Guide - One of My Shares Went Invisible to My Plex Server on Nvidia Shield

Plex on the Nvidia Shield is one of the most popular setups for home media streaming. It combines the power of Android TV with the convenience of a lightweight, always-on Plex Media Server. However, sometimes a network share that was previously working disappears, while others continue to work. This can be frustrating, but it’s often solvable with a few troubleshooting steps.

Step 1: Determine Whether the Share is Still Accessible Outside Plex

Before adjusting anything in Plex, you need to check if the Shield TV can still see the missing share at the system level.

Open a file manager on the Shield (such as X-plore or Solid Explorer).

Try browsing to the network location where the share should be.

If the share is missing or inaccessible here too, the issue is not with Plex but with network mounting or permissions.

In this case, proceed to re-mount the share in Android's network settings.

Step 2: Remount the Network Share

Network shares sometimes unmount after a restart or update, especially if they were manually added. Here’s how to remount them:

Go to Shield Settings > Device Preferences > Storage > Network Storage.

Check if the share shows up in the list of available storage devices.

If it does, tap on it and enter your login credentials again.

If it doesn’t, use “Add manually” and enter the IP address and share name directly (e.g., \\192.168.1.100\Movies).

After successfully mounting the share, the Shield should now see the folder.

Step 3: Check the Share’s Accessibility from Another Device

Use a PC or another device to access the share. If it’s also missing or not loading there, the issue is on the source device (such as a NAS or Windows PC).

Possible causes include:

The folder was renamed or deleted.

The IP address or hostname of the source device changed.

File sharing was disabled during a system update.

Credentials or user permissions were altered.

Ensure that file sharing is still enabled, and verify that the user account being used has read access to that folder.

Step 4: Check Plex Library Settings

If the share is accessible at the system level but not showing up in Plex:

Open Plex on the Shield.

Go to Settings > Manage Libraries.

Locate the library that used the missing share.

Try to rescan or analyze the library.

If Plex can no longer see the path (likely due to a change in mount point), the scan may fail or return no results.

Step 5: Remove and Re-add the Library (If Needed)

Sometimes Plex loses track of network paths when the mount point changes (e.g., a different IP or SMB mount). To fix this:

Remove the problematic library from Plex.

Recreate it by browsing to the new or correct mount point, which should now be under /storage or /mnt if the share is mounted properly.

Let Plex scan the folder again and rebuild the metadata.

Step 6: Use Static IP Addresses for Network Devices

To avoid issues in the future, assign static IP addresses or DHCP reservations to your NAS, PC, or whatever is hosting the shares. This prevents the IP from changing and breaking the link in Plex.

Step 7: Restart Everything

This includes:

Your Nvidia Shield

The Plex Media Server app

The device hosting the network share

Your router, if needed

Sometimes a simple reboot of all components resolves hidden network conflicts.

Bonus Tip: Mount Shares with a File Manager That Supports Persistent Mounts

Most Android file managers don’t persist mounts after a reboot. Some advanced tools allow you to create persistent SMB mounts, but this may require root access or third-party apps like SMB Server or X-plore with background service support.

Conclusion

If one of your shares goes missing from Plex on your Nvidia Shield, the root cause is usually related to network share mounting, path changes, or permissions. Walk through the steps above to diagnose the problem layer by layer—first with the Shield, then the source device, and finally Plex itself.

Let me know if you'd like help with persistent SMB mounts or creating a static network setup.