"There is an error with this item" PROGRESS CentOS 7

Plex Media Server Desktops & Laptops
,
1

Server Version#: 1.21.0.3616
Player Version#: 4.47.1
CentOS 7 VM
Android phone app

I want to share my progress on the “There is an error with this item” problem.

To duplicate:
LARGE media library being synchronized.
Sync to Android device.
Hangs up at the same point in the sync.

I am running CentOS 7 x64 in a VM, and when running “df -h”, that cl-root was at 100% full when the sync operation hangs up.

It’s a VM, so I added additional storage space and assigned +10GB to cl-root.

NOW, the conversion will complete, but it STILL will not sync.

My thinking is that because CentOS limits the root logical volume, there isn’t enough space to convert and sync the files to the phone.

By adding +10GB (from 50GB in cl-root to 60GB in cl-root), I have improved the “hanging issue” in this way:

-With 50GB in cl-root I get to the artists starting with “T”, and the sync fails.

  • With 60GB in cl-root, I get to 100% conversion, but it still fails.

My GUESS is that even more space is needed to finish the syncing process, but I don’t have a great framework as to IF this is my issue, and how much more space is needed.

I resolved a streaming issue by changing the transcoding directory to a folder in the cl-home group (4TB available) but I do not see a setting to change the location of conversions.

Any idea to help me bring this fix home?
@ChuckPa

2

I will need logs (DEBUG) which capture attempting to sync.

Also, given what has transpired:

  1. where is the transcoder temp directory?
  2. Is it clear?
  3. Is there enough space?
  4. Is there enough space to hold the sync generated output (pending download) ?

Should these all be OK –

  1. Stop Plex
  2. Go into Application Support/Databases
  3. Select a database backup closest to, but before, the problem occurred.
  4. remove any WAL or SHM files – these are no longer needed with the server stopped
  5. Rename the com.plexapp.plugins.library.db to some non-conflicting name
  6. cp -p the selected backup and make it com.plexapp.plugins.library.db (bring back to ‘current’ status.
  7. verify ownership & perms plex:plex
  8. Start Plex
  9. Refresh metadata as appropriate (if media added)
  10. Now start your sync activity again … more controlled.
3

Logs uploaded

1st, to answer your questions:

  1. Transcoder is at /home/(user)
  2. it is clear, and this was done to resolve movies not streaming (cl-root was only 50GB, and apparently transcoder needs movie file size +100MB)
  3. there is 1TB free in THIS transcoder directory, movies now stream correctly.
  4. I am not sure what the final sync generated output file size is, but I assume this is the issue. As cl-root is reserved for the root LVM, I’m not sure of tradeoffs with reserving the entire file size to cl-root (or the overall size for ~5000 music files) vs figuring out how to change PLEX to store this file to be downloaded to the cl-home LVM space.

Before proceeding with steps following “Should these all be OK –” it’s important to note that by removing the PLEX app from my phone and re-installing, the music NOW tries to sync at warp speed until there are 1900 files remaining, then it slows to 1-2 songs every 30 sec, until completed, and once 100% synced, ALL music files are unplayable with an error stating the files are unplayable.

Deleting these sync items from the device allows them to stream, where they are once again playable.

(File removed)

4

I also synced a 15 song playlist to the phone to test, and although smaller, these files are unplayable as well.

“An error occurred while playing this item” is the error reported.
Again, deleting the sync resolves this, as the pone can stream the music properly

5

You have a lot of errors in your logs.

