Remote Access Green and Red icon?

Plex Media Server Remote Access
1

Server Version#: Version 1.29.0.6244
Player Version#: N/A

I have been using plex for many many years and always update any new version.
Currently Plex is installed on a TS-1277. This is not a new issue but has returned over the last 2-3 versions.
Remote access tells me with the red Exclamation icon that “Not Available outside your network”
I have port forwarded correctly and have tried with Manually specify public port on and off multiple times…
Asus router has UNP on,
Sometimes I get green then drops back to red. Sometimes stays on red.
I have tried dozens of options/diabling/restarting/rebooting/changing IP/etc/etc ,

I think my friends outside my network can stream. But without asking I have No idea.
So Is this a bug ?
AND is there a way to confirm it is working even if the Remote access icon is Red ?

:+1:

2

If the remote access icon is red it’s not working

It’s possible people are streaming outside your network with a very limited “indirect” stream which has a 1 or 2 mbps connection. It will transcode just about anything to a very poor-quality SD picture

When remote access shows green and then falls back to red, that’s not an indication of remote access working, then not working.

It shows green while Plex tries to make the connection but it’s never actually working if it turns red shortly after

Check to see if port 32400 is open

Firewall is a common obstacle if everything else is configured correctly

3

That’s not entirely true. It just means whatever connection test Plex uses has failed, but it doesn’t necessarily mean remote access isn’t working. The only way to confirm that, one way or the other, is to actually test remote streaming.

4

Plex Documentation
→ Remote Access
→ Troubleshooting Remote Access

Plex Forum: Tips, Tricks, & How Tos
→ The Basics of Remote Access Troubleshooting

If Remote Access is enabled and PMS shows “Not available…”, then your Plex server has not successfully registered with the hosts at plex.tv.

When enabling remote access, PMS initially shows green. This is the server trying to register with hosts at plex.tv. If the registration fails, it will revert to red with the “not available…” message.

In Settings => Remote Access, the Manually Specify Public Port checkbox tells Plex Media Server to use either manual port forwarding or UPnP.

If you use manual port forwarding, you must check the box to manually specify a public port.

If you use UPnP, do not check the “manually specify” public port.

You can use either manual port forwarding or UPnP. If using manual port forwarding, you can leave UPnP enabled on the router for use by other services / devices.

See screenshots below from my Asus router and Plex remote access configuration.

Additional Troubleshooting

Login to your Asus router. Look at the WAN IP on the Network Map page.

  • It should match the Public IP shown in Settings → Remote Access. If it does not, then remote access will not work.
  • If it is a RFC-1918 reserved address, then you are likely in a double-NAT situation and Plex remote access will not work.
    RFC 1918 addresses: 10.x.x.x; 172.16.x.x to 172.31.x.x; 192.168.x.x

You can verify if your port is open via canyouseeme.org.

  1. Plex Media Server must be running with remote access enabled.
  2. From a system on the same network as your Plex server, go to https://canyouseeme.org.
  3. Your IP should match the IP address displayed in Plex remote access settings.
    If it does not, then the test will fail.
  4. Set Port to Check with the Plex remote access port.
  5. Click Check Port.
    If the site can see your server it will return a Success message.

Port Forward in my Asus RT-AC68U
External Port: Must match Settings → Remote Access port number
Internal Port: Must be 32400.
Internal IP Address: Must match Private address in Settings → Remote Access (The IP address of your Plex server).
Protocol: TCP
Source IP: Must be blank.

port_forward
port_forward760×199 11 KB

Settings → Remote Access on my Plex Media Server

ra_settings
ra_settings698×462 95.5 KB

5

image

6

Thank you for everyone’s suggestions…
I have been using Plex for over 4 years and this bug has popped up many times over those years …
I did forget to mention I have a static IP (set by the ISP)
Several years ago I could not get plex to stream outside!
My fix was the Static IP.

I tested with Tautulli showing a member streaming (@ 1.7Mbps) yet the icon is red.
Enable relay option is ticked
The outside member’s location shows 127.0.0.1 when usually Tautulli shows the members real IP.
FYI Port forwarding tester failed with “every” port I tried !

I believe plex is connected and it is a bug causing the red/green changes. :green_circle: :red_circle:

7

This is Plex Relay. The connection is tunneled through a host at Plex and is limited to 2 Mbps.

If you look in the Plex Dashboard, it will show an Indirect, not Remote, connection.

8

Thanks FG and the other answers.

My issue was my QFirewall !
I turned it off and get green .
As this is a qnap section maybe I can get help.

I do not want to have the Firewall off .
I turned it back on and after several settings trials I had to untick this option to have the firewall on and have plex working correctly.

Firewall off-on 2022-10-07 151104
Firewall off-on 2022-10-07 151104907×551 63.2 KB

What profile/action do i set up to get plex to work and keep my box safe…

9

Try https://forum.qnap.com/viewtopic.php?t=158268

1 Like
10

Thanks , that gave me enough information to add to the profile and keep the default settings.
Now all good :+1:

1 Like
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