I have the same problem going in and out, have had a server for years and never had a problem till the last few months have tried everything other than replacing my computer wish there was somewhere to get help.
Prob best to create your own thread with details on your server and setup and what you’ve tried so far.
A quick thing you can try is to stop plex, go to the Cache directory in your plex media server folder, and look for a file named certificate.p12. If it’s there, rename it certificate.p12.old and start plex back up. It should download cert-v2.p12.
What OS are you on? The cache directory location varies.
I thank you for trying but I am 74 year old not very computer literate, using win11. All I know is when I started I downloaded the program years ago when Plex first started and have never had a problem till a few months ago.
What problem exactly is that – would you mind briefly elaborating?
Even if you’re not super into all the computer things…
- I suppose your server is running on the Windows 11 machine?
- If you can find it… what’s the version of Plex Media Server installed on this device – you can see that if you open the web app on the same machine (e.g. using http://127.0.0.1:32400/web and navigate to
Settings>[Your Server's Name]>General).
- If you can find it… what’s the version of Plex Media Server installed on this device – you can see that if you open the web app on the same machine (e.g. using http://127.0.0.1:32400/web and navigate to
- On what device are you trying to stream from your server when you experience those issues?
- Is that device inside your home network or elsewhere?
- No connection at all (e.g. the app not even able to connect to your library) or is it visible but failing to play?
Version 1.115.0.426-4e960a1d, windows 11 computer that has been using since I first download plex years ago. The remote access stays on sometimes for hour and others it just goes to Not available outside your network. Same home network that has been for years, and all I do is click on disable remote access and then enable and it connects just fine for a time till it drops out. The only things I haven’t tried is to delete and reinstall server or replace computer
Just to be clear… remote access is only relevant when you’re streaming outside your home network – e.g. on your mobile, or someone else’s place.
The “working for some time” part is usually Plex “optimistically” showing a green status while it’s still testing your remote connection – once that test fails, it’ll switch to red.
Based on what you mentioned, I would assume your remote access setup isn’t working at all.
no it does I have family out of country and sometimes it is working when green also when I travel I use it and at times works. I have to login to computer and do the stop and start the remote access
Did you ever manually configure your remote access?
Some basic steps should be to assign a static local IP to the Windows machine running your server. That step needs to be done on your router – it’s usually in a DHCP section or called “IP reservation”.
If your machine doesn’t have a static IP, your router will occasionally assign a new address to the server. It can take a moment for Plex to catch up on that change.
It’s also a good practice to setup a “manual port forward” (also done on your router). On some setups, that’s more reliable than the dynamic/automatic routing (UPnP).
This means you’re defining a “port” for which requests from the outside will always be passed to the Windows hosting your Plex Media Server.
You can pick a public port of your choosing (e.g. a number between 20,000 and 50,000) and point that to the local IP address of your Windows machine at port 32400 (that one must always be 32400).
When you did that, you need to tell Plex about the defined public port by checking Manually specify public port in the remote access settings of the Plex app and entering the public/outside number you configured in your router.
Did all that years ago,Fully accessible outside your network
You can access this server from signed-in Plex apps or in a browser at https://app.plex.tv/desktop.
You currently have Remote Access enabled through a manually-specified port. If you wish to disable Remote Access, you will need to remove your manual port forwarding from your router.
Private 192.168.50.103 : 32400 Public xx.xxx.xx.xxx : 32400 Internet
[mod-edit: redacted public ip]
Given you haven’t shared any of that, I had to guess and ask.
Have you recently verified the port forward is working (e.g. using a service like canyouseeme.org)?
what am i looking for on that ?Error: I could not see your service on xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx on port (32400)
Reason: Connection timed out
Your IP:
Port to Check:
That basically means, your public port forward isn’t visible from outside your home network.
Some ISPs block specific ports. You can try going for a different port that’s not immediately associated with Plex or some other service (hence the hint to use some random port between 20,000 and 50,000).
@franz864 there is a known problem going around right now that produces exactly this — “not available outside your network” that flips green and back to red, while playback itself still works. It is not your router or your port forwarding. The certificate Plex issues to your server is currently being rejected by Plex’s own checker, so the server is marked unreachable even though it is perfectly reachable.
@veeejay’s suggestion above is the right track, but on its own it often hands you the same bad certificate again (that happened to someone else earlier today). One extra step avoids that. On Windows 11:
- In Plex, go to Settings → Network. Turn on Show Advanced if the page looks short. Tick Strict TLS configuration, then Save Changes.
- Fully exit Plex Media Server — right-click its icon near the clock (bottom-right of the screen, you may need the little up-arrow) and choose Exit.
- Press Windows key + R, paste this, press Enter:
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Plex Media Server\Cache
- In the folder that opens, find the file certificate.p12 and rename it to certificate.p12.old (right-click → Rename). Do not delete it — renaming means you can undo this.
- Start Plex Media Server again from the Start menu, wait a minute or two, then look at Settings → Remote Access.
That forces Plex to fetch a new certificate of a different type, which its checker accepts. Mine went green immediately after doing this, with no router changes at all.
If any older TV or streaming box stops connecting afterwards, go back to Settings → Network, untick Strict TLS configuration, and repeat steps 2-5 — that puts you back where you started.
The technical explanation, if anyone wants it: Remote Access not reachable: plex.tv checker rejects our plex.direct cert (unknown ca)
