So im still a ubuntu noob so im not very expirienced. I'm currently using plex and everytime i download something and transfer it to the right folder plex can't see the file but when i use chown or chmod on the folder, it does show up. Is there a way where i don't have to do that everytime?
1 Answer
Typically, Plex runs as a different user (not you).
Let's take a look at a typical home directory:
me@plex:~$ ls -l /home/me
total 85225
drwxr-xr-x 7 me me 14 Feb 2 14:24 .
drwxr-xr-x 3 root root 3 Dec 28 21:56 ..
-rw-rw-r-- 1 me me 141 Feb 2 14:24 Videos
No other users can read my Videos directory...including the Plex user.
There are several ways to solve the problem.
One way is to create a new group that Plex can access. Then chgrp (change group) when you add files to that folder.
--- One time ---
$ sudo addgroup videos // Create group
$ sudo adduser plex videos // Let Plex see the group
$ sudo chgrp plex /home/me/Videos // Let Plex see the directory
--- Ongoing ---
$ sudo chgrp plex /home/me/Videos/whatever_video.mkv // Change group of one file
$ sudo chgrp plex /home/me/Videos/* // Change group of ALL files
// WARNING: Use '*' with caution. A typo could be disastrous.
Another way is to give Plex access to ALL your files. This is a shortcut for beginners who are still learning how Linux works. However, it's generally a Bad Idea for lots of reasons to let applications muck with your files over the long term.
$ sudo adduser plex me // Add plex to the 'me' group. (Yes, YOU have a group)
// Your group's name is identical to YOUR username.
Of course, it's also a Bad Idea to store multi-user media in your own Home directory - you should eventually move multi-user data to a directory to /var, where that data belongs. But that's an answer for a different question and a different time.