
You can have multiple libraries of one type, but each one must be set to look in a specific directory. Libraries are categorised by type: Films, TV programmes, Music, Photos, Other videos. Next, you have to tell Plex where your files are kept by adding libraries, which you do by selecting Add library. This gives you some advanced features, but you can use the server for free without upgrading, so close this window down. You’ll be prompted to buy a Plex Pass if you don’t have one already. We prefer the latter, so as to present having to grant access to accounts for third-party apps. If you don’t have one, you can select one of the login options: Google, Facebook, Apple or Email. On a Mac, you need to click the Plex logo in the Menu bar and select Open at Login if you want the server to start with your computer.Īfter installation, the Plex server will launch a web browser connecting you to the web interface, where you’ll be prompted to connect to your Plex account. On Windows, Plex will be set to run automatically. The first thing you need to do before you can set up a Plex server is download the installation file and run the installer. We’ll focus on installing on a computer here, as you have to follow specific instructions for a NAS that are a bit different however, configuration across all systems is roughly the same. You’ll need to download the Plex server for your device: it’s available for Windows, macOS, Linux, as well as many NAS servers, including Synology, QNAP and Netgear models. Here, we’ll show you how to set up a Plex server.

And, it’s capable of transcoding video and music, too: that is, the server can reformat content to play on a device, so you never need to worry about incompatible files. This smart media server software lets you play your content via the Plex client on a laptop, phone, some smart TVs, and the Fire TV devices.Īs well as streaming content, Plex intelligently organises and manages your media files automatically, recognising films and TV shows to give you the right thumbnails.


If you’ve got a computer full of music, photos and videos that you want to stream easily to your TV, you’ll want to know how to set up a Plex server.
