OK - This is a Doozy - multiple layered issue here

Plex Media Server NAS & Devices
1

Server Version#: complicated
Player Version#: not worried about it
<If providing server logs please do NOT turn on verbose logging, only debug logging should be enabled>

So, in a nut shell… I have been running Plex for years on a Westerdigital WDPR2100

NAS with no real issues. I’d upgraded my raid capacity a couple years back and it’s time to to do it again. I did it again, but this time, I messed stuff up… I’m just gonna recount EXACETLY what I did, IN THE SEQUENCE it was done, so you can see I I layered multiple issues which put me in this predicament.

Didn’t follow the raid capacity upgrade right, so I was able to back track and restore the original 2nd drive of the RAID 1 set up, and then once that all scanned and was find I ran the raid upgrade properly. TOOK FOREVER. I was so excited this morning before work to see it had FINALLY finalized and the RAID Volume was now fully upgraded.

Then without doing anything else, I noticed there was a Plex Media Server update from 1.42.1.10060 the previous CURRENT that was working great, all goo, to latest 1.42.2.101656.

Then next time I tried to access plex, I noticed I could not connect to the media server. The drives were fine, the RAID set up was fine (I could access the drives and files and play the movies outside of plex no problem, so the data is fine).

In panic not being able to connect, through Wdpr2100 since plex runs off of that, I took the previous .bin of the last version of plex that worked and manually installed it…. Plex came right back up, and all libraries SEEMED to be ok… ALL EXCEPT the most important one Movies.

Tried tons of stuff to troubleshoot and even tried to recreate the movies library but then got a “library upgrade required”. Seems like this is result of the upgrade to newer version that I roll back, that I guess didn’t actually FULLY roll ALL of it back, so the library no longer compatible I GUESS?

So every little trick (ssh to clear cache in plex) etc has cone nothing….

So I did a raid, but ultimately the raid turned out to be fine…issue is upgrading then rolling back making some irreversible changes…

TRYING DESPERATELY to avoid having to UNINSTALL and Literally START From scratch redoing network settings and all of that nastiness I don’t even remember how I did before, so will have to relearn it all again….

HAs anyone experienced anything like this and can help me repair things without doing a full install or is the uninstall critical at this point?

2

PMS has a feature to backup your database every three days.
Look for an older version of the db from the 1.42.1 days.
I can’t help with the details because I’m unfamiliar with your hardware.

Restore A Database Backed Via Scheduled Tasks

(You’ve probably heard that PMS might need a significant amount of time to migrate a database scheme to a newer scheme when upgrading, which can leave your PMS in a maintenance state. You may have encountered that when moving up to 1.42.2. Connecting to your PMS with the hosted web app should have warned you of maintenance if it was occurring. )

Ask questions if you’re stuck restoring your DB,
and good luck!

3

Upgrading an Old Movie Library to Use the Plex Movie Agent

This has to do with the scanner and agent selected in the library settings, not with the installed version of Plex Media Server.

The Plex Movie scanner and agent are the defaults for movie libraries.

If the library is configured to use a legacy scanner/agent, you will see the “upgrade library” message.

If you tell Plex to upgrade the library, it will change the library to the Plex Movie scanner and agent, then rescan the library and update metadata.

1 Like
4

@FordGuy61 Thanks for catching the issue in more detail, how it’s likely not a scheme upgrade but a change required due to scanner/agent.

Do you also think it’s easier to restore from a sane backup database and let the upgrade begin again? From the OP’s description it sounded as if they lost functionality due to premature database activity interruption, but maybe you see this as just PMS being busy.

Thanks!

5

@nibbles Restoring a backup db might help, since it has not been through possibly several forward/back migrations. However, it is hard to say for sure. I’m not clear on the current status of the server.

@Jamilmereck

Where do things currently stand with the Plex server?

Which version of PMS is installed?
Is PMS running?
If yes, can you login and reach server settings?
If yes, are your libraries listed in Settings → Manage → Libraries?
Can you stream to your clients, etc.?

