¶ Integration Note
| Manufacturer: | Plex |
| Model Number(s): | Please See Matrix Below |
| Driver Version | 24.02.19.00 |
| g! Core Module Version: | g! 8.5 Build 18 Rel |
| Driver Developer: | Innovo |
| Document Revision Date: | 19/02/2024 |
¶ Overview
This is a two-way driver to control Plex Media server and various Plex Players from Elan with metadata and two way feedback.
Elan is capable of querying the server, returning cover art and metadata and then directing content to the zone player and querying the player every 5 seconds.
¶ Supported Features
The following options are supported:
- This Driver supports All Plex Media Servers up to version 1.0 – 1.21.1
- Search functionality returning Movies, Music, and TV shows, Play Queues, and Playlists from the entire library
The following clients and features are supported
| Client/Feature | Plex Media Player | OpenPHT / PHT / RasPlex | Plex for Roku | Plex for ATV | Plex for Mac Plex for Windows |
Plex For Smart TV |
| Version Supported | 2.40 - 2.49 | 1.80, 1.90 | 6.3.14 |
2.7 |
1.3.1.916 | Varies |
| Navigation with App Open | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Yes |
No | Yes |
| Navigation without App Open | No | Yes | Yes |
Yes* |
No | No |
| Auto Launch App | No | Yes | Yes |
No |
No | No |
| Mirror | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Yes |
Yes | No |
| Now Playing Button | No | Yes | No |
No |
No | No |
| Fast Forward | +30 seconds | FFX1 - FFX32 | +30 seconds |
+30 seconds |
+30 seconds | +30 seconds |
| Skip Forward | +10 minutes | +10 minutes | +10 minutes |
+10 minutes |
+10 minutes | +10 minutes |
| Rewind | -10 seconds | RW1 - RW32 | -10 seconds |
-10 seconds |
-10 seconds | -10 seconds |
| Skip Backward | -10 minutes | -10 minutes | -10 minutes |
-10 minutes |
-10 minutes | -10 minutes |
*Navigation Functions are experimental
The following clients have limited support
Plex for PlayStation, Plex for Xbox, Plex for Nvidia Shield and Plex for Android TV.
The following Clients are not supported:
- Plex Web, Plex Amp, Plex for Mobile, PlexConnect (Plex for Kodi)
Any feature not specifically noted as supported should be assumed to be unsupported.
¶ Device Configuration
Plex Server and Players Preparation
- Plex Media Server has lots of features that rely on a Plex Pass Account. Although it’s not required for the operation of this driver, it’s highly recommended as some features will not work without an account. Sign up for a free account at https://plex.tv/sign-up.
- Make sure the Plex Server and all Player are turned on and running during discovery and installation. (if using a device such as Roku, ATV, or SmartTV make sure to launch the app first and keep it running)
Important: Make sure that all screensavers are disabled and the Plex App is in the foreground on all clients during initial setup, discovery and installation.
- Verify that all the clients appear in the server list. To verify this go to URL: http://PlexSeverIPAdress:32400/clients. If any clients are missing, add them individually at the end. See How To Add a Single/Extra Player section below.
Important: If the /clients page shows Unauthorized, you must use a Plex Username and Plex Password to Proceed. Otherwise you must whitelist the network subnet in your Plex Media Server.
To whitelist your network mask, From the web administrator of Plex go to Server (Enable Show Advanced)—> Network —> List of networks that are allowed without auth and add your subnet such 192.168.1.0/24 then restart the server
- Go to the Plex Media Server Web Admin Page, Under Network, Set Secure Connections to “Preferred”
¶ How To Add a Single/Extra Player
Player Preparation
Gather the information about the new player. The best source of information is available at http://IPAddressOfPlayer:PlayerPort/resources
The information needed to complete this section
Player IP address
Player Port
Player Machine Identifier (this field is only needed if the player uses the Server IP address and Port as a proxy). The following client types use this method (Plex for Mac, Plex for Windows, Plex PlayStation and Most Plex for Smart TVs)
¶ Driver Configuration
¶ Installation Process
The Elan Controller must be on the same subnet as the server and player.
Important Note: Always Backup the controller before installing any new Device Drivers.
- Unzip the driver downloaded into the driver installation library.
- Open Media, Communication Devices, Add New Communication Device and check the box that says Show Unsupported Devices. Scroll to the bottom, Choose PlexMediaPro (the picture below might show a different version number than the driver actually installed.)
Note: If the driver doesn’t appear under the Communication Type then make sure that the PlexMediaPro driver is extracted to the same folder where all the other drivers are installed from. It’s good practice to create one folder on the computer where all the third party EDRVC files live.
- There will be a warning that this is not a Native Elan driver, click OK
- Fill in the PlexPass Login, PlexPass Password, the Activation Code and the Server IP address as shown below.
Important: It is recommended that the driver retrieve the token from the online account. The driver will automatically log into the plex.tv account, create an Elan Remote Client and retrieve the token.
Important: Do Not Delete the Elan Remote from the Plex Online Account. Otherwise the driver will stop working.
Important: Wait up to 30 seconds for the Plex Token to be retrieved from the online account. Internet Connection is required.
- Click on Discover, the number of clients discovered will be shown in the Feedback window. If all the clients don’t show up, verify that all the clients are present in the http://PlexServerIP:32400/clients and try again. If any players don’t show up after several tries install them individually. See How To Add a Single/Extra Player section below.
