Remote-access Guide

plex media server remote access authentication

by Astrid Rogahn Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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While logged into your Plex Media Server’s web control panel, select the Settings icon from the upper right toolbar. Within the Settings menu select, the “Server” tab. Then, from the left hand navigation pane, select “Remote Access”.

Full Answer

How do I enable remote access for Plex Media Server?

Click on the “CIDR Address” box, choose a Label name for the Resource, enter the private IP address of Plex (it’s listed under Plex Settings > Remote Access and is likely for the Port Restriction, and click “Add Resource”. Congrats! Your Plex Media Server is now enabled for secure remote access.

How do I authenticate my Plex server?

Authentication for local network access When your Plex Media Server is claimed or signed in to a Plex account, then all access to the server will require authentication by default. That means that you either need to be signed in with the server’s admin/owner account or with an account with which the server is shared.

Why is my Plex server not available outside my network?

If you enable remote access to your Plex Media Server and see an error message like “Not available outside your network”, then you have a little trouble shooting to do. It’s important to note that the Plex Media Server can still reach the internet (the server is signed in), but the Plex system can’t access your Plex server from the outside.

What is Plex Media Server and why should you use it?

One of the greatest things about the Plex Media Server platform, however, is the ease with which you can access your media from anywhere.

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Can you access your Plex server remotely?

Enable access to your Plex Media Server from outside your local network so that you can reach it when away from home or for sharing content with family or close, personal friends. You can do this under Settings > Server > Remote Access in Plex Web App.

How do I secure Plex remote access?

By default the Secure Connections on your Plex Media Server is set to preferred. Meaning there isn't even anything special you need to do unless you want it required at all times. Sign in to your Plex account in the server. Under Settings > Server > Network in the Plex Web App.

How do I authorize my Plex Media Server?

Plex Media Server Create, organize, and store your collections....Inspecting Your DevicesVisit plex.tv.If not already signed in, click Sign In and sign in to your Plex account.Once signed-in, click – the Plex Web App loads.Click then choose Authorized Devices.

How do I access Plex server from another computer?

To open the Plex Web App from a different device than the server computer while still on the same network: Open a browser window. Type http://server.local.ip.address:32400/web into the address bar (e.g “http://192.168.1.5:32400/web”) The browser will connect to the server and load Plex Web App.

Do you need Plex pass for remote access?

It's not true. All users can stream remotely providing you've configured your Plex Server correctly. Head to Settings > Remote Access > Enable Remote Access to set it up. In this regard, the Plex Pass is only useful if you're going to be in a place with no internet—it lets you save content directly onto your device.

Is Plex a security risk?

UPDATED Security researchers uncovered vulnerabilities in Plex that created a means for attackers to compromise devices or access private video or picture files on a vulnerable server.

How do I access someone else's Plex server?

Granting AccessUsername or Email. Enter the username or email address for the Plex account you wish to grant access and click continue. ... Select the Server. Plex Media Servers associated with your Plex account will be available. ... Set Restrictions and Inviting to Home (Plex Pass required) ... Pending Access.

Where do I find my Plex 4 digit code?

Assuming you do have an account, you can choose the Sign In button. You'll be presented with a 4-character code, which is what you'll use to connect the app with your Plex account.

How do I disable Plex authentication?

Trick One: Disable Plex Authentication on Your Local Network Select “Network” from the left-hand navigation bar. Scroll down the “Network” settings page until you see the entry for “List of IP addresses and networks that are allowed without auth”. You can populate the box with two different types of entries.

What is the IP address of my Plex server?

Find out the local IP address of the device on which the app is running. You will typically be able to find this in the device's system settings. In your Plex Web App, go to Settings > Server > Network .

Does Plex need a static IP?

A Public Static IP is not needed, largely because the AT&T "dynamic" address changes so infrequently that Plex will have no trouble tracking you down.

Does Plex require port forwarding?

To make the most of Plex and get direct access to Plex's servers, you will need to set up port forwarding on your router.

How do I secure Plex remote access Reddit?

Don't port forward plex.Get a domain.Setup a webserver (nginx) and certbot for SSL certificates.Setup cloudflare for proxy and use their firewall rules to block non US based IPs and know bots.Setup your firewall to open port 443, but only allow incoming requests from a cloudflare IP.Disable remote access in Plex.More items...•

Why does Plex remote access keep disconnecting?

In some cases, you may have a firewall or something else on your computer/network that may be blocking a network connection that's required for Plex and your server to test whether Remote Access is working correctly for you.

How do I allow insecure connections in Plex?

However, if the server you're connecting to is remote, you'll need to change the Plex settings on your TV to allow for insecure connections. To do this, go to settings and find the “Advanced” section. Set “Allow Insecure Connections” to “Always” as seen below.

How do I secure my connection to the server?

Secure Server ConnectivityEstablish and Use a Secure Connection. ... Use SSH Keys Authentication. ... Secure File Transfer Protocol. ... Secure Sockets Layer Certificates. ... Use Private Networks and VPNs. ... Monitor Login Attempts. ... Manage Users. ... Establish Password Requirements.More items...•

How to make an exception on Plex?

