Tonight’s outage is proof that this was a terrible decision, and I feel especially screwed having paid for a lifetime Plex Pass back when my server did not have dependencies outside of my own network. Now, the Plex product I paid for is significantly worse and there’s nothing I can do about it. All of the positive changes in the last couple of years (many of which are legitimately great) are significantly outweighed by how horrendous plex.tv authentication dependency is. PLEASE GET RID OF THIS ASAP AND NEVER BRING IT BACK.
I could not agree more! What sort of retarded logic dictates that I need to sign into an external auth server to watch media on my own ■■■■■■■ network?
Seriously Plex devs this is worse than a joke. Sort your ■■■■ out. I didn’t pay $150 to have the privilege of you denying me access to my own media on my own network.
At this point you are actively driving people away from your product with your “upgraded features”. ■■■■.
Actually Plex has a long tradition of questionable design choices. So no surprise there.
They already have your money why should they listen to you? 
Besides $150 is nothing compared to the money they make selling people’s viewing history, but they can’t get that unless everything is routed through the mothership. Surely the profits they reap from selling your data is more important than being able to connect to a local server locally, right?
@jfconde said:
Besides $150 is nothing compared to the money they make selling people’s viewing history, but they can’t get that unless everything is routed through the mothership. Surely the profits they reap from selling your data is more important than being able to connect to a local server locally, right?
Please stop spreading false accusations. Plex does not sell your data, period.
@quindarious said:
I could not agree more! What sort of retarded logic dictates that I need to sign into an external auth server to watch media on my own **** network?
To be clear, you only need to authenticate your clients if your server is signed into Plex.tv. This is how we ensure unauthorized devices do not connect to your server. If you want to remove this requirement, do not log your server into Plex.tv. If you are signed in, there is also a setting in PMS to allow some devices on your network to connect without needing to be authenticated. There are some Plex clients that this will not work on. You can find more info at https://support.plex.tv/articles/200484903-internet-and-network-requirements/.
Additionally, your Plex clients should cache your credentials and be able to reuse them if you lose internet access or access to our servers are down. If this is not working, then there is a bug and we would love to help get this solved. If you still have logs covering the time when this failed, please provide those so we can examine why this caching mechanism did not work for you.
We are also working on other ways to better handle situations like this.
@quindarious said:
I could not agree more! What sort of retarded logic dictates that I need to sign into an external auth server to watch media on my own **** network?To be clear, you only need to authenticate your clients if your server is signed into Plex.tv. This is how we ensure unauthorized devices do not connect to your server. If you want to remove this requirement, do not log your server into Plex.tv. If you are signed in, there is also a setting in PMS to allow some devices on your network to connect without needing to be authenticated. There are some Plex clients that this will not work on. You can find more info at https://support.plex.tv/articles/200484903-internet-and-network-requirements/.
You’ve missed the point. I’m talking about being able to log into my own server via the web interface on the same PC the server is running on. Plex.tv was down and I couldn’t even do this! Despite having 192.168.1.0/24 in the list of IP addresse alowed without auth.
Additionally, your Plex clients should cache your credentials and be able to reuse them if you lose internet access or access to our servers are down. If this is not working, then there is a bug and we would love to help get this solved. If you still have logs covering the time when this failed, please provide those so we can examine why this caching mechanism did not work for you.
We are also working on other ways to better handle situations like this.
I’ve figured out a better way to handle how you’ve bastardised this product. I’ve downgraded my server to a previous version.
But hey, how’s that News or VR feature working out?
@“MovieFan.Plex” said:
Please stop spreading false accusations. Plex does not sell your data, period.
Prove it!!!
And while doing so … what’s the explanation that Plex doesn’t work standalone anymore? That all logins get routed through plex.tv and no local auth is possible? What’s the explanation for the login through Google or Facebook? What’s the explanation why an outage of plex.tv affects local installations playing local media on local frontends so much?
I read lots of words … but so far there nothing to be heard from Plex officials that would hold up against a closer inquiry.
@“MovieFan.Plex” said:
We are also working on other ways to better handle situations like this.
I appreciate the response, and I really hope this is true and not just a feel-good platitude to quell some of the dissent.
