The server does not find all movies

Plex Media Server
1

Server Version#:1.23.5.4862
I’ve found that the server can’t display all the movies from the shared folder in the “MOVIE” library. That would be fine, sometimes there’s a problem with the name etc. But I found the following behavior:
For example, I have a “thrillers” folder with 92 films. And two of them don’t show up in the library. When I switch Plex to folder view, it shows me that there are 90 movies in the folder!! I find the movie that Plex is ignoring and remove it from the folder. I select the option to rescan movies and Plex removes another movie from my library and shows that there are 89 movies in the folder. I find that Plex always ignores a movie that is in the same place in alphabetical order. For example, 29th is movie1, 30th is movie2, 31st is movie3. And movie2 is not shown. I remove movie2 from the folder and movie3 is unseen. If I split the movies into multiple folders in a smaller number, Plex will find all the movies displayed.
Not loading a movie has been happening to me for a long time, but now I’ve discovered this behavior. So it’s not just a problem with the current version of the server

Thank you.

2

Never seen that behavior. Have you already had a look at your server logs to see if there’s an indication of what might be going on?

3

I tried to look into them, but I don’t know what to look for. I’m sending the logs from the server to see if you can find anything. The first zip is the default state, when for example the movie Memento was not displayed. The second zip is after removing the movie Memento from the Thrillers folder, when the movie Mirage subsequently stopped displaying. The last zip is after returning the Memento movie to the Thrillers folder. Memento is displayed and Mirage is not.

When I tried to install Plex windows server, everything appeared without problems

Plex Media Server Logs_2021-07-25_12-25-19.zip (3.9 MB)
Plex Media Server Logs_2021-07-25_12-31-45.zip (4.0 MB)
Plex Media Server Logs_2021-07-25_12-36-36.zip (4.1 MB)

4

Hi,

I have the same issue, it is defiantly doing it on movie libraries, it might be on TV but that’s harder to follow. I only noticed it as old movies appear as newly added lists but they were not new nor had I added a newer version.

Here’s what I know so far:

Setup, 2 Synology NAS boxes, one mounts some films from the other via CIFS.
All films on the local film folder are present and correct
However, at least one film vanishes from PLEX from the film folder via the CIFS mount.
You can see the films folder and the films files fine via file browsing
I SSH’ed into both NAS’s and all permissions are correct, simple and identical to the other film folders
I used sudo -u plex to check the plex user on the master synology box could see the film folder that is missing from Plex server, it can so the plex user can see the folder/film files fine from command line.

This is when it gets very very strange.

If you move/delete the missing film and it’s folder, scan the library from the GUI, another film vanishes, and so on, if you work out which film vanished, move it’s folder from that location, scan, another random film vanishes. It can be more than 1 film as well, so you could be missing 2 films, if you move them out of the folder, two more will randomly vanish.

If you install plex on the CIFS shared server, it finds all films no problem, so local folders/files are fine. So this only happens if you are scanning a folder that is mounted via CIFS/SMB, local folders are fine.

More investigation, can PLEX see it from the GUI no it cannot!

I know which film is missing from Plex Server, I add a new library via plex giu, I browses to the folder where the film is missing, and the folder is missing from the plex gui.

As above, if you remove the folder from that directory another film folder vanishes, add a new library and now the new missing film folder is not visible to the plex gui.

I rolled back the plex version so far all the way to PlexMediaServer-1.23.1.4602 and it is still doing it. I’ve changed the library agent still doing it, as once a film/folder is missing the Plex GUI cannot see that folder at all!

EDIT: if you move a missing folder out of the path, scan, another movie vanishes, you can then put the first back scan and it appears so it’s not on an ignore list. Doing my head in this one!

5

Update,

Rolled back to Plex Server version PlexMediaServer-1.22.3.4523, and all missing films reappeared! So this issue is present in all version of Plex Server from 1.23 onwards!

