Travel with Android TV - can I have 2 Emby servers based on IP?

[mohoelx 11]

So this may be the epitome of "lazy" but thought I'd ask. I have an Android TV (Onn 4k) device I use at home as a local device, hence he IP is a 192.168.... address.

I plan to travel to Florida for a couple weeks and thought I'd drag the Onn with me, for simplicity of the family watching (familiar interface, apps, etc.). I have to use TailScale to access Emby remotely (T-Mobile Home Internet), which works fine. Only thing is, with TailScale, the IP of my Emby is not 198., but 100. (since it's not local). 

Is there a way to define two Emby's in the Android TV interface, one pointing to the 198. address, and the other pointing to the 100. address? My attempts have been that whenever I "switch servers", having to enter the info manually but it leaves me with just one server to select, with either the 198. or the 100. address, whichever I did last. 

What I would like is to have a "Server_Local" and a "Server_TS" to switch between, both resolving to the same server, but via different IP's. Is that possible?

 

[Sammy 739]

Why do this? I grab my MiBox s for vacation all the time and connect remotely with ease to my Emby Server.

[CBers 6806]

I'm no TailScale expert, as I use CloudFlare Tunnels, but when you connect to your TailScale at home, doesn't it give you the same IP address as though you were at home, setting up your server where TailScale is run, as an exit node?

Perhaps someone else knows more about that side, but in any case, you can have the ATV app have more than one server selected, I do for my friend's and family in case they have issues.

When you get to the connection point, it will probably fail to connect to your own server, so it will give you the option to connect to another one, so just enter the details you need.

I use a domain name for my CF Tunnels, which just connects to the agent within my home network, and from there it connects to Emby.

 

Edited November 10, 2023 by CBers

[mohoelx 11]

3 hours ago, Sammy said:

Why do this? I grab my MiBox s for vacation all the time and connect remotely with ease to my Emby Server.

Are you able to port-forward your Emby server? I cannot on T-Mobile Home Internet, hence the TailScale.

[mohoelx 11]

3 hours ago, CBers said:

I'm no TailScale expert, as I use CloudFlare Tunnels, but when you connect to your TailScale at home, doesn't it give you the same IP address as though you were at home, setting up your server where TailScale is run, as an exit node?

Perhaps someone else knows more about that side, but in any case, you can have the ATV app have more than one server selected, I do for my friend's and family in case they have issues.

When you get to the connection point, it will probably fail to connect to your own server, so it will give you the option to connect to another one, so just enter the details you need.

I use a domain name for my CF Tunnels, which just connects to the agent within my home network, and from there it connects to Emby.

 

Yes, TailScale gives me the same IP. But - and here may be a misconception on my part - but if I access via TailScale while I am on my local LAN, doesn't the TailScale impact the route and performance? I just assumed I would not want to TailScale in when at home.... 

But in my Emby config, I list my TailScale IP for the Emby server box in the External Domain setting, and it works fine. 

I guess I just don't know how to set two 'servers' on the Onn screen, one pointing at each of the two IP's...

[mohoelx 11]

36 minutes ago, mohoelx said:

Yes, TailScale gives me the same IP. But - and here may be a misconception on my part - but if I access via TailScale while I am on my local LAN, doesn't the TailScale impact the route and performance? I just assumed I would not want to TailScale in when at home.... 

But in my Emby config, I list my TailScale IP for the Emby server box in the External Domain setting, and it works fine. 

I guess I just don't know how to set two 'servers' on the Onn screen, one pointing at each of the two IP's...

Yeah, I just did some testing. Using the TailScale interface (even when here at home), I am impacted by the upload speed of my network, and the program transcodes to a lower bitrate. When not using TailScale, the same program Direct Play's. So I don't likely want a solution of just leaving TailScale on all the time. 

Yet when I switch servers on the Onn, my only option is to manually enter it, and when I change to my TailScale IP (100.), it saves it to the single server entry, such that when I want to stop using TailScale, I have to re-edit the server intry and point it to the local LAN (198.) IP.

It just seems I should be able to have two Server entries, but maybe not....

 

[GrimReaper 3331]

4 hours ago, mohoelx said:

Is there a way to define two Emby's in the Android TV interface, one pointing to the 198. address, and the other pointing to the 100. address? 

What I would like is to have a "Server_Local" and a "Server_TS" to switch between, both resolving to the same server, but via different IP's. Is that possible?

 

54 minutes ago, mohoelx said:

I guess I just don't know how to set two 'servers' on the Onn screen, one pointing at each of the two IP's.

 

14 minutes ago, mohoelx said:

It just seems I should be able to have two Server entries, but maybe not.

That is not possible as that is same server, you'd need to have two server instances/two distinct servers to achieve having two servers listed. 

What you can do, however, is sideload standard Android app: while on LAN connect with AndroidTV client app to your 198... IP, and when away connect with Android client app to your Tailscale 100... IP. 

https://emby.media/emby-for-android.html

Edited November 10, 2023 by GrimReaper

[justinrh 176]

5 hours ago, mohoelx said:

But - and here may be a misconception on my part - but if I access via TailScale while I am on my local LAN

I interpreted CBers saying when in FL and you connect to your VPN, then your TV would be on the same network (192.168...) as when at home.  Thus, your server IP address would still be visible by your ATV app.  I don't think he was talking about using TailScale at home, where it would be expected to have a performance impact over a normal LAN connection.

He can correct me if I misinterpreted.

I'm curious, your TV has a TailScale app, or would you create the VPN tunnel another way?

Edited November 10, 2023 by justinrh

[mohoelx 11]

2 hours ago, justinrh said:

I'm curious, your TV has a TailScale app, or would you create the VPN tunnel another way?

TailScale is running on the Android TV box (Onn 4k), and on my Emby server (Windows). When in Florida, I'd be using any random TV to which I connect my Onn box. Onn <---> Emby would be over TailScale. 

I suspect I'll just have to change the address on the app when I get there and again when I return home. Not the end of the world for sure.

 

[Luke 37280]

Let us know how that goes. Thanks.

[ebr 14960]

11 hours ago, mohoelx said:

I suspect I'll just have to change the address on the app when I get there and again when I return home

If you don't have your server setup for remote access any other way and don't plan to, you could configure the other address as the "Remote" address and then it should work as you want.

[mohoelx 11]

And then there's the dreaded "guest network" limitations.... Ugh! rendered my plans null and void since I can't configure the Onn on the available "guese" network. Oh, well. It was fun to think about. 

I will just have to resort to using my Chromebook or PC connected to the TV via HDMI, and Tailscale into the Emby server. I did learn about Tailscale's virtual domain option so that's good. Makes it easier to address the Emby.

Thanks all for the thoughts and input.