If Jellyfin plays on the PC but your TV or phone can’t find it, the server is fine. Something between them is in the way, and it is usually one of four things: the address, a Public network, Windows Firewall or an antivirus firewall. Work through them in order.
Updated 23 October 2026.
1. Type the address yourself
Apps can’t always find a server on their own. Type it instead: http://, then the server PC’s IP address, then :8096. For example, http://192.168.1.20:8096.
- On the server PC, open the Start menu, type Command Prompt and open it.
- Type ipconfig and press Enter.
- Find the section for your Wi-Fi or Ethernet adapter, not one named vEthernet, WSL or VPN, and its line called IPv4 Address. Those numbers are the PC’s address on your home network.
Don’t type localhost on the TV. localhost always means the device you are typing on, so on a TV it points at the TV.
2. Test with your phone’s browser
Put your phone on your home Wi-Fi, not mobile data or a guest network, and open the same address in its web browser. If Jellyfin’s page opens, the server can be reached and the problem is in the TV app. If it doesn’t, carry on below.
3. Set your network to Private
Windows blocks devices that try to connect to a PC on a network it treats as Public. On the server PC, open Settings > Network & internet, choose Wi-Fi or Ethernet, open your network’s properties and choose Private network. Only do this on your own home network.
4. Allow Jellyfin through Windows Firewall
The first time Jellyfin runs, Windows may show a Windows Security Alert saying Windows Defender Firewall has blocked some features of this app. Tick Private networks, leave Public networks unticked and choose Allow access.
If you missed it, open Windows Security > Firewall & network protection > Allow an app through firewall, choose Change settings, and tick Jellyfin under Private. If Jellyfin isn’t in the list, choose Allow another app and add it.
If you clicked Cancel on that alert, Windows added a rule that blocks Jellyfin, and a block rule wins over an allow rule. Open Windows Security > Firewall & network protection > Advanced settings > Inbound Rules, find the Jellyfin rules with a red no-entry sign, right-click each and choose Disable Rule.
5. Check your antivirus
Some antivirus programs have their own firewall, which can block the server even when Windows allows it. Allow Jellyfin in its settings, or mark your home network as trusted there.
Still stuck?
- Make sure the PC is awake. A sleeping PC disappears from your TV, and a film playing from it stops. In Settings > System > Power (called Power & battery on laptops), set the sleep time when plugged in to Never or a few hours.
- The same fixes work for Emby, which also uses port 8096, and for Plex, whose address is http://, the IP address, then :32400/web.
- Library Check, our free Windows tool, checks the network type, the firewall rules, other firewalls and sleep, and points to the likely problem.