Server Version#: 1.23.3.4707 Linux
Player Version#: 4.59.2 Web UI
I want to throw a complement Plex’s way because I feel the staff deserves a morale boost. (Skip to My Settings below for the How-To.)
Back story: I tried Plex a few years ago, and again maybe 1 year ago, with the same library files, configured the same way (not organized into Plex standard naming convention (see My naming convention below.) Plex would match most TV shows and movies but miserably failed on enough of them to make me use another media server solution. The frustrating thing was that matching would fail on super popular, mainstream shows, labeling 100’s of files as some 80’s sitcom. However, Plex would match some of my obscure documentary shows perfectly while refusing to find many others that were all listed in TVDB and TMDB.
My main gripe was that Plex, as well as other servers like Kodi, expected me to go through a complex renaming setup for all of my files in order to match them correctly. That would be reasonable if there weren’t a perfectly adequate naming convention already required on all downloading lists. All of my files already come in with a standard naming convention that can work. Why should I have to spend a crazy amount of effort setting up another program to translate file names automatically into, yet, another format? In addition I have to find a way to connect that script to my downloading app (QbT) so it continues to see the files. I REFUSE TO DO IT!
Until now I have just settled for skipping the file-matching and simply viewing my unmatched files in a list. No thumbnails. Alternatively I used Jellyfin, which leaves the files unmatched, instead of matching incorrectly, when it can’t find anything.
Yesterday I decided to give Plex a third try. What do you know? My entire library is matched perfectly (almost, I assume. I have only found 2 incorrect matches so far out of 6000+ video files. I watch many documentaries and reality shows that are hard to match.)
My settings: I am using “Plex TV Series” and “Plex Movies” as my matching agents. Important: My TV categories are in separate folders. These folders are set as individual libraries in Plex. Example: TV-Scripted, TV-Documentaries, TV-Kids, Movies, Documentary-Movies. This way Plex doesn’t mistake the folders as the title of the show. Also separating Documentaries into TV (for series) and Movies (for non-series) helps a lot because I can match them with different agents (movie or tv) which works brilliantly. This is how they’re organized online in TVDB, OMDB, etc.
My naming convention: None! (Almost). I just use the standard online convention. Here it is: /data/media/TV-Shows/TV Category Folder >> “TV hit 2021 S01E02 720p-RARBEST” >> “TV hit 2021 S01E02 720p-RARBEST.mkv”. No season folders. No TV program folders. I use no file renaming scripts or programs. The only special thing I do is download files into my category folders using the labels in the “RSS downloader” settings via the download program.
The only exceptions are for annoying files that don’t use the online standard, and dated series like late night shows. For those I have an individual download query that specifies an individual sub-folder so that they follow Plex or Kodi’s convention more closely. Example: Inside the downloading program’s RSS settings a specific query downloads “Late Night with Jim Funny” to “/data/media/TV-Shows/TV-Documentaries/>> Late Night with Jim Funny >> Jim Funny 2021 06 22 Featuring Joe Star Xvid-AFC[website] >> Jim Funny 2021 06 22 Featuring Joe Star Xvid-AFC[website].mkv”. For the annoying rarities that don’t use the online standard I rename them within the download program and then eliminate that annoying source for future automatic downloads. Plex picks it up as a new file and matches it.
To my surprise Plex did match a huge group of annoying, misnamed files without my intervention. Example: In the title field of the files’ tags they were named “rarsource - Hit Show S01E01.” These were from a very popular source and I would not be able to stop using it. I was surprised that Plex didn’t even trip on this snag. The individual episode-titles have “rarsouce” in them but the TV shows are matched correctly. I can deal with that. Way to go, Plex staff! Thank you! Thank you!
I am a happy camper now and have come back to Plex. Crossing my fingers that things stay this good. I also hope this post helps some users out with their file organization.
