macOS
Homebrew Caskverified · 100%
brew install --cask plex-media-serverlocal Homebrew cask metadata
cask
Install plex-media-server with Homebrew Cask
Home media server. Version 1.43.5.11079,b3b13e506 via Homebrew Cask; verified from local package data.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Home media server
Project links
Commands and aliases
- Plex Media Scanner
history
Project history and usage
Plex Media Server is a cross-platform home-media server that catalogs personal media, obtains descriptive metadata, streams to Plex clients, and transcodes content when required by device capabilities or available bandwidth.
Project history
Plex Media Server developed into a cross-platform home-media service managed primarily through the Plex Web App rather than a conventional server GUI. Its official documentation reflects a mature ecosystem of desktop, Linux, NAS, container, and embedded-device deployments.
The server organizes local media into libraries, matches files to catalog metadata, and serves compatible or transcoded streams to Plex clients. Account-backed discovery and remote access extend the local server model across the internet.
Adoption history
Plex Media Server is distributed for Windows, macOS, common Linux distributions, Docker, NVIDIA SHIELD, and numerous NAS platforms. This wide hardware range made dedicated home servers and NAS appliances common deployment targets.
Its client-server model supports playback through Plex applications on desktop, mobile, televisions, streaming boxes, and game consoles, with optional remote access outside the home network.
How it is used
Users install the server, sign in through a browser, name the server, create media libraries, and point those libraries at organized movie, television, music, photo, or home-video directories.
Clients discover and stream from the server on the local network. Remote Access enables off-network streaming, while the server may transcode media on demand when a client or connection cannot use the original format directly.
Why package nerds care
Plex Media Server is a prominent home-server package because it combines library scanning, metadata acquisition, client discovery, remote access, and real-time transcoding in a service that can run on anything from a desktop to a NAS.
Packagers and self-hosters care about its platform-specific data directories, service accounts, filesystem permissions, large metadata trees, hardware-transcoding requirements, and the distinction between the server package and Plex player applications.
Timeline
- Plex Media Server 0.9.6.6: Official documentation records support for enabling syslog through a server configuration variable.
- 2019: The documented setup flow centered on the browser-based Plex Web App and account-backed Setup Wizard.
- 2020: Official Linux installation examples documented the 1.19 release line.
- 2026: Plex remains supported across Windows, macOS, Linux, NAS, Docker, and NVIDIA SHIELD deployments.
Related projects
- Plex Web App is the browser-based management and playback interface bundled with or connected to Plex Media Server.
- Plex player applications connect to the server on desktop, mobile, television, streaming-device, and game-console platforms.
Sources
- https://support.plex.tv/articles/
- https://support.plex.tv/articles/200264746-quick-start-step-by-step-guides/
- https://support.plex.tv/articles/200288586-installation/
- https://support.plex.tv/articles/201105343-advanced-hidden-server-settings/
- https://support.plex.tv/articles/202915258-where-is-the-plex-media-server-data-directory-located/
security posture
No protected-tool coverage found yet
No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for plex-media-server. Package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL.
Install behavior
- No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
- No Homebrew bottle metadata was recorded.
Recommended review
Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.
local files
Configuration and credential file locations
These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval.
Configuration files
Config paths the tool may read or write during local use.
- Linux
$PLEX_HOME/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server/Preferences.xml/var/lib/plexmediaserver/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server/Preferences.xml- macOS
~/Library/Preferences/com.plexapp.plexmediaserver.plist- Windows
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Plex, Inc.\Plex Media Server
Credential files
Credential-bearing paths to review before unattended agent runs.
- Linux
$PLEX_HOME/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server/Preferences.xml/var/lib/plexmediaserver/Library/Application Support/Plex Media Server/Preferences.xml- macOS
~/Library/Preferences/com.plexapp.plexmediaserver.plist- Windows
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Plex, Inc.\Plex Media Server
executables
Installed executables
| Command | Kind | Exposure | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
Plex Media Scanner | binary | Homebrew cask binary | Plex Media Scanner |
freshness
Version and freshness
These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.
page generated2026-11-04
manager version1.43.5.11079,b3b13e506
manager updated
local dataok
upstreamnot checked
latest detectednot detected
- infoNo package-manager update timestamp was available.low confidence
- infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://www.plex.tv/none confidence
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | cask:plex-media-server |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.43.5.11079,b3b13e506 |
| Package manager | Homebrew Cask |
| Package manager page | https://formulae.brew.sh/cask/plex-media-server |
| Homepage | https://www.plex.tv/ |
| Upstream docs | https://www.plex.tv/ |
| Source archive | https://downloads.plex.tv/plex-media-server-new/1.43.5.11079-b3b13e506/macos/PlexMediaServer-1.43.5.11079-b3b13e506-universal.zip |
| SHA-256 | 8ce69b4ca2ab80f6a04bf93621f61111b4605dc3b66883cd59edacc2458bc476 |
| Bottle | not recorded |
| Homebrew post-install | not defined |
| Service | none declared |
registry facts
Source database details
| Source Database | Homebrew cask API |
|---|---|
| Tap | homebrew/cask |
| Full Token | plex-media-server |
| Names |
|
| Artifacts | |
| Auto Updates | yes |
| Deprecated | no |
| Disabled | no |
source trail
Generated from repository data
This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.
Combined YAML source
View the package source record on GitHub.
Used sources
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated configuration and credential file locations
- curated package history
- package relationship graph
- package version freshness
- package-page enrichment