Alternative to Plex? reddit / selfhosted ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vesuveusmxo · 2023-10-17 19:48 Looking for suggestions for an app my family can use to “stream” entertainment from server to TV/computers while staying within the home network. I know of a guide to redirect Plex so it doesn’t have to go to the internet, but I haven’t been able to get it to work. Any recommendations? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sekhen · 2023-10-17 19:54 Jellyfin Or just a file share and mount it in Windows as a network drive. Then view the content with VLC. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Joer456 · 2023-10-17 19:54 Jellyfin ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ElevenNotes · 2023-10-17 19:55 My Plex is offline except for Metadata downloads. What does not work on your end? Why do you need an offline Plex? Plex works offline too, you just get no Metadata unless you have it in the folder of the file. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Legitimate_Farm_3095 · 2023-10-17 19:58 https://www.reddit.com/r/selfhosted/search?q=plex+alternative&restrict _sr=on&include_over_18=on&sort=relevance&t=all ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vesuveusmxo · 2023-10-17 19:59 This is how I’m leaning. But family will prefer a UI like plex ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vesuveusmxo · 2023-10-17 20:01 For real?! What settings do you have? When my internet went out, Plex was offline, even though it’s through the same router hardware as TVs and computers. I want offline capabilities in new location in case power goes out, internet speeds vary, etc ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ElevenNotes · 2023-10-17 20:02 This is the frist time I hear of that. Plex alway worked offline. Did you forget to add your subnet to the "no authentication" list? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- mobility_phone · 2023-10-17 20:06 jellyfin ---------------------------------------------------------------------- breid7718 · 2023-10-17 20:08 Plex works offline if you set your subnet to the "no auth" list. However, a lot of smart TV clients require that you be online to run the client because they don't store the software locally. We run AppleTV boxes and have no issues using local library while Internet is out. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- weeklygamingrecap · 2023-10-17 20:09 Had similar experience to OP, added no authentication list, that fixed it, kind of. But it's not 100% at least for me, still never tracked down why that is. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- hdddanbrown · 2023-10-17 20:17 I have heard searching is not allowed around here. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- FroSSTII · 2023-10-17 20:21 There are several [themes](https://github.com/awesome- jellyfin/awesome-jellyfin/blob/main/THEMES.md) that can help make jellyfin more friendly. Even make your own if you wish so. You can also change how the main page behaves, removing sections of it or reorganizing them. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TigBitties69 · 2023-10-17 20:28 One thing I would check is that you are actually directly streaming in your network, instead of it routing online to your device. Try streaming from your desktop, and see if the stream type is encoding, or if it is direct play. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -eschguy- · 2023-10-17 20:30 Jellyfin ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Foxfyre · 2023-10-17 20:36 Jellyfin ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vesuveusmxo · 2023-10-17 20:44 I searched for offline players. Limited results. None helpful in the last year. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vesuveusmxo · 2023-10-17 20:45 Thanks ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HeinousTugboat · 2023-10-17 20:55 Jellyfin ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Hurt-Locker · 2023-10-17 21:09 Jellyfin ---------------------------------------------------------------------- JoeB- · 2023-10-17 21:29 Jellyfin ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Unrelative · 2023-10-17 21:46 Emby. I know everyone loves Jellyfin because it's open-source, but I've used Emby for years after trying all 3 and it's been the easiest set and forget system. I also think the interface is the best but that's subjective. If you have the time I suggest you try both Emby and Jellyfin and see which suits your needs best. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HellDuke · 2023-10-17 21:51 Yeah, I am keeping an eye on Jellyfin as well. Hoping it gets better with subtitles though. Since the only media I need it for is anime having to wait minutes on end for subtitles to show up is not normal. At first I thought that it's maybe the server hardware that is lacking and Plex just does native playing so there is no transcoding on the app, but turns out that is not the case as even using the browser Plex has no issues showing subtitles immediately even if they are on the first seconds of the video. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- HellDuke · 2023-10-17 21:56 Jellyfin. Just be weary that it's not great in some cases depending on your hardware. A media server is typically a weak workstation PC. I found that Jellyfin does not handle ASS (most common format for Anime) subtitles well, though if you only have SRT subtitles you should be fine. There are a few other little things that are missing, such as sorting shows by date last episode was added and the clicking on a show button will always start the very first episode available instead of the next un-played episode. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- TormundGaming · 2023-10-18 00:42 I use Jellyfin for my backend, Infuse (Apple TV) for my client. The later was specifically so I could have usage without an internet connection required (e.g., when I take out my RV). ---------------------------------------------------------------------- hdddanbrown · 2023-10-18 00:57 But Jellyfin works excellent offline. Plex needs some tweaks but even then behaves very odd when offline. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- justahobby20 · 2023-10-18 04:04 The gap is closing but Emby really is the best Plex alternative when WAF is involved. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- redwoodglacier · 2023-10-18 11:03 You should try a few and make up your own mind; like Emby and Jellyfin. I have all three installed in my cluster, and jump between them now and then to evaluate how they work for me/my family. For us, after Plex and over time Emby have been a much "better" experience than Jellyfin; in terms of performance/load/transcoding, how features like sub titles or media scanning or whatever to bugs and crashes. It makes me sad because I really do wanna go with something more open, but I have to use what works at the end of the day. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- redwoodglacier · 2023-10-18 11:06 >when WAF is involved I had to ask chatgpt what this meant: \> In the context of media home streaming, "WAF" likely stands for "Wife Acceptance Factor." And I choked on my coffee a bit with laughter. I must be old or something, but did not know of this word and I find it hilarious and so accurate! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- vesuveusmxo · 2023-10-18 11:47 Yeah, Definately will do. I’ve spent a decade with Plex, built a library and family knows the interface. So if it’s easiest to change some settings, I’ll stay with Plex. If not, I’m going to try JF and emby ---------------------------------------------------------------------- justahobby20 · 2023-10-18 16:42 Ha, glad you could appreciate it. I picked it up from some people in a diy electronics/home automation Discord, but it was relayed to me as Wife Approval Factor.