How to Move from 32-bit to 64-bit

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Now that Plex Media Server for Windows is available in 64-bit, you may want to move from your 32-bit installation to the 64-bit version. While it may seem difficult, it is surprisingly easy to make the move.

In this article I will walk you through the process of moving from 32-bit to 64-bit Windows version of Plex Media Server.

How to Move from 32-bit to 64-bit Plex for Windows

The steps to install 64-bit version

The number of steps you need to follow to move to the 64-bit version of Plex on Windows is dependent on whether you have Plex running as a Windows service. I will first cover the common steps to perform the move, and then I will discuss additional steps if Plex is running as a service.

Installing the 64-bit version of Plex

Regardless of how you are running Plex on Windows, use the following steps to uninstall the 32-bit server, and install the 64-bit version:

  1. Download the latest version of the Plex Media Server for Windows 64-bit.
  2. Make a backup of your Plex data - including the database.
  3. Stop Plex on your server:
    • If you are running Plex as a process, right-click the system tray icon and then select the Exit option.
    • If you are running as service, you will need to stop the service.
  4. Launch the 64-bit installation of Plex Media Server that you downloaded in step 1. The install will detect the 32-bit installation, and then uninstall it before installing the 64-bit version.
  5. After the install has completed, restart Plex if it isn't started.

Once Plex Media Server restarts, it should automatically use the settings that you were using with the 32-bit version. No settings were changed or will need to be changed when moving to the 64-bit version.

Installing the 64-bit version when running Plex as a service

When running Plex as a Windows service, there are a few things that you will need to do. For installation, just follow the steps in the above section, but once Plex is installed, stop Plex so it can be restarted as a service.

If you use the PmsService application, as I do, you will need to download and install the latest version. This application has been updated to work with the 64-bit version of Plex.

If you use another method such as NSSM, then you will need to ensure that you are calling Plex from the new 64-bit install location. The default install locations are as follows:

  • 32-bit install location: C:\Program Files (x86)\Plex\Plex Media Server
  • 64-bit install location: C:\Program Files\Plex\Plex Media Server

Of course, if you changed the location during the installation, then you will use that location, if it was different than the previous location.

Once the service has been updated, start the service to launch the 64-bit version of Plex.

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