Release Date: November 17, 2025
Bug Fixes
Fixed: Container Restart Causes Web UI to Hang
Reported by: @yellowcooln
After the initial setup, restarting the Docker container would cause the web UI to never load again. The root cause was that if any channel failed to generate during the 7-day schedule creation, the entire app initialization would silently crash, preventing Flask from starting.
Solution: Added comprehensive error handling at multiple levels (per-day, per-genre, per-holiday channel) with detailed logging and graceful degradation. The app now starts successfully even if some channels fail to generate, with clear warnings logged about any errors encountered.
Fixed: Environment Variables Don't Enable Plex OAuth Login
Reported by: @Pdaddy29, @popcorn2024ok
Users configuring Plex via Docker environment variables (PLEX_URL and PLEX_TOKEN) would see "Plex server not configured. Contact administrator." when attempting to log in with Plex.
Root Cause: The plex_machine_identifier (required for Plex OAuth verification) was never auto-populated when using environment variables for configuration.
Solution: When Plex connects successfully via environment variables, the app now automatically saves:
plex_url
plex_token
plex_machine_identifier
Users no longer need to manually configure Plex in the web UI before OAuth login works.
Improvements
Real-Time FFmpeg Installation Progress
The one-click FFmpeg installer now shows real-time progress with:
- Actual download size in MB
- Extraction status updates
- Verification steps
- Animated progress bar (0-100%)
FFmpeg is immediately available after installation without requiring a container restart.
Enhanced Client Discovery
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Devices actively playing content now show a ▶ icon with "Now playing: [title]"
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Active devices are prioritized at the top of the device list
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Added helper text: "For instant detection, start playing any movie on your device first"
Technical Notes
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Volume Mapping: Only /data is required. There is no /config directory.
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Startup Logs: You should now see "Auto-saved Plex machine identifier" on startup when using environment variables
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Error Logging: Schedule generation errors are now logged with counters showing how many channels succeeded/failed
Upgrade Instructions
docker pull netpersona/popcorn:latest
docker restart Popcorn
