If all the content you have such as movies, music, series or photos, you have it messy and you want to have an interface that helps you control everything, surely Plex will be the solution you were looking for. That’s why today we are going to tell you what it is exactly and how it works so that you get the most out of it.
We can say that using Plex is like having our own Netflix, but at home and with the content that we have saved ourselves.
What is Plex?
Plex is a service that allows us to create our own multimedia server at home, taking advantage of our computer or a hard drive that we connect to the network. We can play this multimedia content on our Smart TV, on the tablet, on the mobile and even on other computers. In addition, if we leave the server always connected we will be able to access all that content from anywhere we are as long as we have Internet access.
The news that is really good is that we can have this system on a multitude of platforms , since it is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS and a good number of operating systems available for NAS.
We can store movies, videos of all kinds, photographs, music, podcasts, television programs, etc., in addition to being able to organize and classify them as we ourselves consider it to be the correct way. Another interesting addition is that Plex accepts plug-ins to access remote streaming services.
How to install Plex
To make Plex work, like any type of software, we must install it and for that we must go to its official website and install Plex Media Server on the operating system, in our case Windows.
Once we have it, our browser will open from which we must follow a few simple steps:
- The first thing is to create a free account . It is not mandatory, but it is convenient if we plan to access Plex from outside the home or from another device. We can register through a Google, Facebook, Apple account or by email (where we must create the password).
- Next, we have to put a name to our server and check the Allow access to my files from outside my home box
- Although the server tells you to add new libraries, we will do it later, because now we are going to focus on the installation, so we click on Next and then on Done .
- Now that the program is active and we only have to go to Settings (the drawing in the upper right part with a screwdriver and a wrench), click on Quality (left of the screen) and now we must choose how the streaming depending on our Internet connection, clicking on Save Changes at the end.
Add Libraries
Now that we have Plex installed, it is time to start adding those files that we want to be played, such as movies or photos. For that we must do the following:
- As we are already in Settings we must go Libraries , which is at the bottom in the Administrator section.
- Now click on Add Library .
- We will see how we get various types of libraries such as Movies, Series, Music, Photos or Other videos . We choose the one we want, for example, Movies.
- At that moment he tells us to give the library a name and to put in what language it is.
- Then we must click on View Media Folder and then select the folder or file that we want to be incorporated into Plex and click on Add .
- Then we will see how that folder or file appears. Now, at the bottom we have a button that says Add Library , which we are going to press.
Then your Library will be incorporated little by little. Something that is extremely interesting is that Plex is able to identify the files that are from movies or series and will already incorporate the original cover, the synopsis, the actors, the director and other relevant data so that they appear when we click on that file.
Use on other devices
The way to use Plex on other devices is much easier than you could imagine. We just have to download the app we need from the official website . It can be installed on iOS, Android, PlayStation consoles, Xbox, NVIDIA Shield, Smart TV and a few more.
If we use an Android device, we just have to identify ourselves with the same account with which we signed up for the first time in Plex. We recommend entering the app without registering and then clicking on Identify yourself , which appears at the top of the screen.
Now it will show us the registration options that we had at the beginning and we must choose exactly the same way as before to start the session. So let’s go into Plex and we will have the same content that we had in the first configuration that we did in Windows and in the same order.
If we use a Smart TV , the way to have Plex is practically the same as we have done with an Android mobile. We must download the application from the television brand’s app store .
When it is downloaded and installed, we only have to log in with the same account as always. This will make us see everything as we have managed and placed it, although we can incorporate what we need, since it will be synchronized with all the devices that are connected.
Share with friends
We can also share the content that we put on our server with our friends, but we must do it from the web version.
- For that, what we have to do is click on the icon that appears in the upper right part of the screen . Once we have clicked it, we must select Users and share .
- Then we get a screen where we can Add Friends by clicking on the button.
- Now all we have to do is put the email with which the person we want to be able to see our content registered in Plex.
- Then we select the folders we want you to be able to access and that’s it. The next time our friend or family member connects to Plex, they will be able to see the content of the folder we have selected.
