The plex client no longer allows access to local server without signing in. This stops me

Once you have done initial setup and have all your media alread indexed, you can configure Plex to run offline.
If you select your player device/app carefully (which means use only those which support selecting a server by its IP address), you can manage withour internet connection.

But multi-user capability is not available offline.

see How can I use Plex without an internet connection for a week or three?

1 Like

I will try what you suggest. Hope it works. Thank you!