Unable to connect remotely

[King Mustard]

I use Jellyfin on my internal network without issue.

I used https://www.whatismyip.com/ to find my external IP.

When I was away from home, I opened the Jellyfin app, tapped 'Use a different server' and entered the IP (found by running www.whatismyip.com on the server), followed by :8096 but it showed:

"Tried 2 candidates for input, without success. Unable to reach server."

Emby allowed me to do this. In fact, the app dashboard itself gave me the IP address to use. I think Plex offers this, too.

Is remote access possible with Jellyfin without using dodgy VPNs etc?

[TheDreadPirate]

Plex uses their infrastructure to act as a reverse proxy, so its not really comparable.

Did you setup port forwarding on your router?

[King Mustard]

Plex uses their infrastructure to act as a reverse proxy, so its not really comparable.

Did you setup port forwarding on your router?

I use a dynamic IP, so that would not work.

[TheDreadPirate]

Dynamic LAN IP? Set a static IP or, if your router supports it, use a hostname for the port forwarding rule. Port forwarding is not optional without a VPN. Which can require port forward anyway, depending on which one you use.

[King Mustard]

Dynamic LAN IP?  Set a static IP or, if your router supports it, use a hostname for the port forwarding rule.  Port forwarding is not optional without a VPN.  Which can require port forward anyway, depending on which one you use.

I am not sure if my Icotera i4882-01 router supports it.

I cannot see anywhere in the admin page of it to enter a MAC address.

   

   

[TheDreadPirate]

In the Port forwarding section.

Name - Jellyfin (arbitrary)
Ext port - 8096
Protocol - TCP
Int IP - 192.168.1.10 (replace with actual LAN IP of the Jellyfin server)
Int port - 8096
Enable - checked

If you are talking about your PUBLIC IP address being dynamic, that would require you acquire a DDNS domain name. Which is free from a lot of providers. Most people use DuckDNS.

You'd install their client on the server and when it detects that your public IP changes it will push an update.

[King Mustard]

In the Port forwarding section.

Name - Jellyfin  (arbitrary)
Ext port - 8096
Protocol - TCP
Int IP - 192.168.1.10 (replace with actual LAN IP of the Jellyfin server)
Int port - 8096
Enable - checked

If you are talking about your PUBLIC IP address being dynamic, that would require you acquire a DDNS domain name.  Which is free from a lot of providers.  Most people use DuckDNS.

You'd install their client on the server and when it detects that your public IP changes it will push an update.

Thank you for your help so far.

I have entered those details into the Port Forwarding section and rebooted the router.

I have disabled Wi-Fi on my phone (to simulate being away) and when I open the Jellyfin app, it asks for an IP address.

I know I cannot enter the local IP address of the machine Jellyfin sits on (192.168.7.1).

What do I enter there?

I tried entering what shows as the public IPv4 address that I found by running on www.whatismyip.com on the Jellyfin machine into the app (plus adding :8096) but no connection.

[TheDreadPirate]

Did you make sure to include http:// at the beginning? Most browsers assume https if you don't include that.

Do you know if your ISP uses CGNAT?

[King Mustard]

Did you make sure to include http:// at the beginning?  Most browsers assume https if you don't include that.

Do you know if your ISP uses CGNAT?

Where do you mean, please? The Jellyfin app automatically adds http and surely if I am another part of the country, entering the local IP of the server (192.168.7.1) will not work.

What address do I enter in the Jellyfin app to access my server when I am not on the same network?

[TheDreadPirate]

The IP address you should be using is the IP address you censored in your screenshot from yesterday. No, 192.168.7.1 won't work.

NAT (Network Address Translation) is the networking technique that your home router uses to have one public IP shared by a bunch of devices, right?

CG = Carrier Grade. So CGNAT = Carrier Grade Network Address Translation. Meaning that, like your home router, your ISP does not have enough IP addresses for all their customers. CGNAT makes it impossible to host services, like jellyfin, from your home.

I'm not saying your ISP uses CGNAT. I don't know if it does. But if the public IP shown in your router doesn't work that may be a possibility.

Having said that, USUALLY when an ISP uses CGNAT they don't offer "port forwarding" in the router. Does the IP address you got from "whatismyip" the same as the one listed in your router?