---
title: Run Plex in Docker
description: Play back all your media on all your devices
recipe: Plex
slug: Plex
---

# Plex in Docker

{% include 'try-in-elfhosted.md' %}

[Plex](https://www.plex.tv/) is a client-server media player system and software suite comprising two main components (a media server and client applications)

![Plex Screenshot](../images/plex.jpg)

## {{ page.meta.recipe }} Requirements

--8<-- "recipe-standard-ingredients.md"

## Preparation

### Setup data locations

We'll need a directories to bind-mount into our container for Plex to store its library, so create /var/data/plex:

```bash
mkdir /var/data/plex
```

### Prepare {{ page.meta.recipe }} environment

Create plex.env, and populate with the following variables. Set PUID and GUID to the UID and GID of the user who owns your media files, on the local filesystem

```yaml
EDGE=1
VERSION=latest
PUID=42
PGID=42
```

### {{ page.meta.recipe }} Docker Swarm config

Create a docker swarm config file in docker-compose syntax (v3), something like the example below:

--8<-- "premix-cta.md"

```yaml
version: "3.0"

services:
  plex:
    image: lscr.io/linuxserver/plex
    env_file: plex.env
    volumes:
      - /var/data/config/plex:/config
      - /var/data/media:/media
    deploy:
      labels:
        # traefik common
        - traefik.enable=true
        - traefik.docker.network=traefik_public

        # traefikv1
        - traefik.frontend.rule=Host:plex.example.com
        - traefik.port=32400     

        # traefikv2
        - "traefik.http.routers.plex.rule=Host(`plex.example.com`)"
        - "traefik.http.services.plex.loadbalancer.server.port=32400"
        - "traefik.enable=true"
    networks:
        - traefik_public
        - internal
    ports:
      - 32469:32469
      - 32400:32400
      - 32401:32401
      - 3005:3005
      - 8324:8324
      - 1900:1900/udp
      - 32410:32410/udp
      - 32412:32412/udp
      - 32413:32413/udp
      - 32414:32414/udp

networks:
  traefik_public:
    external: true
  internal:
    driver: overlay
    ipam:
      config:
        - subnet: 172.16.16.0/24
```

--8<-- "reference-networks.md"

## Serving

### Launch Plex stack

Launch the Plex stack by running ```docker stack deploy plex -c <path -to-docker-compose.yml>```

Log into your new instance at https://**YOUR-FQDN** (You'll need to setup a plex.tv login for remote access / discovery to work from certain clients)

[^1]: Plex uses port 32400 for remote access, using your plex.tv user/password to authenticate you. The inclusion of the traefik proxy in this recipe is simply to allow you to use the web client (as opposed to a client app) by connecting directly to your instance, as opposed to browsing your media via <https://plex.tv/web>
[^2]: Got an NVIDIA GPU? See [this blog post](https://www.funkypenguin.co.nz/note/gpu-transcoding-with-emby-plex-using-docker-nvidia/) re how to use your GPU to transcode your media!

{% include 'recipe-footer.md' %}
