A Guide to Using Plex with ExpressVPN (Bypass It) and Avoid the Giant Headaches Accompanied by Trying to “Split Tunnel” (apologies for image, only way to get submitted)
a different vpn might be the easier solution
Sorry I must be living under a rock, but why do we need vpn when hosting plex server?
EDIT: Link to PasteBin (text) version of the image above: https://pastebin.com/D1My4bEJ
My sincere apologies, attempted to get this submitted twice (this being the third time). After communicating with mods, for some reason unknown to even them, this post was “not allowed to be approved by Reddit” (as in the mods explained to me that even they themselves were not being allowed to manually approve the post, even after I made the edits they suggested, and that they didn’t know why despite trying to actually approve the post).
So I just took a screenshot of the post and posted that lol…boy do I miss forums sometimes…can’t imagine what Reddit is going to be like post IPO this year 
One year later and this still works like a charm! Thank you for putting this together. I would have NEVER figured this out on my own. You’re a lifesaver!
N00b question: If I follow these instructions, am I no longer actually using ExpressVPN?
Oh, almost no doubt haha, however I had already paid for a year upfront for their service so I was basically committed to either A: throwing that money away and starting over or B: figuring out a solution. I’m a stubborn individual, so it was a clear choice of “B” for me lol. There are plenty of results on Google asking these types of questions (just google expressvpn + plex and you’ll see what I mean), so I wanted to save future headache-havers some trouble if possible lol.
I tried ExpressVPN and after uninstalling, had zero issue getting a refund.
Two years later of having Private Internet Access, and I’ve had zero problems.
Rebuilt my server twice since then on new hardware. PIN is always the last thing I forget to install, because it’s just not something I have to think about after initial setup. It does a perfect job, never gets in my way, which is exactly what I want out of a VPN.
Any recommendations?
Probably 99% of the time because of piracy.
This guide is quite literally for the exact opposite of what you’re saying. This guide is for those who want to avoid running traffic from their Plex server through a VPN, while simultaneously using that same server to acquire content that their Plex server will be serving up to them…think “sailing the high seas” type content…which should be routed through a VPN.
VPN is the most secure way to remotely access a server.
Are you able to link to an external host, e.g. gist.github.com or pastebin? That would be more accessible and easier to follow links/copy commands, and might bypass whatever filter the text itself seems to be getting caught on.
No, you’ll still be using ExpressVPN’s servers and your express VPN account. The use of OpenVPN is just replacing the ExpressVPN app/GUI for OpenVPN’s interface (and being able to run it as a service).
Think of it like taking the SIM card out of your (for example) iPhone and putting it into an Android. You’d still be using the same cell service provider, but using a different device to connect to it.
i ended up choosing option A when i was in this same position but thank you for putting this together! i hope it helps others down the line
I ended up going with torguard for the sake of simplicity. It’s definitely not as pretty looking as express vpn or nord vpn but it does the job just fine.
Thank you lol EDIT: no /s to be clear, literally thank you haha
Here in Germany, we have mostly Dual Stack Lite. An IPV6 with tunneled IPV4.
The Remote function doesn’t work and after many trial and error, I use a cloud Server as a Wireguard Server. My smartphone/tablet and a raspberry Pi 4 connects here and I get access to my whole homenetwork.
Needed this because of Client Files on my OMV. I dont want to use a Cloud service for that.
Not all VPN Users are Pirates. XD
Sadly, without remote, Plex thinks Im at home. So the auto Convert while in Mobile Data doesnt work. And I can’t stream movies at friends.
But hey, it could be worse. 
Have a great day.
2fa with your plex account is plenty secure and more convenient.
That’s an excellent idea my friend! I’ll give that a shot in the next 20-30 minutes after I finish up a request from a client. Thanks!