Signing out my server to view content locally would have been a half-decent temporary workaround, the only problem is I couldn’t even access my server locally to sign it out. The very first thing I hit when I tried to direct my browser to the local interface was an authentication failure. And leaving the server permanently signed out and losing a lot of the functionality that comes with that just in case there is another plex.tv outage is not an acceptable workaround.
@marcelhehle said:
@“MovieFan.Plex” said:
Please stop spreading false accusations. Plex does not sell your data, period.
Prove it!!!
And while doing so … what’s the explanation that Plex doesn’t work standalone anymore? That all logins get routed through plex.tv and no local auth is possible? What’s the explanation for the login through Google or Facebook? What’s the explanation why an outage of plex.tv affects local installations playing local media on local frontends so much?
I read lots of words … but so far there nothing to be heard from Plex officials that would hold up against a closer inquiry.
How the hell can you prove a negative? I would counter that by saying prove that they are selling it. I am not a Plex shill by any means, but seriously, this is stupid logic.
I agree… it is unacceptable to get locked out of OUR content on OUR hardware … period…
I smell a class action lawsuit… any lawyers want to take a swing at it with a nice letter to plex corporate on how this violates the law… ?
anyone…?
Come on!!
What law has been broken??
That’s absurd.
We all signed on to it…
I do, however, agree Plex’s behavior is insidious…
@“MovieFan.Plex” said:
@jfconde said:
Besides $150 is nothing compared to the money they make selling people’s viewing history, but they can’t get that unless everything is routed through the mothership. Surely the profits they reap from selling your data is more important than being able to connect to a local server locally, right?Please stop spreading false accusations. Plex does not sell your data, period.
@quindarious said:
I could not agree more! What sort of retarded logic dictates that I need to sign into an external auth server to watch media on my own **** network?To be clear, you only need to authenticate your clients if your server is signed into Plex.tv. This is how we ensure unauthorized devices do not connect to your server. If you want to remove this requirement, do not log your server into Plex.tv. If you are signed in, there is also a setting in PMS to allow some devices on your network to connect without needing to be authenticated. There are some Plex clients that this will not work on. You can find more info at https://support.plex.tv/articles/200484903-internet-and-network-requirements/.
Additionally, your Plex clients should cache your credentials and be able to reuse them if you lose internet access or access to our servers are down. If this is not working, then there is a bug and we would love to help get this solved. If you still have logs covering the time when this failed, please provide those so we can examine why this caching mechanism did not work for you.
We are also working on other ways to better handle situations like this.
Well this is just chock-a-block full of lies.
Plex does does not “sell” data in exactly the same way that FaceBook does not “sell” data. Believe it or not that’s exactly what they claim:
Both companies rely on a highly legalistic redefinition of the word “sell” that no ordinary person would recognize. Both companies suck up every bit of data about you that they possibly can and then monetize that information in every way they can think of. And that is the only reason that all authentication is done on their servers.
And that is why with the latest beta the authorization system has been intentionally changed so the list of authorized devices no longer works . My home setup depends on that working and the latest beta completely breaks it. No more updates for me I guess.
Next beta will likely stop the server from working at all if their data suck isn’t continuously allowed.
@drinehart said:
@marcelhehle said:
@“MovieFan.Plex” said:
Please stop spreading false accusations. Plex does not sell your data, period.
Prove it!!!
And while doing so … what’s the explanation that Plex doesn’t work standalone anymore? That all logins get routed through plex.tv and no local auth is possible? What’s the explanation for the login through Google or Facebook? What’s the explanation why an outage of plex.tv affects local installations playing local media on local frontends so much?
I read lots of words … but so far there nothing to be heard from Plex officials that would hold up against a closer inquiry.
How the hell can you prove a negative? I would counter that by saying prove that they are selling it. I am not a Plex shill by any means, but seriously, this is stupid logic.
I agree your logic is seriously stupid. Presumably you leave your house and car unlocked all the time, right? And why bother with a bank if you can store your money in a pile on the front step. After all in your world it would be wrong to implement any security until after you proved something had been taken from you. Just assume that everyone in the world is always honest and don’t even try to protect yourself in any way, what could possibly go wrong?
