Sync error 0XC00D1244: Fix NS_E_PDA_SYNC_LOGIN_ERROR

Quick answer: Open Credential Manager, find the entry for your Microsoft account (under Windows Credentials), expand it, click Edit, and re-type your password. Then restart WMP and try syncing again.

You're trying to sync music, photos, or videos from Windows Media Player (WMP) to your portable device — maybe an old Zune, a Windows Phone, or even an Android device using WMP's sync feature. And you get this error: NS_E_PDA_SYNC_LOGIN_ERROR (0XC00D1244). I've seen this most often on Windows 10 and 11 after a Microsoft account password change, or after you've signed out of your account on another device. The core issue? WMP stores your login credentials locally, and those stored credentials are either expired, wrong, or corrupted. When WMP tries to authenticate with your Microsoft account to sync, it fails with this code.

Here's the fix, step by step. No registry edits, no reinstalling WMP — just clearing and re-entering the password.

Fix 1: Update your Microsoft account password in Credential Manager

1. Press Windows Key + R, type control, and press Enter. That opens the old-school Control Panel.
2. In Control Panel, set View by to Large icons (top right corner).
3. Click Credential Manager.
4. Click Windows Credentials (not Web Credentials).
5. Scroll down the list until you see entries that start with MicrosoftAccount: or WindowsLive:. There might be more than one — look for ones that match your email address, like MicrosoftAccount:user@outlook.com.
6. Click the arrow to expand that entry. You'll see fields like Internet or network address, User name, Password, and Persistence type.
7. Click Edit. A small window pops up.
8. In the Password field, delete the existing dots and type your current Microsoft account password exactly. Double-check for typos.
9. Click Save. You should see the window close and the entry update.
10. Close Credential Manager and Control Panel.
11. Restart Windows Media Player. Plug in your device, try syncing again.

After saving, the error should disappear. If you still see it, the stored credential might be from a different account or corrupted entirely.

Fix 2: Remove and re-add the credential

Sometimes editing isn't enough — the entry itself is broken. Here's how to start fresh.

1. Follow steps 1-5 from Fix 1 to get to the credential entry.
2. Expand the entry, then click Remove. A confirmation dialog appears — click Yes.
3. Repeat for any other MicrosoftAccount: or WindowsLive: entries that look old. Be careful not to remove generic ones like LegacyGeneric entries unless you're sure they're tied to WMP.
4. Close Credential Manager.
5. Open Windows Media Player. Go to Organize > Options > Devices tab.
6. Select your device from the list, click Properties.
7. Click the Sync tab. You'll see a link that says Sign in to your Microsoft account or Manage your account — click it.
8. Log in with your full email and password. This re-creates a fresh credential entry.
9. Click OK on all windows, restart WMP, and sync.

I've seen this work when the old credential was from a different account or had a bad password hash.

Alternative fix: Check your device's sync settings

This error isn't always about your PC's credentials. Sometimes the device itself has login info cached. On older devices (like a Zune or Windows Phone 7), go to Settings > Account or Sync and sign out, then sign back in with your Microsoft account. On modern Android devices using the Windows Media Player sync feature, check if the app is logged into the correct Microsoft account. If it's logged into a different account, you'll get this error even after fixing your PC credentials.

When nothing else works: Reset Windows Media Player

If you've tried both credential fixes and the device settings, and the error persists, reset WMP. This is rare, but I've seen it twice in ten years.

1. Close Windows Media Player.
2. Press Windows Key + R, type appwiz.cpl, press Enter.
3. Click Turn Windows features on or off on the left.
4. Scroll down, uncheck Media Features. Click OK. Windows will uninstall WMP and related components. Your PC will restart.
5. After reboot, go back to the same window and re-check Media Features. Click OK. Windows will reinstall WMP.
6. Open WMP, go through the initial setup again (select your music folder, etc.), then try syncing.

This wipes all WMP settings, including stored credentials. You'll lose your playlists and library settings, but it's a clean slate.

Prevention tip

This error shows up most often after you change your Microsoft account password. So before you change it, go into Credential Manager and note which entries are tied to WMP. After the password change, immediately update those entries. That way you won't hit this error at all. Also, if you use two-factor authentication (2FA), make sure you're using an app password for WMP or that your device supports OAuth — some older devices don't, and that's a whole different error.