Roku Plex Setup Guide

Use Plex to Stream Your Videos, Music and Photos on Roku

Plex is one of the best media apps available for Roku. Plex will organize your entire digital library of Movies, Pictures and Music, package it up with fancy graphics and let you access it all and play it right from the Roku Plex channel on your TV.

Plex has been around for years and is one of our favorite media management streaming apps. Once you get Plex setup and running it is pretty much hands off except for occasional updates. Plex can automatically transcode your files making them compatible with a wide range of devices.

Plex software is made up of two parts. We will walk you through what each part does and show you how to set it up and get it running with your Roku.

1. Plex Media Server Software

For Plex to work a computer is needed to be on and running while you are accessing and watching your video or music media files. Plex Media Server software can also be run from many other devices such as a NAS or even on a faster Android Media Player like the Nvidia Shield although with some if Plex needs access to WebTools and the Unsupported App store.

While the subject of transcoding files is really much more complex here is a simple definition:

DEFINITION OF TRANSCODING: Transcoding is when you convert one video format to another. This is often necessary for the videos to play properly on some devices. An iPhone or iPad won't play certain files like a .avi video file. It will need to be transcoded to mp4 before it will be able to play. Transcoding is also required if your content has subtitles. If you want to access media files from outside your home network, these files are also transcoded to a lower quality to conserve bandwidth.

ARM or PPC NAS and ANDROID Media Streaming Boxes

If your NAS or Android Media Players uses an ARM or PPC CPU, it is not capable of transcoding. Transcoding requires an X86 Intel CPU. You can still use these devices to store your media files as long as they are in a compatible Roku format mkv, mp4 or m4v for videos and mp3 for music. The Roku Plex channel will then be able to access and play these files fine without transcoding.

To recap, Plex Media server software needs to run on a PC separately from the Roku Plex channel. The most versatile and best platform for running the Plex Media Server software is an x86 CPU Computer, HTPC or NAS that uses a multi-core CPU. This offers the very best Plex user experience and will let you transcode video files perfectly to give you more flexibility and the ability to access your content from a wider range of devices.

- Top Rated NAS models from Synology or QNAP
- For a NAS we recommend these special models optimized for Plex Transcoding from QNAP
- Top Rated Assassin HTPC

Get PLEX Media Server Software

Here is where you can download the latest version of Plex Media Server software for your platform.

Click Here to Download Plex Media Server

How to Setup Plex Media Server Software

Sometimes the best way to learn how to do something is to see how it's done. Here are some of the best videos we found that shows you how to get watch Live TV Channels and setup a Plex Media Server software. running on a PC or HTPC.

This video shows how to get Plex Media Server setup and running on an OS X computer.

2. Roku Plex Channel (Plex Client)

After you get your Plex server software installed and it has found your media libraries this is the fun part. By installing the Roku Plex channel you will be able to browse your media library and watch all your video files right from your Roku. The Plex channel which is now called the Roku App used to charge a one time fee of $5, they recently updated their channel and are now offering it free for everyone.

For those of you that don't have a credit card linked to your Roku, don't worry because we have a Roku Plex alternative channel RARflix that will work just as well and it's free.

To get the Roku Plex Channel please click the link below:


            

Get the Official Roku Plex Channel



             

Add Free Roku RARflix Plex Channel

Plex Channels Directory

One of the added benefits of Plex is it contains a large list of 3rd party channels or Apps. These channels will  give you access to a lot more extra content on your Roku. 

These apps or channels are found in two categories. Official Supported Apps or channels are those which are found inside the Plex channel directory. These are channels that are stable and will work with a large majority of devices. Also, these channels or apps will not contain Adult XXX content.

To access these channels just click the channels icon from your Plex client on your Roku.

Plex Unsupported Appstore

The Unsupported Appstore is a channel that acts as an index or directory for all the unsupported channels or apps available. Once you manually install the Unsupported Appstore you will have access to Adult XXX channels plus channels like LetMeWatchThis (primewire.ag), G2G, NowWatchThis, Movie2K, IceFilms, Clickplay, and SS-Plex. These contain pretty much every Movie or TV show you will ever want to see.

Warning the Plex Unsupported Appstore may contain XXX Adult Content and many Movies and TV shows that may not be legal to watch in your country.

Here is a List of popular Plug-ins from the Plex Unsupported App Store.

Watch the video below to learn how to get the Plex Unsupported Appstore installed and working…

Share Your Plex Media with Friends

Plex will even let you share your Movies, Music and TV Shows with friends. This will work on a Mac PC along with an iPad or iPhone. Now there is even an Android version. Watch the video below to learn more…

Click here for Access to a Secret List of Shared Plex Servers

Queue Videos From Websites to Watch Later on Roku

Plex-It allows you to choose videos from different websites, like YouTube or Vimeo add them to your Queue and watch them later on your Roku. 

Click here for full instructions how to set up Plex-It

Additional Resources and Tips

For a more comprehensive guide to Plex and before you install Plex we highly recommend you read the official Plex Quick Start Guide. It offers some great tips like how to properly name your media folders and will help you avoid potential issues.

If you ever go to your Roku Plex channel and find your file library is empty, make sure the computer that runs the Plex Server software has not been turned off or is in sleep mode.

Also, when you add new media files to your Plex library on your computer, remember to click the Plex icon on your computer and update your Plex library. Plex will go out and fetch corresponding metadata for your new files along with poster art that will be available on your Roku next time you access your Roku Plex channel. Here is a huge list of more great Roku Private Channels.

Best Plex Media Server - that will do full 1080P HD transcoding.
Best NAS for 2017! Synology vs QNAP

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