So my NIC in my original server died and I am trying to migrate the server to a new machine. I moved all the files and was able to restore nearly everything from backups. I replaced the ‘Plex Media Server’ directory in ‘Application Support’ with the same folder from my other server.
Still, when I start the service and connect from a browser, I get the “new server setup” prompts and the system sees it as a new server.
Thanks all.
After placing all the files into the new “Plex Media Server” directory, did you remember to chown -R plex:plex /var/lib/plexmediaserver (or wherever you have it) ?
I just tried again. I had to run the chown command and set permissions on that directory to 777 to get it to start. It still gives me the new server page though.
Looking at your account, I found the issue.
When you changed to the new host, for reasons unknown, the Preferences.xml did not transfer properly (this contains the server ID information)
When you started the server on the new platform, you ended up with a new server ID and, hence, a new server. The previous one is off in stasis.
Do you still have access to the Preferences.xml file from that machine?
If you do, we can transplant it onto this machine and you’ll be running again.
What directory is that in? I’ve checked both my primary and backup data directories and don’t see the file. I’m trying to see if I deleted it somehow, but that doesn’t seem likely. Is there somewhere else it could be hiding?
So for the time being I have just booted it as a new server and resigned myself to recreating all my custom stuff. Is there any way to recover the machine ID?
The Preferences.xml file is in "/var/lib/plexmediaserver/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server"
If you do not have the 3 different machine ID values found there, then the server instance is lost.
All your customized artwork and sections still exist. Only the server name & ID + list of users you’ve shared with are no longer valid.
You can “REMOVE” the old server ID in Settings - Authorized Devices (left upper corner - Server dropdown
Look at the friendly name
remove the OLD instance(s)
Force-Refresh (Ctrl-F5) Plex web
Now you can reclaim the server again and recreate the shares you had set/
Ok. I’m doing the scanning now and I’ll let you know how it goes. Is there any way to recover my playlists?
Thank you for your help
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