I have a Plex Server set up on my windows computer, and a Remote Access Pass - on my account.
I am wondering if there are any limitations for how many people on my account can stream at the same time? (As in from Plex / membership levels, not regarding my internet / computer capabilities)
At the most it would be 4 simultaneous views - Myself and my partner on our local network (me via computer, him via Plex app on the Chromecast on our Tv) and my elderly parents who live at the edge of our property and access my account with Remote Access on their own local network.
I’ve come from streaming platforms where you could only have so many active screens at the same time, so I wasn’t sure if that was the case and couldn’t quite find the answers i was seeking on here. (Apologies, i may have been searching with poor keywords for what I am after.)
Aside from yourself, none. Unless they each have either a Remote Watch Pass, or a Plex Pass of their own.
If you yourself would upgrade from RWP to a full Plex Pass, each of your shared users would be able to stream from you remotely, without having a Pass of their own.
Users who are located in the same logical local network as your server, are able to stream for free.
i.e. there are no limits in numbers as such, only a distinction between local and remote users. https://www.plex.tv/blog/important-2025-plex-updates/
Thankyou for the quick reply , and I think I get it but i’m not 100% sure.
So my account (call it admin) has the server set up, and I have a remote watch pass. (so i could access remote via my phone while at work etc on 5G)
Home 1 - I can watch on my computer and my partner watches it on our TV (Plex app installed on the Chromecast connected to our tv.) All on the same network (network 1)
At the edge of our property (“home 2”), my mum uses my old tablet with a 5g connection and she can access it to watch as well? My dad uses a separate wifi network, and he could watch it on his tv?
So 4 screens can be active at the same time? or if it was 3 screens on my local network (say my computer, my tablet and my tv) and i access it from my phone remotely while at work?
I don’t want to log onto my phone and kick someone off accidentally while they are trying to watch their shows
No. 5G, or a separate domestic internet connection are considered “remote” to your server. Thus, the users on these connections need at least a RWP for themselves. (Or you provide for them by getting a full Plex Pass for your admin account.)
If your parents would use the same domestic internet connection as you (i.e. if you would extend your own network to their premises), they would be considered “local” users. But that of course depends on whether it is viable for you and them.
That won’t happen. The last one to start playback might just be denied playback, or will only get abysmal bandwidth/quality.
So my parents can each get their own Remote Pass and log onto my server? And I would also need the Remote Pass(which i have currently) to jump on and watch via my phone on 5g when i’m at work. Basically 1 Server on home wifi plus 3 Remote Watch to access it when not on the server’s wifi.
Or I get a single Plex Pass and then we can all jump on as needed wherever?
(At some point, i should just buy a path of wifi boosters to cross the paddocks )
Note, if you have family members log in using the Admin account (not recommended), or are all sub-accounts (recommended, Managed Users log in with your Admin account), then they all can use your main account’s Remote Watch Pass.
Having each person with their own Remote Watch Pass is only needed if you “invite” your family members to access your server, but they have separate unreachable accounts.
This option is only recommended for people you ABSOLUTELY trust, as giving them your login info to log on as a manged user means they have total control of your account, if they felt like causing havoc.
Thankyou! That might work until I know how often they will use it. For sub-accounts you mentioned, is that the Manage Library Access? So I’d just create free accounts for each of them and add them to my library?
Actually, if they had the one account for themselves (say Parents 01) that I gave library access to, could they both just sign in on that and watch stuff at the same time - say my mum on her computer in her bedroom, and dad via his tv in the lounge?
While i trust them not to do anything intentionally, i don’t trust them not to do something accidentally lol, so i’d ideally set them up with their own account and i just grant them library access.
I’m pretty sure you want to have separate accounts/profiles otherwise if they watch something, it will totally mess up your own personal watch history if you all share the same account.
Thankyou, I’ll keep that in mind. I’m not too worried about the Watch history from a user side, my dad likes watching WW2 movies from eons ago that nobody else is going to watch, and my mum mostly likes British Dramas after I tell her if the mystery is worth it so she watches after I finish a series But i have set up the Plex Home with their own profile and we will see how that goes.
Essentially I just wanted a way that they can occasionally watch stuff without me needing to walk across the paddocks with files on a USB or fiddling around on their computer. They just need to be able to open something simple, have a few curated options, and click play.
Managed accounts is the way to go. I have my account I log in as, and on all devices within the house I log in using this email/password. My family members and myself are managed users under this one account, and there is no other email/password to use.
Once logged in, go to Settings>Plex Home>Create Managed Account and “Create Managed Accounts” named for your parents. It can even be “Mom” and “Dad” if you want. Personally, I leave the base “Admin” account for management only, and make a managed user with my name.
Once created, on any app you log into, it will prompt you which “user” to select. This is just like Netflix and multiple “accounts” under one account. Once you select a user, it can customize which libraries are visible, it will have media “Watched” states that pertain only to this user, and “Continue Watching” will only show shows or movies that this user has stopped in the middle of. At any time, you can use the quick swap option to change to another user on your account, and see their media they are in progress for.
If you know only one user uses one device, you can turn on a setting to force the client to log in as the last used user automatically, to bypass having to pick which user every time you start up. You can quick swap to another user at any time.
, and I think I get it but i’m not 100% sure.
)
Best of luck.