And yes if Plex actually wants anyone to believe that they’re not collecting and selling private data it’s up to them to prove it. In the real world it’s very common for companies to hire third party auditors to prove they are acting honestly. Many companies actually specialize in privacy/security audits these days, and unless a Plex is willing to prove itself it’s perfectly reasonable to assume the worst about them. In fact it would be foolish not to.
@jfconde said:
Well this is just chock-a-block full of lies.Plex does does not “sell” data in exactly the same way that FaceBook does not “sell” data. Believe it or not that’s exactly what they claim:
https://www.facebook.com/help/152637448140583
Both companies rely on a highly legalistic redefinition of the word “sell” that no ordinary person would recognize. Both companies suck up every bit of data about you that they possibly can and then monetize that information in every way they can think of. And that is the only reason that all authentication is done on their servers.
What a trade off, right? Use our crap for free but we will take all your data and browsing habits. That sounds 100% right for a digital platform. How would that work for, lets say, 4 new tires. Here are the tires. Free of charge…but we will track via GPS your location and monitor your speed, acceleration, breaking. Some would not mind while others would. There’s always a trade-off. EVERYTHING has a stipulation. You may let your friend borrow your car but you sure in the hell expect them to pay for any speeding/parking tickets.
@jfconde said:
@drinehart said:
@marcelhehle said:
@“MovieFan.Plex” said:
Please stop spreading false accusations. Plex does not sell your data, period.
Prove it!!!
And while doing so … what’s the explanation that Plex doesn’t work standalone anymore? That all logins get routed through plex.tv and no local auth is possible? What’s the explanation for the login through Google or Facebook? What’s the explanation why an outage of plex.tv affects local installations playing local media on local frontends so much?
I read lots of words … but so far there nothing to be heard from Plex officials that would hold up against a closer inquiry.
How the hell can you prove a negative? I would counter that by saying prove that they are selling it. I am not a Plex shill by any means, but seriously, this is stupid logic.
I agree your logic is seriously stupid. Presumably you leave your house and car unlocked all the time, right? And why bother with a bank if you can store your money in a pile on the front step. After all in your world it would be wrong to implement any security until after you proved something had been taken from you. Just assume that everyone in the world is always honest and don’t even try to protect yourself in any way, what could possibly go wrong?
And yes if Plex actually wants anyone to believe that they’re not collecting and selling private data it’s up to them to prove it. In the real world it’s very common for companies to hire third party auditors to prove they are acting honestly. Many companies actually specialize in privacy/security audits these days, and unless a Plex is willing to prove itself it’s perfectly reasonable to assume the worst about them. In fact it would be foolish not to.
No. If someone is convinced that they are collecting and selling data, then they are free to use another product. Your stupid analogy is stupid. They are telling you they collect some data for internal use. They tell you they are not selling it to third parties. If you find that they are, and can prove it, then sue them. If you are not comfortable with them collecting data, then find another product. It is that easy.
I am not saying I like collection of data either, but it is what it is.
Did you know that you likely ask for data from Plex every time you add media to your server? Did you know that request, at least, is showing in a server log? Yes, they can determine what media is on your server if you do this. These terms they are delivering are at worst a CYA for the data you are happily already giving them if you use their platform.
And let’s look at it another way. PMS has always needed to connect/authenticate with PLEX.TV way before this gather/sell data even came to be. That’s just the way it is.
@drinehart said:
@jfconde said:
@drinehart said:
@marcelhehle said:
@“MovieFan.Plex” said:
Please stop spreading false accusations. Plex does not sell your data, period.
Prove it!!!
And while doing so … what’s the explanation that Plex doesn’t work standalone anymore? That all logins get routed through plex.tv and no local auth is possible? What’s the explanation for the login through Google or Facebook? What’s the explanation why an outage of plex.tv affects local installations playing local media on local frontends so much?
I read lots of words … but so far there nothing to be heard from Plex officials that would hold up against a closer inquiry.
How the hell can you prove a negative? I would counter that by saying prove that they are selling it. I am not a Plex shill by any means, but seriously, this is stupid logic.