EDIT: - TV shows were missing too, about 12 shows found old episodes that were on the disk all along, again only on a mounter/mapped folder. Local disk fine.

6

The logs pretty much show what you describe – the scanner no longer sees Mirage and removes the related items. Not sure however what’s causing Plex to no longer see that item.

As a basic measure to protect your library you could disable Settings > [Server Name] > Library > Automatically empty trash after library scans.

Edit: what scanner have you set for this library? Is it set to Plex Movie (same as the agent)?

8

Question: How is that library folder mounted into your system and from what source? Are you by chance using FuseFS or a cloud source?

9

for me it’s CIFS/SMB mount, both NAS boxes on the same switch. DSM6.2

10

for me the same. CIFS/SMB mount and only one source Synology NAS (DSM 7)
Scanner is Plex Movie/Plex movie…

11

When I disable - Settings > [Server Name] > Library > Automatically empty trash after library scans, the movie stayed in the movie listing and there is a red message saying the movie is unavailable. However, when I move the cursor over the movie poster, there is an active play symbol and the movie starts playing.
misery

12

What you are describing sounds like the media storage is at times not available to the Plex server. Do you let your hard drives sleep? Or do you let the whole NAS go to hibernation mode?

Anyway, you can clear the trash can icons by performing a regular “Scan library files”.

13

Hi,

No it’s not drives sleeping or offline, for me once I rolled back to server version 1.22 all files were found and are present, there was about 20 odd tv episodes added after the server version roll back, and 10 films across multiple libraries. the files are there the disks are on, but PLEX gui cannot see that one directory of a missing film its just not there, and it’s random. If I update back to 1.23 stuff vanishes from plex library (completely random, or so it seems) and once you work out what is missing you can see the folder is not visible to the plex server gui, but if you ssh into the server and do a ‘sudo -u ls -la plex’ you can see the files.

This is a bug on scanning CIFS/SMB mounted folders (maybe only on synology, both DSM 6.2 and DSM 7) on all version of Plex Media Server 1.23, it is not present in 1.22.

14

Could you show the precise folder names and file names of the “vanishing” movies, please?
Does every individual movie have its own subfolder?

15

Hi,

Yes, each is in their own folder within a entire folder, but that’s immaterial, as they will change as you try and fix one another random one vanishes. It’s hard to describe, lets see.

I have a film library in plex, it’s pointing at a folder called mounted-films\ with in it are 10 films each in their own folder, this has been working for 5 years.

Now I go looking for a film I know I have but it’s not there, the plex library shows only 9 films.

I look on the NAS drive and I can see 10 film folders, each has a film file inside it.

I move the missing folder out, scan the library, now it shows 8 movies…

I work out which one has vanished, I move it out with the intention of re-importing it and scan the library, now I have 7 films.

I can keep going until I have 0 films showing in plex but 1 film folder on the disk.

If it put them all back again, I have 10 folders, each with 1 film in them, I scan on Plex it shows 9 films. One is missing.

I roll back to the last versions of 1.22 media server, scan the library and I have 10 folders, and 10 films.

It is the strangest thing I have ever seen.

16

So where is your Plex server runnning?

Plus, it is very wrong to “kidnap” this thread.

17

two NAS boxes, plex is running on one, the affects folders from the second nas box that are mounted.

This is the same issue the OP posted about. missing movies on a cifs file share, that just keep vanishing for no reason.

18

Since you both are using Synology servers, I assume this might be something specific to Linux.

Unfortunately I am not a Syno or Linux expert. I will have to put up the batsignal for @ChuckPa here.

1 Like
23

Well spotted, I am running plex on my primary synology box, @Depi has it running in Windows, so both NAS and Windows versions of Plex Server 1.23.

Both of us are having issues with vanishing media from the mounted file shares via a synology box using CIFS/SMB protocols to our server machines.

24

No, he uses CentOS Linux.

25

ah ok :slight_smile: going to see if I can setup a test with plex on my windows desktop to the same media files.