Account Questions for Plex

Plex Media Server Desktops & Laptops
1

Server Version#: Latest on Ubuntu

Is Android the only client that requires a plex account?
I want to be able to have my FAM be able to connect their client without having to give them my Plex.TV signon…

As far as I can tell, samsung, PMP, and Roku register via the PIN number…
What about IOS, Fire, etc?

2

Why would you ever feel the need to give them your credentials?

Fire TV is the android client. The android client doesn’t require a Plex account. The iOS and local web app do not either. The others do.

If you are signed into your server then clients need to sign in. (for the ones that do not explicitly require sign in you need to manually enter IPs that do not require auth in network settings if you really don’t want android to sign in for some reason)

Personally I use the gmail trick for my parents. On Gmail you can add +something to username to make a new email that will go to your own email.

so for example if my regular gmail is bigwheel@gmail.com (it isn’t really) I made a Plex account with email bigwheel+parents@gmail.com and everything that is sent to that email will actually go to me at bigwheel@gmail.com. I just tell them the username and pass for that Plex account.

3

Good point on the google accounts… I was trying to work that out… I trust some Fam, and others a little less :slight_smile:
So… OPHT, Samsung, and PMS do not need an email account… they can be registered with a PIN.

I was curious with other clients can be connected with PIN only… vs needing an email.

Based on what you are saying, IOS uses PIN too… correct?

4

iOS does not use a PIN. I meant you can skip sign in on iOS.

The PIN is still signing into an account. i feel like there is some misunderstanding here or you are using Managed users in a way that is not intended.

5

Here is the difference…

  1. I did not realize/think about the google accoint thing you listed.
  2. Up till now, I was giving my FAM my plex admin account to sigh in (I only have 6 fam members using)
  3. Using PIN number does not require a email address… Also, I have to approve it (enter it into plex.tv/link), so that limits thier ability to add new devices
  4. My key concern is a fam member about to go to college, and I want to ensure she can only get on with her ipad, and cannot register the entire dorms machines :slight_smile:

Am I looking at this wrong? with PIN signon, they start the client, read me the PIN, I sign on with my admin account, and register them, if they try to do another deivce… whoops… they cannot

6

Actauly on #2… until recently. I have changed the password now.

7

That is still signing into your account. Every time they watch something it will be tracked on your account for example.

The only reason the PIN (link code) thing exists is because devices hooked up to TVs tend to have remotes that only have a few buttons so entering a PIN (link code) on another device is easier than entering a full email and password with a remote. It is not meant to sign in remote users into your own account.

My niece gave her password to a friend of hers once in college. I saw she was watching something from my server in a place I knew she was not. So I removed her share and she was like “what happened” and I was like “that share was for you, not your friends so you lost your access to my server”. I gave he back access like a month later and it has not happened since.

Also if you did not know In your network settings you can limit number of remote streams per user. which may help if your college bound fam understands they cannot watch something if someone else is on the same account watching something else.

8

I understand that it does sign onto the server…

Want to make sure I am not missing anything…??

  1. I have created a Managed Account with PIN in PMS under Home Users.
  2. the install for example, PMP… click the link in it, and it pops up a PIN number
  3. They get me on the phone, I enter the pin via Plex.TV (have not shared Acct and PW for the email address I use to log in), and now they have access to the things I have permitted.

Am I mistaken to think that no plex account (email) addresses were shared with them?

When I test that seems to be what is happening. However, since all of my devices have been previously registers, I am not 100% sure that something is not being cached, so My testing may not be right :slight_smile:

9

Item 2… is NOT PIN number… sorry… Link Code is what I means. I enter the LINK code in plex.tv/link

10

When you enter the link code at plex.tv/link they are signing into your account, not a managed user account. Yes they can switch to another account in the Plex Home after that if they know to with the user switcher.

I understand what you are doing but it was not meant to be used that way. The iOS or Android mobile clients don’t have the link code sign in because they have keyboards that a email/username and password can be easily entered with.

11

OK… that answers question on IOS… So I will have to get her ipad and register it myself if I dont want to share any account into, even and account I have created for her on plex.

I am not sure what I am missing on plex.tv/link understanding… If you register with a link, do you have access to the plex owners account and password?

Sorry if I am being thick here…

12

They don’t have access to your sign in credentials but they are signed into your account. The same as if you physically just signed into your account and gave them the device back.

In either case they need to take the additional step of opening up the user switcher and changing to their managed user account. You should add an account PIN to your account so they cannot switch back to your account.

13

thanks kindly :)… that confirms what I thought. Yes, I have a PIN on my account.

Not looking for NIST level security :slight_smile: – Just want to slow down shenanigans… I also watch the device list too, and have Tautulli…

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