MacOS Plex Server Crashing

[SE56]

Interesting, I was not affected by either update. So it may have been due to being in the Root Directory.

Then again, I run i5 intel iMac (2020) 20,1

[sa2000]

@celloch

Also running the command in terminal reports:
The domain/default pair of (com.plexapp.plexmediaserver, TranscoderTempDirectory) does not exist

Interesting - so defaults read com.plexapp.plexmediaserver TranscoderTempDirectory gave the above response

I would expect Plex Media Server to then use the default path

In terminal, can you get and paste as text the results of these commands - in a session for the MacOS user account that Plex Media Server runs in

ls -aled   ~/Library/Caches
ls -aled   ~/Library/Logs
ls -aled   ~/Library/Application\ Support/Plex\ Media\ Server

and also what we get for

ls -aled   ~/Library/Caches/PlexMediaServer

and

ls -ail  ~/Library/Caches/PlexMediaServer

[pl4151]

RobJMurphy69,

So, are you running PMS for Mac 1.30.1.6562 released 10 January 2023?
Does your host Mac have Apple silicon or an Intel processor?
What version of macOS is your PMS for Mac host running?

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I have not found any of the 26 general release versions after PMS for Mac 1.27.2.5929 (yes, the 29 June 2022 ß release, 5 July 2022 general release, 15 months ago) to be stable.

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To be fair, my initial PMS for Mac host may have eventually had some GPU hardware issues, so 9 May 2023, I did a clean PMS for Mac 1.32.1.6999 install on a clean High Sierra (macOS 10.13.6) install on a reformatted Apple factory 750GB SSD on a newer maxed-out 27" iMac (Late 2012) 3.4GHz i7 (4 cores + hyperthreading), 16GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680MX 2048 MB GPU, with an external 12TB USB 3.0 WD My Book hosting the Libraries. Like my initial PMS for Mac host, my current PMS for Mac host is dedicated exclusively to hosting PMS. After the clean High Sierra (macOS 10.13.6) install, the only software added has been PMS. Spotlight is disabled. All new host hardware did not make PMS stable.

ALL twenty-six (26!) PMS versions since 1.27.2.5929 caused my wife to swear at Plex and me, . . . including . . .

ALL seven (7!) of the PMS version installed on the new PMS host (caused my wife to swear), “[ Plex is a | This ] piece of [dung]!” . . . “Your [ie, my] decision to Cut-the-Cable was [ stupid | lame | awful | a HUGE f’ing waste of almost two thousand dollars | . . . ] !”

[celloch]

Here’s everything:

@sa2000

ls -aled ~/Library/Caches

drwx------ 138 marcello staff 4416 Sep 27 08:38 /Users/marcello/Library/Caches

@sa2000

ls -aled ~/Library/Logs

drwx------+ 456 marcello staff 14592 Sep 25 12:02 /Users/marcello/Library/Logs
0: group:everyone deny delete

@sa2000

ls -aled ~/Library/Application\ Support/Plex\ Media\ Server

drwxrwxr-x@ 23 marcello staff 736 Sep 26 15:06 /Users/marcello/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server

@sa2000

ls -aled ~/Library/Caches/PlexMediaServer

drwxr-xr-x 16 marcello staff 512 Sep 27 11:51 /Users/marcello/Library/Caches/PlexMediaServer

@sa2000

ls -ail ~/Library/Caches/PlexMediaServer

total 168
1151910 drwxr-xr-x 16 marcello staff 512 Sep 27 11:51 .
1128852 drwx------ 138 marcello staff 4416 Sep 27 08:38 ..
55909811 drwxr-xr-x 2 marcello staff 64 Oct 14 2022 CL-ICDs
85355653 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 11376 Sep 27 03:06 CloudAccessV2.dat
85322489 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 10624 Sep 26 15:06 CloudAccountV2.dat
85371440 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 5744 Sep 27 11:51 CloudUsersServices.dat
85355655 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 1808 Sep 27 03:06 CloudUsersSubscriptionsV2.dat
85355654 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 1424 Sep 27 03:06 CloudUsersV2.dat
85322495 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 10752 Sep 26 15:06 Flags.dat
1152588 drwxr-xr-x 3 marcello staff 96 Sep 24 21:46 OCSP
1152120 drwxr-xr-x 258 marcello staff 8256 Nov 17 2021 PhotoTranscoder
85322496 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 7872 Sep 26 15:06 Privacy.dat
1152122 drwxr-xr-x 4 marcello staff 128 Nov 15 2021 Transcode
85322490 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 384 Sep 26 15:06 UpdateChannels.dat
46798211 -rw-r–r-- 1 marcello staff 9142 Jun 24 2022 autotag_wordlist.json
81240651 -rw------- 1 marcello staff 5843 Aug 4 20:23 cert-v2.p12

