This is not a solution. This is a way to at least get PMS running. There are still other issues. It is only marked as the solution so new users coming to this thread can find this comment easier.
Even after getting Plex Media Server running, there is an issue with the storage device becoming disconnected/inaccessible resulting in PMS no longer responding. We are still investigating this issue.
We have a build that should fix the issue of the external usb drive not being detected. Please give this a shot. This will work with fat32 formatted drives. If you are using a non-Fat32 drive (confirmed with NTFS and exFat) , you will need the NVidia 9.0+ hotfix.
You need to sign up with NVidia to receive the Hotfix. Link is below. This will also give you access to Hotfix 2.
After installing the Hotfix, you will need to sideload the following Plex Media Server.
if you have not uninstalled/factory reset/cleared PMS data, your server should just start back up without any change
if you’ve done any of the above, then you’ll have a new server and will need to start over
go ahead and start PMS and just ski through the setup flow (DO NOT MOVE THE DATA FOLDER)
make sure PMS is running
If you’ve already setup a new Plex server, but have not moved your data folder to the usb drive previously used, you can try the following to restore your old server configuration that should still be stored on the usb drive. If you already moved the data folder, that would have overwritten any previous files and you will not be able to restore your old server configuration.
stop PMS
eject the usb drive
connect usb drive where your PMS data is to a computer
rename usbdrivename\Android\data\com.plexapp.mediaserver.smb to something else
reconnect usb drive to Shield
start PMS and move the data to the usb drive
confirm PMS is running
stop PMS
eject the usb drive
reconnect the usb drive to the computer again
you will see a new usbdrivename\Android\data\com.plexapp.mediaserver.smb
rename this to something else
rename the old folder back to usbdrivename\Android\data\com.plexapp.mediaserver.smb
I’m pretty sure exFAT is what you get by default if you format a > 2 TB drive. I’m currently using an 8 TB drive. I do a lot of TV recording and have a lot of video. Tried the first series of steps, never got a setup flow. Will continue with the second series of steps, maybe that will do it.
I tend to agree, to format in NTFS I have to spin up Windows but without it which is all Mac users you can only format in exFAT or Fat32.
There are several limitations to using a FAT32 file system. FAT32 only supports files of up to 4GB in size and volumes of up to 2TB in size. FAT32 isn’t a journaling file system, which means corruption can happen more easily
Just running through the steps again and I’m getting further. I have the PMS setup running now. Not sure what I did differently except to do a full hard reboot by removing the power this time instead of just selecting reboot from the menu.
Seems good now. Thank you for your efforts. They are much appreciated.
So I’m a bit stuck. I’ve tried sideloading the Plex update, but nothing seems different. Followed the second set of instructions to the point where I should be seeing the server setup, but nothing. No access of any type.
Would be nice if there were a way to confirm the sideloading happened properly, but the version number is apparently the same between the two last hotfixes.
It would also be nice if the server itself had some basic “everything stopped working and I need to fix something” functionality. Requiring the use of a client to troubleshoot the server is not a great experience if the server itself is not able to communicate with the client. The client on the Shield TV shows a “PLEX MEDIA SERVER” title but absolutely nothing in it, and the client on my PC says the server is unreachable.
Right now the server’s UI is nothing more than a single button to open the client. Why not a button to re-run the setup? Or to move the libraries? Or to reset things that might go wrong?
I will note that I haven’t tried nVidia’s hotfix image, but as I understand it, there’s no turning back from that, and it’s green code - and I don’t have a backup of the > 4TB of data on it. I’m not sure I should need it either, as exFAT should act more like FAT32 and not like NTFS.
So I guess I wait. If the final, released fixes from Plex and nVidia end up not fixing it, then I’ll have to reset the server and client and re-create the libraries, but that’s a somewhat painful step I’d like to avoid.
Same here…
Didn’t do any factory resets or cleared PMS data.
Installed de Nvidia Hotfix before, now sideloaded the new PMS and everything works as before.
Did have to reboot twice before everything came back (2nd time I unplugged the shield for a few times).
Glad it’s solved (at least for me).
OMG I installed the Nvidia hot fix and then installed the plex server build above and when I go into plex it just freezes for a few minutes and then I can re-gain control. This did not fix my problem, in fact what happens now when I go into settings within plex under Plex Media Server there is nothing there!! the title is greyed out with no options underneath.
Fix your software!! Fix it without this sideload garbage!
Installed Nvidia Hot fix, sideloaded PMS APK, rebooted and boom! It worked. I had to create a new server because I had cleared everything in my attempts to fix it… But all my media is linked and showing up just like before. Awesome sauce.
I installed the Nvidia Hot Fix, sideloaded the APK for the PMS fix, rebooted multiple times and still nothing for PMS showing up in the Plex client settings. I have not altered any of the data on my attached storage (NTFS) where I stored both the media and PMS data. Is there something I’m missing?
Edit: 2 seconds after posting this, it worked (fourth reboot attempt).
Sideloading just means you’re installing it without going through Google’s Play Store, which has an entire review process. They do need to have the fixes tested quickly and feedback given quickly, so they can solve the problem as quickly as possible.
Just to chime in: I was affected by this issue and after installing the Nvidia hotfix and sideloading the patch here my server is back to normal… other than rebooting no other changes made!
