Is Plex really Self Hosting?
https://piefed.zip/c/selfhosted/p/1526968/is-plex-really-self-hosting
Is Plex really Self Hosting?
https://piefed.zip/c/selfhosted/p/1526968/is-plex-really-self-hosting
Plex requires a Plex Pass subscription to share outside of your local network. Plex doesn’t allow you to watch media on your local network if your internet service is down, even if you have the Pass, because the service requires a constant connection to the Plex service itself. You can’t use apps on most streaming boxes and sticks without a Pass subscription. Plex records telemetry on all of your viewing habits and shares it with any of your associates who also use the service.
I switched from Plex to Emby a decade ago because of the restriction on local network streaming without an internet connection. My internet service went down and I said to myself “well I can at least watch my locally hosted files on my tv sitting next to the server”. Nope, not allowed. I emailed Plex support about it once my internet was back and they said that wasn’t a bug, it was by design. I dropped it then and there even though I had a lifetime Pass subscription.
Well, grammatical quibble then.
Your verbs are present tense and not past tense:
Plex requires a Plex Pass subscription
Plex doesn’t allow you to watch media on your local network
This gives the impression that you’re talking about the current state of things. Which seems to be the above commenter’s issue.
Where as:
Plex required a Plex Pass subscription
or
Plex didn’t allow you to watch media on your local network
Would imply a past experience.
Misinformation doesn’t mean that you’re intentionally lying (that is disinformation), it just means that you’re stating facts that are not true.
(I’m not being negative, just pedantic lol)
To actually contribute to the conversation:
Plex now allows local network streaming without their servers being offline as long as your client is already authenticated (cached tokens have a short expiration date however)
Alternatively, you can add your LAN’s subnet in Settings > Server > Network > ‘List of IP addresses and networks that are allowed without auth’
Here’s a full written guide: forums.plex.tv/t/…/383325

I’ve seen far too many posts regarding “can’t connect to Plex with no internet”, and an uprising/outcry always ensues. It eventually settles down, but the lack of single point resources can be frustrating. I’ve been there, no internet - can’t google anything from a computer so a phone will have to do, but navigating through results and trying “solutions” can be daunting. I’m creating this How-To to help alleviate those posts and help everyone access their servers when the net is down. Couple of ...
Your verbs are present tense and not past tense
I was clear in other comments that I was speaking of what I knew to be true at the time, therefore the tense was correct from my perspective. I was told that the situation changed about seven years ago, I acknowledged this and expressed happiness for current Plex users, and then came several different people piling on telling me I’m lying, I’m wrong, I’m misleading, even after I stated that my experience was ten years ago and I acknowledged that things had changed since then.
To be abundantly clear, from my point of view before I was corrected, the present tense was correct based on my experience. I acknowledged the corrections and was still accused of lying and misrepresenting. I just don’t get that. I don’t understand why immediately acknowledging and accepting and even expressing genuine happiness that the situation has changed leads to attacks from all sides. I don’t understand why any of you refuse to acknowledge that I was speaking of an experience a decade ago, you all insist that I’m trying to say that is how it is now, and I’m not fucking doing that at all.
This place takes itself way, way too seriously, in my opinion. I’m sorry for any toes I stepped on without even meaning to, and I won’t comment on the matter further.
I understood the misunderstanding from reading the previous comments.
I was clear in other comments that I was speaking of what I knew to be true at the time, therefore the tense was correct from my perspective.
I didn’t say you were intentionally lying, only that you were mistaken. I wasn’t making a personal attack.
I acknowledge that based on your experience that is how Plex worked 10 years ago, but it is not how it currently works. So, when you say that ‘this is how Plex works’ instead of ‘this is how Plex worked 10 years ago’ it’s implying that it still works like that when it does not. That could confuse people who are here and trying to learn.
This place takes itself way, way too seriously, in my opinion. I’m sorry for any toes I stepped on without even meaning to, and I won’t comment on the matter further.
The community exists to talk about, and help people with, self hosting. Providing incorrect information runs counter to that purpose and so community members should point out when information isn’t correct.
Misinformation just means that the information that you’re providing is not correct, it’s not a personal attack on you to be corrected about a factual issue. It doesn’t mean that you’re a bad person or suggest that you’re trying to be intentionally misleading, it just means that your statements do not match the current factual reality.