Remote-access Guide

what is plex remote access

by Devyn Ankunding Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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What does Plex remote access do?

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.

Is Plex remote access free?

Our mobile apps (Android and iOS) can be used for free, but have limitations. Until the mobile app is unlocked (through an in-app purchase or a Plex Pass subscription), video and music streamed from a Plex Media Server has a 1 minute limit, and photos will be watermarked.

Is Plex remote access secure?

Plex has teamed up with Let's Encrypt to provide our users with high-quality secure certificates for your media servers, at no cost to you. There's no need to set up VPNs and no need to create and install your own certs. You can safely and securely connect to your media no matter where you are.

How do I setup Plex server for remote access?

To do so: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.More items...•

How much does Plex cost a month?

$5 per monthPlex is available both as a free service and a premium tier it calls Plex Pass. While free tier doesn't bill you monthly, there's a $5-per-platform activation fee if you want to use the Plex Android and iOS apps. The Premium tier costs $5 per month, $40 per year or $120 for a lifetime pass.

Is Plex worth paying for?

Is Plex Pass worth it? Here are several reasons why you may not need the subscription. If you have lots of locally saved media on your computer, Plex is a must-have piece of software. Unlike Kodi, it's easy for beginners to set up and has apps available for every major operating system and media streaming device.

Can Plex see my files?

Your personal content is stored on your personal hardware (“Personal Content”). Except in the limited circumstances described below, we do not collect filenames or content titles of your Personal Content. We do, however, keep usage statistics to allow us to better serve you and improve our Services.

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.

Should I use a VPN with Plex?

If you're experiencing slow speeds when trying to stream your Plex videos, you could be a victim of ISP throttling. This can be avoided with a VPN for Plex as it safeguards all the data you send across the Internet using AES 256-bit encryption.

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.

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. On the other hand, the user can put illegally obtained content on their personal media server.

Is Plex server private?

Because what's on Plex servers is populated by people, most of the commercial content you'd find there is probably pirated. And this is the main tension of using Plex: while the software itself is explicitly legal, the media that populates its customer-run servers is not — at least the stuff protected by copyright law.

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.

How do I use a guest account on Plex?

0:472:43How to Add Plex Guest User Account - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clip4 click the grey enable guest button toward the top part of the screen if you don't have a pinMore4 click the grey enable guest button toward the top part of the screen if you don't have a pin associated with your account you'll be prompted to create one enter a four-digit pin.

What does Plex premium give you?

For example, Plex Pass subscribers get Premium Photos and Music options, including auto-tagging and automatic lyrics, support for Live TV via an antenna and tuner, and offline mobile syncing. Plex Pass also features multiuser support, a Timeline organizational view, and early access to new Plex features.

Is Plex server private?

Because what's on Plex servers is populated by people, most of the commercial content you'd find there is probably pirated. And this is the main tension of using Plex: while the software itself is explicitly legal, the media that populates its customer-run servers is not — at least the stuff protected by copyright law.

What happens when you double up a NAT system?

When a NAT system is doubled up with another NAT system, however, it can create issues for apps (like the Plex Media Server) that rely on UPnP to create automatic port forwarding rules. This occurs commonly when you have a router/modem combo supplied by your ISP and your own router plugged into that unit.

How to check if Plex is remote?

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 ...

Does Plex automatically handle connection data?

The Plex system automatically handles all the connection data as long as you are logged into the same Plex account on your media server and all your client devices. If you’re having issues, however, don’t worry–in the next section we’ll look at the most common issues and how to solve them.

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)

Does Plex Media Server work?

Plex Media Server generally works, by the magic of UPnP, right out of the box. But in those rare instances it doesn’t, it’s just a matter of applying a few simple tweaks to get your media server back online. READ NEXT.

Who is Jason Fitzpatrick?

Jason Fitzpatrick is the Editor in Chief of LifeSavvy, How-To Geek's sister site focused life hacks, tips, and tricks. He has over a decade of experience in publishing and has authored thousands of articles at Review Geek, How-To Geek, and Lifehacker.

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!

What is Plex

When we talk about Plex we refer to an application that we can install on our devices. Its mission is to allow us to centralize multimedia files in one place. For example movies and series and be able to watch them from another device.

How to configure Plex to enter from the Internet

This function will allow us to connect to our Plex server from anywhere , simply by having access to the Internet. We will not have to pay anything additional and it is an option that undoubtedly expands the possibilities of only limiting ourselves to having access from the local network.

Why access Plex remotely

We have explained how we can access Plex remotely and view all the content. However, you may be wondering what this feature is really for or how it improves to, for example, storing videos directly in a memory.

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.

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.

What is NAT used for?

NAT is usually used for sharing an internet connection with more than one computers. It is used in small and large scale alike. If you are manually forwarding port, you might have a conflict of Double-NAT, for example, you have a router plugged into a modem provided to you by your service provider. Here both, the modem and the router are providing NAT services.

What happens if you don't have a stable internet connection?

The same scenario also applies to the requesting computer; if you do not have a stable internet connection, you will not be able to request and stream media efficiently. First, you should check the number of devices running on your network (both the server and requesting computer).

Does Plex update itself?

Normally, Plex’s web application updates itself over time as you use it. The case is different in case of Ubuntu or other platforms where Plex is running. Below is the method on how to update Plex on an Ubuntu machine. You can easily google other methods for updating if you have it running on another platform.

Can you reserve an IP address in a router?

If you prefer to make changes in the router instead of the computer, you can manually reserve an IP in your router. This means that the IP will stay static and there will be no shuffling. Follow the method below to reserve an IP address:

How to Specify the Port Forward in Your Plex Server

In order to specify the port forward in your Plex server, you will need to access the port forwarding settings. First, click on the Plex icon in your browser menu bar. You should now see the home screen of your Plex server.

How to Forward a Port in Your Router

For detailed instructions on how to forward a port in your specific router, follow our guide by clicking on the link below.

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