Recently, NVIDIA Shield TV devices started receiving an update to Android 11. This brought a host of new features and improvements even to models from a few years ago.

However, it looks like the first rollout of the update is not going as well as the company expected. According to several reports, many users are experiencing issues after the update (1, 2, 3, 4).

Some of the issues that Android 11 brought to NVIDIA Shield TV devices include disabled Plex server, several apps not working properly, and broken Android TV-Home Assistant onboarding/CEC functionality.

The Android 11 update for NVIDIA Shield TV has caused the disappearance of the Plex server for many. Now the app settings page is blank for affected users.

Shield Experience 9 upgrade, server gone

So I just got the shield experience 9 upgrade and my plex media server ‘disappeared’

When I go to the plex app settings page, the plex server section is blank (no options to start or stop the server or storage setting)

Tried several reboots and open to suggestions.
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In some cases, users can still use the Plex server, but lose features like HDR10. This causes the image quality of the content to deteriorate.

Plex isn’t the only service affected. According to reports, there are other apps not working properly on NVIDIA Shield TV after Android 11 update.

Currently, the Plex team is already aware of the issue. The company is asking users for more feedback to further investigate the situation.

Apparently the problem lies with the new permissions system of Android 11. It does not allow apps to access the ‘Android/data’ folder without permission. Many Android TV apps are not adapted to the new system.

That said, there is a potential workaround that might help resolve the issue. The process is explained below:

To manually allow file permission for these apps, go to Settings -> Apps -> [File management app] -> Permissions and enable “Files & Media” access for the app. If you see permission options for “Allow while using this app” and “Allow all the time”, select “Allow all the time”.
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The Android 11 update would also have broken the integration between Android TV and Home Assistant. And the CEC function stopped working properly.

PSA: New ShieldTV update goes live today for Android11, breaking Android_tv integration.

If you’re using ShieldTV with Home Assistant integration, there’s a new update today for Android 11, which according to developer documentation doesn’t work with HA (and hasn’t worked for months, so not sure if/when this will be fixed).

Just something to be careful of, as I don’t know how easy, or if possible, it is to downgrade.
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At this time, there doesn’t appear to be a workaround to help mitigate or resolve these latter issues. Thus, affected users can only wait for official statements in this regard.

Once new developments related to all the issues described arise, we will update this article. In the meantime, you can consult the bug/problem tracker dedicated to the NVIDIA Shield TV.

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