6

Unfortunately tried that and the upgrade fails. So what then would be my next step.

Ive tried to completwly uninstall from my wdpr2100, rebooted the wdpr2100 then tried reinstalling the older version (if u recall that the latest version will NOT connect to the server and i have no odea how to even try to fix that. hence my attempt to roll back by reibsrallong the older version that gives me the library upgrade error. so the library is screwed cant play anything thru plex.

7

no back up db. been years since my last attempt at backing it up. current aerver status is ?

status when i posted was as described, rolled back to the older version all of which was listed in the post (i cant remember the Numbers off top of my head, im sorry, it’s silly that the post isnt visible while typing a reply) and with library upgrade required prompt and the consistently failing library upgrade. so down and not functioning.

as of yesterday i tried to delete the library database via ssh to force a rebuild but no change so apparently that db file wasnt the one (possibly due to the old to new then back to old media server version switching).

then just decided to uninstall from wdpr2100, rebooted the wdpr2100 then tried to reinstall. but apparently the uninstall does nothing the db file structure because reinstalling it puts me right back where i was, library update required but that will not work, keeps failing. at this point i almost just wanna figure out how to completely purge whatever plex guts are there but “uninstall” (wdpr2100 interface) doesnt do that…it leaves the bones and comes right back to life like a vampire resurrected woth drops of blood (reinstall) lol…

:person_shrugging:t2:

8

If you want to completely wipe and start over:

  1. Stop Plex Media Server
  2. Uninstall Plex Media Server
  3. Using SSH, delete the Plex Data Folder
    (you may need to be root to do this)
  4. Reboot the NAS
  5. Reinstall Plex Media Server
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9

ok. will try that. Thanks! fingers crossed.

Do u happen to know anything about the latest version of plex for western digital failing to connect to the media server? its so weird it just doesnt connect..govess a browser error. thats literally the only reason i had this issue was that didnt work so tried the roll back and bam, im in my current sit.

10

There were some reports of Plex Media Server not starting automatically when the WD NAS was restarted.

I’ve not noticed any problems with Plex Web connecting to Plex Media Server on WD NAS.

Ad blockers, cookie-cutters, and other plug-ins sometimes interfere, but those can be bypassed by using a private/incognito window.

11

interesting. i wonder if i just had a bad upgrade install that permanently corrupted the plex library db that these issues are persistent even after uninstall.

i will try the ssh deletion of the plex data folder (assuming i can find it), and NOT look forward to setting it all up AGAIN. It’s a huge library and MANY CUSTOMIZED FILE NAMES ETC…NOT gonna be a good time…sigh

12

qnd one thing…just for ur recommendation… when doing the fresh install, SHOULD i try with the latest software that for me wasnt connecting****?**

Or should i play it safe and just install the previous version that did connect no problem, but that just needed the library upgrade that kept failing, after the upgrade>rollback/downgrade i had previously done

13

Maybe just rename the plex data folder and create a small test PMS install. Once you get the hang of installs, consider starting over when you have confidence everything works. The latest stable PMS is what I would use. At least if you only rename the old DB, you have options.

14

Good idea. Saves the existing server.

Use the current public version from plex.tv.

Do not use the beta version. It has a new transcoder and is causing problems for some people.

15

ok..interesting. doesnt it have to be a reserved proper name tho for the systme to recognize it?

anyway. and i was just chat gpt’ing and realized i failed to articulate something in my reporting of this.

on the latest software that wouldnt connect to server…to elevorate. Wdpr2100 has the interface since IT is running plex. ao i run the app by turing it ON, then the “Configure” button comes online and normally i would click configure and that would open up the media server webUi. THAT, is where i was getting the connection failure. chatgpt suggested that maybe plex IS running but there might be a problem with the wd “configure” function mapping incorrectly and suggested i try accessing directly via ip and port.

