First, you have to Download Plex media server on the Mac PC. This is the application that allows you. Download Plex Media Server for Mac to connect your Plex clients with your local and online media. Plex Media Server has had 6 updates within the past 6 months. The most straightforward use of Plex is on your home network. You can keep a media library on your Mac and then stream content to virtually any screen. Make sure the Mac with your Plex library is turned on and the Plex server app is open. Look for the chevron icon in the status bar to confirm the app is active. Plex Media Server is available for free on Windows, Mac, Linux, NAS drives, and Docker. There’s also a unique Android TV version. Plex Media Player is available on everything from Amazon Alexa to Oculus Go. Download: Plex Media Server (Free) Which Is the Best Device to Use as a Plex Media Server? Users are faced with a considerable number of. Turn a Mac mini into a media server with Plex If you have a large media collection, you may want to use a Mac as a dedicated device to run Plex. And the Mac mini is a perfect device for Plex.
If you own an extensive collection of movies, TV shows, and music and want to access it on all of your devices, Plex is one of the best solutions.
To get the system up and running, you need to designate at least one of your devices as the server. But what are the best devices to use as a Plex media server?
In this article we run you through some of the options and list the pros and cons of each device.
Plex comes in two parts. There’s the Plex Media Server app and the Plex Media Player app.
The Plex Media Server is responsible for accessing your videos and sending them to the Plex Media Player apps on other devices.
The device on which you’re running the Plex Media Server app needs a) to have access to all of your videos, and b) to be running 24/7.
Plex Media Server is available for free on Windows, Mac, Linux, NAS drives, and Docker. There’s also a unique Android TV version. Plex Media Player is available on everything from Amazon Alexa to Oculus Go.
Download:Plex Media Server (Free)
Users are faced with a considerable number of choices. You could feasibly run the Plex Media Server app on a laptop, desktop, mini PC, Android TV device, Raspberry Pi, network-attached storage drive, or any other device on which you can install Linux.
Let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of each of those devices in more detail.
One of the most important things needed by the Plex Media Server is CPU power. If there isn’t enough available, your server is going to struggle to transcode videos and will be unable to handle simultaneous users.
As such, ancient, underpowered laptops might not be suitable. However, if you’ve got a semi-old device lying around, it’s worth considering.
It’s not recommended to run Plex on your main laptop. Overheating could quickly become an issue. If you’re using an old laptop, make sure you buy a cooling stand.
The most significant benefit of using a desktop is power. Even a mid-spec desktop computer will comfortably be able to handle everything Plex can throw at it.
If you’re expecting several people to access your Plex media server at the same time, it is probably the best solution.
The same caveat about using your primary machine applies, however. You don’t want to be in the middle of working on an important document only for your fan to kick in because your wife and kids are all watching Plex on different screens.
Mini PCs are often overlooked as potential Plex media servers. They have a few important benefits over regular desktops.
These benefits include lower power consumption, lower costs if you’re buying a new device, and, frequently, lower noise.
Mini PCs also strike a nice blend between size and portability. Sure, they’re not going to fit in your pocket, but they are easy to mount behind a TV or in a TV stand.
Dozens of mini PCs are available across a wide range of specs and price points. You can see some of the best devices available in our list of the best pre-built and DIY Plex media servers.
Is an Nvidia Shield good as a Plex server? I’m looking for something I can basically stick in a closet and rarely look at.
— Zac Cichy (@zcichy) January 13, 2019
Plex hasn’t been able to use Android devices as media servers since the demise of the Plex Media Center app a few years ago.
There is, however, one exception: the Nvidia Shield. Nvidia has entered into a unique partnership with Plex, and the devices can act as Plex media servers.
Take a screenshot on mac computer. And because both the regular Nvidia Shield and the Pro version both have USB ports, you can easily connect an external hard drive which contains all your movies and TV shows and stream the contents. You don’t need to move your library onto the Nvidia Shield itself.
