Remote-access Guide

plex server remote access forever loading

by Dr. Cyrus Bechtelar MD Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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How do I remote access my Plex server?

Remote Access. 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.

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.

How to set up port forwarding for Plex Media Server?

To do so, you need to tell Plex Media Server you wish to manually specify the port number, and then, at the router level, assign a static IP address to your Plex Media Server computer and create a port forwarding rule.

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Why is remote access not working Plex?

Open Plex Web App and make sure you're signed in to your Plex account on the server under Settings > Server > General. Go to Settings > Server > Remote Access. If needed, toggle the Show Advanced button to ensure the appropriate options are visible. Enable the Manually specify public port checkbox.

Why does Plex take so long to load?

When your Plex playback keeps buffering and lagging, the first thing is to check if you're on Ethernet or Wi-Fi. Plex will detect the bandwidth automatically. If the internet is not strong enough for the media to work with, and the client has been set up to play maximum, then it will try to cram through whatever huge.

Does Plex require UPnP?

Plex Media Server generally works, by the magic of UPnP, right out of the box.

How long does Plex take to load?

Running plex normally with windows it will start up in about 30 second max, and the web interface is available. When I use it as a service it takes > 5 minutes just for the web interface to become available.

How do I make Plex load faster?

Go back to Settings > Settings > Remote Access and scroll down until you get to Internet upload speed. You can set your internet's maximum speed by populating the next box. Underneath, you can set how much of the maximum capacity Plex is allowed to use. Expand the drop-down menu to make your choice.

Why does my Plex server keep buffering?

If you've made sure that you've set your Plex App appropriately but you still have buffering issues, the cause is likely that your Plex Media Server is struggling to be able to transcode content fast enough for you. Check the Transcoding Speed.

Should I enable DLNA on Plex?

DLNA server timeline reporting Allow playback via DLNA to report timeline activity. This means that the Plex Media Server will track the current progress through the item. This should typically be enabled.

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 UDP or TCP?

The most important port to make sure your firewall allows is the main TCP port the Plex Media Server uses for communication: TCP: 32400 (access to the Plex Media Server) [required]

Is Plex legal?

Plex is perfectly legal whenever you're streaming from their server or whenever you upload personal media that was acquired and reproduced legally.

How do I refresh Plex server?

Here is how to force a refresh in Plex and generally manage your media. The Plex Media Server uses a database to manage all your media....Force a refresh in PlexGo to the main screen where your libraries are listed on the left.Select the '…' icon in the top of the left pane.Select Refresh All Metadata.

How do I access Plex server from browser?

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.

What is Plex optimize database?

The Optimize Database option cleans up the server database from unused or fragmented data. For example, if you have deleted or added an entire library or many items in a library, you may like to optimize the database. Confirmation is given once the optimization for the server is complete.

How do I download movies from Plex to watch offline?

If you're logged into the same Plex account as you use on your Plex Media Server, the Download action in the web app lets you download the source file to the machine you're using. To do this: Open the Item detail view. Click and select Download.

Why is Plex server error?

This usually occurs because Plex is a heavy application with numerous parameters going on simultaneously. If any one of these gets into an error state or load a bad configuration, it might be unusable.

Why is Plex not working?

There are many instances where several bugs are induced into the Plex application which causes it not to work as expected. Software all around us get updates every once in a while and sometimes these updates are not compatible with Plex. Hence its engineers roll out an update targeting this issue solely.

What is an advanced firewall?

Like mentioned before in the causes, advanced firewalls are notorious for blocking connection streams which are sent by Plex media server and are necessary in order for it to work properly. These advanced firewalls include pfsense or similar products.

Why does Plex Media Server buffer?

This scenario usually occurs when your internet connection is not sound which forces the server to use less bandwidth in order to provide access to the media.

What is plex media?

Plex is a client-server media stream and software suite. It has a Plex Media Server desktop application which is available on Windows, Ubuntu, and macOS. This applications allows you to organize different media files in your computer and allows players over the internet to access them if given the correct credentials.

How to find my router's IPv4 address?

Find and note down your router’s External IPv4 address/WAN. You can easily find this in the status page present in your router settings.

How to run ncpa.cpl?

Press Windows + R, type “ ncpa.cpl ” in the dialogue box and press Enter.

Can't access Plex server on LAN?

Cannot access server on LAN. Should you be unable to access the Plex server on the network as well as outside the home or office, you may have a misconfiguration of your NAS, which may include discrepancies between the router or access point and the unit.

What is Plex Media Server?

Installing the server software on a PC or NAS can turn your home or office into a connected hub that can stream all kinds of media. Unfortunately, things can go wrong, so I rounded up some common issues and solutions that can help you get back on track.

What is a Plex plug and play?

Universal Plug and Play (uPnP) can be enabled to allow Plex to "talk" with the router and have ports and routes opened up for access from the outside world. Or you can go down the manual route by opening up a port yourself.

Can you ignore Plex updates?

One thing many people seem to sometimes ignore is updates, be it on the smartphone, PC or on a server. The Plex server is something you're likely to set up and forget, but you really do need to remain on top of things, especially if you encounter a problem that has already been fixed in a newer release. The first step to carry out is a version check. Follow this process:

Is it hard to put together a Plex server?

Putting together a Plex server isn't difficult, especially with some killer NAS units that can do all the hard work for you. When it comes to storage, you should always look at picking up one of these hard drives.

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 it mean when a server says "Not available outside network"?

If your server is currently not configured for remote access, it will say “Not available outside your network” as seen above. Click the large orange button that reads “Enable Remote Access”.

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.

fletchto99 commented on Feb 16, 2016

Running plex normally with windows it will start up in about 30 second max, and the web interface is available. When I use it as a service it takes > 5 minutes just for the web interface to become available. Is this due to a miss configuration in my plex server settings? The text was updated successfully, but these errors were encountered:

cjmurph commented on Feb 16, 2016

Is it running under the same user account when run as a service vs normally? where is the media located? where is the plex library located? The service simply starts plex just like you would normally, but it does run in session 0 with different resources available (no mapped drive letters for example).

cjmurph commented on Feb 16, 2016

So this is all with the same user account? Have you moved the plex library files out of the users folder or have you left them in the default location? Personally I think I'd be looking at the plex logs not the service logs.

fletchto99 commented on Feb 16, 2016

Yeah they are all on the same user @cjmurph. I will attempt doing what you just recommended! Will report back shortly

fletchto99 commented on Feb 16, 2016

Found the issue. After double checking the logs (like you recommended) and doing a few tests I noticed that when running plex by myself it would open up iTunes but also be instantly available. When running as a service it wouldn't open iTunes (which makes sense).

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