(Offsite) Remote Access

[CharleyVarrick 277]

This might have been asked before, but is there any chance remote (remote as in offsite) access to Emby will be as easy as local access.

What I mean is once an Emby server is setup, it's so easy to access it from within LAN, from other computers, tablets or smartphones.

 

Once we step out of the house and are out of the LAN, to be able to have access to Emby implies forwarding router ports and I'm not totally at ease with that (security is a huge concern to me).

 

In a perfect world, I would be able to access Emby from anywhere as easily as signing in to Gmail from anywhere and thru any devices (without any need to mess with my router settings).

 

Is this possible at all now or could it be someday?

 

[hstamas 153]

I may be wrong as I don't use Emby remotely but isn't that what Emby Connect is for?

[CharleyVarrick 277]

Never managed to get this to work for me somehow

 

I did managed to forward the port, but it caused some other access issues to my router and I ended-up having to reset it to default

Edited April 1, 2017 by jlr19

[Luke 37280]

I would suggest checking out our Connection Troubleshooter. Please try the steps listed there and let us know exactly what succeeds and what fails. Thanks !

[CharleyVarrick 277]

OK,so internally, using LAN, no issues with 3 computers, 2 phones and a tablet

With wifi turned off and using WAN, I am timed-out

 

So I guess its down to port forwarding, which I previously tried succesfully, albeit with an issue:

I could not access the router's web interface.I then resolved to default back the router's setting.

This fixed accessing the router web interface issue but obviously broke Emby remote access.

 

Plus, in my mind (I may be wrong here), forwarding router port lower's one's network security, comparable to hiding a house key under the doormat.

Back to my original question: anyway to remote access Emby without forwarding port?

 

Is Emby Connect is the answer, and according to this it is: https://github.com/MediaBrowser/Wiki/wiki/Emby%20Connect

In the Guide for administrators section, it says to setup access in 4 easy steps

 

1 ) Start by signing up for emby connect (done that a while back)

2 ) go to Users, select your own, (I have only one user, myself)

In the Emby username/email field, enter the email address (this field already shows my user name same as previous Name field, and not my email

They say to enter the same email address used in signing up to emby connect, I do that

 

This is where It fails:

I notice in email field my (original) emby user which I had overwritten with email address has changed to my emby forum username (???)

Then I try to login in my phone and it says login failure

I noted at this point, I am kicked out of the forum page (logged out)

 

I just dont get why my forum username pops up in the email field, and at this point I am all confused,

I have a emby username + pw

I have a emby forum user name + pw (both different)

In my phone, what am I supposed to use?

 

If I use my "original" emby user+pw, It tells me wrong user/pass

If I use my emby forum user+emby forum pw, It accepts it, then ask to choose server then I get connection failure

Edited April 2, 2017 by jlr19

[ebr 14960]

Plus, in my mind (I may be wrong here), forwarding router port lower's one's network security, comparable to hiding a house key under the doormat.

Back to my original question: anyway to remote access Emby without forwarding port?

 

The short answer is no.

 

You are asking if there is a way to let someone in your house without creating a way to let them in.

 

But your analogy isn't entirely correct because you are only creating a very narrow path and there are a multitude of ways you can further secure that path.  But, of course, the more secure it becomes, the harder it gets to get into - which is the basic definition of securing something .

[CharleyVarrick 277]

So, what you're saying is if I don't forward router port, I won't get in from outside, with or without Emby Connect.

[CharleyVarrick 277]

I remember trying out PLEX a year ago, and I was surprised to be able to get in from outside with no need for port forwarding.

This was a big plus for them on that front, but their scrapers were so dismal I had to fix manually 50% of my collection.

Edited April 2, 2017 by jlr19

[overClocked! 63]

I remember trying out PLEX a year ago, and I was surprised to be able to get in from outside with no need for port forwarding.

This was a big plus for them on that front, but their scrapers were so dismal I had to fix manually 50% of my collection.

 

Plex also requires port forwarding to access your content outside your local network.   I think you're unknowingly referring to the automatic port configuration provided by uPnP (which is a way for the setup to do this for you).  Emby also does this, but your router needs to support it, have it enabled, and also you need to accept that configuration attempt when you first set up the Emby Server.

 

If you are hosting a service on your local network, in order for people outside of your local network to access it remotely, you need to forward the port from your router's firewall to your internal server IP.  This is basic networking 101.

Edited April 2, 2017 by overClocked!

[ebr 14960]

So, what you're saying is if I don't forward router port, I won't get in from outside, with or without Emby Connect.

 

That is correct.  The door is locked and there is no key.

 

 

I remember trying out PLEX a year ago, and I was surprised to be able to get in from outside with no need for port forwarding.

 

Your port was forwarded.  It was just done automatically without you knowing about it.

[CharleyVarrick 277]

Ok,

now what about Emby Connect using my emby forum credentials instead of my (local) server's, is this the expected behavior? (see post# 5)

Edited April 2, 2017 by jlr19

[overClocked! 63]

So, what you're saying is if I don't forward router port, I won't get in from outside, with or without Emby Connect.

 

Bingo.

 

It could just be that you aren't setting up your port forwarding correctly, or that your router isn't properly forwarding the port to the correct internal IP address of your server after you've set it up.

 

One reason you may be having an issue with your router is perhaps there is another layer provided by your ISP that you also need to forward the port through.  I've seen this with DSL configurations where the ISP is double NATting, so even though your port forwarding is set up on the router at your home, another layer outside your home is actually providing the gateway to the internet.  In that situation, you would have to forward the port through to your internal router's WAN address from the ISP's gateway device and then the port forwarding would work.

 

As an alternative, you could consider using a Dynamic DNS service instead of Emby Connect to provide an easy to read (and remember) name for remote access to your home.  https://www.noip.com/ is a great one.

[CharleyVarrick 277]

I'll try once more to forward port (which I already did a while back, successfully as far as Emby remote access is concerned)

My router is actually ISP branded

[CharleyVarrick 277]

OK,

I am able to access emby over LTE, and still able to access router web interface

Thanks eveyrone

[Luke 37280]

Thanks for the feedback !

[elshagon 44]

I was having issues as well.  My port forwarding had been working and then stopped.  I tried troubleshooting to no avail.  It turned out rebooting the router and modem did the trick.  Sometimes the easiest thing ends up being the solution!

[Luke 37280]

@@elshagon, I would suggest checking out our Connection Troubleshooter. Please try the steps listed there and let us know exactly what succeeds and what fails. Thanks !

[elshagon 44]

@@elshagon, I would suggest checking out our Connection Troubleshooter. Please try the steps listed there and let us know exactly what succeeds and what fails. Thanks !

Yep, it's the first thing I checked along with the forum search.  I didn't see anything listed in the Troubleshooter where it said to try and reboot your router and modem as a fix to a connection which stops working.