Android TV - Server is not powerful enough to convert, try original quality

General Discussions
1

Hello,

I have been using plex for a very long time, my server is running Ubuntu Server 15.10 and I stream to a Nexus Player running Android TV. As of a couple of weeks ago playback has been awful, I get the “Server is not powerful enough” message multiple times when streaming a movie/tv show and playback stops. Both the server and client are up to date, I have tried multiple different transcoding settings and they don’t make a difference. The CPU on my server never goes above 10% so I know it isn’t a resources issue on the server. I have searched through all of the forums and haven’t found anything that has worked, most of the posts are for the RP 2. I am streaming the original quality of the files, which is typically 1080p. I have lowered the quality of the streams and I get the same error. I love Plex, but at the moment I am unable to stream media because of this error repeatedly happening. I have attached my logs, it looks like the transcoder is getting hung up on a section and then kills the stream and transcoder.

Troubleshooting Steps Taken

  • Reinstalled PMS
  • Reinstalled Plex for Android TV
  • Rebooted both devices
  • Tried multiple transocoding settings

Thank you and let me know if you need anything else

2

Can you post the XML for a piece of media that gives you this message?
See: https://support.plex.tv/hc/en-us/articles/201998867-Investigate-Media-Information-and-Formats

Here is the support page for the message your getting
https://support.plex.tv/hc/en-us/articles/205002628-Why-do-I-get-the-This-server-is-not-powerful-enough-to-convert-video-message-
Here

3

Please see attached, keep in mind this happens for all of my video files.

4

I believe I found the culprit and am ashamed I didn’t check it first. My 2TB drive failed today, which just so happened to store all of the media. This has been resolved.

Plex Users: If you are having streaming issues like mine above, check your hard drives!

5

@dslauter said:
I believe I found the culprit and am ashamed I didn’t check it first. My 2TB drive failed today, which just so happened to store all of the media. This has been resolved.

Plex Users: If you are having streaming issues like mine above, check your hard drives!

This is where a NAS that constantly monitors drive health and SMART status, and emails you at the first sign of concern, is worthwhile. :wink: