Remote Access using Emby Connect not working

[EkoOne 2]

After numerous failed attempts I was finally able to access Emby remotely on my iPhone. Well, sort of.

Upon connection I was presented with the default user sign-in page (with no Emby Connect option despite having an account). I was able to sign-in but despite being able to navigate between libraries as expected they are all empty, no media is being displayed (see photo).

I'm using http (not https) on port 8096. Since I'm able to sign-in and navigate the port is obviously accessible remotely through my network security and it seems unlikely my ISP (Comcast) or cell provider (T-Mobile) are blocking anything. As an Admin I have access to all of the libraries. I'm also using an NVIDIA Shield as the server and can't see anything in the device settings that would interfere. I thought perhaps it was the VPN on my phone so I disconnected it but the problem persists. 

Any ideas?

[Luke 37071]

@EkoOnePlease attach the emby server log from when the problem occurred:

How to Report a Problem

Thanks !

[EkoOne 2]

@LukeIs there info in the log that shouldn't be publicly accessible?

[Luke 37071]

If you download the log files using the server web interface they will be anonymized. You can also PM it to me.

[Blazejos 4]

Hi @EkoOneI'm using remote access to my emby server all the time, it works fine. It's most likely a router config problem. My config is as follows:

Ext IP/domain:port <- -> (ext port) Router <- -> (internal IP:port) of emby server. 

Make sure to use TCP/UDP both directions on the router internal IP:port forwarding and check for "loopback DNS", so you can login from your phone same way from outside and inside your network, always using external login address.

I strongly advise agains using http on remote connections, it's a cleartext and someone may intercept you login credentials and literally anything you send or receive.  Forward only SSL port and it will work fine. Your external IP from T-Mobile may change w/o notice, unless you have paid fixed external IP. If you don't, I'd suggest buying some cheap domain and register dynamic DNS service, so it will keep your domain-IP address linked. 

Hope it helps. Ping me if more details is needed. 

B.

Edited December 8, 2023 by Blazejos

[Luke 37071]

Are you able to do a full sign out by clicking the user icon in the top and then sign out? Are you able to get back in after that?

[EkoOne 2]

On 12/8/2023 at 9:13 AM, Luke said:

Are you able to do a full sign out by clicking the user icon in the top and then sign out? Are you able to get back in after that?

@LukeYes I can.

It appears that Remote Access does work as expected, conditionally. By that I mean the cell signal strength was barely one bar when the problem occurred but once I moved to a stronger area the media loaded without issue. The difference was immediate. I have several TB of media so I'm going to assume it was simply too much to load on such a weak signal. On top of which T-Mobile had temporarily dropped my speed from 5G to 4G so I'm going to assume those factors combined were the cause of the problem. I've had no issues since. Well, except when I'm in a weak signal area.

[EkoOne 2]

Thanks @Blazejos

I do want to setup a proper https connection but I still need to figure out the technical bits and SSL cert. stuff. I've been looking at some DNS services and was wondering if instead of using a domain from a DNS service could I just use my personal domain which uses a Cloudflare SSL cert. and just piggyback on that? Or is using a DNS service simpler and quicker?

[Luke 37071]

1 hour ago, EkoOne said:

Thanks @Blazejos

I do want to setup a proper https connection but I still need to figure out the technical bits and SSL cert. stuff. I've been looking at some DNS services and was wondering if instead of using a domain from a DNS service could I just use my personal domain which uses a Cloudflare SSL cert. and just piggyback on that? Or is using a DNS service simpler and quicker?

Hi, maybe this will help: 

 

[Blazejos 4]

6 hours ago, Luke said:

Hi, maybe this will help: 

 

@EkoOnethis is very detailed and comprehensive guide to secure access. 

[EkoOne 2]

Thanks for the link guys but unfortunately it didn't work for me. I noticed that someone mentioned using Cloudflare (which I already use) for the cert. but I can't find any instructions on how to set it up. Still looking through older posts. I'm also using macOS if that matters.

I also tried this tutorial but the instructions say to create a TXT record while the ZeroSSL instructions say CNAME. Very confusing.

Edited December 12, 2023 by EkoOne

[Luke 37071]

8 minutes ago, EkoOne said:

Thanks for the link guys but unfortunately it didn't work for me. I noticed that someone mentioned using Cloudflare (which I already use) for the cert. but I can't find any instructions on how to set it up. Still looking through older posts. I'm also using macOS if that matters.

What exactly didn't work? What exactly did you try?

[EkoOne 2]

I created a domain on Dynu then followed this Emby tutorial and used ZeroSSL to manually setup the cert. but the validation keeps failing.

Ideally I'd like to learn how to set this up using my own domain and server but that seems even more confusing than using a 3rd Party service like Dynu.

 

Edited December 12, 2023 by EkoOne

[Luke 37071]

2 minutes ago, EkoOne said:

I created a domain on Dynu then followed this Emby tutorial and used ZeroSSL to manually setup the cert. but the validation keeps failing.

 

Failing how? What exactly does it say?

[EkoOne 2]

From ZeroSSL:

We were unable to verify your CNAME entry. Please check for errors on your side and try again after 5-10 minutes. Unknown error.

I don't know if this is the problem but ZeroSSL is looking for a CNAME record but the Emby tutorial says to use TXT. I've tried using both and it always fails to validate.

Edited December 12, 2023 by EkoOne

[Blazejos 4]

@EkoOneI can appreciate how frustrating it must be, perhaps you can hire someone from IT admins locally to do this for you: it's like couple of hours work tops including the training for you. 

14 hours ago, EkoOne said:

From ZeroSSL:

We were unable to verify your CNAME entry. Please check for errors on your side and try again after 5-10 minutes. Unknown error.

I don't know if this is the problem but ZeroSSL is looking for a CNAME record but the Emby tutorial says to use TXT. I've tried using both and it always fails to validate.

From above it seems your domain is not validated, means ZeroSSL cannot confirm it belongs to you. I'm not sure where you've edited CNAME entries, but typical DNS service update time is 60min, sometimes longer. Some DNS services do allow faster updates, like 1 minute, but it has to be manually requested when making an update to DNS records.