I agree your logic is seriously stupid. Presumably you leave your house and car unlocked all the time, right? And why bother with a bank if you can store your money in a pile on the front step. After all in your world it would be wrong to implement any security until after you proved something had been taken from you. Just assume that everyone in the world is always honest and don’t even try to protect yourself in any way, what could possibly go wrong?
And yes if Plex actually wants anyone to believe that they’re not collecting and selling private data it’s up to them to prove it. In the real world it’s very common for companies to hire third party auditors to prove they are acting honestly. Many companies actually specialize in privacy/security audits these days, and unless a Plex is willing to prove itself it’s perfectly reasonable to assume the worst about them. In fact it would be foolish not to.
No. If someone is convinced that they are collecting and selling data, then they are free to use another product. Your stupid analogy is stupid. They are telling you they collect some data for internal use. They tell you they are not selling it to third parties. If you find that they are, and can prove it, then sue them. If you are not comfortable with them collecting data, then find another product. It is that easy.
I am not saying I like collection of data either, but it is what it is.
Did you know that you likely ask for data from Plex every time you add media to your server? Did you know that request, at least, is showing in a server log? Yes, they can determine what media is on your server if you do this. These terms they are delivering are at worst a CYA for the data you are happily already giving them if you use their platform.
If the analogy is stupid it certainly says something about you that you’re unable to grasp it.
Saying it’s Ok to trust Plex because you could sue them if they violate their privacy agreement is exactly the same as saying it’s Ok to store your money on the lawn because if someone stole it you could have them arrested.
1 it would be extremely difficult to prove they were violating that agreement, nigh on impossible actually.
2 even if you had proof it would be difficult and expensive to sue them for it.
3 whether you win or not the damage would have already been done. Your private information is already sold off and you’ll never be able to stop it from being sold again and again.
Yes, I do know that they collect a record of every bit of media that each of us have in our systems, and when we watch them. We agree there at least. I suppose the only thing we differ on is that I’m not happy about it, you apparently are.
FWIW I have never given anyone data happily. 
If the analogy is stupid it certainly says something about you that you’re unable to grasp it.
Saying it’s Ok to trust Plex because you could sue them if they violate their privacy agreement is exactly the same as saying it’s Ok to store your money on the lawn because if someone stole it you could have them arrested.
1 it would be extremely difficult to prove they were violating that agreement, nigh on impossible actually.
2 even if you had proof it would be difficult and expensive to sue them for it.
3 whether you win or not the damage would have already been done. Your private information is already sold off and you’ll never be able to stop it from being sold again and again.Yes, I do know that they collect a record of every bit of media that each of us have in our systems, and when we watch them. We agree there at least. I suppose the only thing we differ on is that I’m not happy about it, you apparently are.
FWIW I have never given anyone data happily.
And what does it say about me? I’m trying not to take this personally, but starting to fail.
And yet, it is still your choice to use their product. If you cannot trust them, quit using it. I would not use software from someone I felt I could not trust.
- Not as hard as it would be for them to prove otherwise. What would that proof look like to you exactly? This is an honest question.
- This is not Plex’s problem. This is yours. If the cost is too high, again, quit using Plex.
- Your information is already out there. Do you use Chrome? Firefox? Microsoft? Google? Apple? Android? Watch TV? Browse the internet? Sure, I hate this, too. But damning Plex is like yelling at a grain of sand on a beach that you hate beaches, is it not?
@jfconde said:
Yes, I do know that they collect a record of every bit of media that each of us have in our systems, and when we watch them. We agree there at least. I suppose the only thing we differ on is that I’m not happy about it, you apparently are.
You know I was amazed how PLEX INC modified the way it gathers our information. It was something like plex will now “generalize” playback statistics so it won’t be able to create any sort of fingerprint to identify a file in a user’s library. WOW! That’s amazing they did that. They absolutely did not have to do it, but they did.
The thing you may need to worry about are trailers. While innocent these little suckers could get us in trouble if say, SONY bought the company that hosts the trailers. SONY would now know that users of the plexverse are watching a movie they made. They would then ask, why are they watching this trailer. Do they have this movie? Do that actually own this(our) movie??..
What ever though…Just adding to the paranoia.
Sony probably already knows - they learned early on to hide their rootkits better. J/k - I hope.
