# Plex Deployment (VPS Reverse Proxy)

Plex Media Server deployed with host networking on the home server, exposed through VPS reverse proxy.

## Context

Plex uses host networking for device discovery (DLNA, GDM). It listens on port 32400 directly on the host. No Docker port mapping needed — just proxy through home nginx → VPS.

## Home Nginx Config

Key differences from standard service config:
- `client_max_body_size 0` — no upload limit for large media
- `proxy_request_buffering off` — stream requests without buffering (needed for media playback)
- Long read timeout for streaming

```nginx
server {
    listen 3447 ssl;
    server_name grajmedia.duckdns.org plex.graj-media.com;

    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/grajmedia.duckdns.org/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/grajmedia.duckdns.org/privkey.pem;
    ssl_protocols TLSv1.2 TLSv1.3;
    ssl_ciphers HIGH:!aNULL:!MD5;

    client_max_body_size 0;
    proxy_request_buffering off;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://127.0.0.1:32400;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
        proxy_read_timeout 86400;
        proxy_buffering off;
    }
}
```

## VPS Nginx Config

Standard HTTPS proxy to home:3447. Same as other services but with matching `client_max_body_size 0` and `proxy_request_buffering off`.

```nginx
server {
    server_name plex.graj-media.com;

    client_max_body_size 0;
    proxy_request_buffering off;

    location / {
        proxy_pass https://100.93.253.36:3447;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection "upgrade";
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-Proto $scheme;
        proxy_ssl_verify off;
        proxy_read_timeout 86400;
        proxy_buffering off;
    }

    listen 443 ssl;
    ssl_certificate /etc/letsencrypt/live/graj-media.com/fullchain.pem;
    ssl_certificate_key /etc/letsencrypt/live/graj-media.com/privkey.pem;
    include /etc/letsencrypt/options-ssl-nginx.conf;
    ssl_dhparam /etc/letsencrypt/ssl-dhparams.pem;
}
```

## SSL

```bash
certbot --nginx -d plex.graj-media.com --non-interactive --agree-tos --email admin@grajmedia.duckdns.org
```

## Pitfalls

- **Plex sign-in returns 401** — normal. Plex requires browser-based auth via their sign-in flow. `curl` will always get 401.
- **No container restart needed** — Plex runs as a systemd service with host networking, not a Docker container. The proxy configs don't touch Plex itself.
- **Port conflict check** — before picking the home nginx SSL port (3447), verify it's unused: `sudo ss -tlnp | grep :3447`