Possible to prevent video transcoding with the "Maximum simultaneous video transcode" option?

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I’m looking for a way to prevent any video transcoding from occurring via the “Maximum simultaneous video transcode” option , as I am running Plex on a NAS that has limited CPU.

Having looked at how the “Maximum simultaneous video transcode” option functions, I’ve noted that setting the value to “0” in the preferences.xml translates into the equivalent of choosing the “Unlimited” option within the GUI. Tried “-1” in the preferences.xml just for kicks. But that didn’t seem to do it. So it appears that the lowest value that a person can set this option to is “1”.

Assuming that I can’t set it lower than 1. Is there is method of “tricking” Plex into thinking that 1 video transcode is already happening at all times? What value does Plex look for when determining whether or not there are any transcoded video streams currently running?

Thanks for any assistance

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Nice of you to just assume you know what my problem is. Everything you wrote is quite common knowledge.

I’m seeking a solution for the simple fact that I cannot enforce client side settings for people who I share my library with. All media is in a compatible format. Default settings on many client devices are set at a low bitrate for remote streams. Resulting in transcoded video when choosing maximum quality would result in direct play.

So yes, the ability to disable video transcoding in would solve my problem.

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