Install Plex on Raspberry Pi with Linux

1. Prerequisites

Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 (Raspberry Pi OS 64-bit recommended for Plex).
Basic knowledge of the terminal.
Optional: External storage for media files.

2. Install Plex

Follow these steps to install Plex Media Server.

2.1 Update package list

Make sure your system package list is up to date.

sudo apt update

2.2 Install Necessary Packages for HTTPS Transport

This allows your system to retrieve packages over HTTPS.

sudo apt install apt-transport-https

2.3 Add Plex Media Server Signing Key

Import the official Plex GPG key to ensure package authenticity.

curl https://downloads.plex.tv/plex-keys/PlexSign.key | gpg --dearmor | sudo tee /usr/share/keyrings/plex-archive-keyring.gpg >/dev/null

2.4. Enable the Plex Repository

Add the official Plex repository to your system's sources list.

echo deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/plex-archive-keyring.gpg] https://downloads.plex.tv/repo/deb public main | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/plexmediaserver.list

2.5 Update Package List Again

Refresh your package list to include packages from the newly added Plex repository.

sudo apt update

2.6. Install Plex Media Server

Download and install the Plex Media Server package.

sudo apt install plexmediaserver

2.7. Remove Unnecessary Packages

Clean up any packages that are no longer required by the system.

sudo apt autoremove

2.8 Check Plex Media Server Status

Verify that the Plex Media Server is running correctly. It should show active (running) if everything is set up correctly.

sudo service plexmediaserver status

3. Claim Your Plex Media Server

3.1. Get Your Plex Claim Token

Visit https://plex.tv/claim.
Log in to your Plex account.
Copy the generated claim token.
You'll use this token in the next step by replacing PLEX_CLAIM.

Note - The claim token is only valid for 4 minutes, so complete the next step promptly.

3.2 Claim the Plex Media Server

Run the following command in your terminal, replacing PLEX_CLAIM with your actual claim token:

curl -X POST 'http://127.0.0.1:32400/myplex/claim?token=PLEX_CLAIM'

If successful, your server will be associated with your Plex account.

4. Access Plex

Open a web browser and go to: http://YOUR_RASPBERRY_PI_IP:32400/web. Replace YOUR_RASPBERRY_PI_IP with the actual IP address of your Raspberry Pi.
Sign in with your Plex account and follow the on-screen setup instructions.

Once logged in, you now have Plex Media Server running on your Raspberry Pi! You can start adding media libraries, adjusting settings, and streaming your content across devices.

5. Fixing File Permission Errors with Plex

Sometimes Plex may not be able to access your media files due to incorrect file or directory permissions. To resolve this, first check which groups the plex user belongs to:

groups plex

If the Plex user is already part of a group that has access to your media files, no changes are needed. However, if it isn’t, you’ll need to add the plex user to your current user’s group and ensure proper access permissions are set.

Step-by-Step Fix

Set variables for your media root directory and current user group (replace YOUR_MEDIA_DIRECTORY accordingly):

MEDIA_ROOT_DIR="YOUR_MEDIA_DIRECTORY"
MYGROUP="$USER"

Add the plex user to your user group:

sudo usermod -a -G $MYGROUP plex

Set ownership of the media directory:

sudo chown -R $USER:$MYGROUP $MEDIA_ROOT_DIR

Adjust permissions to allow group read and execute access:

sudo chmod -R 750 $MEDIA_ROOT_DIR

Optionally, use ACLs to ensure the group has full access:

sudo setfacl -m g:$MYGROUP:rwx $MEDIA_ROOT_DIR

Restart Plex Media Server for changes to take effect:

sudo service plexmediaserver restart

After these steps, Plex should be able to access your media files without permission issues.