I just purchased a WD PR4100 32TBa few days ago because Plex no longer making software support for my EX4 20TB which is fine to me when I’m not using Plex (Maybe WD doesn’t want them to so we could buy their latest servers). So now I tried to play a movie on my PR4100 on Plex at home, it keep stopping because Plex is trying to convert the movie file as always because it has DTS if not for any other reasons. Plex is nothing but a great movie library but sadly they want to control how you play your file. My Cloud app does better but letting you direct play your file and let you take advantage of your codecs, player,… especially if you’re on windows. But they don’t wanna upset the Plex team by letting you view your movies in poster styles. I’m reminded of movies I forgot I had or quickly find something to watch because of movie posters. I can’t use Plex app and My Cloud is too limited.
Having the system for 3 days, I called customer service to initiate return then I decide to take another day to decide what I want to do. WD cares more about Plex Team so we’ll never have a My Cloud with movie poster library. I have a Plex Lifetime Pass but Plex is useless. Before the day is over this Friday, I’ll have to return it and take my chance on a Qnap TVS.
Showing posters requires an app that allows you to do so. So, without an app like Plex, the My Clouds won’t be able to do that. Also, Plex, like many streaming apps, may only stream files that have certain codecs. The movies may need to be re-encoded so that Plex isn’t stumbling over the existing codecs.
How are they being displayed, when he views them in a share folder, or when he views them from Plex? I know Plex shows posters, but how would he see them if he’s viewing the file folders from a share folder?
First, if you haven’t done so already you may want to visit the dedicated PR subforum where people more knowledgeable about the PR series may be able to assist. This subforum is generally for the single bay/single drive My Cloud units which do not support third party modules/plug-ins like Plex.
Transcoding video from one format to another is processor intensive. If you are having transcoding problems during playback its usually a sign that the processor isn’t capable enough to transcode on the fly (or live). In some cases transcoding high bitrate video on the fly also can be problematic under Plex. If possible convert your video into a format supported by your media player as this will reduce the potential issues Plex may have when attempting to play media files.
As to movie artwork or posters begin displayed. Its a two step issue. First is to either have Plex download the movie poster (see the Plex documentation on how to catalog movies and their metadata). Or you can create your own movie posters/artwork either as a “.jpg” file with the exact same name as the media/movie file and save that file into the same directory/folder as the media file; or by using a metadata tagger program like Media Monkey or MP3Tag to embed the artwork/poster file into the media file. The second step is to use a media player that supports embedded or included artwork/poster files. Plex is also a DLNA media server so any DLNA media client in addition to the Plex App/Player should display any artwork that is included with the media file.
Edit to add: Like others above I have hundreds of media files (movies/audio) with artwork and they display fine in a variety of DLNA clients provided the file is tagged properly. I also have a separate Plex media server (running on an old Windows PC) and even that PC has trouble from time to time trying to transcode video on the fly from one format to another. As such I wouldn’t expect a NAS to be as capable when it comes to transcoding even though it is listed on the Plex NAS compatibility list.
When I view the share using just ordinary Windows Explorer, no posters, because the poster is not part of the file. The poster is stored in Plex’s internal database for use with the Plex App.
In another landscape (my My Cloud app landscape), I embed the posters in the files and Windows DOES show them.
I’m talking about My Cloud and the My Cloud app and the My Cloud has something to do with my PR4100 and EX4 but those server themselves aren’t the issue for now. It’s the My Cloud.
I have a predecessor to a PRXXXX NAS, the DL2100, I have Plex installed on it (as well as Plex apps for Roku and Kodi-on-FireTV,) I do NOT use Plex. I find it bloated and who needs transcoding on the fly?
All my movies (made by me) are either in ISO form (for TV) or m4v (for iPad viewing).All I need to do is turn on my WDTV media player, OR Fire TV w/Kodi to view ISO and MKV files on TV. Or, turn on iPad to view m4v movies using My Cloud app on it. No transcoding necessary. I have no desire to have movie poster art (clutter), although the iPad movies have thumbnails of a movie scene. The alphabetical listings suffice and are quicker to peruse
I have asked before for someone to please tell me what I am missing by not using Plex? Can anyone in this thread give me a useful reply?
And, to the OP, you are being very impatient with your new PR4100, If you want to return it, that’s your business, but I think you ought to get more used to it before making that call – and find a better way to view your movies other than with Plex!
So where do we go to ask WD to support movie posters on their My Cloud Desktop app. This post wasn’t about PR4100. It’s about the My Cloud app let you access your server just as plex but only let you see a list, no movie posters, movie info. It’s just like an app from the past. That’s why we are so depending on Plex.
You’re not missing anything really by not using Plex. Plex is a great media library. It’s easy that way to see what you have and realize you had that movie you really want to watch. With the WD My Cloud Desktop, iPad app, all you get is a list. What you wanna watch could be right in front of you but still miss it because it’s not telling you here I am. You don’t realize what you want until it’s staring at you lol
We no longer support the My Cloud desktop app. We don’t even have a download of it anymore on our support site. If you still have it, then what you have is what you have.
