PlexData share for QNAP systems

Plex Media Server
256

I see Plex Media Server in PlexData. Awesome! Can I delete the other Shared Folder (Plex) or will it mess up anything?

257

Show me please before you take any actions?

If you’re referring to the shared folder PMSLibShare (from Dane22’s QPKG), don’t delete those contents. You’d be deleting your PMS.

By default, PMSLibShare and PlexData point to the same place.
By default, Removing the shared folder isn’t dangerous to the metadata stored inside the actual package directory.

258

I’ll just keep what I have. Thanks again!

259

Here , Let me show you

  1. This should match your contents of PlexData . It’s the link to wherever PMS is installed. I place this on CACHEDEV1_DATA in all cases. I then make Plex Media Server point to the real App Center installed location (e.g. /share/CACHEDEV3_DATA/.qpkg/PlexMediaServer/Library/Plex Media Server

  2. When you click Plex Media Server in FileStation, it redirects and takes you right into the real live server. This is why you should be careful. You can make a backup of everything you see there or, if you’re restoring, unzip right there.

Screenshot from 2021-03-04 23-14-55
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Screenshot from 2021-03-04 23-14-42
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It is a mean little trick but it works very nicely.

Every time PMS starts, it checks this link and updates if necessary. This is how I can automatically track when you use the “Migrate To” capability in App Center.

260

Thank you, thank you, thank you! Been trying since yesterday to figure out how to back up the PLEX data. I can see all the folders in FileStation now!

The key for me was to remove the existing PlexData share first. I could not edit it’s permissions anyway.

I then did what ChuckPa suggested below:

The general procedure is:

  1. Create PlexData shared folder
  2. Restart PMS
  3. Look at PlexData in FileStation
  4. If you see “Plex Media Server” – then you’re up and running.
261

I see mention of Plex being installed/updated using admin user, does it matter that Qnap has started recommending users to disable admin user and create a new administrative user named something else?

262

I don’t disable it but neither do I allow my QNAP to be exposed to the internet for remote access.

If admin is disabled, you still need a way into the shell
If you turn it all off, AND it fouls up, you’ll be hitting the reset switch – NOT cool.

My recommendation:

  1. Never allow the NAS to be an incoming gateway for external login.
  2. It is a NAS, one which does a lot of service convergence, but keep it as a NAS.
  3. Access it from LAN only or through very specific ports / programs like Plex.
  4. Get a better firewall/gateway device solution to protect your entire LAN.
263

ChuckPa, I disable the default admin account but also create a new admin account under a different user. I have never had an issue with Plex or access via the shell.

264

When I first installed Plex I believe I did it using the admin account. Since then I’ve disabled the admin account as advised by QNAP and have updated using another admin account. Not noticed any problems yet.

265

@skwor01

Thanks. I am probably one of those old ‘Hard A**’ types who keeps it gritty but I’m almost always in a root shell (sudo bash) so I guess ‘to each his own’ is the correct answer here.

If you are comfortable then go for it.

266

Thanks for replies, I too created a new administrative user account named other than admin and disabled the one named admin. No major issue accessing QNAP in browser or SSH using new username.

Only issue I did have was when I SSH into NAS under new admin account which has a username other than admin and try to run some scripts that access Plex directories, they fail since Plex is installed as user admin. Rather than update the ownership and permissions of such files and folders each time Plex updates and I need to run a script, I have decided to just temporarily enable admin account in QNAP, SSH into NAS as user admin, run my script, logout and then go disable the original admin account again in QNAP.

267

Perhaps the long term solution there is to update the scripts?

admin is UID=0, GID=0.

all other accounts are non-root accounts to Linux. You’ll need adjust accordingly.

(My QNAP is out for repair else I’d show you how to do it)

268

@JCK

Hope this helps.

I have my TS-128 running QTS 5.0 beta.

In the sudoers file, for my unprivileged login,

## Uncomment to allow any user to run sudo if they know the password
## of the user they are running the command as (root by default).
# Defaults targetpw  # Ask for the password of the target user
# ALL ALL=(ALL) ALL  # WARNING: only use this together with 'Defaults targetpw'

## Read drop-in files from /usr/etc/sudoers.d
@includedir /usr/etc/sudoers.d

chuck ALL=(ALL)  NOPASSWD: ALL

Now I can issue commands: sudo blah blah

269

Thanks, will check it out.