Server Version#: PlexMediaServer-1.18.1.1973-0f4abfbcc-x86_64.qpkg
QNAP: 4.3.6.1070
Dual NIC port - Only 1 port is plugged into my switch.
NAS IP: 10.0.20.11
NAS DNS: nicenas
Resolvable via short name or FQDN from every device on my network.
Verified service is running: ps -ef | grep -i plex
I started off with the 1.16.6 version available in the Qnap app store, once that was installed it was just constantly “Looking for servers”. It never detected the service running on the NAS.
Verified Service was running
Restarted Service
Tried via: FQDN, Short Name, IP address
Authorized devices only show different logins with Firefox. I tried private mode as well
Same result
The documentation recommends running the latest version. I downloaded the latest from plex.tv, installed it manually.
With this install, I tried logging in with a fresh account. This time it saw my Nvidia Shield but not my NAS.
Verified Service was running
Restarted Service
Tried via: FQDN, Short Name, IP address
Authorized devices only show different logins with Firefox. I tried private mode as well
Same result
I did some quick digging through the logs but nothing stood out.Logs.tar.gz (1.1 MB)
I would really like to get this working so I can start using it. I read through the Q&A and most forum posts, but none of the proposed solutions helped.
I even used the official PMS docker image (:latest) and got the same result. I ran the image from the container station within Qnap. I was going to stand it up on my local linux server but needed to walk away.
This is why broadcasts from one aren’t seen by the other. Broadcast packets do not cross subnet boundaries . In your LAN spec, broadcast addresses are 10.0.20.255 and 10.0.12.255. Nobody is listening.
change the subnets to a /16 subnet (10.0.x.x) and it will all immediately work.
Since these are two machines, each on a different “network” (subnet), the standard resolution is to SSH tunnel from the PC to the QNAP. This is because PMS will not allow itself to be claimed by a computer from a different subnet (default security to protect your media/server. While the rule is indended for VPS/remote servers, technically the QNAP (server) is remote from the PC by being on a diferent net/subnet.
Linux / Mac “ssh -L 8888:127.0.0.1:32400 ip.addr.of.qnap” opens the connection.
You sign in and let the ssh session sit there.
On the browser, open 127.0.0.1:8888/web … instant connection.
I did some voodoo and put my laptop on the same subnet as the Qnap. Damn thing started working. I guess the browser does the discovery. I thought the discovery would run from the server since I was trying to configure the server and not the client.
You mention 2 issues, “Broadcast” and “PMS will not allow itself to be claimed by a computer from a different subnet”. Is the issue due to broadcast or just a security setting on the server that doesn’t allow auth from systems on different subnets?
Based on the ssh command to bypass the issues and the fact that it’s now working across subnets, I’m going with subnet access. Need to find a good doc on how the discovery works.
It wasn’t a subnet issue, it was an access issue.
“List of IP addresses and networks that are allowed without auth”
To fix, I temporarily setup my laptop on the same subnet as the plex system. Updated the list of IP’s (above) and then moved my laptop back. All is working.
I understand the purpose and limitations of broadcast, which are 99.99% of the time UDP. The topic has moved to how it was resolved. I’ve been looking for docs on Plex requirements and I haven’t found much about networking requirements. There’s a quick blurb about “Enable local network discovery (GDM)” but there’s no explanation as to how it works, at least not in the official docs I found.
Solution: Plex Server and client should be on the same subnet when setting things up.
