Need to use my plex server without Internet.

General Discussions
1

Hey guys, I’ve been using a Dell PowerEdge R710 as a plex server for some time now, and have moved everything over to it (about 9TBs). I’m without Internet for a few days and would like to watch my shows. I have it in my room by my main PC that runs windows 10. My server is running the latest Ubuntu desktop.

I’m not much of a networking guy, how can I get onto the server from my PC to stream stuff to it? I assume it’s not quite as simple as sticking an ethernet cable into the server and putting it in the PC.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

2

If you’re not going to have any internet connectivity for a few days, your Plex Pass features will, of course, not be available but you will be able to continue to stream all your local stuff.

I’ll assume you already have a modem/router that everything plugs into and already works.

That having been said, we can turn off your Local-LAN security TEMPORARILY (don’t forget to turn it back on later)

This is something you can test before you lose your connectivity

  1. sign out your devices from your Plex.tv account (bring you back to bare-basic level)
  2. Look at your computer’s IP addresss (make sure it’s IPV4. 192.168.x.y style format) Remember that ‘x’ part.
  3. Go to Settings - Server - Network. For the field which says “List of IP addresses and networks that are allowed without auth”
  4. Enter 192.168.x.0/255.255.0.0
  5. Save your changes.
  6. Go unplug your internet connection but keep the modem/router running since it’s going to handle your Local LAN while the internet is out.
  7. Now test your local Plex server access.
  8. Basic functionality should work… If not, we’ll get more help from those who know more.
  9. If all is good, plug your internet wire back in and go back to normal.
  10. If not, sign back into your plex account on your devices until it gets sorted out for your particular configuration.
3

@ChuckPa said:
If you’re not going to have any internet connectivity for a few days, your Plex Pass features will, of course, not be available but you will be able to continue to stream all your local stuff.

I’ll assume you already have a modem/router that everything plugs into and already works.

That having been said, we can turn off your Local-LAN security TEMPORARILY (don’t forget to turn it back on later)

This is something you can test before you lose your connectivity

  1. sign out your devices from your Plex.tv account (bring you back to bare-basic level)
  2. Look at your computer’s IP addresss (make sure it’s IPV4. 192.168.x.y style format) Remember that ‘x’ part.
  3. Go to Settings - Server - Network. For the field which says “List of IP addresses and networks that are allowed without auth”
  4. Enter 192.168.x.0/255.255.0.0
  5. Save your changes.
  6. Go unplug your internet connection but keep the modem/router running since it’s going to handle your Local LAN while the internet is out.
  7. Now test your local Plex server access.
  8. Basic functionality should work… If not, we’ll get more help from those who know more.
  9. If all is good, plug your internet wire back in and go back to normal.
  10. If not, sign back into your plex account on your devices until it gets sorted out for your particular configuration.

Darn, this sounds perfect only I’m without Internet due to a move, so my modem/router is packed up and I can’t get to it for a while. I was hoping there was a way I could just connect to the server by directly plugging the ethernet from the server into my PC. At least to access files, if not to access plex.

Thanks though, that would be a perfect solution if I had the modem available.

I suppose I could use my vga cable and old monitor to access the server and transfer what I need to an external, it’s just a massive pain since it’s using the super old integrated graphics. I can’t even get to some menu options (such as done, or save) due to the low maximum resolution.

4

There is an easy (and fairly cheap) way. Go get a ‘Network Switch’ It will do all the local connecting your router/modem would.

Remember 1 additional thing. Switches don’t hand out IP addresses to computers.

I’d recommend you assign “Static IP” addresses to things in sequence… Start with 192.168.0.2, Netmask 255.255.255.0 and continue until everything is set. When you get to the new location, you will only need to edit the static IP (network portion) to match that of the new modem (usually 192.168.1.x or 192.168.0.x).

5

You can use a special Ethernet cable called a cross over to connect two computers together to make a direct network connection. You’ll need to manually assign IP addresses for both devices, so make sure they are on the same subnet.