Any Thoughts? Can No Longer Stream Any Video Media, Only Music

Plex Media Server NAS & Devices
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Server Version#: 1.40.1.8227
Player Version#: 8.33 (iPhone)
<If providing server logs please do NOT turn on verbose logging, only debug logging should be enabled>

Wondering if anyone has any insight into why I am receiving this message. For a little context, I assumed that I was receiving this because my QNAP hard drives were full; I did check, and they were almost full. Since I discovered that, I have been watching content like crazy, as well as deleting a lot of old stuff to free up space. Two issues: it doesn’t seem like the space is reflecting the deletions I am making (i.e. the available space does not appear to be increasing as I delete stuff) and and I know for a fact that there is less content available on the hard drives than a while back when there were more items on the hard drives and it was working fine, so it’s not making sense. (Also, yes, I have been emptying the recycling bin on my QNAP)

The only thing I could come up with was to do a full reset of my QNAP to see if this fixed this issue - although I have not done this yet. (I have been moving allll of my content to an online storage space over the past couple of days as a back up for all of my content, so I’m not worried about content lost.

I guess Im wondering is it pointless for me to go through a full reset, having to re-set up my whole Plex server, etc. or is this not connected to the problem at hand? And obviously, if it’s not connected, if anyone knows what the actual problem is and why I’m dealing with this.

Also: I can stream just fine when connected to my home wifi, but when I disconnect from my wifi on my iPhone and attempt to stream, I am unable to. Attached is a screenshot showing the message I receive when attempting to do so.

IMG_2842.PNG
IMG_2842.PNG480×1041 44.4 KB

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Plex displays the “Not enough CPU…” message when it needs to transcode the file and (a) video transcoding is disabled or (b) the CPU is not powerful enough to do so.

Is Disable video stream transcoding checked in Settings → Transcoder?

Try playing the file with subtitles turned off.

If you still get the message, attach a set of debug (not verbose) level server log files that capture the problem.


There could be several reasons for the message:

a) Plex needs to transcode the video for some reason (bandwidth limitation, incompatible codec, etc.) and cannot do so.

b) Plex cannot direct play/stream the subtitle and must burn it into the video. Subtitle burning requires transcoding and uses the CPU. If the CPU is not powerful enough, playback will fail.

c) Something else.

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I just checked, ‘Disable Video Stream Transcoding’ is checked currently. Should it not be? Also, I’d like to say that I haven’t changed any settings at all from when things were working perfectly, so if it’s changed from what it once was, I have no idea how lol

Tried playing with subtitles off, still same issue so I’m attaching the server log. Hopefully that helps.
Plex Media Server Logs_2024-03-22_12-01-57.zip (3.6 MB)

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From Plex Media Server.log:

Mar 22, 2024 12:00:58.047 [140263854893880] DEBUG - [Req#6c794/Transcode] Streaming Resource: Calculated bandwidth of 8810kbps exceeds bandwidth limit. Changing decision parameters provided by client to fit bandwidth limit of 720kbps
...
Mar 22, 2024 12:00:58.057 [140263854893880] DEBUG - [Req#6c794/Transcode] Streaming Resource: Reached Decision id=12259 codes=(General=2000,Neither direct play nor conversion is available. Direct Play=3001,Not enough bandwidth for direct play of this item. Required bandwidth is 8810kbps and only 720kbps is available. Transcode=4002,Not enough CPU for conversion of this item.)

Plex Media Server needed to transcode The Animal Kingdom to get under a bandwidth limit. You’ve video transcoding disabled, so playback failed.

Uncheck Disable Video Stream Transcoding. Your system has a Celeron N5105 CPU and you’ve a Plex Pass. Plex can take advantage of the Intel UHD Graphics and use hardware accelerated transcoding when necessary.

In Settings → Transcoder:

  • Transcoder Quality = Automatic
  • Enable HDR tone mapping = checked
  • Disable video stream transcoding = NOT CHECKED
  • Use hardware acceleration when available = checked
  • Use hardware-accelerated video encoding = checked
  • Hardware Transcoding Device = Intel UHD Graphics (not Auto)

Also, when streaming remotely, the iPhone is connecting via Plex Relay, not via Remote Access. This limits the connection to 2 Mbps (which is why Plex must transcode the video).

If you previously had remote access working, review the configuration and make sure it is still working correctly.

If you’ve not configured remote access, do so if possible. Remote streaming will use more bandwidth and have a higher picture quality.

QUESTION: Are you using a VPN on the QNAP?

The public IP address of the NAS captured in the log files changed several times, which can happen when connecting/disconnecting a VPN. Plex and VPNs do not always play nice together. If using a VPN, it will require additional configuration for Plex Remote Access to work correctly (split tunneling or port fowarding).

Remote Access

Troubleshooting Remote Access

The Basics of Remote Access Troubleshooting

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Hey, I will try those suggestions and get back to you and yes, I am using a VPN.

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Not sure what happened, when or why, as far as it once playing fine and it stopping, but selecting/deselecting the preferences you indicated fixed the issue. Thank you so much for your help! You’re awesome! I appreciate you

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