  1. This implies all the inotify slots have been used up monitoring directories and there are none left for the transcoder (it needs 2). Do you have more than 8192 directories being monitored (in total) and, if so, have you increased the size of the inotify table?
Nov 27, 2020 08:32:58.605 [0x7fa990e20700] DEBUG - Request: [192.40.64.15:20189 (WAN)] GET /status/sessions/background (17 live) TLS GZIP Signed-in Token (SixSpeedDeath)
Nov 27, 2020 08:32:58.606 [0x7fa97b553700] DEBUG - Completed: [192.40.64.15:20189] 200 GET /status/sessions/background (17 live) TLS GZIP 0ms 397 bytes (pipelined: 5)
Nov 27, 2020 08:32:58.609 [0x7fa90b7fe700] ERROR - Couldn't get size of file "/var/lib/plexmediaserver/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server/Cache/Transcode/Sync+/24682358/51/61265.mkv.temp": boost::filesystem::file_size: No such file or directory: "/var/lib/plexmediaserver/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server/Cache/Transcode/Sync+/24682358/51/61265.mkv.temp"
Nov 27, 2020 08:32:58.609 [0x7fa90b7fe700] ERROR - TranscodeJobManager: file "/var/lib/plexmediaserver/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server/Cache/Transcode/Sync+/24682358/51/61265.mkv.temp" does not exist
Nov 27, 2020 08:32:58.609 [0x7fa90b7fe700] ERROR - TranscodeJobManager: transcode job failed
Nov 27, 2020 08:32:58.609 [0x7fa90b7fe700] DEBUG - TranscodeJobManager: [Running] job 296949cf-c246-4eb5-b521-0676ef99570d complete - failure / transcoderError
Nov 27, 2020 08:32:58.610 [0x7fa8f7fff700] DEBUG - BPQ: onAsynchronousJobComplete
  1. This is bad media or systemic failure. Impossible to discern further as DEBUG was disabled during that time,
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa991e22700] INFO - Plex Media Server v1.21.0.3616-d87012962 - CentOS Linux PC x86_64 - build: linux-x86_64 redhat - GMT -08:00
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa991e22700] INFO - Linux version: 7 (Core), language: en-US
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa991e22700] INFO - Processor Six-Core AMD Opteron(tm) Processor 2435
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa991e22700] INFO - /usr/lib/plexmediaserver/Plex Media Server
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.038 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.038 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.039 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.039 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.039 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.039 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.040 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.040 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.040 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.041 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.041 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.041 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.041 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.042 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.042 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.042 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] Error while decoding stream #0:1: Invalid data found when processing input
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa8f7fff700] DEBUG - Streaming Resource: Usage: 0kbps of WAN bandwidth, 0 streaming transcode slots, and 1 static transcode slots across 1 sessions
Nov 27, 2020 02:03:49.043 [0x7fa9727fc700] ERROR - [Transcoder] [aac @ 0xe30bc0] channel element 0.0 is not allocated

Sync will fail if the inotify table is full as well.

6

I do not know what directories are monitored by inotify, but I can confirm that there is archived music that dates back to 2000 that I added to the server in the folder structure outlined.

This would mean that of the ~5000 songs being synced, each artist and album has its own directory (some overlap for multiple songs in the same library

I also have movies, photos, and TV shows uploaded to the same library.

I’m reading up on your post on inotify

I’ll report back unless you have additional information or steps I need to take.

7

Well, I got the answer quicker than I had assumed.

There are 2099 Directories in /home/plex. This should include all TV/Movies/pictures/Music

Not sure if it matters, but I ran the same command on root, and there are 132128. That’s not MONITORED by Plex, but that’s the total in the VM

I DO have some FLAC files that I thought were compatible with Plex, but there is a LOT of music to sort through, so I may have to search *.xxx to see if there are any other formats that are explicitly unsupported. The FLAC files played on a previous sync, and stream correctly, but I’m not sure if the Android app has some different compatibilities.

It’s worth noting that I originally synced with “original” set as the format to syn, and changed to 320 to try to see if it affected the sync process.

The library was uploaded directly from my windows machine that had been managed by Windows media player up until now, so I’m not sure certain what formats are in the library.

8

Don’t want to spam the responses, but I’m aware I’m not the only person needing help, so while I wait, I try to figure stuff out on my own as well, creating new info.

So, I tinkered with a few movies on sevwral platforms as well.

Streaming to work on the Plex Windows Player worked well for “The 5th Element”

Streaming the New “Godzilla” to my phone or Xbox One X (Local) caused artifacting in the image.

I tinkered with a setting, turning off Direct Play and Direct Stream, and the artifacting is gone (but buffers forever).

This post (no hyperlinks from Mobile, sorry)

States that there was a defective Transcoder at one point, and this is an OLD and updated Plex Server, so it’s likely that I’ve installed most of the update revisions over time.

I’m going to get started backing up my media to a Cold Storage drive, and I’ll wait to hear back from you @ChuckPa to proceed.

