I’ve been collecting digital media for decades, be it movies, TV shows, MP3s ripped from a few hundred of my old CDs, and more videos and pictures than I care to acknowledge. Between my wife and I, we’ve gone through nearly twenty phones over the years, and each one has left a trail of videos, photos and clips that I would prefer not to lose. All of this has left me with messy, undocumented archives scattered across PCs and hard drives. What I really want is one clean, intuitive hub I can share with family, something that feels like Netflix, not a jumble of random folders. That’s where Plex comes in.
Plex has a well-known free streaming app with ad-supported live TV and on-demand movies. It’s similar to Pluto or Tubi, though the content library isn’t as deep. What I didn’t realize at first was that Plex also offers Plex Media Server, which can turn your personal media collection into a polished streaming service. That’s the part I was most interested in. Could Plex finally bring order to my media chaos?
My goal at the end of this journey is to turn many years of scattered media into something more manageable, shareable and polished. For now, I’m going to share how to set Plex Media Server up in Windows 11, and get your music, photos, videos, and TV shows set up and streaming.
The good news is you don’t need monster gaming specs to power Plex, but it does require some horsepower, especially if you want to take full advantage of Plex’s remote server features and stream outside your home network. Here are things to consider before diving in.
CPU Power
Plex only “direct plays” a file if your client device (smartphone, tablet, or app) supports that format. If it doesn’t support that format, it has to transcode the video in real-time, which takes a lot of CPU power. This happens mostly when you are streaming remotely, since Plex may need to shrink down a 4K file to a lower resolution. It can also happen at home if your device doesn’t support a certain codec.
For a simple setup where you’re just streaming one HD movie at a time, most modern PCs will be just fine. However, if you want to stream 4K video or have multiple people watching different things at once, you’ll need a faster processor, like an Intel i7 or AMD Ryzen 7.
RAM
Plex itself isn’t a resource hog, but Windows 11 and all your background processes add up. Plex will run well with 4–8 GB of RAM, but I recommend 16 GB if you do other tasks on the computer, have multiple users, or if you want to remotely stream your content.
Storage
Plex doesn’t have any minimum storage requirements, but I would opt for an SSD over HDD. Another option would be to use an SSD for Windows and Plex Media Server and keep your libraries on HDDs.
Network
A wired Ethernet connection is the preferred method here, especially if you’re streaming 4K video or hosting multiple users.
Upload speed from your ISP is critical if you want to stream remotely. Plex doesn’t give exact upload speed requirements, but as a rule of thumb, you’ll want at least 2 Mbps upload per 720p stream, 4 Mbps for 1080p, and closer to 20 Mbps for 4K.
GPU (Optional — Requires Plex Pass for Hardware Transcoding)
If your CPU isn’t doing the job, Plex can offload transcoding to your graphics card. Intel Quick Sync, or an NVIDIA GPU with NVENC support, can help here.
The Bottom Line
If you’re just streaming to your living room TV, a simple setup will do fine. But if you’re like me and want to serve up decades’ worth of movies, shows, and photos, sometimes across the internet, you’ll want that extra horsepower. Think of it like building your own streaming service: the more you ask of it, the more power you’ll need behind the scenes to keep things running smoothly.
Plex Costs Explained: When Free Is Enough and When to Upgrade
A lot of what Plex offers is free, but there are some subscriptions for remote viewing. The media server itself and the ability to stream your libraries within your home network are free. So, if you don’t plan to use Plex outside your home network, then free is enough. But, if you want to have access to your libraries from anywhere, that is over the internet, you need either a Remote Watch Pass or a Full Plex Pass.
The Remote Watch Pass is Plex’s slimmed-down subscription for remote streaming. It lets you watch your personal video files from any Plex server you have access to, but without the bonus features of Plex Pass. A full Plex Pass still includes remote streaming along with extras like hardware transcoding, offline downloads, skip intro/credits, DVR, advanced music tools, and allows enabling free remote streaming for users you share your server with.
Go to the Plex home page and create a free account. Once your account is created, navigate to the Plex Media Server download page. Next, download and run the executable file. Go through the setup process, accept the license, choose the installation path, and click “Finish.” Plex will open in your browser at
One nice feature in Plex is that during the setup process it automatically sets up the firewall rules, so you don’t have to dig into Windows settings yourself. That ease of setup is a real advantage over open-source options like Jellyfin, which require you to manually configure firewall permissions before you can stream outside the host machine.
On the next screen, you need to name your server. This is how it will appear in the Plex menu. If you plan to stream your content, make sure to check “Allow me to access media outside my home.” You can change this later if you decide to add a paid tier for remote streaming.
Next, you’ll add libraries. Plex is strict about how it recognizes files. If your movies, shows, or music aren’t named and organized the way Plex expects, you’ll find media not showing up, and media with artwork and metadata missing. It’s tempting to just add all your media into one folder, but taking the time to set up a clean folder structure and consistent naming pays off. Here is an in-depth article on the best way to organize your Plex media library.
I’m using my Windows user folders to structure my media. I’ve added MP3s into the Music Folder, images into my Photos folder, and in the Videos folder I’ve created separate folders for movies and TV shows, then added appropriate media types into each folder. Next, map each media type to the correct folder. As you add your libraries, Plex will scan the folders for content. On the last screen, choose the libraries you want to always see in your sidebar menu, then click “Finish Setup.”
Installing the Plex App on Your Favorite Device
Once your media server is up and running on your computer, the next step is to install the Plex app on whatever device you plan to watch from. I installed the Plex app on my iPad. The app is free and is available on most Smart TVs, iOS, and Android. Just search for Plex, install it and log in with your Plex credentials. This is how your app will connect with your Plex Media Server.
Now with the app installed, let’s test your video libraries. Open the app, head into your Movies or TV Shows library, and pick something to play. If it starts instantly, you’re probably direct playing. If there’s a slight delay, Plex might be transcoding the file to match your device. Either way, it should work smoothly if your setup is dialed in.
- Compatibility
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Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, iOS, and various other devices
- Price per year
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$70
A Plex Pass subscription takes your media server to the next level, with remote streaming, hardware transcoding, offline downloads, and more.
When I installed Plex, I had an issue where my libraries wouldn’t show up, but they wouldn’t play. In the Plex Media Server settings under Remote Access, I had to manually enable remote access.
If you’re having issues, here is a great guide to troubleshooting common Plex streaming issues.
The Outcome
Now I can pull up my entire media library, movies, shows, music, and photos, on every device I own, right alongside all the free streaming content Plex includes. What was once a fragmented mess across devices is now a unified hub with artwork, summaries, and playlists that make browsing fun. It’s exactly the kind of organized media hub I was hoping for, and it finally makes decades of collecting media feel manageable and worth revisiting.