so will reinstall the latter version just to try that for poops and giggles and see what happens if i can connect that way, its a small price to pay to avoid the entire mess of deleting and redoing everything. worst case if that doenst work, ill proceed woth rename or maybe deletion of the data folder and bite the bullet with the full fresh reinstall…just insire whoch version i should install if it comes to that? try the latest or the one prior that had worked fine until the upgrade attempt

16

Just renaming / moving the old Plex Data Folder to a new location is enough for it to be ignored. A new folder with the proper name and permissions should be created automatically as part of the install is my guess. Small things like this are what testing will help you learn without destruction of your old database & settings in case you ever want to revert and try again.

As far as what you describe

  • " i run the app by turing it ON, then the “Configure” button comes online and normally i would click configure and that would open up the media server webUi"

I would ask when you want to install PMS on the WDPR2100, do you first go to plex.tv and download it from https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/?cat=nas&plat=wd#plex-media-server
?? Or do you just use what sounds like an included app? Let’s hope you can download it and install it.

FordGuy61 and I concur that using the latest public PMS 1.42.2 is your best choice if you download it from Plex. It has a few bug fixes.

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so i poked around using cyberduck and found two more library.db files that i previously hadnt been able to find and deleted those and finally all my libraries were cleared. so startted to rebuild lobraries yesterday and so far so good.

NOW…a secondary issue os coming up. i use to accounts on plex home my main admin/owner account and then a secondary managed account with defined library access, inability to delete files etc. so after doing all this i have found that the USER account is NOT seeing the media server or libraries set up under the admin account like it was set up before.

i dont know how to fix that. chatgpt says its because the “server” hasnt been claimed up. tells me to check left sodebar menu for “Server” to CLAIM IT. i have no “server” on that menu but tho. tells me to go download a token from online which i saw but its wanting me to ssh and give a command but it keeps failing claiming the folder doesnt exist, so its all whacky now for thatbuser accountx

im wondering if i should just delete that user account and redo it…if that ould automatically link it to the server so it can see and be assigned defined library access.

Any thoughts tips or ideas there?

so thats my new current hurdle. the user account is the houeshold access a

18

also just as an fyi i WAS able to connect to server (the issue i was having that caused me to roll back to begin with) finally, on the latest software after deleting those other library files. just fyi.

so on the latest now and rescanning and rebuilding libraries UNDER THE ADMIN ACCOUNT.

..just need to figure out best way to set up my previously listed managed user account to see the server too so i can assign library access etc. user still shows but under plex home when i open to define its lovrary access says, no server connected).

OR AS I POSITED in previous reply, wondering if since the managed user account is basically currently with zero access except live tv now, if i should just delete it and create it, if that would be simpler for it to connect to and see the same server and library selections

19

I’m glad the problems have been reduced to just Managed user access.

Because my Plex Home just works, I don’t have a lot of experience debugging it. My only thought would be to access PMS from the admin account and delete the user from your Plex Home by mousing over their line and hitting the X then adding them back and inviting them as needed. I haven’t done this in so long I think I’ll ask for guidance.

@FordGuy61 what would you suggest?

20

Point a private/incognito browser window at http://pms_ip_address:32400/identity. For example, if the IP address is 10.1.2.3, use http://10.1.2.3:32400/identity. If http does not work, try https (if Secure Connections = Required).

You should see one line of XML containing claimed="0" (unclaimed) or claimed="1" (claimed). it will also display the Plex Media Server version.

Example:

<MediaContainer size="0" apiVersion="1.1.1" claimed="1" machineIdentifier="redacted" version="1.42.2.10156-f737b826c"> </MediaContainer>

Which version of Plex Media Server is installed?

Is the server claimed?

The server must be claimed before managed users can see libraries, etc.

You can certainly delete and re-create the managed user. Any watched status, ratings, etc. for that user might be lost in the process (I rarely use managed users and am unsure how much info is retained when they are deleted).