If a user makes a playlist in Plexamp and the audio file is renamed the track will disappear from the playlist.
It is impossible to help all Plex users re-locate or re-add the files.
What is the best way to handle this?
Before anyone say “don’t rename files” I would like to add that there are a bunch of legitimate reasons to change files in the file system. For example:
- Mistakes in the file name.
- Changes in the file naming standards.
- Deleting and adding a higher quality version of the file (for example you found a FLAC version instead of an MP3).
- Virus or mallware could delete or change files.
- You might have another application like MusicBrainz Picard handling the file names and directory structure.
Do you have empty trash after every scan enabled in your library settings?
I do. Does it matter?
Yes, when you add duplicated media Plex will attempt to match it to existing records. However, with that setting enabled, what may happen is that the library is scanned, missing media is identified, and then removed from the library. That cleanup can happen before Plex has a chance to analyze the new media and match it to the original record. If the original entry is removed so are its association in playlists and collections. If you instead clean the trash manually after Plex has had a chance to scan/process new media it should be matched with the original record and preserve the playlist.
TLDR: Turn that off and see if it fixes it.
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Thanks!
This seems to work fine. I have tested:
- Renaming a folder
- Remove the folder, rename it, then move it back to Plex.
It works if I have “empty trash after every scan” Disabled.
Now I can finally start use Plex as my go-to media player for playlists 
FYI 2 things, make sure you mark my post as a solution, and 2 when done renaming/scanning make sure you manually empty the trash as you want to remove the remnants of the old files when you are done.
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