Unfortunately, the Nvidia Shield has one potential drawback. Several users have reported that this device is unsuitable for very large libraries. Some complain about insufficient space for streaming in 4K, while others say thumbnail generation chews through the memory.
Backgrounds 1 4 9. Raspberry Pi devices have some very unique advantages and disadvantages when you’re using them with the Plex Media Server app.
The most notable downside is the lack of CPU power. The Raspberry Pi 2 has a 900 MHz quad-core Cortex-A7 CPU along with 1GB of RAM. The Raspberry Pi 3 uses a 1.2GHz ARM Cortex-A53 CPU and 1GB of RAM.
That’s well short of Plex’s recommended requirements for the Media Server app: an Intel Core i3 processor and at least 2GB of RAM.
However, the Raspberry Pi also has some massive upsides, the most notable of which is portability. The web is full of users looking for advice on the best cheap device to use as a Plex media server in hotels and offices. The Raspberry Pi is probably the best solution. Just don’t expect to transcode 4K content.
For people who need to access all their Plex content remotely, a NAS drive is perhaps the best choice. Too many people have complained about unreliability in the Plex Media Server app when it’s used on a laptop or desktop for them to be a dependable option.
As a company, Plex is big on pushing its NAS drive solutions. There are custom versions available for NAS drives from Synology, Netgear, QNAP, unRAID, Drobo, Asustor, Seagate, Western Digital, and TerraMaster.
However, before you hit the store looking to buy one, there are some things you need to consider. According to Plex, your NAS drive will need an x86 CPU. And if you buy an ARM model, transcoding will not be available. Therefore, you’ll need to ensure your video media is saved in a format which your Plex Media Player can support.
For the most universal playability, Plex recommends an MP4 container, the H.264 video codec, AAC audio, and a bitrate of less than 8Mbps.
If you want a NAS drive for Plex, we recommend the QNAP TS-453Be 4-Bay Professional NAS, the Synology DS218play, and the TerraMaster F4-220 4-Bay NAS.
If you’re a very occasional viewer, you can use Plex on your primary computers without too much concern. More serious users should consider using a dedicated old computer or a mini PC. Anyone who does a lot of traveling should buy a Raspberry Pi. And if remote access is important, consider purchasing a NAS drive.
If you would like to learn more about using Plex, check out our article listing the best Plex plugins for power users and our list of reasons why you don’t need a Plex Pass. Are slot machines rigged.
Read the full article: The Best Devices to Use as a Plex Media Server
You’ve got all that media – photos, videos, recorded TV, music and more – scattered across your network, and now there’s a load of online media to tap into as well. How can you possibly keep on top of it all while making it possible to access your media while away from home on your portable device?
Plex is one possible solution. It allows you to share the media content – photos, music, video and recorded TV – from selected folders on the host computer as well as any network shares, but that’s not all. Plex also lets you tap into online content too, allowing your clients to access internet-hosted media like YouTube, NetFlix and more through the same interface. These are served via the use of special Plex PMS Plug-ins, some of which are included with the main download, while others are available for separate download and install.
Plex comes in two parts: this is the Media Server, which you need to install on the PC or Mac that’s hosting all the media content you wish to share. Note, previous Mac builds combined both media server and client in a single application – this is no longer the case from 0.9.5 onwards.
Setup is relatively simple, but easier on the Mac than Windows – visit the wiki for full instructions (click the 'Laika' link). Your library can be organised according to four types of content: TV shows, movies, pictures and music. Select which folders – network shares as well as folders – to make accessible, and they’ll be made available to your clients, complete with metadata that helps identify the content being played, including artist bios for music and movie descriptions for video.
Then all you need to do is install the client software and your library will be available for streaming on that Mac, PC or portable device. Get the Plex Media Center client for Windows and Mac, or Plex for Android and iOS mobile devices.
The Mac version is polished, reliable and well worth trying, but the Windows server still suffers from various glitches that make it harder to wholeheartedly recommend.
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