Server Version#: 1.31.2.6810
Player Version#: 4.100.1
I wanted to watch Cosmos recently but when I went looking for it I noticed that it was missing from Plex. I check my server and the files are there, but it’s nowhere to be found in my Plex library.
So after some testing and log watching I noticed that it’s being matched to the newer Cosmos (2014) series. OK that’s fine, but the REALLY frustrating part is I have no idea how to resolve this match conflict since there is no entry for just “Cosmos”. It makes me wonder how many other series/movies I have that are doubled up due to the Plex agent failing to make the correct match and just shoving it into another existing object. Plex offers no easy way to debug this type of situation.
I’m hoping the devs could offer some guidance on what I should do about this and if there are better ways for Plex to handle these situations in the future?
Mismatches are almost always fixed by sticking (closer) to the naming guidelines.
So, show us the folder and file names you are using please.
Please don’t link to screenshots or logs hosted on other sites. Instead, drag them directly into the message editor of this forum. (logs please ZIPped)
While your standard might work/have worked in the past, there is no guarantee that an update to Plex in the future will stop working with your naming, even though it is pretty close to Plex’s standards.
Next thing, which folder are you pointing your library too?
TV libraries really do not do well with multiple levels as the scanner expects to be looking at the root so that the folders will be:
Series 1\Season ##\File.ext
Series 2\Season ##\File.ext
Based on your screenshot, I see you are breaking up your series by network, which can work, but you’ll need to have multiple directories for your library which would point to the folders as such:
That will allow the TV library to see the root of each of those folders and allow scanning to work correctly.
Next thing, especially for something like this series where there are more than 1 series with the name, is to include the year in both version (which should be the year of the first episode air date, so Cosmos (1980) for the older series).
Finally, the other thing you can do is add {tvdb-######} to the folder which will let the scanner and agent know exactly which series to match to. So for the Cosmos that isn’t matching properly in your case you would make the folder:
I’m sorry, but I’ve been using Plex for a VERY long time and I’ve had these files on my server for almost a decade and my directory and file naming schema has been the same for just as long. This has always worked and there is no issue with Plex scanning my files correctly. It sees them just fine.
This is an agent issue and an issue with how Plex is dealing with what it sees as multiple versions of the same show. Why would it clump together two files with different names and different locations? Why doesn’t it recognize the exact naming scheme from The TVDB? That’s what the bug is.
Plex also isn’t giving me a way to resolve this mismatch. Nor was I made aware of a mismatch until I went to watch the show. That IMO is a design flaw.
It doesn’t matter. The year is not a part of the title. But it provides valuable detail for the matching process.
Maybe you matched it at a time when there was only one show by that title? Which has now apparently changed.
Yes, it should work. However, it won’t solve the root cause of the issue, which is still the missing (year) in the folder name. So mighty have to do it again and again if you recreate the library, or move some files, or add new episodes to one of the shows involved.
Just because you used this naming since you setup Plex, doesn’t mean that it is always going to work. If you use a naming convention outside of the Plex recommended naming convention, it means you risk any updates to the scanner and/or agents from being able to properly match the show.
Plex isn’t going to know if the show is a mismatch or not, so not really sure how you want Plex to inform you of that. Adding the year the show first aired will help prevent such situations and is really not that difficult to implement going forward (or for fixing this issue).
I just added this show to my test server, using the naming convention with just adding the years to the folder (and filenames) and they matched with no issue or intervention on my part.
and I’ve very rarely had any issues (if any that I can think of in recent matches).
Splitting the series apart is an option, but there is a chance that on a rescan of the library and/or a refresh of the metadata they might merge back together and then need to be split again. Adding the year to the folder name will help prevent that and make sure the series stay separate.
I’m really not sure what is going on in the reply before mine as it looks like you are replying to yourself but as a different person.
That said, if you are going to choose to ignore that information that has been given here by myself (just another user offering their time to help) and @OttoKerner (not speaking for them, just referencing), then this will probably be my last reply. The info/advice given should resolve your issue but if you refuse to accept it as the answer, I don’t see any other info/advice I can give.
Resolve the issue by giving the files a wrong name. I’m sorry, I know that you’re trying to help and I appreciate that to a certain extent. But I stated clearly in my original post that IMO this is an agent issue. The legacy agent has zero issues differentiating between “Cosmos” and “Cosmos (2014)”. This is because it sources the TVDB which is the source I use to name my files as well.
So again I’m sorry but I can’t accept the solution to just “rename my files until it works”. My filenames are correct and it is the Plex Agent that is wrong. If I could I would just keep my server set to the legacy agent. But then Plex doesn’t like this and bugs the ■■■■ out of you to “fix the issue”.
I’m not sure there’s much else people here can say if your answer to what the guidelines say to do is that it isn’t good enough:
For the “Plex TV Series” agent, it is recommended to always include the year alongside the series title in folder and file names, e.g. /Band of Brothers (2001)/Season 01/Band of Brothers (2001) - s01e01 - Currahee.mkv
A Spacetime Odyssey or Possible Worlds, are not a different show than Cosmos (2014). That is just the season title
That being said, if Cosmos (1980) is named correctly with the date you can name the show just like I did below with no problem as long as you have the correct date in the show folder
Oh I thought you were implying that Cosmos (1980) was the actual name in TVDB and Cosmos was just the display name. Still, I don’t understand why the agent needs the year when the name is clearly there in TVDB. Either way I resolved it in my own way by removing Cosmos 2014 from my library and forced Plex to match Cosmos. Then I put Cosmos 2014 back.
