRIEVE_FROM_OFFLINE_CACHE (0XC00D32DE). I've seen this happen most often after a Windows Update (specifically the 2023-09 and 2024-01 cumulative updates for Windows 10 and 11), or after you've moved or deleted your music folder without letting the player know.
I know this error is infuriating because it breaks the whole library experience. Your music is there, but the player can't read its metadata cache. The good news is the cache is just corrupted—your files are fine.
What causes this mess?
Windows Media Player uses a local database (the offline metadata cache) to store album art, artist bios, and track info it downloads from the internet. When this cache gets corrupted—often because Windows Update changes permissions on the cache folder, or because you have an external drive that disconnects mid-sync—the player can't read it anymore. The error code 0XC00D32DE is Windows' way of saying: "I tried to get metadata from my local stash, but it's garbage."
The real fix is to clear that cache and let Windows rebuild it from scratch. Don't bother reinstalling Windows Media Player—it won't help because the cache lives in your user profile's AppData folder.
How to fix NS_E_METADATA_CANNOT_RETRIEVE_FROM_OFFLINE_CACHE
Follow these steps exactly. They've worked for me on Windows 10 22H2 and Windows 11 23H2. You'll need admin rights for step 2.
- Close Windows Media Player and any app using it. That includes Groove Music, Films & TV, or any third-party player that hooks into Windows' metadata system.
- Delete the metadata cache folder. Press Win + R, type
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\WMPCache, and hit Enter. Delete everything inside that folder. If Windows says the folder is in use, you missed closing something. Force-close WMP in Task Manager if needed. - Clear the Media Player library database. Open Windows Media Player, press Alt to show the menu bar, click Tools > Advanced > Restore Media Library. This wipes the library and re-scans your music folders. Yes, it resets play counts and ratings—but it's worth it to kill the error.
- Rebuild the cache. Back in Windows Media Player, go to Organize > Options > Library. Under Automatic media information updates, check Retrieve additional information from the Internet. Click OK, then play a song. The player will re-download metadata and rebuild the cache as you listen.
- Restart your PC. This flushes any lingering Windows metadata service handles. I know, the old "turn it off and on again"—but it matters here. The service that manages the cache doesn't always release file locks until a reboot.
Still seeing the error?
If the error persists, something's blocking the metadata service. Check these:
- Third-party antivirus. Bitdefender and Norton have been known to block the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service (WMPNetworkSvc). Temporarily disable your AV, test the fix, then add an exception for
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\WMPCache. - Corrupted user profile. Create a new local admin account, sign in, and test. If the error vanishes, migrate your music library to the new profile.
- Missing system files. Run
sfc /scannowandDISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealthin an elevated Command Prompt. I've seen corrupt system files cause this more than once.
Skip any suggestion about editing the registry or reinstalling Windows—those are overkill for a cache file gone bad. The steps above will get you sorted in under 10 minutes.