[sa2000]

@celloch

Here’s everything:

Thank You

[sa2000]

@Robjmurphy69

I haven’t been able to use anything later than PMS 1.30.1 with any degree of stability. Most of the newer updates crash on launch or within seconds/minutes. I have to keep restoring 1.30.1 from my backup and we’re then golden until the next update attempt.
I note the 1.30.1 shows as Application (Apple Silicon) not Application (Universal). Not sure if that is the issue. Really hoping it gets fixed one of these days.

Versions 1.32.6.7557 (now public release) and 1.32.7.7571 (beta) have fixes that relate to crashes on MacOS - if you still get crashes / issues, please ensure you run with server debug logging not disabled and get server logs after the problem arises

[sa2000]

@pl4151

I have not found any of the 26 general release versions after PMS for Mac 1.27.2.5929 (yes, the 29 June 2022 ß release, 5 July 2022 general release, 15 months ago) to be stable

I have been dealing with a lot of the issues you have reported over past months and they are being addressed. The latest releases 1.32.6.7557 (public) and 1.32.7.7571 (beta) resolve some MacOS Plex Media Server crashes

I suggest you update the Plex Media Server from your current 1.32.4.7195 to either the public or beta release and see if that makes it stable again

If the stability issues remain, please quantify what you mean - is it crashes, is it DVR recordings and watching live TV issues ?

Thanks

[Robjmurphy69]

Hi pl4151,
Yes I was using 1.30.1 but recently I bit the bullet. Deleted all traces of Plex from my Mac incl PMS 1.30.1, downloaded and installed 1.32.6 fresh and rebuilt the whole thing from scratch. Since then it has been reasonably stable. Took ages to have to regenerate all the libraries and metadata etc Something must have changed at some lower level to cause instability with the >1.30 PMS to <1.32.6 and my existing libraries.
My TV shows are still not quite right but I think that’s down to the scanners. They’ve never been 100%. I live with it.
A lot of unnecessary effort maybe but seems to have paid off… for now.

[SE56]

I have found the latest Beta release 1.32.7.7571 stable. So glad I need not restart my iMac several times a day.

[StratGuru]

I still am having issues and sent over my Apple TV logs. Anyone else?

[sa2000]

@StratGuru

I still am having issues and sent over my Apple TV logs. Anyone else

I have responded to you by PM. I am sorry but I do need both sets of logs - debug server logs plus the corresponding Plex for Apple TV app logs - if the issue relates to playback

[StratGuru]

I sent over new logs today. Let me know if you need anything else. Thank you for all your hard work and dedication, it’s truly appreciated.

[sa2000]

@celloch there is now a fix for the crashes that you encountered relating to the transcode directory and intro detection during scheduled tasks

The fix is in Plex Media Server beta build 1.32.7.7261

Plex Media Server

Plex Media Server 1.32.7.7621 is now available to Plex Pass users in the Beta update channel. NEW: (TerraMaster) Improve multi-volume support when adding folders to libraries. (Transcoder) Enable hardware transcoding by default where available (#14282) FIXES: (Hubs) User could order a hub before Continue Watching hub (#14236) (Library) In some cases, media item presence and accessibility could fail to be reported (#14307) (Metadata) Items could lose metadata if a refresh request failed due…

• (IntroDetection) Intro detection could crash the server under certain circumstances (#14606)

[celloch]

Thank you. I did not run into any issues since I have set the directory, but it’s good to know the issues has been addressed!

@sa2000

@celloch there is now a fix for the crashes that you encountered relating to the transcode directory and intro detection during scheduled tasks

The fix is in Plex Media Server beta build 1.32.7.7261

[pl4151]

PMS for Mac 1.32.6.7557 (& for one day, 1.32.7.7621)
Plex player for Apple TV app 8.27
Plex player for iOS app 8.20

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@sa2000

I suggest you update the Plex Media Server from your current 1.32.4.7195 to either the public or beta release and see if that makes it stable again

I have always been installing every PMS general release.

