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Forum Discussion
Ran Into Problems A Using My RNDuoV2
Dear Forum Members
First, had to use a new registration and email to actually make this post, for some reason I could not use my old info to gain access to this forum.
Anyway, my problem is this:-
I have an RNDuoV2 that now house my 2 x 4GB WD Red HDs, which were originally in my RNDuoV2 bought in 2012, i.e. it died after 14 years. This RNDuoV2 was working perfectly up until one of the recent Windows 11 updates.
Now I have found that I cannot access Plex any more, although my other two RNDuoV2s still work perfectly. However, I can still access the problematic RNDuoV2's Dashboard, thanks to that utility this forum supplied a few years ago but Plex, on this device, is locked away.
As you can see, from the screen print below, The Name is from the failed (2012) original RNDuoV2, which contains part of it's primary MAC address, and IP Address with the MAC address (in brackets) from the recently bought hardware.
I believe the problem is probably caused by this RNDuoV2 now has two MAC addresses, one from the original failed device, i.e. this number is embedded in HDs, and the second MAC address is part of the new (old stock) RNDuoV2's hardware that is now housing my original HDs.
So I'm guessing that if both MAC addresses can be consolidated into one then the problem would go away.
Is this possible?
My next thought is hoping that there is a utility or script, probably something that can be placed in the Plex icon, that can work to reacquire my access to Plex.
I get the following error message, and similar messages from other browsers (as seen in the attachment), when ever I click the Plex icon or type the URL directly into my other browsers.
Hope someone has a solution or, failing that, a suggestions that may work, and as before any questions, query or clarifications required will be answered asap.
Cheers.
UK Bob
14 Replies
I believe the problem is probably caused by this RNDuoV2 now has two MAC addresses
No, that isn't it.
The most recent version of Plex for the Duo v2 was released back in 2015, so 11 years out of date. There are lots of potential causes here, including Plex simply crashing due to running out of memory or some other problem.
Probably the best path is to run a Plex Server on a PC instead of the NAS (keeping the media on the NAS).
Hi StephenB
It's been a time.
Please note, I appreciate your alternative solution and that I am probably trying to flog a horse (the original RNDuoV2) that died after 14 years.
However, I have two other RNDuoV2 devices that still work perfectly and the only difference between those and the problematic device is that the working ones have their mac addresses the same as their device Names.
Also, the problematic RNDuoV2 did work perfect up until the latest round of windows updates.
Still, I will admit there maybe no solution to this problem but I'm just not willing at this time to throw in the towel.
Anyway, I thank you for the time you've taken to look into this and your proposed solution.
Cheers.
UK Bob
However, I have two other RNDuoV2 devices that still work perfectly and the only difference between those and the problematic device is that the working ones have their mac addresses the same as their device Names.
The name is just a name. You can change it if you like. There is no direct connection to the MAC address.
In general, MAC addresses are built into the ethernet chip in the chassis. While there are chips that give the OS control over the MAC address in the ethernet packets, the DuoV2 doesn't use those chips.
Do the other two ReadyNAS also have plex installed? Is the media library identical in all the NAS?
If you want to dive deeper you should look at the log zip. Enabling ssh might also give you more clues.
Hi StephenB
I saw your reply (above) last night and it has sparked off a couple of ideas, but first you asked "Do the other two ReadyNAS also have Plex installed? Is the media library identical in all the NAS?".
Yes, all three of my RNDuoV2's have Plex installed on them and are all set up in exactly the same way, there is no difference whatsoever.
As mentioned before, the only difference between the first RNDuoV2 and the other two is that the first one's MAC address differs from it's name, this I have now corrected.
So, it is a mystery to me why only the first RNDuoV2 will not allow me to access Plex, while the other two still work perfectly. It must also be noted that I can still access the dashboard on all three RNDuoV2 without any problems.
As for the logs on this device, they are clean. As for SSH, I won't be able to use that (I'm too old) nor do I believe it would help if I could. As I wrote before, the problem started after a batch of windows updates so I believe it's probably caused by a security update, after all the rest of my NAS devices still works perfectly.
Consequently, my thoughts are that it's a windows problem rather than a RNDuoV2 problem, and I can still access the files on this device via windows explorer, it's just that I cannot access Plex directly.
Anyway, I'm still exploring other web-sites and other windows based solutions.
Cheers.
UK Bob
I believe it's probably caused by a security update,
If that were the cause, it would have blocked access to all three plex servers.
More likely is that plex is crashing on the problem NAS. If I'm right about that, the only path forward is to figure out why that is happening. It could be a full OS partition or a corrupted plex config. If the media is different on the various NAS, then it is possible that a recently added media file could be causing the Plex media scanner to crash.
Hi StephenB
Just have a couple of things to report, more of a "reporting info I found out".
Thing 1) I believe the error messages I am getting, when trying to access my original Plex database via the icon, strongly suggest a security problem rather than a crash. And as mentioned before, the problem started after a windows 11 update. Plus, my other two RNDuoV2's still work perfectly. However, I can still access my original databases via the networked mapped drives in file/windows explorer.
Anyway, as for new data, I only ever add music data to that RNDuoV2, which in the scheme of things, i.e. disk space, cpu usage, etc., is next to nothing.
Thing 2) I found out, more by accident than design, that the RNDuoV2's name is more than just a name, i.e. it permeates the properties of every network drive/folder mapped backed to the original databases on that machine.
I also found out that trying to amend the mapped drives, to matched the recently added new Name, was next to impossible and came with unexpected side-effects.
So, eventually (today) I changed the Name, on my number one RNDuoV2, back to it's original which (I hope) will mitigate (or do away with) the side-effects I acquired with original name-change.
I'm guessing the above info will not be of any use to anyone because the RNDuoV2 was last manufactured around 2011/12, and got a last Plex software update in 2015. So there cannot be that many RNDuoV2 users out there, even though the machine is a very good solid workhorse (and still commands premium prices on ebay UK).
And there endeth this part of my RNDuoV2 adventures.
UK Bob
This sounds like it's related to an issue that's plagued accessing a Linux-based NAS from Windows for some time -- Windows stops being able to find the device by name. There are two solutions, both of which require the NAS IP address stay fixed. Those are: just using the IP address instead of the name and adding the name to the Windows Hosts file. As for insuring the NAS IP address stays fixed, the best method is to reserve the address in your router. BTW, if you do use the Hosts file, the name you give it there doesn't really have to match the name you gave it on the NAS. In fact, you can create multiple aliases for the same IP address.
This sounds like it's related to an issue that's plagued accessing a Linux-based NAS from Windows for some time -- Windows stops being able to find the device by name.
No static IP address required - just enable CIFS readily available.
You can enable SMB 1.0/CIFS on Windows 10 or 11 by turning it on through the Windows Features menu or by running an administrator command.
Using Windows Features (GUI)
- Press the Windows Key + R to open the Run dialog box.
- Type optionalfeatures and press Enter to open the Windows Features window.
- Scroll down the list and locate SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing Support.
- Check the box next to it (make sure all sub-options like the client and server components are selected).
- Click OK and wait for Windows to install the required files.
- Click Restart now to reboot your computer and apply the changes.
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