To make an exception, look in your Plex Media Server’s advanced network settings, under Settings > Server > Network > List of IP addresses and networks that are allowed without auth. Here, you can specify LAN addresses as either a specific IP or a IP/netmask (to specify a range). Separate multiple values by a comma and be sure not ...

Why is it important to allow only authorized access to a network?

This helps keep your server, computer, and network safe, because only authorized access is allowed by default. In rare cases, you may decide that you wish to allow very specific access from the local network without authentication.

Does Plex require authentication?

Authentication for local network access. When your Plex Media Server is claimed or signed in to a Plex account, then all access to the server will require authentication by default. That means that you either need to be signed in with the server’s admin/owner account or with an account with which the server is shared.

How to check if Plex is disabled?

While logged into your Plex Media Server’s web control panel, select the Settings icon from the upper right toolbar. Within the Settings menu select, the “Server” tab.

How to set up static IP address on Plex?

You’ll need to identify your Plex Media Server computer on the network and then look for an option in your router to create a “static IP”, “static lease”, or “DHCP reservation” to permanently associate the Plex Media Center with a given IP address. Below you can see an example of what adding a static IP address looks like, via our DD-WRT router.

How to port forward on Plex?

First, let’s turn on the manual port mode in Plex. To do so navigate to Settings > Server > Remote Access (as we did in the previous section of the tutorial).

What does the control panel indicate on Plex?

In addition to telling you that the server is accessible, the control panel will also indicate the internal IP address and port number of the Plex Media Server on your local network as well as external, or public, IP address and port number.

Can you use Plex Media Server on a TV?

If you primarily use Plex Media Server for watching content on your local network (like streaming your favorite shows to your HDTV or smartphone), you may not have given much though to the benefits of remote access. RELATED: How to Set Up Plex (and Watch Your Movies on Any Device)

Can you watch Plex on your phone?

One of the greatest things about the Plex Media Server platform, however, is the ease with which you can access your media from anywhere. With remote access enabled and properly configured, you can watch your favorite TV shows anywhere you have internet access: on your phone while you’re sitting in a waiting room, on your laptop while you’re vacationing, or even on a smart TV at a friend’s house.

Can you disable remote access on Plex?

During the initial setup of the Plex Media Server, the setup wizard prompts you to enable or disable remote access. While the default state is enabled, you may have opted at the time to disable remote access, or perhaps you inadvertently disabled it while messing around with the system settings later on. Regardless, it’s easy enough to check the status of remote access and enable it if it is currently disabled.

Plex remote access not working?

Plex offers a remote access feature that relies on port forwarding, but the configuration may not always work or there may be other common issues like Double-NAT, resulting in an error like the screenshot below.

Prerequisites

The rest of this guide assumes that you have some components already installed. If you’ve already installed Plex, WSL, and Docker on your Windows PC, skip ahead to “Sign up for Twingate” below. If not, please following these instructions first.

Sign up for Twingate

Twingate Starter is a new free plan that is designed for home and personal use. If you don’t have an account already, please click here and follow the simple steps to sign up for a Starter account and begin the initial setup.

Add a Connector

After completing the steps above, you should now have a Starter account with a Remote Network set up. The next step is to deploy a Twingate Connector, which is a piece of software that allows for secure access to your remote network and the devices connected to it.

Add a Resource

You’ve now set up a Connector on your Windows PC, which enables remote access to Plex, or other services that you’re running on your computer (called a “Resource” in Twingate).

Download the Twingate client

All that’s left to do now is to install Twingate on your devices (we support Windows, Mac, Linux and have apps for iOS and Android) and access your Plex Media Server from anywhere. As an example, let’s walk through setting things up on iOS.

Sharing is Caring

Do you want to share access with a family member? You can easily do this from the Twingate web UI. Just go to the Team tab and click “Invite User” to send an email invitation. The recipient would simply follow the same steps to download the Twingate client, join your network, and get access to Plex, or any other resource you set up!

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What is the Plex Token?

The Plex token is used to authenticate a device with your Plex server. When you are signed into your Plex Media Server, you are assigned a generated token. This token is used to authenticate your device with your Plex server. This replaces having to provide your user ID and password with each request you make to Plex.

Where to get the Plex token?

Once you are signed into your Plex Media Server as an admin, it is easy to get the Plex token. To get the token, use the following steps:

Regenerating a new token

You may need to make the tokens associated with your Plex server invalid. Since they are used to authenticate to your server, you may have found one that is being misused. Making your tokens invalid isn’t something most users will need to do – I haven’t had a need myself, but the option is available.

The server Plex Token

The above sections discussed the Plex tokens that can be created to authenticate devices to Plex. There is also another token that authenticates your Plex server to your Plex account.

PSA: Don't forget to back up!

Just a friendly reminder to back up your Plex data. There are 2 kinds of people in the world, those that backup and those who will lose their data. I lost my Plex Server computer this week. As I used external storage, all my movies, Shows, etc are still there, but all my Plex posters, collections, watched history, added subtitles, etc.

Reminder: Plex Meta Manager exists as a super easy way to configure and back up custom metadata

Like most people on this subreddit, I've spent a ton of time over the years curating my content and metadata to achieve an aesthetic that fits my library to my users' needs.

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