this post was submitted on 08 Jun 2026
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[–] fpslem@lemmy.world 115 points 3 days ago (35 children)

This article doesn't mention the limitations of remote access for Jellyfin, which requires some tricks like reverse proxy or Tailscale. I think Jellyfin is a great option if you only watch/listen on your home network, but if anyone wants to replicate the remote access capabilities of Plex, I typically warn them they are going to have to roll their sleeves up.

[–] lostbit@feddit.nl 7 points 2 days ago (3 children)

Don’t selfhost if you think a reverse proxy is tricky.

[–] Flatfire@lemmy.ca 2 points 2 days ago

That seems like a rather arrogant tone to take. Reverse proxies are complicated. Easy to set up, but challenging to configure depending on what your needs are. Not everyone wants a homelab.

Everyone's journey starts somewhere and sometimes people's needs just don't extend beyond the easier choices available.

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[–] TheIPW@lemmy.ml 41 points 3 days ago (1 children)

You're right, I missed that.

I personally use a reverse proxy and Wireguard setup to access remotely.

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 14 points 3 days ago (19 children)

Not something that unfortunately works as easily for me to connect my ailing mom's TV to, and do NOT want to manage the reverse proxy + cert + etc setup for a number of reasons

[–] matron1049@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 3 days ago (3 children)

There are a ton of reverse proxy options that manage the cert for you

[–] rumba@lemmy.zip 1 points 2 days ago

You do then still have to expose JF to the open internet. That's not without risk. Neither is Plex but they do make it a point to secure all their endpoints before login.

[–] PhAzE@lemmy.ca 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

The point is that you now have another app to manage or learn about just for remote viewing, and the general public can't and won't manage something like that. People like us, no problem, its easy, but my dad would never be able to, for example. He can install plex and just log in to an app anywhere to use it though.

Also, dont forget that many households have non-static IP addresses, so now you need more management for that issue (again, easy for us).

[–] matron1049@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)

In this scenario, your dad just installs Jellyfin and logs in.

You've set up the reverse proxy to your server, its transparent to him.

You can update DNS records automatically so its also a fire and forget kind of thing.

But I guess, give your data to the corpos because its easier.

[–] PhAzE@lemmy.ca 0 points 1 day ago

No, im talking about him running his own server. Not connecting to mine.

[–] ripcord@lemmy.world 5 points 3 days ago (12 children)

There's lots of reasons I don't want to set this up

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[–] szszl@szmer.info 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

There are literaly zero limitations by Jellyfin to remotely access your media. You are free to access your instance in any way you want. Fuck plex

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[–] rumba@lemmy.zip 2 points 2 days ago

Honestly for video I agree, for audio, it's just me and only in my house or phone so tailscale is fine. If my friends really want audio, they can pay streaming for it.

[–] jumponboard@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

If you can spin up a podman container, you can use a caddyfile. Hell, if you can nano and read, you can set uo a caddyfile.

[–] skittle07crusher@sh.itjust.works 8 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Tailscale truly could not be easier/simpler.

[–] hereiamagain@sh.itjust.works 8 points 2 days ago

Not for all clients, like Roku for example.

Yes the solution is different hardware, like a Google TV, older firestick, raspAP, or flash openwrt on a router. But that's no longer plug and play and may have other caveats. Besides costing money.

No shade, it's just not QUITE that simple every time.

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[–] surewhynotlem@lemmy.world 11 points 3 days ago (1 children)

How does Plex get around that? I've only ever used jellyfin.

[–] Evotech@lemmy.world 9 points 3 days ago (11 children)
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[–] matron1049@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 3 days ago

A reverse proxy is a trick? That's like standard practice for web servers.

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