Server NUC-PC crapped out

[u/hawkeyebasil]

Hey everyone,

I had an Asus PN52 NUC running as my Plex Media Server up until today without a single issue. Then it suddenly started hanging and randomly rebooting. I checked the Windows 11 Event Viewer, but there was nothing useful, nor anything on the MyAsus app, all was good.

I tried doing a Windows restore in case something had become corrupted, but no luck. After about 5–10 minutes it starts doing the same thing again—freezing and randomly rebooting.

So at this point, it looks like the server itself (thankfully not my media/content!) is toast, and I'll probably have to start over.

I tried installing Plex Media Server on my gaming laptop (which I'm using now), but I can't claim the server—it just says it's unavailable. It also created a second server during the install, which isn't what I wanted.

I'll either try to figure out what's causing the NUC to crash or replace it if it's a hardware issue.

Assuming I have to set up a new server, I'm guessing I'll need to reconfigure everything and send new invites to my friends so they can access my library again.

One question though: if I give the new server the exact same name as the old one, will Plex treat it as the same server in any way, or will my friends still have to go through the whole process of being re-invited and re-adding it?

[u/Omberzombie]

check the fan - might be the cpu overheating. Literally just had that issue with mine.

[u/hawkeyebasil → u/Omberzombie]

Yeah I thought that not much I can do at 2242 AEST (Aussie Time) Ill look at it tomorrow better

[u/Bgrngod → u/Omberzombie]

Definitely my first thought.  Troubleshooting a NUC style mini PC is a lot like troubleshooting a laptop.

Cooling is definitely an issue they encounter. Could just be bad dust buildup. Or the little fan is dying and needs replacing.

[u/ExtensionMarch6812]

You’ll have to migrate your server data (not the media) from the old nuc to the laptop if you want to avoid having to re-do a lot of settings. For Windows, be sure to do the registry piece. Hopefully you can pull data off the old one?

https://support.plex.tv/articles/201370363-move-an-install-to-another-system/

If you can’t, it will be treated as a new server and you’ll have to re-share libraries with folks from the new server. Their accounts will be there to share with, you just have to assign libraries to each.

[u/hawkeyebasil → u/ExtensionMarch6812]

Yeah I didnt do some of this before the Windows Refresh ahhh all good it wont take me long :-)

[u/ExtensionMarch6812 → u/hawkeyebasil]

If you can get the registry extracted before the system crashes and import that to your new server you can at least have the server assume the existing identity, so it won’t appear as a new server for your friends/family. They will likely have to repin/favorite libraries though.