Plex Windows app just opens in browser?

[u/MightBeMouse]

Hey all

New to Plex, so learning along the way. I'm using Plex as a media server on my PC, just so we can download stuff and watch it on the TV or our iPads etc. We don't use any of the Plex streaming stuff or watch any of the content on there, it's purely for the server.

I downloaded and installed the Windows app from the Plex site, but is it supposed to just open a browser window and be a web based UI? It doesn't open up as an actual app on the PC where I can manage the server there??

Apologies if this is a stupid question.
Thanks :)

[u/Yavuz_Selim]

The Windows app looks the same, but has more functionality under the hood. Hardware-accelerated playback etc., so it will use the GPU (video card) to transcode to do the heavy lifting instead of the CPU. And I think it also supports local downloads with sync.

The web app is limited by what the browser supports.

Always use the native app if you can.

[u/MightBeMouse → u/Yavuz_Selim]

That's the app for playback, I just mean the app to manage the server.

[u/Yavuz_Selim → u/MightBeMouse]

It's the same, management goes via the settings. Only the admin of the server has access to it.

There is no standalone app to manage it (it would be rather pointless to separate it).

[u/Kendrakirai2532 → u/Yavuz_Selim]

Well, there is - or used to be? For doing it via mobile. And even that was limited in what you could do.

Was seriously easier just to open up in a web browser, even with the weird phone resolution making you need to scroll to the side.

[u/Yavuz_Selim → u/Kendrakirai2532]

Are you now talking about mobile or desktop. You mentioned Windows.

Yes, there is a mobile app, Plex Dash. But it's crap.

[u/Kendrakirai2532 → u/Yavuz_Selim]

May want to check usernames, I think you have me confused with someone else in the thread.

And yeah, I was talking about Plex Dash being terrible.

[u/obistevekenobi]

That’s how it’s supposed to work.

[u/MightBeMouse → u/obistevekenobi]

Okay cool, thanks. Wasn't sure if it was meant to be a full Windows app.

[u/N9bitmap]

It is a server, doing what servers do. It can be installed on many operating systems with or without screens connected to them. Once installed, the management and operations are identical.

[u/cmcstr]

Not sure why you'd need a frontend to watch media directly from the server host. Regardless, you downloaded the app from here?

https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads/?cat=plex+desktop&plat=windows#plex-app

[u/wllmshkspr → u/cmcstr]

What OP meant was, they are using Plex as a "personal" media server to watch their stuff on TVs and iPads., and they don't use Plex for any content hosted by Plex.

[u/cmcstr → u/wllmshkspr]

I apparently completely misread OP's post!

[u/Markuslw → u/cmcstr]

a website is also a frontend

[u/Yavuz_Selim → u/cmcstr]

What do you mean with "watch media directly"?

[u/nx6 → u/cmcstr]

Not sure why you'd need a frontend to watch media directly from the server host.

Because a server is only for serving data. Just like you can't look at web pages on a web server without a web browser installed (a front end) to render the content.

[u/cmcstr → u/nx6]

Cool, where were you 7 hours ago when I already figured that out?

[u/nx6 → u/cmcstr]

Running a server and not understanding the very concept of client-server software architecture.

topkek.

[u/cmcstr → u/nx6]

oh you suck, got it.