I currently use an Ubuntu distro (Mint) with Plex installed serving media to my local network. I installed docker last night so I can test out some photo hosting services.
Is there a benefit to running Plex through docker vs the traditional method?
Yup! I made the move about 5 years ago and never looked back since. Native performance, and it makes things super portable and very easy to move to another server. Just copy the docker volume and start the container on the new machine.
Super easy to switch between various versions too, if needed. And it also reduces chances of breaking stuff.
I give my containers their own IP addresses using macvlan. Eliminates the need to forward ports on the host and you can put them on a different subnet to keep everything separate from the rest of your LAN. Works great with Plex and makes reverse proxy setup very easy.
Docker containers are easier to backup and restore since the config folder is easily accessible. Also if your plex server is accessible to the internet it will be harder for hackers to take it over if there's any possible exploits.
Just out of curiosity, do you backup all the generated metadata too? I backup my Plex folder from my SSD to my unraid array weekly, and it takes quite a long time to get through.
Yep, everything that's attached to plex I backup (excluding media, that's done elsewhere). There are tens of thousands of tiny files which is why it takes so long, I do recommend taring it first. The archive must support symlinks which is why I chose tar.
I do tar it first (actually I tar my entire docker share), but it still takes longer than I would like.
Just the way my backup system works, All my docker containers go down while I'm backing them up, so it's a bit of a minor inconvenience (even though it only happens on off peak hours in the middle of the night)
Really not a big problem, just thought I'd check if you had a better solution.
Yeah, that's because every little file and image need to be stored, and there's tens of thousands of them. Nothing wrong with it, just will take time. I usually do my plex DB on a weekly cron in the middle of the night
Plex is the last thing I don’t have in docker. Will be my next task … maybe. I still want to get rid of my friends windows 10 box running 1 windows only app
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