Note: Plex Web, Plex Amp, Plex for Mobile are ignored by the driver and not counted.
- Click Install after all the clients are found. The clients will be automatically added under Media Sources
- Modify the Names of the Sources as needed so that they are easy to recognize. By default all Zones are named “PlexMedia”. To change that, change the name under the interface tab.
- Add the Source to the Zone Controller
- Under Media Sources, click Add New Generic Media Source and Pick PlexMedia
- A warning that this is not a Native Elan driver, click OK
- Fill in the IP address of the Server, the activation code and click Apply
- Click on the Player Settings Page. Fill in the Plexpass Login, Plexpass Password, the IP address of the Player and the port number of the Player.
The Plex Token, the Product Name and the Device Name will be filled in automatically after Apply.
The Player Machine Identifier may or may not populate depending on the player. See below
Important: The Player Machine Identifier is essential for the driver operation. Most of the time this value is filled in automatically, however, in certain instances where the player shares the same IP address and Port number as the server, this value will not be obtained automatically. In this case see the How To Add a Single/Extra Player Players Preparation section above.
- Modify the Names of the Source as needed.
- Add the Sources to the Zone Controller
¶ Playlist Event Maps
Event Maps can be created to trigger media playback automatically from the Plex Server to a designated player. For a video tutorial of this feature please watch:
Notes: After Event Maps are created, Set the Display Media ID to NO
Event Maps will not play on Plex for Apple TV unless the Plex App is running and in the foreground.
Event Maps will automatically launch the Plex App on Roku
All other platforms require either a full time Plex client setup such as Rasplex or the Plex app to be running and in the foreground.
¶ Configuration Details
The following table provides settings used in Configurator …Please refer to the Configurator Reference Guide for more details.
In the table below:
- “<User Defined>”, etc. Type in the desired name for the item.
- “<Auto Detect>”, etc. The system will auto detect this variable.
| Devices | Variable Name | Settings | Comments |
| Media | Name | User Defined (Default: PlexMediaPro) | |
| System # | <Auto Detect> | ||
| Device Type | Ethernet | ||
| Driver Name | PlexMedia | ||
| Driver Version | <Auto Detect> | ||
| Driver Vendor | Innovo | ||
| Player IP Address | <User Defined> | ||
| Player Port | Varies | ||
| Server Port Number | 32400 | ||
| Activation Key | <User Defined> | ||
| Server IP Address | <User Defined> | ||
| Server Port Number | <Auto Detect> | ||
| Zone Controller | Display Name | <User Defined> (Default: Player Name) | |
| System # | <Auto Detect> | ||
| Source Device | <User Defined> (Default: Player Name) |
¶ Using the Driver
¶ The Main Tab
Once the driver is launched the Main page will be displayed.
The Main screen is the Transport screen along with important meta data of what’s playing (Cover Art, Title and Duration). Metadata is updated every 5 seconds.
Note: Not all Buttons are supported on All Players. Please see Matrix in the introduction section for each buttons functionality
¶ The Library Tab:
Navigate the Library by first Taping the left Menu item to choose the media type, Movies, Music, TV Shows, Search or PlayQueue.
Tap the Return button navigates back one level
The Up or Down keys will scroll through a list
Next Tap on the sort value
If the library has more than 100 items, the library will be split into an alphabetical ordered list to make navigation easier.
Taping the desired letter to navigate through the list.
At this level, switching to the Cover Art Tab will display the final list with cover art view.
¶ Playback
Taping the movie name will either play the move directly if the movie has never been played. If the movie was previously started, a new menu will be presented showing the Resume Time or Start for Beginning again.
Taping the music Album will show Play All album or Play by Song Title.
Taping TV Shows will show Seasons, then Episodes. Play Options are Play All Episodes or one Episode by title from Resume Time or Start From Beginning.
The same playback options are present under the Cover Art View.
¶ Search Function
Taping Search will bring up the device’s keyboard. Type as many characters of the search term then click ok. The search will bring up all relevant information for Movies, TV Shows and Music in the middle section. Use the Up / Down Arrows to scroll through the results. Pressing on the results item will begin playing the item on the assigned player. To perform another search, erase the previous search term and start again.
¶ PlayQueue
The PlayQueue button will display the current loaded play queue. Tapping on any item in the play queue will start playback of that item.
¶ PlayLists
The PlayLists button will display the Playlist created in a supported version of the Plex Server. Tapping on any item in the playlist will start playback of that item.
¶
Troubleshooting
- Driver not Activated. Wait 10 seconds after Apply.
- Player not found. Screen Saver is on or the App has fallen to the background
- Player turns yellow status. The player has turned off, gone to sleep or the screen saver activated
- Discovery not working. Server is not responding on the network. Check http://ipserverofserver:32400/clients for status
- OpenPHT / Rasplex clients not found. Install the driver separately after all other drivers have been installed
- Certain functions not working. Sign up for a Plex Account. Get the free one. No need to pay unless the client wants the advanced features.
- Unable to play content or connect. Under the Plex Channel settings, you have to specifically allow non-secure communication by setting Allow Insecure Connections to Always or On Same Network.
- In order to use the driver on OpenPHT or Plex Home Theater, make sure that the system is not a part of Plex Home. Please follow this article to disable Plex Home
https://support.plex.tv/hc/en-us/articles/203888038-How-do-I-leave-a-Plex-Home-