Plex Shows as Remote On All Local Devices Except Android Based Ones

[shuddle13]

Server Version#: 1.15.3.876
Player Version#: 3.92.3

I just got a Samsung 4K 65" QLED TV, Model: QN65Q9FAM. I have gone round and round with my ISP and my network settings, trying to figure this issue out. No matter what I do, when using the TV’s Plex app, it shows as a remote connection, with my WAN address - not even the IP address of the device itself (which is a static IP address I pay for for my network - because my users can’t connect to my Plex server unless I have a static IP address on my home; that’s another story). I have factory reset the TV, factory reset the network settings on the TV. Assigned a Reserved DHCP address to the TV. My ISP can’t find anything unusual with my settings. I mentioned DNS rebinding (not even sure what it is, but I have seen it in other forum posts here. My networking skills are very moderate - I know just enough to be dangerous, and what I don’t know, I usually Google. Most of them have been learned in the process of using Plex). My ISP said that DNS rebinding is not an issue here. The TV is connected directly to my gateway via an ethernet cable.

What’s interesting is I also have an Nvidia Shield hooked up to the same TV, again using an direct, wired connection. If I use Plex on the Shield, it shows a local connection in the Plex Dashboard. But again, if I use the Samsung TV Plex App, it shows Remote connection in the Plex Dashboard.

I am confident the ISP understand the issue and has verified everything - it is a local ISP and the tech I have been working with uses Plex as well, so he is familiar with both sides and has been very helpful. He has tried everything he can think of, but on his end, my TV shows on my network with an IP address in my network.

Other things I have tried include turning off ‘prefer insecure connections’ in the plex app on the TV. In the Plex Server settings, I have entered my IP address and subnet to force it to treat devices on the network as local in terms of bandwidth, but it still sees the device as remote (I also removed it since it said all other addresses will be seen as remote - either way, same results).

As I was writing this, I tested my other Samsung Smart TV (UN32M5300, Plex 3.3.4, Tizen 3.0) and got the same results. However, my Shield, Phone, and Tablet all show local when playing.

Sorry for the hopefully somewhat coherent rant. Let me know what additional information I can provide to help troubleshoot this, as it is driving me crazy. Also, please keep in mind, my networking skills are basic, so please dumb-down responses as much as possible if you can.

Thanks!

[shuddle13]

As an update, I also just called my ISP again. They don’t, and I might say this wrong, “use” DNS rebinding. He switched my DNS server to Google’s though, just to see if that helps. It did not.

I have also found that my laptop and the actual Plex Server show as connected remotely as well. Now I am really stumped. It seems any Android based device shows connected locally (Shield, Tablet, and Phone). While the rest of my devices show connecting remotely.

[shuddle13]

Bump. Still looking for any help if anyone has any idea what is going on. Again, I narrowed it down to Android devices showing as local in Plex, and non-Android devices showing as remote in Plex.

[shuddle13]

Well, for anyone else having this problem, it seems to be resolved. I can tell you what I changed, but not necessarily why it fixed it. My ISP now sells a SmartNet package, where they come out and hook up an Eero Mesh network (they provide) in home. This benefitted me because I live in a large, old home converted into apartments and had weak - almost non-existent - signal on the opposite side of my apartment. In doing so, we disabled the router functions in my current Gateway - a Hitron CGNM. It is now set in Bridge Mode and all Router functions are handled by the Eero Router. Once I setup the proper DHCP Reservations, Firewall Exceptions, and Port Forwards in the Eero, Plex was back up and working with remote access for my family and when I test all of my devices in my home, they are showing on a local network.

For more detail, my previous setup was:

1. Hitron CGNM acting as a gateway (modem/router).
2. Coaxial cable running from my living room to my office, connecting to a Hitron Access (HT-EMN2) point using MOCA.
3. A Linksys switch running off of the access point to connect all of my wired connections in my office (the access point only had 1 ethernet port and I have the Plex Server and my work computer, and my Samsung Smart Things Hub wired).
4. Plex using a wired connection to the switch.
5. DHCP Reservations for the Plex Server and the Hitron Access Point.
6. Port Forwarding setup for the Plex Server and the Hitron Access Point.

In that scenario, remote access worked inside and outside my home. However, any Non-Android based device in my home showed as a remote connection (with a mixture of wired and wireless Android and Non-Android devices).

My current setup is as follows:

1. Hitron CGNM Gateway setup with Gateway functions disabled, to serve only as a modem.
2. An Eero router in my living room, and 2 eero beacons - 1 in my bedroom and 1 in my office (these don’t have ethernet ports for wired connections, which leads to the next couple of steps).
3. A D-Link switch connected to the Eero Router in the living room.
4. Cat6 Ethernet cable running from my living room to my office, connecting to a Linksys switch in my office. (It’s an old home with all of the rooms running in a straight line. There were holes already pre-drilled in the walls to run coaxial or other cable across the apartment when I moved in. I will be covering the exposed cable with a cable channel cover to make it look better).
5. Plex Server connected to the Linksys switch in my office with a wired connection.
6. In the Eero app, I set a DHCP Reservation for the Plex Server.
7. I also set a firewall exception in Eero for the Plex Server.
8. Finally, I setup port forwarding in Eero for the Plex Server.

Now everything works in home and outside my home, and everything in home seems to be showing a local connection, whether the device is connected with a wired or wireless connection. The other thing my ISP did is re-run all of the cable from my apartment to the pole outside. I just moved in in December and have been getting a very poor connection. I am paying for 200 down and 10 up, and at times was only getting 2 down (and in bad weather, no connection at all). They found my line had been split about 8 times (which makes sense, there are 8 apartment units in my building), which was seriously degrading my connection to almost nothing. The tech who tested my line in my home said he was surprised my connection worked at all, the signal was so bad.

I now have stable, 200+ speeds down, and 10+ speeds up, and a working Plex Server. It is going to be a good weekend to enjoy watching all of my stuff!