I’m considering using PLEX on the following setup:
In reading through the instructions, it appears that I need to connect the client to the open Internet just to use my local network. Is that normally so? Can it be avoided?
Secondly where can I get the APK for the TV without using the Google store?
I believe not, which leaves DLNA. Not so pretty…
If that Sony uses our Smart TV app then the app cannot run at all without the internet.
If that Sony is an Android based one that uses our Android TV app and if your server is signed in/claimed then player apps will need to sign in and authenticate to access it. to sign in it requires the internet. You can enter the IP in “IPs that do not require authentication” in your servers network settings. You must also in the Android app tell it to allow insecure connections.
APKs are in the release announcement notes.
BigWheel thanks for that.
The TV won’t be Internet connected so it can’t be done that way. Useful information, saves me looking further.
Thanks SE56.
I’ve had issues with facilities disappearing as the Sony OS updates come through. I’ll have a look into the DLNA connection to see what can be done. If the client still needs an Internet connection to get started then it’s dead in the water.
DLNA is LAN only
Curiosity only, why the reluctance for a WAN connection? Is it privacy concerns or is it TV location to a Ethernet connection?
I have a perfect example… I’d love to be able to set up a Plex server at our cabin up in Northern Wisconsin. There is no internet service in the area, not even reliable mobile data. Unfortunately, this is not possible with Plex.
You can run a Jellyfin server concurrently and use the same media folders. The interface isn’t quiet as polished as Plex, but its FAR better than DLNA. The Jellyfin client will work happily with no internet as you give it a direct IP address to connect to, and you’ll have access to all your content with thumbnails and descriptions.
That’s what I did with my cabin up north. Works wonderfully.
sure it is and can be done with the Android app that is on his tv how I explained above. if the server is not signed in then the Android TV app does not need to sign in. and if the server is signed in (I thought maybe only his TV did not have internet) then just enter the TV’s IP in the field I mentioned previously and enable insecure connections.
this is my shield Android TV that is not signed in and those are my server libraries. (note the generic user avatar meaning there is no account signed in.)
See also
Are you saying that it won’t work through WiFi, only through ethernet cable? I have a WiFi network connection to the TV, where I sometimes watch the traffic. The TV is continually trying to connect to various things on the Internet (If I look at the Syslog every few seconds).
LAN = Local Area Network. it doesn’t matter if wifi or ethernet
Wifi is a LAN network, just wireless. There is also a Powerline option to give your Ethernet Wired
Example:
I’m not a believer in perpetual surveillance by Google and all the data brokers. It’s not easy in this time of Peeping Toms.
I experimentally connected a Bravia Smart-TV to the Internet once. The traffic that kicked off was astonishing.
On a PC I can control it. I might be able to on an Android TV, but I’m not going to spend the time to find out. (My guess is that with a fundamentally hostile OS it will be between hard and not-worth-doing.)
you asked for an APK in your first post which is Android. Your Sony may already run Android even if they have customized the homescreen.
I’m glad we’re using the same definitions here. I took that post to mean there is distinction for DLNA. (I did make it plain that the device was on my LAN.)
Yep the Bravia runs Android. I didn’t intentionally say anything other than that!
then why do you think it is not possible when i told you it was? maybe i was misreading
I’m sorry, I re-read and and I clearly misunderstood the first time. I thought you were saying the server had to be signed in in order to allow the client to connect unauthenticated. I probably shouldn’t have assumed what his server situation was, either. 
So if the server is not signed in, do you still need to specify the client IP address in the settings, or can any local client access it?
correct , if it is not signed in then you do not need to bother entering client IP in settings.
what trips most people up when trying to accomplish use without internet at all on server is that during the initial set up of server it asks if you want to set up remote access. if you check that box then it will bring you to sign in page because remote access does require sign in.
