Installing an app from outside the store: read this first
On Android phones use Google Play. Safety rules for installing the Silo app from outside the store, such as on Fire TV.
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On an Android phone or tablet, the safest way to get the Silo app is Google Play, where it is listed as Silo Media Player. Use the Google Play listing (opens in a new tab) and you do not need the rest of this page. Fire TV cannot use Google Play, and a particular Android TV may not offer it. For those devices, and for any device that cannot reach Google Play, the app comes from the Silo project's own page on GitHub or its Downloader code. Nobody at Google checks those copies for you, and we do not make the apps. If you install this way, please follow these rules.
- Only use the address, code or Google Play link written on our pages. Do not use a link or code from a message, a video comment, a forum, or anyone who contacts you. Copies of apps with the same name can carry viruses.
- "Install unknown apps" is a switch on your device. It lets ONE app (Downloader on a TV or Fire TV, or your web browser on a phone that cannot use Google Play) install other apps without the store checking them. Switch it on only for that one app, only for the few minutes you need, and never for "all apps". When the app is installed, switch it OFF again. On a phone that cannot use Google Play: Settings, then Apps, then Special app access, then Install unknown apps, choose your browser, and turn it off. On a TV: Settings, then Privacy or Security (or Apps), then Install unknown apps, choose Downloader, and turn it off. The menu names differ between devices. If you cannot find it, search for "unknown apps" in your device settings or ask us.
- If Google Play Protect or your device shows a warning, stop and ask us before you carry on.
- Use the release version of the app (the addresses on our pages). If you are ever given a "debug" version, it is a test version: it can be slower, can crash, and may not get updates. Use it only if we tell you to.
- The Silo app should only ask for three things: the server address (from your welcome email or dashboard), your Silo username and your Silo password. It must never ask for your Plextreme account password, your email password, a card or bank detail, or a Google, Apple, Plex or Emby password. It must never ask you to turn on "Accessibility", "Device administrator", "Display over other apps", or to allow access to your messages or contacts. Permissions that a video app really needs, such as showing notifications, are fine. If the app asks for anything else, stop, do not type anything, uninstall it, and tell us on Discord or at [email protected].
- If you typed a password somewhere you now think was wrong, change your Silo password with Forgot password on the Silo sign in page, and tell us.
- When you have finished, delete the file you downloaded (Downloader offers this, or look in your Downloads folder) and make sure "Install unknown apps" is off again.
- Only type your Silo login into the official Silo app or the Silo address from your welcome email, never into another app or a link someone sends you. We will never ask you for your password or card details by email or message.