Using PLEX without an internet connection

General Discussions
1

Hello all,
I’ve seen this question answered in parts in different threads (old and new), but hoping somebody can give me a definitive answer before I invest in the components for a full PLEX system.

I work in a performing arts theater, and we record the show every night. We have a system that will encode the camera feed to a video file and put it in a folder on a server. I will also put old show versions in that same folder for reference. All content will be files that I have created (no DRM issues to deal with)

Files will be encoded so that everything will Direct Play.

I want to put AppleTVs throughout the building for different departments and personal to watch these videos.

A dedicated computer will be running PMS, a dedicated ethernet switch and all aTV’s will be hardwired back to the switch.

While I have the capability to, I DO NOT want this system to be connected to the internet. I only want the media to be viewed within the building. First and foremost, file security and copyright issues are a big concern. Also, I don’t want to eat up our bandwidth with a bunch of people streaming Netflix!

Couple questions regarding internet connectivity and general network setup:

1.) How does PLEX behave without an active internet connection? Any special configuration concerns?

2.) I understand that devices will have to be connected to the internet at some point to configure the devices. This is ok.

3.) Any issues with using static IP addresses? Or is it DHCP only?

4.) Has anybody done bandwidth tests? I think my server will be the first thing to be maxed out, but just curious on the network usage.

Hope everything makes sense! I’m just jumping into PLEX. Looks very promising, and hope everything will work the way I want it to!

Thanks,
Josh

2

  1. Plex works fine without a connection. Some client apps may behave strange (no experience with Apple TV) but most can be set to connect to the servers IP address e.g. 192.168.1.2:32400. I’d assume it can as the Plex app for iOS can be setup and used without internet.

  2. Not a question but no, although device specific, certain clients can connect to the server without internet and the server doesn’t need internet to operate, only for updates, which obviously are recommended.

  3. I use a static address for my Plex server, which is set on the DHCP server (router). Works as one would assume.

  4. Bandwidth tests? I don’t understand? Blurays max at around 50mbps, gigabit LAN equals 1000mbps. You’ll be limited by the servers read speed before you hit a bandwidth limit. I’ve tested 8 simultaious direct streams at once, playback is flawless, even when scrubbing around.

As an unrelated note, make sure you have offline backups. RAID isn’t a backup,

Good luck (:

3

Thanks ptrjay!
That’s the answer for #4 I was looking for, without me really asking it. I knew that the server would be the weak link in the system, but didn’t know at what point it would run out of processing power.

One goal of this project is to get rid of unnecessary backups! We generate so many recordings, and over 90% will never be used. The essential ones will get multiple backups.

4

@ptrjay said:

  1. Plex works fine without a connection. Some client apps may behave strange (no experience with Apple TV) but most can be set to connect to the servers IP address e.g. 192.168.1.2:32400. I’d assume it can as the Plex app for iOS can be setup and used without internet.

  2. Not a question but no, although device specific, certain clients can connect to the server without internet and the server doesn’t need internet to operate, only for updates, which obviously are recommended.

  3. I use a static address for my Plex server, which is set on the DHCP server (router). Works as one would assume.

Plex is practically useless without an internet connection at least on my players… It drives me CRAZY…

My PMS is a dedicated Linux Mint 17.3 host with a static 192.168.0.99 address. All my media is stored on internal drives to that host. I have used it for several years and has been excellent.

Here is the behavior I see on AFTV and Rokus:
(Just last night my ISP was down. and I was trying different things to get plex to play on my players)

On my AFTV… its not a fault of Plex but the AFTV box basically wont function without connectivity to the internet. It will let you initiate playback of plex… but you will get interrrupted with dialogs about unable to connect to Amazon etc over and over… so its hard to say how Plex behaves on this box…

On my Rokus… If the plex app is already running, you can select something to play. If its a playlist, one item will play but it will stop and will not automatically advance to the next item in the list.

If the Plex app is not running. it wont start. It will display the bit Plex logo screen and never move past it. There is nothing you can do but wait for internet connectivity to be restored.

Update:
It turns out this is not the case. It used to be an issue, but as long as remote access is disabled at the server, and you arent configured for multiple users, Plex works fine! I just tested it out and my Rokus were able to gain access to PMS with no internet connectivity. Awesome.

5

This page may be helpful in determining what your server can handle.

6

@ptrjay said:

  1. Plex works fine without a connection. Some client apps may behave strange (no experience with Apple TV) but most can be set to connect to the servers IP address e.g. 192.168.1.2:32400. I’d assume it can as the Plex app for iOS can be setup and used without internet.

This is NOT true. Applets requires an internet connection to work with a local plex server. Stupid.

7

@bloomk said:

@ptrjay said:

  1. Plex works fine without a connection. Some client apps may behave strange (no experience with Apple TV) but most can be set to connect to the servers IP address e.g. 192.168.1.2:32400. I’d assume it can as the Plex app for iOS can be setup and used without internet.

This is NOT true. Applets requires an internet connection to work with a local plex server. Stupid.

IOS/tvOS can be made to work just fine.

info here → https://support.plex.tv/hc/en-us/articles/200484903-Internet-and-Network-Requirements

Plex has always listed requiring an internet connection in their system requirements so whinging about it after the fact is pretty pointless.

8

That was APPLE TV… not iOS… Apple TV does not work,…

9

Plex works just fine without an internet connection. However, you need to change a few settings to do it. Do this with your internet connection up so that you have time to test it out before the next time your internet goes down.

  1. Open up your server menu page via web browser (127.0.0.1:32400) on your server machine.
  2. Within the server’s settings in the “Network” menu, select “Preferred or “Disabled” from the “Secure Connections” preference.
  3. Add your local network IP domain in the server settings, in the “Network” menu, within the “List of IP addresses and networks that are allowed without auth” field. If you’re using a private network (which most people are) it would look something like this: 192.168.xxx.0/24. Fill in whatever you’re using in your network for the xxx part (usually 0 or 1). Save these settings.
  4. Disconnect your internet from your router. Usually this involves just unplugging your fiber, cable, or DSL modem from the back of the router. This is done to make sure your clients detect that there is no internet connection available.
  5. Access Plex from your clients app. Give it a little time and it will time out.
  6. A pop up screen will say the server is unavailable. Hit the OK/Enter button on your clients remote.
  7. Open your clients menu (usually listed under your logon name) from the top right menu bar.
  8. Scroll down and select the “Advanced” menu.
  9. In the “Allow Insecure Connections” field, select either: “On the Same Network” or “Disable”.

That’s it. Select your server on the clients top right menu bar. Give it a few seconds to connect to your Plex server. Your media page should load up, and you have access to all your media, even without an Internet connection.