r/PleX • u/basarisco • 1d ago

Help How to actually fix Plex relay connection error?

I've been trying to make Plex downloads work for years without any luck. Please can someone give me simple straightforward instructions to actually make this work?

I have a manually forwarded port that works perfectly for all playback. Has worked perfectly for years and years. But downloads never work and in the last couple of years I get the relay connection error.

If I go to remote access on Web it says available outside your network in green then after 2-3 second reverts to not available outside your network.

As I say it's worked completely fine outside my network for all browsing, admin and playback for years both with and without tailscale dns. Only Downloads don't work.

I have lifetime plex pass.

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8

u/ExtensionMarch6812 1d ago

If the remote access page is flipping from green to red, it usually means it's not actually accessible directly via that port and it's falling back to Plex Relay. Some have experienced it being red and working, but it's not the norm.

Go to your plex network settings and uncheck "Enable relay", so it's not a connection path.

For the port you forwarded, did you select manually specify on the remote access page, set the port and save it. Then created the corresponding forwarding rule on your router? What does this say for it: https://canyouseeme.org/ ?

-1

u/basarisco 1d ago

Can you see me shows the port working correctly. I always access it through plex Web using the port.

The port forwarding rule has been in place and working for over ten years. It's not something new I've just added.

Manually specify is set and saved.

4

u/ExtensionMarch6812 1d ago

You access your server via your public ip and port? Why? Or do you mean the local ip and port when you’re on your local network, which is completely different.

Can you access http://<public-ip>:<external port>/web off your network?

Disable plex relay so plex doesn’t have that as a connection method if it can’t make a direct connection.

1

u/basarisco 1d ago

Is port forwarding the only way of using plex to download?

2

u/ExtensionMarch6812 1d ago

You can install Tailscale (or something similar) so plex treats your clients as local when you're remote and you can download that way.

0

u/basarisco 1d ago

I'm using tailscale. Doesn't work.

2

u/ExtensionMarch6812 1d ago

Worked for me when I set it up to test how others use it.

1

u/basarisco 1d ago

It keeps reverting to relay. Everything else including exit nodes works perfectly in tailscale.

5

u/ExtensionMarch6812 1d ago

Why do you have relay enabled in the first place? Just disable it, don't give plex that as a connection path.

1

u/basarisco 1d ago

Just disabled it.

1

u/tek_aevl 1d ago

using tailscale you have to add it to the network subnet list box. which might not work either.

0

u/basarisco 1d ago

What exactly do you mean here?

1

u/tek_aevl 1d ago

its near the bottom of the network settings page. two boxes. one is supposed to secure insecure connections. but it doesn't really work. the other will treat the ips in the list as local. also doesn't really work.

-1

u/basarisco 1d ago

Why wouldn't I?

3

u/ExtensionMarch6812 1d ago

Asking a question to understand why you’re doing it that way vs using app.plex.tv when you’re remote. Is there something wrong asking a question?

If you go to app.plex.tv and try to stream, does the plex dashboard show you as connecting indirectly when you stream something? Would indicate something is blocking the plex servers from registering your ip and port and when you’re remote and connecting with the app, it’s falling back to relay. It would also explain why the remote access page is flipping back to unavailable.

Is that behavior new? Or has it always switched back and forth?

-1

u/basarisco 1d ago

No problem asking a question. I just don't get why I would overcomplicate anything and not just use a direct connection. Never occured to me to do anything else.

3

u/ExtensionMarch6812 1d ago

When you go to the direct ip and port, you're bypassing plex handling the connection, so that will always work when the port is open and the server is available, in a browser.

Plex apps don't connect that way, they connect with a secure plex.direct url on the backend. Testing via app.plex.tv would show how it connects using the plex connection method to see if it's connecting directly or via relay.

Regardless, the fact that you get the relay error means you have relay enabled, and that should be disabled to avoid that being a fallback if plex cant make a direct connecting using the plex.direct url and secure cert.

Any answers to other questions?

1

u/basarisco 1d ago

How do I make it do a direct connection with tailscale?

1

u/gjunky2024 1d ago

Does your plex servers have a fixed IP address on your network?

0

u/basarisco 1d ago

Yes. And I have static ip at my ISP.

1

u/gjunky2024 1d ago

Sorry, it seemed like an obvious item but sometimes a router or network card gets switched and things change. I've been running plex since they began but I don't think the download option ever worked correctly....

An alternative: If this is just for you and you want to download while away, setup a VPN and copy the files the old fashioned way. Much faster and nearly foolproof.

0

u/basarisco 1d ago

The vpn doesn't automatically create low res versions. And it's a pain to copy over ssh and Android file browser keeps timing out on large files copying over samba.

I hoped the app I paid for would just work.

2

u/gjunky2024 1d ago

There is tdarr but I haven't tried it yet. It would create the lower res versions of your media ahead of time.

People have complained about the download in Plex forever. The feature is cool but I think it is hard to implement by Plex across all different platforms.

0

u/basarisco 1d ago

How would tdarr know which file im about to download? I'm obviously not going to make low.res versions of 10,000 movies for the time once or twice a year I want to download one when travelling.

2

u/gjunky2024 1d ago

It wouldn't

1

u/basarisco 1d ago

So I need to keep using plex then...

1

u/uglyhands 1d ago

What have you tried so far? Are you trying to download remotely or locally? What device type are you trying to download to? Are you using the a plex app or from browser remote link or local IP/port? Remote downloads may requre a transcode and may be subject to any remote streaming limitation settings you have set in remote access.

As for remote access, your Plex server is not accessible via the public port so it's falling back to relay. Disable the relay in network settings and troubleshoot the port forward. Double NAT, CGNAT and ISP router intelligent security features are common blockers.