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Plex remote access - low quality even with gigabit fiber (self.selfhosted)

submitted 4 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) by triptrapper to c/selfhosted

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Hey all, I'm very new to self-hosting and have no background in anything computer-related. I'll explain in as much detail as I can. I'm running Plex on a Synology DS220+. I'm using the Plex app, i.e. not using Docker (see note below).

The issue: I can watch Plex on my local network in 4K, but outside my local network it barely makes it to 720p. I thought it was an issue with my upload speed, but I got gigabit last week and it hasn't fixed the issue. I have remote access enabled in Plex through a manually-specified port. The issue persists with my own account and any friends who have access to my library.

I appreciate any advice, links or questions you can offer!

NOTE: I understand the benefits of Docker and I promise to transition in the future. I spent many hours learning and troubleshooting, and it was even functional at times, but eventually I needed something that just worked.

EDIT: You all have been so helpful and supportive. Thanks for meeting me where I'm at and sharing some potential issues.

EDIT2: I found the culprit by accident. I had UPnP enabled on my router. I turned it off and my local speeds increased significantly, and my Plex library is available remotely. I don't know how or why UPnP is related, but that's what the solution was for me. Thanks again for all your input and support.

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (5 children)

I have three hypotheses.

There's a setting for remote streaming quality. It may be set to 720p.
The port isn't open on your router and Plex streams via a Plex relay server which limits the quality.
The CPU might not be fast enough to transcode beyond 720p and Plex might be transcoding for remote streaming.

[–] triptrapper 5 points 4 months ago (2 children)

Thanks for the concise reply!

-Streaming quality is set to original on every device I use to access Plex.

-I still get confused about open ports, but I'll check again and make sure it's not running through relay.

-I believe the hardware should be fast enough to transcode at least a couple streams, but I'll check again.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 4 months ago (1 children)

I was talking about a server side setting under Remote Access. Check there.

[–] triptrapper 1 points 4 months ago

Ah, okay. Thanks for the clarification.

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