For some context, I came across this issue because the Plex Series database isn’t correctly matching one of my shows. When trying to switch to TheTVDB, Plex warns me that a Database Upgrade is required. I click on the red circle and accept the prompt warning me about the upgrade:
This library is currently using a legacy agent to match items and fetch artwork and other metadata. There is a newer, faster, and more accurate agent available for this type of media. Support for these legacy agents will be ending soon at which point items in these libraries will no longer receive any metadata. It is advisable to upgrade these libraries now to prevent any disruptions. Note: Metadata for existing items in this library will not be affected until they are refreshed. We can refresh metadata immediately after updating this library or you can wait for the next scheduled update. Refresh metadata for this library after upgrading
The status bar indicates metadata is being refreshed and the red (!) warning goes away. However, when I go back into the library settings, the scanner is back to Plex Series. If you want to know what happens next, you’re welcome to start reading this post from the beginning.
I updated to the current server version, which at the time of this post is plexmediaserver 1.41.0.8994. My plex is running on a linux based debian server with Casaos (v0.4.13) as the UI.
The upgrade switches the library to the Plex TV Series scanner and the Plex Series agent.
At some point the legacy agents in Settings → Agents will be removed. Plex has already removed them from the Plex Media Server builds for the Nvidia Shield Pro.
Which TV show is not matching? How is it named and organized?
Make sure you follow Plex naming and organizing requirements.
Please provide a sceenshot, directory listing, etc. showing how the files are named and organized, including the directory added to the tv show library.
FordGuy, sorry if my post was unclear. I was being a little snarky due to my frustrating experience.
To your first point, I actually want to switch away from the Plex Series because of several mis-matches of shows - most of which are my wife’s k-dramas. However, this post is not about those.
So, are we not going to have an option to choose the agent we want? We will just be stuck with the one Plex provides?
I wonder why I would receive the “upgrade required” prompt when trying to switch away from the Plex Series agent, if that agent is or will be the default scanner moving forward.
To the point of my post. Plex prompts me to upgrade and I click through the prompts it gives me. HOWEVER, I keep getting the same upgrade prompt, which tells me that it’s not upgrading somehow. This seems to be a bug or something wrong with my install that’s preventing the upgrade to take place.
The show giving me trouble was Futurama. “Was” because I found a workaround that I can live with. I’ve seen multiple posts from people having trouble matching this show, mostly due to there being an entire season (5) that was straight-to-DVD, which I guess Plex Series deems not part of the “show” and completely skips it. If I remove that season and rename the rest of the series, Plex matches the episodes pretty well. Does it bother me that I have a “special” folder of the DVD episodes that doesn’t show up in the media player? Maybe. But I can live with that, given everything else matches up.
Given what you told me, do I need to fix the upgrade issue, or will this be something that future updates will resolve?
The Plex Legacy agents will go away at some point (the agents listed in Settings → Agents).
I do not know what will happen with 3rd party agents, such as those used for Anime. I do not use any 3rd party agents, so have not followed such discussions.
The “new” Plex Movie and Plex Series agents have been the default for quite some time, probably two years or more.
Any time you use a Plex Legacy agent you will see the Upgrade Required notification.
Any time you agree to the upgrade, the library switches to the default Plex Movie / Plex Series agent (and corresponding scanner).
You can ignore the Upgrade Required notification and continue to use the Plex Legacy agents. If you do so, pay attention to Plex Media Server release notes, as it should be mentioned when the legacy agents are removed.
There have always been shows that give Plex problems, usually due to differences in how they are listed at TMDB and TVDB. The recent Monsters shows/series and the multiple iterations of Dr. Who are prime examples.
When you run into such a situation, you can always post on the forum and see how it is handled by others. It may also turn up a situation where one site has bad information that throws off Plex matching or is changing how they list the shows. Resolution may require editing information at TMDB/TVDB or Plex manually correcting things in their database.
I wish Plex would present this a little more clearly. It should warn us that we are trying to select a legacy agent and the “upgrade” is basically directing the scanner selection back to the Plex agent. Otherwise, for people not in the know, like myself, will think we need to process the upgrade to use the legacy agents, like TBDB.
It would also be good to be able to match individual episodes, in case there’s minor discrepancies within a show. To me, it makes total sense that a single database relying on an algorythem won’t be able to catch every nuance of every show. So, why not allow users to help the matching with granular customization? In fact, have an option to contribute to the community, so the database can offer crowdsourced solutions to non-standard shows/series.
