Server Version#:3.34.4
Player Version#:3.34.4
Hello, I have been using Plex Server for many years with no issues playing mkv files on the host computer or remote streaming on other devices within my network or through the internet. I have been using an 8 year old computer for my host server with no issues but just bought a new, high end windows computer to replace my old computer. The issue I’m having is that I can’t play any of my mkv files on the host server computer as it will start and then gets stuck in buffering but I can play smaller sized m4v files just fine. The odd thing is I can easily play any of my mkv files on other devices remotely and they appear to be at the native bitrate which can be as high as 37 mbps. Can you please tell me why this might be occurring and how it can be fixed as it doesn’t make sense that the server computer itself can’t play full bitrate movies? Thanks in advance for your help and please let me know what I can provide you regarding my system to help determine the issue.
Paul
There could literally be a bazillion reasons it might be happening. Them being MKV files likely has nothing to do with it. All video files have type of streams in them video, Audio and often subtitles. Some players like the web browser cannot play HEVC video streams so needs a transcode.
When playing something look at the Dashboards Now Playing info and seeing if it is transcoding or not is a start. Most player apps will in the Playback info will say why it transcoded if it did. The Now playing window you can also see whether or not it is using hardware transcoding. In the Now Playing info it should also state the bit rate it is playing which you can use to check if the bit rate is higher than the bit rate of you network. It might also list the playback as being remote because for maybe for some reason it thinks the player is not local and the round trip is causing it.
After you check that stuff out take a look at the server logs/console and filter on MDE after the start of playback. I know logs may be hard to understand but MDE stands for Media Decision Engine and is the info on why the server might Transcode or direct stream based on factors like network speed, file compatibility or limits like max network speed allowed.
Hi Bigwheel, I reviewed what the dashboard shows and it says the video is playing at direct stream but the audio is transcoding which if very odd. Also, the bandwidth is at 5 Kbps and doesn’t change at all. The movie just sits stalled with the buffer circle showing. Keep in mind that this is on the plex server computer and the external hard drive is connected directly to this computer. The tested transfer rate between the external hard drive and the server computer is about 170 MBps. Now, when I play the same movie on another computer using the web based plex viewer it plays fine but shows it transcoding with an average streaming rate of about 11 Mbps. That’s still seems slow when my network speed was tested at 100 Mbps but at least it’s playing. I also tested an apple TV device and it was able to play at at direct play about 38 Mbps which is exactly what I would expect the computers to do. If you would like me to send you a server log or something else please let me know how to find that information and I will be happy to send it. Thanks again for all the help.
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