I’m thinking that I may just need to re-install Plex to get rid of older errors that may be lingering around, but I’ll wait to wipe the current install until I hear from you.

9

@SixSpeedDeath

It’s been a VERY busy holiday weekend.

  1. You can figure out which directories are monitored by examining the directories which you list as the top node in each library section.
    e.g /nas/movies , /nas/tv, and /nas/music

  2. Now use find to count using those reference points.
    find /nas/movies /nas/tv /nas/music -type d -print | wc -l

  3. The number printed will be the total used.

1 Like
10

Okay, so all libraries are under /home/plex.
Total count is now 2098 from 2099

I verified that streaming over mobile is fine, and without artifacting.

I want to sort of “dump” the changes made since the configuration worked because I’m still learning Linux, and I don’t know if any of these could have caused an error, Fair warning, it’s a bit or reading:

I backed up the server to an external drive a year ago.

Heatsink on my LSi card fell off > server shut down.

Installed replacement part, made HUGE mistake, not making sure 110v was disconnected and essentially “hot plugged” the LSi card.

Replaced Power supply in server, and system now powers on properly, no RAID recognized

Replaced LSi card > Added Battery backup > enabled BBU, and configured NEW RAID setup to write through with battery backup

Configured 100GB SSD as Cache for VMWare, new datastore

re-installed ESXi onto server and new RAID array

Configured SSD to be recognized as SSD by ESXi

Set SSD as host cache

Installed Hot Swap bay for new 6TB backup drive.

Uploaded backup of Plex Vm to server

Started VM, and immediately performed update.

Issues began: Music hangs on sync, no streaming (error), Persistent error of photo upload hanging with no further photos to sync still present.

Attempted to re-sync music, faults listed above occurred.

Disabled host cache in VM settings to Store with the VM > No change > reverted to host cache (SSD)

Changed Transcoder directory to /home/plex

Movies now stream, but artifact.

Allocated +500GB to the Plex VM

Using LVM, allocated +20GB to cl-root > now Music transcoding completes, but is not playable on device.

Increased VM RAM allocation from 8GB to 12GB to see if there were any improvements > No change

Deleting sync data allows music to be streamed.

As processes seem to hang near completion combined with CentOS 7’s setup to limit cl-root to 50GB, I assumed that operations simply ran out of space, and occupy that space until I cancel the sync.

That’s my hypothesis at least, but I may have made errors in ANY PART OF THE SETUP of the VM itself.

The Plex is supposed to be my Lab setup to learn Linux better, and BOY HOWDY it’s working, LOL.

Well @ChuckPa, I hope you had a good holiday, and answer at your leisure. No matter what, I’m fix’n to learn something.

11

May I be candid?

  1. I don’t know how familiar you are with ESXI but if you’re learning it as part of this effort, I urge waiting. Learning Linux (to use for Plex) + ESXi is an exercise in headaches. Regrettably, I have time to help but not to teach.

  2. Learning basic Linux by setting up Plex is not how it’s done. Basic Linux mastery is both assumed and necessary. Linux is not forgiving. Plex on Linux is equally as unforgiving. You must define everything perfectly and account for all scenarios in advance.

  3. Linux partitioning recommendation for PMS use:
    a. EFI partition = 500 MB
    b. root = 64 GB
    c. swap = 8 GB / 16 GB (RAM dependent)
    d. home = Remainder of storage (not less than 250 GB)

  4. Create /etc/systemd/system/plexmediaserver.service.d/override.conf
    a. /home/plexdir; owned by user plex:plex, created after package installed but not yet started.

[Service]
Environment="PLEX_MEDIA_SERVER_APPLICATION_SUPPORT_DIR=/home/plexdir"
Environment="TEMP=/tmp"

The above puts PMS’s metadata in /home/plexdir (the largest partition – root will never fill)
Temp is ramdisk to avoid wear & tear on the SSD.

I do not use ESXi, even with my skills. I have zero need to have ESXi just for the sake of having it. To me, there is no benefit to spin up a dedicated host for the other tasks I wish to run. This is why I have an i7-7700 NAS to run things on or run natively on my workstation (NUC8i7HVK)

1 Like
12

@ChuckPa, to be clear, I have no expectation for you to take any more time than you’re willing to give. I Do appreciate all you’re willing to give, understanding that you’re not a teacher.

