Unable to open Plex media server

Plex Media Server
1

Server Version#: most recent
Player Version#: most recent

I am new to this so if you need additional info from me to assist, please let me know. Pardon my ignorance.

Every time I turn on Plex Media Server, it opens for 5 seconds then closes. All devices and apps are up to date. I tried restarting my MacBook, tried uninstalling and reinstalling Plex Media Server with latest update from the web, no change. I am unsure what to do. please help.

2

Is this about the Plex Media Server app stopping and no longer showing its icon in the menu bar?

If so… are any error messages showing in your server logs (you can access those manually from ~/Library/Logs/Plex Media Server/ if you cannot download them from within the Plex web app). If the logs are empty (or no updates since you’ve been running into this situation)… try running the Plex Media Server through the Terminal app to see if there’s any error messages from macOS:

  1. Open /Applications/
  2. Find and right-click the Plex Media Server.app
  3. Click Show Contents
  4. Navigate to Contents/MacOS/
  5. Open Terminal
  6. Drag the Plex Media Server executable (see #4) into the terminal window and hit Return/Enter.
3

When I click on the app, nothing happens.

Running with Terminal as suggested yields this error message:

ww@Mac-mini ~ % /Users/ww/Desktop/Plex\ Media\ Server.app/Contents/MacOS/Plex\ Media\ Server
Error: Unable to set up server: sqlite3_statement_backend::prepare: database disk image is malformed for SQL: PRAGMA cache_size=2000 (N4soci10soci_errorE)
ww@Mac-mini ~ %

I have downloaded the app a couple of times. Run attempts are always to the same. Can you help?

Using Mac OS 11.6.2

4

If you had already setup your server and configured libraries it might be worth to attempt repairing that corrupted database.

If this was a new server or you had spent very little effort, you can alternatively wipe the server data directory and start over.

5

I am attempting to setup a new server; I don’t have a data directory or database or anything else. Need the media server app to get started…

The behavior suggests the downloaded Plex Media Server is corrupted – on 3 different downloads…

6

No Plex Media Server folder in ~/Library/Application Support/?
The user library folder is hidden in Finder by default; you can e.g. open it using the Go To > Folder menu or command + G — make sure not to forget the leading ~ which points to your user folder (there’s no Plex Media Server Data folder in the system library folder /Library/…!)

7

I have been having trouble with the Plex media server crashing after I open it. I deleted all of my Plex and then reloaded the Plex media server. It is still crashing. I saw where you wanted the crash report and I followed the prompts this was in Plex Crash uploader log

Plex Crash Uploader.log (199 Bytes)

Please help me with this. I am 74 years old and am not tech savvy.
Thanks

8

I’m more interested in the „Plex Media Server.log“ — with a brief pre-check from you if the timestamps match your most recent attempt to start the server.

9

I hope this will help you
Plex Media Server.log (4.2 KB)

Thanks for your help

10

Apparently your database is corrupted as well.
This can happen if the system shuts down while writing to the database or if a HDD is running full (just to name a few potential issues causing this).

So your way forward will be the same as that for the OP

11

Thank you everyone for your help. I did what you suggested and now everything is working. Had to hard reset though, so lost all my customization but happy that it works again.

Solution:
Delete and restarte Plex Media Server (Uninstall Plex Media Server | Plex Support)

12

Thanks for your help. Again I am old and am not computer savvy. What I did do was go in to that log. There was a folder in there that said PMS Plug In Logs. I deleted everything in it. The Plex Media Server again crashed. Please help me with how I need to do this in layman terms and where to go and what to do.

Thanks again

13

Did you already take a look at the two options and the related support articles?

Option 1: Attempt to repair the corrupted database

Option 2: Start-over your server

14

I deleted everything and deleted my trash. I downloaded the plex media server. When I try to open it it goes to the bar at the top of my page and then closes immediately

15

I restarted my iMac and it is working. Thanks for your help

16

Yes, the Plex Media Server folder is in my user Library Application Support folder. Did you say what to do with it?

Thanks.

17
  1. In case your server is still running / stuck in the menu bar: Stop it
  2. Delete the Plex Media Server directory in the Application Support folder
  3. Restart the Plex Media Server app

Keep in mind this will wipe any previous configuration/data (which I understand doesn’t matter because it’s a new setup anyway).

18

OK, something’s happening – it opened my web browser! I’ll keep you posted. Thanks

19

Progress! Now I’ve got a string of thumbnails of my album covers. Next, I will attempt to play some of that music; meanwhile, did the website upload my music, or was it downloading the cover art? Do I need to have a live Internet connection to play my own music? Can you point me to something I can read about what Plex actually does, how it works, etc? I have no idea what is actually happening here, as you can probably tell by my uninformed questions. Thanks

20

Here you go…

Your music is not uploaded to Plex… it’s all on your server; incl. the metadata/artwork Plex is downloading to it. Plex can occasionally require an internet connection – however that’s not linked to streaming your media.

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