# Compilations not recognized **URL:** \ **Category:** Metadata & Adding Files\ **Tags:** server-qnap, metadata, music\ **Created:** [February 14, 2026, 4:10pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370 "2026-02-14T16:10:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 4:10pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/1 "2026-02-14T16:10:16Z")
I have a well organized folder of music on a QNAP NAS. Plex Media server details are below. My plex collection is _not_ seeing 99% of my compilations, either as compilations or in the Various Artists folder. I have attached a variety of screenshots that illustrate what I do see in Plexamp and Plex Web Player as well as screenshots that show the extended tags attached to one compilation album (ICON Best of Canada the 1980s). It is tagged with Musicbrainz metadata, but still is not recognized by Plex. I have also attached screenshots that show the current settings of my metadata agents. Can anyone tell me how to fix this? Thank you! ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 11.07.07 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/d/1/6/d160ad75f2339f7bb3255364a60c82084bd5d35a.jpeg) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 11.06.53 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/a/e/7/ae755645d74e668b4849df8b6b3a909cc877a29e.jpeg) Server Version#: 1.41.6 QNAP Player Version#: Version 4.158.0 ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 11.05.33 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/3/a/2/3a2a9dbc9d103c970c86268bb01358e628518fa5.jpeg) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 11.04.56 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/e/d/d/edda315b4b62f47822069ebc72e00ef6983958c0.jpeg) [Plex Media Server Logs\_2026-02-14\_11-03-34.zip](https://forums.plex.tv/uploads/short-url/uLvH1Z13dYrMot2sn8JMrRuWJfl.zip) (5.7 MB) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 11.00.34 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/3/7/1/3716cba617361ac6b3043f25c01adc751c282852.jpeg) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 11.00.09 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/e/7/d/e7da8a37dacf5278be0bb71ccbae07f450932b0f.jpeg) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 10.56.15 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/e/c/0/ec0a0ae0a7d40e2912003a526ec74ca90f61b840.jpeg) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 10.56.09 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/7/2/7/72795073bff11ee219adf78bb0a5c1c61b801b60.jpeg) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 10.55.57 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/d/8/8/d88fd007579a98a77a5e10830ca7892a048fd0a5.jpeg) \ ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 4:21pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/2 "2026-02-14T16:21:22Z")
Most important: is “Prefer local metatags” in the properties of the library enabled or not? Depending on that, the strategy can differ. Side note: While “ABBA Gold” is a compilation, it is very likely not attributable to “Various Artists”. > [@Music library weird behavior](https://forums.plex.tv/t/music-library-weird-behavior/935625/2): > > Bad idea. This now will turn every other Various Artists release into an Elvis release. I’d revert this edit and do it right (see below). Good metadata have nothing to do with the source of the media files. See below. Don’t make such large jumps. Your NAS has small enough RAM, so don’t make it consume even more without need. Revert that for the time being. It’s certainly not necessary for a few hundred albums to change that value from the default. That is basically the same issue as with… ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:30pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/3 "2026-02-14T18:30:47Z")
> [@OttoKerner](#): > > Most important: is “Prefer local metatags” in the properties of the library enabled or not? Where do I find this? I believe that it is from the screenshots I included. ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:35pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/4 "2026-02-14T18:35:42Z")
> [@sjkiss](#): > > I believe that it is from the screenshots I included. No. Edit the music library in Plex. You should find the setting on the Advanced tab. If it’s not there, you are still using one of the deprecated agents which are no longer supported. Everything I’ve said above is for the current default agent “Plex Music”. ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:39pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/5 "2026-02-14T18:39:39Z")
![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 1.39.25 PM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/3/8/8/3886a0e7a54da4bca757c86df8addbf5ac11f188.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:40pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/6 "2026-02-14T18:40:14Z")
Scroll downwards a bit. ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:42pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/7 "2026-02-14T18:42:33Z")
![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 1.42.11 PM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/a/9/6/a96acd30b3271c720ea2e92e5ca3e4e72afb87af.jpeg) ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 1.42.04 PM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/8/7/c/87cae8d6818d94a869e776333f867147bad28b58.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![pshanew](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/pshanew/32/160555_2.png) [@pshanew](https://forums.plex.tv/u/pshanew)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:52pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/8 "2026-02-14T18:52:36Z")
You have it enabled; it’s “Prefer local _metadata_.” ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:54pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/9 "2026-02-14T18:54:46Z")
So is that good? Why is this problem still occurring? Should I uncheck that? ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 6:58pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/10 "2026-02-14T18:58:17Z")
