If Stremio has been running on your Mac for days and DNS suddenly fails in multiple applications, quit Stremio and its streaming server first. If the problem does not clear, restart macOS; this releases the leaked UDP sockets and is the safest immediate recovery reported for this issue.
A GitHub report describes this behavior in Stremio 5.1.25 on macOS: SSDP/UPnP discovery repeatedly creates UDP sockets after a network interface changes, but failed sockets may not be closed. Over time, the Mac's ephemeral UDP port range can become exhausted, causing DNS lookups to fail for the entire computer rather than only inside Stremio.
What is happening?
Stremio's bundled streaming server can use SSDP, also called Simple Service Discovery Protocol, to find compatible devices on the local network. This may include Chromecast, DLNA, and smart-TV devices. SSDP sends discovery traffic to the multicast address 239.255.255.250 on UDP port 1900.
According to the affected-user report, the problem appears when the network interface used by discovery becomes invalid or changes. Common triggers may include:
- Waking the Mac from sleep
- Switching Wi-Fi networks
- Connecting or disconnecting a VPN
- Tailscale or another virtual network interface changing state
- Docker or other software adding and removing interfaces
- Temporary LAN or router disruptions
The reported error is EADDRNOTAVAIL, usually shown with an SSDP send failure. The discovery process then retries with another socket. If failed sockets remain open, each retry consumes another ephemeral port. Once enough ports are unavailable, normal applications may be unable to create a UDP source socket for DNS queries.
This is different from running out of file descriptors. Increasing ulimit -n or macOS file limits is not expected to solve an exhausted ephemeral-port range.
Fix the immediate DNS failure
1. Quit Stremio normally
Save work in other applications, then quit Stremio from the macOS menu bar or with Command-Q. Wait briefly and test a website or another application that needs DNS.
If Stremio remains visible in Activity Monitor, or the streaming server continues running after the app closes, continue to the next step. Do not repeatedly reopen Stremio while the Mac is still showing system-wide DNS failures.
2. Stop the remaining streaming server
Open Activity Monitor and search for processes named Stremio, server, or a process whose path is inside the Stremio application. Select a process that clearly belongs to Stremio, click the Stop button, and choose Quit. If it does not exit, use Force Quit.
Be careful not to terminate unrelated Node.js processes. The reported installation used the bundled streaming server at a path similar to:
/Applications/Stremio.app/Contents/MacOS/server.js
The exact process name can vary, so confirm the application path before stopping anything from Activity Monitor.
3. Restart the Mac
If DNS still fails in Safari, Terminal, or another unrelated application, restart macOS. This clears the outstanding sockets and resets the temporary network state. A restart is preferable to changing system port ranges or file limits, because those changes do not address the reported socket-cleanup behavior and can create new networking problems.
After the restart, test DNS before launching Stremio again. For example, open a normal website and try a second application. If DNS works until Stremio has been running for a long period, record that pattern rather than assuming the router or DNS provider is at fault.
Check whether Stremio is accumulating UDP sockets
Only perform these checks while the issue is occurring or while investigating a repeatable pattern. Open Terminal and run:
lsof -nP -iUDP | awk '{print $2}' | sort | uniq -c | sort -rn | head
This lists processes with many UDP sockets. A high and continually increasing count associated with Stremio or its streaming server supports the reported diagnosis, but the command alone does not prove that every socket is leaked by SSDP.
You can also inspect Stremio's server log if it exists on your installation. Repeated messages containing both SSDP and EADDRNOTAVAIL, especially when they refer to 239.255.255.250:1900, match the error signature in the GitHub report.
Do not delete logs or change macOS network settings before collecting the relevant timestamp and error text. Those details can help distinguish this problem from an ordinary DNS outage, VPN failure, or router issue.
Reduce the chance of it returning
There is no confirmed Stremio setting in the report that safely disables only SSDP/UPnP discovery. Do not rely on guessed configuration names or disable unrelated macOS networking services as a first step.
Until a release specifically addresses the socket cleanup, use these cautious measures:
- Quit Stremio before sleep or major network changes. Close it before switching Wi-Fi, connecting or disconnecting a VPN, or changing Tailscale routes.
- Avoid leaving the desktop app running unattended for many days. Periodically quitting and reopening it may limit accumulation, although this workaround has not been independently verified for every setup.
- Temporarily close Stremio while diagnosing VPN or virtual-interface changes. This is particularly relevant if the Mac uses Tailscale, Docker, or several network adapters.
- Install a newer Stremio release only when its release notes or issue discussion explicitly confirm a fix. The report concerns version 5.1.25, but upgrading in general should not be described as a guaranteed solution unless the relevant fix is documented.
Changing the macOS ephemeral port range, increasing file-descriptor limits, repeatedly flushing DNS caches, or replacing the DNS provider should not be considered primary fixes for this report. They may mask symptoms or address a different problem, while leaked sockets can remain until the responsible process exits or macOS restarts.
What worked for affected users
The affected-user report indicates that stopping Stremio or restarting the Mac releases the consumed UDP ports and restores machine-wide DNS. The report also identifies closing the SSDP socket before scheduling discovery again as the likely software fix, along with rebinding after EADDRNOTAVAIL, ENETDOWN, or ENETUNREACH instead of immediately creating another socket.
These are reported observations and proposed fixes, not a universally verified Stremio workaround. Users should not edit the bundled server.js file unless they understand that application updates can overwrite it and that an incorrect edit may stop Stremio's streaming server from starting. A proper fix would need to be shipped by the Stremio project and should also prevent rapid retry loops, handle interface changes, and cap concurrent discovery sockets.
Community addons are independently operated from the Stremio desktop application. An addon that provides streams or device-related features may have its own issues, but changing addons is not expected to repair a leaked socket in Stremio's bundled server.
FAQ
Does this affect only Stremio?
The reported trigger is Stremio's streaming server, but the consequence can affect every process on the Mac because all applications may be unable to obtain a UDP source port for DNS queries.
Is this an internet or DNS-provider outage?
Not necessarily. If unrelated applications fail to resolve hostnames while Stremio has a very high UDP socket count, local port exhaustion is a stronger match for the reported symptom. Restarting the Mac and testing again helps separate this from an external outage.
Will clearing the DNS cache fix it?
Probably not if ephemeral UDP ports are exhausted. Clear DNS caches only when troubleshooting a separate DNS-cache problem; first stop Stremio or restart macOS.
When should I report the problem?
Include the Stremio version, macOS version, whether VPNs or virtual interfaces are present, how long Stremio ran, the EADDRNOTAVAIL text, and a sanitized UDP-socket count. Remove private IP addresses, device names, and account information before sharing logs.
Last reviewed: August 17, 2026