Hi guys,
New kid testing Plex server before pulling the trigger and building an NAS to run Plex.
I do not have a Plex Pass. Just a normal account. I installed the server on my MacBook Pro (late 2013) it seems to run fine. Got the media all added to the server, and I can play it just fine on my server laptop here.
I can access everything within my local network with the IOS app on my iPad Air2, (entire network is on WiFi 802.1ac). Again, no problems. Same on my wife Macbook Pro and her iPad 4.
Now the problem. I have to have the system operate when the internet is unavailable to us locally here. Connection is spotty where we live and sometimes I just turn off the internet on my server (I have my reasons). I leave WiFi on, just shut off Internet access (think of it as just disconnecting the coax cable). The LAN is still operating.
When I do this, everything still works fine on the server MacBook, like you would expect. Plays movies and shows like normal on my server machine. But the IOS clients are different. My iPad can connect to the Plex server and browse the content. Works great. When I press play, for example, on a TV Show, I get the spinning icon that it is working, then after about 10 or fifteen seconds, it jumps to the next episode and accesses the server for 10 to 15 seconds again, then on to the next episode. Never playing anything. If I try to play a movie, it just hangs and hangs and never plays anything.
Checking the Activity screen on the server, it show that my client is connected and playing the Tv show or movie, then it indicates the jump to the next show...and so forth.
I turn the internet back on, and everything works again. Can clients only access a server that is connected to the internet? Or have I not set up something correctly?
Weird.
Am I missing something obvious?
Thank you
Michael