FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

How is PKC different from the official Plex for Kodi?

In a nutshell, you get the following benefits if you use PKC:

• Use virtually any other Kodi add-on
• Use any Kodi skin, completely customize Kodi's look
• Browse your media at full speed (cached artwork)
• Automatically get additional artwork (more than e.g. Plex offers)
• Enjoy Plex features using the Kodi interface

PKC replicates your Plex metadata directly into the Kodi databases. This requires PKC to do a longer sync on the very first startup. Subsequent startups should be much faster. While Kodi is running, PKC syncs changes almost instantly in the background.

The official Plex for Kodi addon uses Kodi mainly for its playback engine and network access functions, with no use whatever of Kodi's library methods. Thus it works almost as a separate Plex client app, using Kodi functions mainly as a runtime environment. Even the 'look and feel' of its GUI is entirely independent of your normal Kodi skins, which are unused for whatever time you spend 'inside' the "Plex for Kodi" GUI.

Can I use PKC together with another Plex client like Plex for Kodi?

You can try, but it's not advised to have several different Plex clients installed on the same machine. Deinstall other Plex clients if you experience issues with PKC.

My Kodi addon/plugin does not work

Try setting up PKC with Direct Paths and try again. Seriously.

PKC and Kodi show all my different movie libraries jumbled together

Follow this guide to setup homescreen shortcuts in Kodi.

I cannot authenticate with plex.tv using a PIN, I get Not yet authorized for Plex Server, PKC has connection issues

PKC uses secure SSL connections using plex.direct URLs. Be sure that your router can handle this and check https://support.plex.tv/articles/206225077-how-to-use-secure-server-connections/. You might want to use another Plex client like Plex for Android to ensure that your network setup works.

Plex pictures/fotos do not work

Due to a Kodi bug, you need to navigate via Pictures -> Picture Addons -> PlexKodiConnect -> ... If you have videos included in your picture library, they in turn won't work - it's either or, unfortunately.

Navigating to certain PKC content is taking too many clicks

You can customize Kodi to your heart's content. Link that content directly on your Kodi homescreen! See e.g. Customize Your Homescreen here on the wiki.

PKC warned me that the Kodi setting "Play next video automatically" is enabled. What's that?

If this setting is enabled in the Kodi settings under Player settings, then Videos, Kodi will put ALL your movies into a playqueue. Even if you only watch one movie. PKC will sync this playqueue to the Plex Media Server, which takes a while. Only after that process is finished are Kodi playstates synced to the PMS.
If you do not get any (early) playstate updates on Plex, deactivate this setting!

Kodi is missing backgrounds / fanart and black screens show up. Kodi browsing is slow; images take a while to load

PKC caches all artwork in the background, not during initial sync. Restart Kodi and let it sit for a while to let PKC do its magic. For ~500 movies and ~1000 episodes, 30-60 minutes should do it.
If that does not work, go to the PKC settings, then choose Cache all images to Kodi texture cache now under Artwork. Again, let PKC do its invisible magic in the background for at least 60 minutes.

Kodi randomly starts to play random items without me doing anything

Deactivate the Kodi plugin 'Video Extras'

PKC's initial sync is very slow

Unfortunately, there is no cure, as this is probably caused by the PMS. You can, however, copy a 'finished' PKC from e.g. a faster Kodi machine to a slower one. Simply make a backup with this Kodi plugin and import it on the new machine using the same plugin.
Make sure to Generate a new unique device Id in the PKC Settings - Advanced on the cloned machine!

Can I use my Kodi MySQL plugin?

No, never. PKC is not and never will be compatible to a MySQL Kodi setup. In fact, PKC in junction with Plex is solving the problem MySQL tries to solve.

Does PKC change anything on my Plex Media Server?

No, PKC never changes anything on your PMS.

What can I do if my 'Web server failed to start'?

You have another service running on the same port on your machine, effectively blocking it. Follow these steps to set the Kodi web server to another port.

What Kodi skin can I use?

Any Kodi skin you want. It is advisable to use one where you can customize homescreen shortcuts to point to video nodes, however, see Video Nodes and Skins

How can I open the movie/episode information screen in a Kodi widget instead of starting playback immediately?

Some skins have added an OnInfo action - depending on the skin you may be able to press info to view the movie details. However, the click action for widgets is always set to play the item (this is a Kodi limitation).

PKC or Kodi use way too much of my disk space

PKC forces Kodi to cache almost all Plex artwork to Kodi; this can easily be a couple of gigabytes. Deactivate Force Artwork Caching in the PKC settings under Sync Options, then choose Partial or full reset of Database and PKC (in red) under Advanced and hit Yes, Yes, No.

It takes a couple of seconds till my media starts playing

Use direct paths or direct play to speed up the startup of Kodi playback.

If I download additional subtitles in Kodi, they are not saved to my media folder

Use direct paths or direct play. Make sure that Kodi has writing rights to the respective folder where the movie is located.

Casting to Kodi with Plex Companion or Amazon Alexa does not work, I cannot connect to Plex Companion or Alexa

PKC's Plex Companion needs the Kodi webserver to be working, check the Kodi wiki for more info.

I cannot edit the Kodi video nodes PKC created

PKC force-updates its video nodes on every library sync for various reasons. Video nodes created by PKC are not designed to be changed/edited by the user. If you still want to change them, you need to copy the appropriate subfolder for the Plex library in question in the Kodi userdata folder under library/videos. The subfolder's name contains Plex as well as the Plex library ID. Copy paste this entire subfolder under library/videos, then edit the copied nodes

PKC always plays the first version if several versions/files of a movie or TV show are present

Use the Kodi context menu (might not always be available, depending on the Kodi screen you're currently in), then Plex options, then Start playback via PMS. PKC will then ask you which version you want to play.

Is it possible for PKC to NOT sync my Plex media to Kodi?

No. This syncing is precisely the reason why PKC is fast, stable and compatible with any skin and Kodi plugin. You may have two options:

• Deactivate the automatic syncing of art, maybe that's enough for you. Go to the PKC settings, Sync options, and deactivate Force artwork caching
• Use PlexBMC if you don't want to sync at all

Gdrive (Google Drive) does not work with PKC!

Gdrive features a limit to the number of API calls PKC can make. After that, an API ban will block further inquiries and PKC/Plex will stop working correctly. As PKC communicates with a Plex server heavily on initial syncs, basically copying the entire metadata to Kodi, chances are that you'll reach this limit.
Workaround: use rclone with cached cloud drive.

Playback works, but I constantly get error messages: Error connecting, Plex media server is not reachable

PKC needs a websocket connection using the wss:// protocol to listen to any PMS changes. This protocol is probably being blocked, e.g. by your cloudflare setup. In the PKC settings under Sync options, deactivate Enable constant background sync.

My Raspberry Pi (or other low-powered device) crashes

Try lowering the number of threads in the PKC settings under Sync Options. Yes, go down to 1. If that does not help, try reducing 'Maximum items to request from the server at once'. Don't forget to reboot Kodi each time you changed something

My device still crashes on the initial sync (e.g. WeTek)

Kodi sometimes still has memory management issues. Try to disable Force artwork caching in the PKC settings