How to Fix: ‘Source error: java.net.ConnectException: Failed to connect to /127.0.0.1:11470’ in Stremio

Quick Fix

This is a Stremio streaming-server connection error, not a generic Java bug. Port 11470 is the port Stremio uses for its local (or LAN) streaming engine.

1. Fully close Stremio (force-stop it, don’t just back out), then reopen it.
2. On Android/Android TV/Fire TV, make sure the Stremio Service (Streaming Server) app is installed and running, or that a PC/NAS running Stremio’s Streaming Server is powered on and reachable.
3. If you’re pointing to another device’s IP (e.g. TV using a PC as the server), confirm that device is on, unlocked, and that its firewall allows port 11470 inbound.
4. If none of that helps, reinstall Stremio (and the Streaming Server component) fresh.

Step-by-Step Guide

What this error means

This error comes from the Stremio app (desktop, Android, Android TV, or Fire TV). Stremio plays torrents and other streams by first sending them through a small local ‘Streaming Server’ that runs on 127.0.0.1:11470 (or a LAN IP on the same port when one device streams to another).

The message ‘Failed to connect to /127.0.0.1:11470‘ simply means the Stremio app tried to reach that streaming server and got no response at all — the server process either is not running, crashed, is blocked, or is unreachable over the network. It is not a problem with the movie/torrent source itself.

Identify your situation first

There are a few different causes depending on setup. Pick the one that matches:

1. You’re using Stremio normally on one device (phone, PC, or TV) and it suddenly can’t stream — the local streaming server most likely stopped or was never started.
2. You’re using one device (PC/NAS) as a Streaming Server for another device (TV, firestick, phone) over your home network — the remote server, firewall, or network is the likely cause.
3. You recently installed Stremio v5, or installed Docker/WSL on the same PC — a networking/service conflict is likely.
4. The problem happens with only certain torrents/sources (like NZB/Usenet streams) — this points to a server-side hang rather than a missing server.

Case 1: Local streaming server isn’t running (most common)

1. Force-close Stremio completely and reopen it. On Android/Android TV, use Settings > Apps > Stremio > Force Stop, then relaunch.
2. Check whether a separate ‘Stremio Service’ or ‘Streaming Server’ app/component needs to be installed alongside the main app. On Android TV and some desktop setups, Stremio’s playback engine is a separate installable service — if the app shows a banner saying the streaming server is not available with a link to install it, install that component and make sure it’s actually running, not just installed.
3. On desktop (Windows/Mac/Linux), open Stremio’s Settings > Streaming section and check the Streaming Server URL status. If it shows an error status instead of Online, restart the app; if that fails, reinstall it.
4. Restart your device (phone, TV box, or PC) entirely — this clears any stuck background process holding or blocking port 11470.

Case 2: Streaming to/from another device on your LAN (e.g. TV using a PC as server)

1. Confirm the server device is actually on — the PC or NAS running the Stremio Streaming Server must stay powered on and awake (not asleep) for the TV/other device to reach it.
2. Get the correct local IP. On the server device, open Stremio’s Settings > Streaming, note the Streaming Server URL (normally something like http://192.168.x.x:11470), and enter that exact address on the other device.
3. Open the firewall port. Open port 11470 in the firewall for LAN devices on the machine acting as the server, allowing both inbound and outbound traffic.
4. Check the subnet. Make sure both devices are on the same network segment — some routers put 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi‑Fi on separate isolated subnets, which will produce exactly this connection-refused behaviour even though ‘both devices are on the same WiFi’.
5. From a browser on the server PC itself, visit http://localhost:11470 to confirm the service is actually listening before troubleshooting the other device.
6. If you’re running the Streaming Server in Docker on a NAS or mini‑PC, double check the container’s ports mapping (for example 11470:11470) is actually published and that the container hasn’t crashed — some users have found that specifying a private/public IP directly in the server config makes the container fail to bind and immediately crash, leaving nothing listening on 11470.

Case 3: Started after installing Stremio v5, Docker, or WSL

1. This has been reported as a real bug: after installing Docker (which adds virtual network adapters for WSL), Stremio v5’s default streaming server URL starts showing an Error status even though v4 still works fine on the same machine.
2. Try fully closing Docker Desktop/WSL before launching Stremio, then check if the error clears.
3. If the problem persists even with Docker closed, temporarily uninstall Stremio v5 and use the v4 shell (or the previous stable version) until an official fix is released, since this is being tracked as an unresolved issue with the developers.
4. Check for an updated Stremio release — this is an active area of bug fixes and a newer version may resolve the underlying networking conflict.

Case 4: Only specific streams/sources hang (e.g. Usenet/NZB streams)

1. Some sources (particularly NNTP/Usenet-based streams) can cause the internal streaming server to accept the connection but then hang indefinitely without ever returning data or an error, which looks similar to a connection failure but is really the server silently stalling on that particular source.
2. Cancel and retry with a different stream/source or release for the same title — if a different source plays fine, the original link or provider is the problem, not your setup.
3. Confirm your content provider or indexer credentials work outside Stremio (e.g. via a download client) to rule out an account/provider-side issue.

General fallback steps

1. Update Stremio to the latest version — many of these connection issues are version-specific bugs that get patched.
2. Reinstall Stremio (and the Streaming Server/Service component) completely, clearing its cache/config folder first.
3. Temporarily disable firewall/antivirus software to confirm it isn’t blocking local loopback or LAN traffic on port 11470, then add a proper allow-rule instead of leaving protection off.
4. If you’ve tried all of the above and it still fails consistently across devices and networks, treat it as a bug and report it with your exact platform and version on Stremio’s official GitHub issue tracker, since several similar reports are still open and being investigated by the developers.