> [@sjkiss](#): > > So is that good? Why is this problem still occurring? It merely points your way toward the solution. I’ve actually linked it already above. The key is in the embedded meta tags. Plex _requires_ you to use the `Album Artist` tag (which is a separate tag than the regular `Artist` tag) - It must not contain more than one name. Which means with collaboration-type albums, you must decide which artist shall be the “main” one. Then tag only this name. For traditional sampler-style albums, there is the special artist name “Various Artists” that you can use. - All tracks of one particular album must have the same Album Artist tagged (each track can have a different Artist tag) - You must use the folder structure “Album Artist” \> “Album Title” \> [Tracks] - All albums which are stored inside one particular “Album Artist” folder must have identical content in their `Album Artist` meta tags. Use a dedicated meta tagger app to set the Album Artist tag. The file properties tab of the Windows file explorer is inadequate. I recommend [mp3tag](http://www.mp3tag.de/en/index.html "mp3tag"). It can help you with turning folder names into tags, or vice versa, generating folder structures and file names from meta tags. Depending on how much editing you’ve performed already, it might be easier to scrap the whole music library and create it afresh – after you’ve gone through and changed the folder structure and embedded meta tags acording to the rules I laid out above. If you’ve only edited a few albums/artists, perform the [Plex Dance](https://forums.plex.tv/t/the-plex-dance/197064) with just these. If you are using mp3 files, set your meta data editor to use ID3v2.4 tags. After making all these changes, you rather should perform the [Plex Dance](https://forums.plex.tv/t/the-plex-dance/197064) with all Various Artists albums. Plus all albums of the artists which “grabbed” all your VA albums. ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 7:06pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/11 "2026-02-14T19:06:44Z")
I use Mp3tag. I will check about ID3v2.4. One question: I tag my compilation tracks with “artist - track\_title” so that the artist appears in my HEOS app which I use to play on my home steroes. Otherwise the structure is perfect: “Artist/Album/track” with all compilations in Various Artists. Please advise if that exception is likely to make things break. ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 7:11pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/12 "2026-02-14T19:11:53Z")
> [@sjkiss](#): > > I tag my compilation tracks with “artist - track\_title What do you mean with “tag”? Are you writing both the track name and the artist into the same metatag? That is problematic. There are distinct metatags for Tracktitle and [Track]artist. Use them. The AlbumArtist tag is what makes an album appear under the right Artist name in Plex. And the AlbumArtist of a real compilation album is usually filled with “Various Artists”. **However,** if this is a compilation of tracks all from the same artist, then you should rather use this artist’s name in the AlbumArtist metatag. But that also means that this album should then _not_ be stored inside the Various Artists folder. – in other words, all albums inside the Various Artists folder should have their AlbumArtist meta tags filled with “Various Artists”. If there is even one single track deviating from this, the faeces will hit the fan. ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2026, 11:59pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/13 "2026-02-14T23:59:57Z")
This is how I am tagging my compilations with Mp3tag. See the title field. Is that a problem? ![Screenshot 2026-02-14 at 6.59.17 PM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/b/0/4/b04d1495d0c01fb7a7dffd65587eff7d6a0ea53b.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2026, 9:30am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/14 "2026-02-15T09:30:15Z")
Theoretically not. But you should change to ID3v2.4 tags. That’s a preference in mp3tag. Could you show the complete folder structure where these files are stored in, and indicate which of the folders has been added to the Plex library? ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2026, 12:23pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/15 "2026-02-15T12:23:16Z")
![Screenshot 2026-02-15 at 7.22.14 AM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/0/0/a/00ad5ade715f4c3a2ba56d8baefc93ce393ac7fb.jpeg)This shows most of it. All of these folders in Music have been added to Plex. All tagged with Mp3tag ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2026, 1:22pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/16 "2026-02-15T13:22:38Z")
> [@sjkiss](#): > > All of these folders in Music have been added to Plex. Do you mean each artist folder individually? Or the folder named `Music`? Or the folder `Multimedia`? Only the second one of these three would be correct. ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2026, 6:47pm UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/17 "2026-02-15T18:47:37Z")
Just the folder music, that was the folder that was added. ---
**Author:** ![OttoKerner](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/ottokerner/32/10079_2.png) [@OttoKerner](https://forums.plex.tv/u/OttoKerner)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2026, 6:32am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/18 "2026-02-16T06:32:56Z")
I don’t see anything wrong then. ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 4:30am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/19 "2026-02-20T04:30:25Z")
OK, that’s great. Except it’s not working. I have cleaned my various artists compilations 10 times. Everyone is tagged perfectly. And I have done the [Plex dance](https://forums.plex.tv/t/the-plex-dance/197064) multiple times and the artist is still “Soundtrack”. It’s ridiculous. ---
**Author:** ![sjkiss](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/plex/user_avatar/forums.plex.tv/sjkiss/32/146728_2.png) [@sjkiss](https://forums.plex.tv/u/sjkiss)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 4:36am UTC](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370/20 "2026-02-20T04:36:08Z")
![Screenshot 2026-02-19 at 11.34.43 PM](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/plex/original/4X/2/8/6/2865d43fdc9234c87ac1c1745e842c3be38d56b4.jpeg) Even after manually changing the Artist to all my compilation albums from Soundtrack to Various Artists, Various Artists still don’t actually appear as “Artists”. My compilations are completely unreachable. This isn’t really acceptable is it? [Next page](https://forums.plex.tv/t/compilations-not-recognized/936370.md?page=2)