(Unfortunately, when I first paid the Lifetime Plex Pass fee, I did not know that then Plex presents beta releases on its web site as routine updates, (incorrectly) thinking I was safe by selecting the [Public] Update Channel and [Disable] Experimental Features in settings, so unknowingly installed beta releases for 13 months through 1.32.16999.)

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@sa2000

@pl4151

I have not found any of the 26 general release versions after PMS for Mac 1.27.2.5929 (yes, the 29 June 2022 ß release, 5 July 2022 general release, 15 months ago) to be stable

If the stability issues remain, please quantify what you mean - is it crashes, is it DVR recordings and watching live TV issues ?

My family experiences two major PMS instability categories:

1. PMS Failing to Function (ie, server content and or record scheduled OTA airings); and
2. Plex Player App (especially the Apple TV app) UI Dysfunction.

(Plex player app bugs are many and not included herein.)
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1. PMS Failing to Function:

Typically, PMS (ie, the server app) does not appear to entirely crash of late, but intermittently PMS become partially or completely non-responsive to Plex player apps and no longer records scheduled TV shows, nor movies, effectively completely failing from users’ perspectives. Such failures happen several times every month, seemingly randomly.

When such dysfunction occurs, sometimes I see using the Plex player for Mac app, the Activity drop-down displays many (ie, more than the possible 4 HDHomeRun tuners) broadcasts currently being recorded and or many (ie, more than the typical one single session associated with my wife watching OTA Live TV) active watching sessions. The only remedy I’ve found is to then quit and re-launch PMS by Restarting the dedicated PMS host Mac. (I have never tried tried just quitting and re-launching PMS without restarting the PMS host Mac.)

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2. Plex Player App UI Dysfunction (due to PMS specific versions):

My wife is the principal Plex user, exclusively using the Plex player for Apple TV app, which, by itself, though never good, has been dung since version 8.6, so it is somewhat difficult to isolate PMS version-specific exacerbations of the half-baked Apple TV app. (My much less frequent other Plex use is via the Plex player for iOS app, mostly on an iPad, which, while somewhat more thoroughly baked from a UI perspective, has piss-poor audio and video. I suspect the Plex engineering simply does not understand playback, streaming and buffer fundamentals. I have never bothered to reports the iOS issues with so many higher priority (ie, those impacting my wife) Plex problems to document.)

Some PMS version-specific adverse impacts have been clear, however, such as the current PMS general release 1.32.7.7621 immediately breaking the Apple TV app 8.27 scrub bar UI. With repeated use (eg, FF’ing past commercials 4 or 5 times in a 30 minute TV show), the scrub bar UI typically becomes partially or completely dysfunctional and audio fails, and sometime video freezes.

The Plex player for iOS app scrub bar UI (not AV) last worked functioned well May 2022. As I wrote above, the iOS AV quality has always stunk, but at least I had been able to tap the FF-30sec icon repeatedly with correct app response. Now, the Pause and Play functions stop working when using the FF or Rewind scrub bar UI controls.

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BTW, I have never enabled Intro, Credits, Chapter, nor Commercials detection.

[pl4151]

Ironically, PMS failed this evening (partially hung claiming to be recording many shows and watching sessions)—yet again forcing me to restart PMS:

@pl4151

1. PMS Failing to Function:

Typically, PMS (ie, the server app) does not appear to entirely crash of late, but intermittently PMS become partially or completely non-responsive to Plex player apps and no longer records scheduled TV shows, nor movies, effectively completely failing from users’ perspectives. Such failures happen several times every month, seemingly randomly.

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I have report this (apparently) same PMS failure several times, including conveying logs and databases to Plex staff.

[MeatBall]

Assuming your still struggling (if not you can ignore) - Curious, what are you running PMS on? (I know it’s a Mac).
Is it wired or wireless?
What quality settings do you have set on the server?

Re: ATV- all same questions.

There are some reasonably easy trouble shooting tricks to try a nail down where the bottle neck is (if you still need help).

As far as TV, I hate to say it but it’s never been solid and there are a lot of more reliable ways to watch TV on ATV, Personally my recommendation wouldn’t be to use plex for this. there are plenty of applications that specialize in this and do it well.