Installing Plex Media Server on Daphile (Gentoo/OpenRC)

TL;DR – On Daphile beta you get SSH, so you can shell in, grab the latest .deb from Plex’s site, unpack it with ar, drop it into /opt, add an OpenRC init script (escape those spaces), and stream away. Future upgrades are the same dance in fast-forward.

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Prerequisites – SSH into Daphile

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1 . Prepare your toolbox

emerge --sync          # refresh Portage
emerge --ask binutils  # provides `ar` for .deb extraction

Already have ar? Check with which ar; skip the emerge if it’s present.

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2. Fetch the current Plex package

1. Browse to https://www.plex.tv/media-server-downloads.

2. Choose Plex Media Server → Linux → Ubuntu (16.04+) / Debian.

3. Copy the direct download link (it ends in .deb).

4. wget "<paste-url>" on your Daphile box – or:

PLEX_DEB_URL="https://downloads.plex.tv/plex-media-server-new/<version>/debian/plexmediaserver_<version>_amd64.deb"
wget "$PLEX_DEB_URL"

(Replace <version> with whatever Plex lists today.)

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3. Crack open the .deb

ar x plexmediaserver_*.deb    # → control.tar.xz  data.tar.xz  debian-binary
tar -xvf data.tar.xz          # unpacks usr/lib/plexmediaserver/

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4. Relocate Plex to /opt

mv usr/lib/plexmediaserver /opt/

Why /opt? Vendor code stays out of /usr and won’t clash with Gentoo packages.

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5. Create an OpenRC service

nano /etc/init.d/plexmediaserver

#!/sbin/openrc-run

description="Plex Media Server"
command="/opt/plexmediaserver/Plex\ Media\ Server"   # escape spaces!
pidfile="/var/run/plexmediaserver.pid"
command_background="yes"

depend() {
    need net
}

chmod +x /etc/init.d/plexmediaserver

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6. Enable & start Plex

rc-update add plexmediaserver default   # autostart on boot
rc-service plexmediaserver start        # launch now

Verify:

rc-service plexmediaserver status

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7. First-run wizard

Open:

http://<daphile-ip>:32400/web

1. Sign in (or create) your Plex account.

2. Name your server.

3. Add libraries, wait for indexing, stream!

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Upgrading Plex later

1. Stop the service

    rc-service plexmediaserver stop
   

2. Back up (optional but smart)

    tar -czf /root/plex_backup_$(date +%F).tar.gz /opt/plexmediaserver
   

3. Download the new .deb
   Repeat the “Fetch” step with the new URL.

4. Extract & overwrite

    ar x plexmediaserver_<new>.deb
    tar -xvf data.tar.xz
    rsync -a usr/lib/plexmediaserver/ /opt/plexmediaserver/
   

5. Start Plex

    rc-service plexmediaserver start
   

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Troubleshooting

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