I’m still reading the Linux+ training book to do the learning portion, I just know that it’s best to admit when I’m not proficient in something.

I have set up old laptops to run websites, and RaspberryPi’s to push myself, and on single item setups things seem to go peachy; but when things go wrong, I don’t yet have a diagnostic path to follow.

I’m a BMW Master Tech by trade, so I COMPLETELY understand that you’re not here to hold my hand, which is why I’m trying to get wound up, and sent in a direction as opposed to asking for answers.

I’ll get to following the steps you’ve outlined after work, and thank you again for your help.

13

Hopefully what I’ve given provides that sense of direction you’re wanting.

While I know my way around Volvos (after almost 40 years of owning them), I would be lost around a BMW or Mercedes automobile. These are all “the same thing just done differently”. Same rule applies here just wrapped in different layers.

1 Like
14

Swap is 3.88GB

Let me resolve that…

15

Okay, I added a 13GB swap file to the install, giving me 16GB of Swap.

I also temporarily increased inotify limit from 8192 to 10240

Re-running sync on the phone, and we’ll see how it goes.

when running swapon -s, I am not seeing ANY of the swap used, but I’m keeping an eye on it during the sync process.

There is still artifacting with streaming, but I’ll get to that once sync is resolved.

16

Artifacts in the streams can come from several things.

Two most common causes are A. Low input bit rate B. Input codec used.
(e.g 1.5 Mbps XviD transcoding to 700 Kbps H.264 looks baaaaad)

I will need to see the logs which capture the playback attempt (DEBUG on VERBOSE off) and the XML of the item being played (hover over it -> Get Info -> View XML – just the media parts … don’t need genre or below)

17

Still uploading music, but it got to 50% quickly (original quality sync)

New Logs (now with 100% less fd0 critical errors! {jokes})

(File removed)

I’m throwing speculation out there, but with streaming artifacts, and synced music being unplayable, I’m seeing a common thread of the transcoder. This means NOTHING to me at the moment, but I like documenting these thoughts in Forum posts in case it helps in retrospect.

18

sync’d music not playable — those are on the destination device. I don’t do that part but I can help with the server itself.

reviewing the logs, MKV files for audio?

live) 0ms 203 bytes (pipelined: 7) (range: bytes=0-) 
Dec 01, 2020 12:07:30.622 [0x7f11eeffd700] DEBUG - MDE: Selected protocol http; container: mkv
Dec 01, 2020 12:07:30.622 [0x7f11eeffd700] DEBUG - MDE: analyzing media item 12610
Dec 01, 2020 12:07:30.622 [0x7f11eeffd700] DEBUG - MDE: Smelly Cat Medley [Friends Sound Byte]: no direct play music profile exists for http/mp3/mp3
Dec 01, 2020 12:07:30.622 [0x7f11eeffd700] DEBUG - MDE: Smelly Cat Medley [Friends Sound Byte]: selected media 0 / 12610
Dec 01, 2020 12:07:30.626 [0x7f11eeffd700] DEBUG - MDE: Selected protocol http; container: mkv
Dec 01, 2020 12:07:30.626 [0x7f11eeffd700] DEBUG - MDE: analyzing media item 60049

If I’m reading that correctly, you’re using the wrong container.
You don’t put audio in MKV (Matroska Video) files.
Leave them in .mp3

19

That is odd…

There should be NO *.mkv in audio at all.

All of my Movie rips are accomplished with MakeMKV, but the audio library is archaic files from the early 2000’s to present with *.mp3, *.flac, a few that MAY be *.wav, and an odd file here or there maybe in another format, but none of the music should be in *.mkv?

20

Before I update the server (since I see one was released), I wanted to check in to make sure it doesn’t ruin the progress we’ve made so far.

Conversion on the sync’ed items completes, but it hangs at 70% on download, and any file listed as “downloaded” will not play.

I verified that there are NO *.mkv files in /home/plex/music, and that the /home/plex/music folder is ONLY monitored by the music portion of Plex (so it’s not listed as monitored by movies, for example)

Streaming movies still has artifacting.

Any idea on where in the config/settings I would look to see why plex is trying to convert an *.mp3 file to *.mkv ?