I’m in the process of redoing my computer setup, and decided I wanted to use my Mac Mini as the basis for one of the Plex servers. I did a factory reset on the Mini, installed Catalina, and then downloaded Plex and signed in.
Plex on the Mac promptly defaulted to the lone operating server, a temporary installation on one of my laptops. No matter where I look or what I do (including scraping off all of the Plex operating files) I cannot set the POS up as a new server. The FAQ is of no use.
Right now I’m about as pissed off as I’ve ever been at Plex. This used to be a simple process until you lot so thoroughly munged the software.
Plex MEDIA Player, was discontinued (ie the form of the player that allowed for HTPC usage with a TV Friendly Interface), there’s still a Plex Player app, under the “Apps & Devices” section as TeknoJunky has pointed out. It’s simply called “Plex” now instead of “Plex Media Player”. However, even that is not completely accurate, as they are still supporting it and you can get it within these forums as a download (Plex Media Player that is). There is 2 sections at the top, one where you download the compatible Player app, found under “Apps & Devices” and one where you download the Media Server application, found under “Media Server”. That page however, defaults to “Apps & Devices” I think (at least it does every time I have gone to it). So unless you’re actually clicking on the “Media Server” button at the top, you are indeed downloading the Plex app which is just a player app.
Notice how the “Apps & Devices” is grey, it’s because it’s defaulting to the Player app and not the server app, you need to click on the “Plex Media Server” to the left of Apps & Devices. If you didn’t do that, that is why you’re seeing what you’re seeing. It’s a relatively easy thing to overlook if you’re installing in a hurry or on autopilot.
Not trying to make assumptions, what you’re saying in your first post is indicative of installing only the player app and not the server. When you install and launch the server app, it should open a webpage to http://localhost:port/web and that will allow you to start setting up your server. If this is not the case, maybe some screenshots of what’s going on would be helpful.
What you’re describing is exactly what we’d expect to see when installing just the client and not the server.
Assuming that’s not the case, here are a few things to look for.
Ensure Plex Media Server is actually running. There are a couple of ways to do this, like checking Activity Monitor for its process, or checking the menu bar for the Plex chevron:
If it’s not running, but you attempted to launch it from Applications (right-click, select Open), ensure it’s not being blocked by macOS Gatekeeper. In the System Preferences app, under Security & Privacy on the General tab, check toward the bottom. If PMS is being blocked, it will say something like “Plex Media Server was blocked use…”
If it is running, try to access it directly from http://127.0.0.1:32400/web. Don’t use https://app.plex.tv or one of the apps initially as the server isn’t claimed by your account yet.
If you’re unable to access it using the above address, ensure macOS’ firewall isn’t blocking PMS. Still under Security & Privacy in the System Preferences app, on the Firewall tab, check see if the firewall is enabled. If so, look at Firewall Options and make sure Plex Media Server is set to allow incoming connections:
Depending on what comes from this we may have some other ideas.
[Edited to remove some stuff for which there is no longer any context]
