Playback Error - External Hard Drive

[jdesat]

I'm running Windows 10, have used the Windows installer (and just updated to v10.10.3 to see if it would help). I run the Jellyfin Server Tray App on my laptop which is connected to the external hard drive that I have my media files on, and watch on my TV via Roku.

I've had Jellyfin for several months now and only had this problem once before. I fixed it then by closing and reopening Jellyfin and unplugging and plugging back in the external drive. Tonight I've been trying to watch things like I have hundreds of times in the last several months, and once I click on the episode I want to play I get a playback error. My googling has led me to believe it has something to do the the external hard drive and file permissions, but I'm not tech savvy enough to know how to fix that, and I don't know why it would have just randomly started not working tonight. The vids still play when I run them from the drive on VLC, but not on the Roku or web version of Jellyfin.

Any help would be appreciated.

[TheDreadPirate]

Can you replicate the problem then share your jellyfin logs via pastebin?

C:\ProgramData\Jellyfin\Server\logs\log_20241205.log

[jdesat]

I think I did this right... this is the log of my final attempt last night. https://pastebin.com/b2b9nsRa

[theguymadmax]

Is your external hard drive listed as D:\ in Windows Explorer?

[TheDreadPirate]

For whatever reason, the external drive is becoming inaccessible.

Code:

[in#0 @ 000001a5f3e9e580] Error opening input: No such file or directory
Error opening input file file:D:\TV, Movies & Music\TV Shows\The Red Green Show (1991)\Season 2\The Red Green Show S02E20 The Sudsy Lake.mp4.
Error opening input files: No such file or directory

You'd have to look in the Windows Event Viewer to try to figure out the root cause.

[jdesat]

Yes. I don't keep it plugged in all the time, but I always plug it in and wait until Windows recognizes it before I launch the Jellyfin Tray App. And it's always D:\.

---

I don't know what Event Viewer is or how to use it. That said, even when the vids weren't playing on Jellyfin, I could access the drive and play them with no problem with VLC.

[TheDreadPirate]

Unplugging the hard drive is the problem. If Jellyfin runs a scan while it is unplugged it can cause weird issues like you've described. Or if you have real time monitoring enabled it may mark something as unavailable.

[jdesat]

Well, I've never run Jellyfin with the hard drive not already plugged in and registered by Windows, so I don't think that is the issue. What confuses me is the fact that I've been using Jellyfin for months and haven't really had a problem, then last night it just stopped working.


EDIT: I found the answer and I feel like an idiot. I had mounted a CD image the other day, and while I DID unmount it, Windows still put the external drive as E:\ when I plugged it in. I have changed the drive letter back to D and it is working now.

Thanks everyone for your help, but it was just human stupidity.