Roku Channel logs out if Emby server is unreachable

[SmplyUnprdctble 4]

To prefix this, the primary reason this is annoying to me is because I have stronger passwords on my Emby server and pulling up the Roku mobile app to copy/paste the password into the channel is a PITA (though, nowhere near as bad as trying to type the password using the remote letter by letter).

Problem:  If the Emby server is down when I open the Emby Roku channel, I get completely logged out of Emby on the Roku.  It keeps the server information, but username and password are gone.

(note: I understand there's a second problem of "why is my Emby server going down", but I have suspicions it's because I now have tdarr on the same box for h265 encoding, and it's working its way through my library.  So, I get if my server wasn't going down, this problem wouldn't happen).

Steps to reproduce:

1. Create an account on Emby with a password (probably can be the same password that Druidia uses for their air shield instead of something super random)
2. Log into that account with your Roku
3. Exit the Emby Roku channel / re-enter (or reboot Roku / re-enter) to verify you don't have to enter credentials
4. Exit the Roku channel
5. Shut down the Emby server
6. Open the Emby Roku channel.  Server selection screen appears, as it's unable to contact the last server.
7. Think to yourself "oh, the server is down. I need to start it up"
8. Hit the home button on the Roku, hoping the Roku app is fine
9. Restart the Emby server.
10. Open the Emby Roku channel.  Server seelction screen continues to appear, forcing you to log in.

I feel it's needless to say that if Emby goes down and comes back up before opening the Roku Channel, all is fine.  This is standard server restarting after upgrades / maintenance / etc.

I DO have the option "Remember Me" enabled in the Emby Roku Channel.  I imagine that's what keeps me from having to type my credentals every time I launch it :D.

I know there's workarounds with local PINs and the like to make it easier to log in, but, like most folks, I have a setup I like and feel comfortable with.  And, with how infrequent it [should] happen, I don't think this is high on the bug list.  But, if I try to launch Netflix while my internet is down, I don't have to re-log in, so I hopefully shouldn't have to if I launch Emby while my Emby server is down.

On a priority scale from "OMG, the world is going to end!" to "oh, I think I stepped on a weird stick", this is "I stubbed my toe".  I've experienced this only a handful of times in the 8+ years I've had Emby Premiere.

Thanks for your assistance!

[ebr 14959]

13 minutes ago, SmplyUnprdctble said:

Hit the home button on the Roku, hoping the Roku app is fine

Just curious if, instead of doing that, you just backed out, does it behave any differently?

[SmplyUnprdctble 4]

1 hour ago, ebr said:

Just curious if, instead of doing that, you just backed out, does it behave any differently?

Same bhavior.

Steps I just did:

1. Opened Emby Roku Channel to verify everything was up and running.
2. Exited Emby Roku Channel
3. Logged into Linux server where Emby Server is running
4. Shut down Emby Server
5. Launched Emby Roku Channel
6. Watched the "Welcome to Emby" screen spin for a few seconds
7. Saw the "Select Server" screen
8. Hit "Back" to return to the Roku Home Screen
9. Restarted Emby Server
10. Re-launched Emby Roku Channel
11. Again, receive the "Select Server"
12. Grabbed phone to get me logged back in 

Things I realized were neglected in my initial post:

• Emby Server Version:  4.8.5.0 (and I just saw 4.8.6.0 is available... I'll be installing it shortly, but doubt that's related).  Running on Debian Bookworm.
• Roku Emby Channel version:  4.1.17
• Roku OS version:  12.5.5 Build 4174-48
• Device is RokuTV from TCL

[ebr 14959]

Okay, thanks.  We'll take a look at the behavior in this scenario.

[SmplyUnprdctble 4]

Thanks a bunch!

[ebr 14959]

1 hour ago, SmplyUnprdctble said:

• Again, receive the "Select Server"
• Grabbed phone to get me logged back in 

Have you tried clicking on the server at that screen?

I cannot reproduce a problem here.  It does present me with the select server screen because the last attempt could not find the saved server but, I click on the server, it shows me a list of users, I click on a user and it logs me right in - no password needed...

[SmplyUnprdctble 4]

I have my users hidden from the login screen.

I do this primarily because Emby is exposed to the internets.  I don't want the chance that if someone just happens to figure out the address of my Emby server that they can't pick a user and start attempting to brute force in (though, my firewall should capture that and block it).

[SmplyUnprdctble 4]

Based on the words you said, I set my account to not hide on local network.  It works as you described.

I can use the options of hide remotely (which didn't work with my setup before, but appears to work properly now -- I'll blame upgrades and changes in my network and have no idea what the culprit was and don't care) and not showing users on devices they haven't logged into in order to give me the "I don't have to type in my password if my server goes down" comfort.

From a user standpoint, I don't think it's "ideal functionality", because it "shouldn't" log you out all the way if you happen to open the channel while the server is down, but it works as someone intended.

[ebr 14959]

50 minutes ago, SmplyUnprdctble said:

Based on the words you said, I set my account to not hide on local network.  It works as you described.

I suggest checking only the third option on that screen "hide on devices this user has not logged into".  That will give you the best functionality across both local and remote devices.

[SmplyUnprdctble 4]

I think that works.

As I said, my "ideal solution" is low priority.  I know the awesome team is working on more important things, so I'll mark the above as solution.  Since it's an acceptable workaround.

Thanks, my friend!