Sharing libraries with friends and remote streaming question

Plex Media Server Remote Access
1

Hey all,

So i have 2 main questions. First, I am curious about something to do with sharing my library with certain friends. So due to how I add files to my server I often remove all of my shared library people and then re-add them back whenever I am done because im insane and dont want to be streaming things to them while simultaneously doing a large transfer. When I add people back…all except two of them are added right back without having to send that email activation link…but for whatever reason 2 of them have to be sent an email. What is the reason these 2 have have to be re-invited like this? What do i need to do to make them be like the other people?

Secondly, I am not sure why this happens but it is the main reason I remove people from my shared library in the first place. So I used to disable remote access…which I assumed would no longer make it visible for people to be able to connect to my plex server…For whatever reason, I have had many times where remote access is turned off and they still are streaming something from me. Anyone know why this happens? Id like to fix this if possible also.

Thanks in advance for ur time and help. Very much appreciated!

2

Repeatedly removing and re-inviting the same people makes zero sense. It is also a big PITA for your friends, as they have to re-accept the invite, re-pin the libraries, etc.

If you do not want to stream remotely, just disable remote streaming.

If moving large amounts of data causes problems, then stop Plex, move your files, start Plex, and scan your libraries. Much easier.

Turn off Settings → Network → Plex Relay.

Plex Relay is a fallback for when remote access is not available. The stream is tunneled through servers at Plex and limited to 2 Mbps. It appears as an Indirect connection in the Plex Dashboard.

3

Respectfully,

I dont think you read my message. I said i disable remote streaming and people can still stream somehow. I also have had plex relay disabled for a long time. The friends that I re-add dont have to accept anything. It somehow auto accepts and they are just back in…Yea maybe they have to re-pin stuff but thats not a big deal…2 of my users get sent an email to click on to accept and I dont understand the difference between their accounts and the others that auto accept. I like having plex open when I am adding stuff because I check if I have certain things there etc.

4

Apologies if I misunderstood.

How are you removing them from sharing?

If you delete someone from Settings → Manage Library Access, then, AFAIK you have to re-invite them, they have to accept, etc.

If I remove my test account from Settings → Manage Library Access, I have to re-invite it and it must accept the invitation, before it can access my server.

A possible alternative would be removing their access to the individual libraries rather than uninviting them. Then there is no need to re-invite. Just re-share the libraries.f

Regarding remote streaming, are you using manual port forwarding in your router?

The port forward is still in place and forwarding traffic even when remote access is disabled.

If the client has cached the public IP address & port of your server, then it can still connect and stream.

Example: Using my phone to stream via mobile network.

  1. Launch app, start streaming a movie.
  2. Disable remote access. Movie continues to stream.
  3. Stop playback, select a different movie. It streams.
  4. Stop playback. Force quit app.
  5. Launch app. Can no longer stream from server.
5

Hmm,

So u might be on to something. I think ill just remove access to all video and keep access to something like music which no one listens to. If I fully remove someone from all libraries it requires a re-invite…but limiting it to one they wont use doesnt remove them…So i could do that. Regarding port…I do have it manually opened on my router aswell. Are you saying I dont have to have it manually port forwarded on my router and i can just hit ‘enable remote access’ and it will forward the port until i then disable it and then it will remove the port forward? I figured I had to manually do it aswell…In retrospect this makes sense if its the problem and I now feel kinda dumb lol. please confirm though if that is what is happening. Pending what u say Im going to have a friend get on and im gonna test it til i get it working how i want it to.

6

Good catch that they still need access to one library. I missed that. Just tested on my server and see the same as you. If I remove all libraries from a user, then it removes them completely.

No. You still want the port forward in the router.

You could delete it / re-add it as a way of controlling remote access, but that seems like a pain.

I was just trying to say that some of the Plex client apps can cache the IP address and port of your server. So, if the port is open they could possibly still stream remotely even if remote access is disabled.

If they quit and re-launch the app, then the cached info is gone and they won’t be able to access your server until you re-enable remote access.


Hopefully this explains things better:

As mentioned, when a port forward is in place, it always forwards traffic.

For example, if the public IP address of your server is 1.2.3.4 and using port 31415, I could point a browser at https://1.2.3.4:31415/web and pull a Plex login page (as long as Plex Media Server is running).

I cannot actually access your server, since you have not invited me to do so. Other than downloading the login page, I would be using no resources from your server. If I tried to login to my account, the data would pass from my browser directly to systems at plex.tv. Your server would not be in the loop.

When you enable remote access, it registers your server with systems at plex.tv (like a phone book).

When a friend launches the Plex app, the systems at plex.tv authenticate their username and which servers they can access. It then sends the client app the public IP address and port of your server. They can then browse libraries, stream media, etc.

Now you disable remote access. Your server is no longer registered with systems at plex.tv (For remote access. It is still claimed, connected to your account, etc.).

If the app has cached the address & port of your server, they can still stream, since the port forward is in place.

If they quit the Plex app, then it will lose the cached address/port for your server.

If they relaunch the app, then they will not be able to stream from your server. Then their app checks in with plex.tv, it will be told your server is unavailable.

Hopefully this explains things better than my previous post. And if I wrote anything wrong, then I’ll definitely be corrected by others.

7

Ah ok yea so I assume what is happening is whatever method they use to stream something…like an amazon stick with plex on it for example…the device doesnt kill the app even if they exit out of it so it still has the info cached…if they like restarted the app though then it probably wouldnt work.