How to Add Scripts to a FiveM Server (Resources, ensure, Dependencies)

To add a script to a FiveM server, upload its folder (the one with fxmanifest.lua directly inside) into the server's resources folder, add ensure foldername to server.cfg below the scripts it depends on (such as oxmysql, ox_lib or your framework), import any .sql file it ships into your database, and restart. The resource name is the folder name, so rename script-main from a GitHub download to the name the script expects.

What you are working with

The FiveM resource docs put it in one line: any folder in resources is a resource, except folders in [brackets], which are categories.

Before you start

• Back up the server. Scripts can add database tables and change player data.
• Check the framework. A script written for QBCore does not run on ESX unless it says it supports both. Qbox runs most QBCore scripts through its compatibility layer, but check the script page.
• Read the dependencies. The script's page or fxmanifest.lua lists them. oxmysql and ox_lib are the most common. Install those first.
• Stop the server before uploading big resources, so nothing half loads.

Step 1: Get the right folder

Unzip the download on your PC and find the folder that has fxmanifest.lua directly inside it. That folder is the resource. Downloads often wrap it in an extra folder, such as my-script-main/my-script/fxmanifest.lua, and uploading the outer folder is the most common reason a script never starts.

Step 2: Name the folder correctly

FiveM uses the folder name as the resource name. GitHub's Download ZIP adds the branch to the folder name, so qb-garages arrives as qb-garages-main. Rename it to qb-garages. Other scripts call resources by name, for example with exports['ox_lib'], and a folder called ox_lib-main breaks every script that depends on it.

Step 3: Upload it to resources

Upload the folder into resources, ideally inside a category folder so the list stays tidy:

resources/
  [standalone]/
    my-script/
      fxmanifest.lua
      config.lua
      client/
      server/

On a txAdmin recipe, the server data folder (with server.cfg and resources) is the one txAdmin deployed the recipe into. For a resource with hundreds of files, upload it as a zip and extract it on the server, or use SFTP.

Step 4: Import the SQL

If the script includes a .sql file, run it against your server's database once, using a tool like HeidiSQL or the database panel your framework uses. Skipping it is why many scripts start fine and then throw Table doesn't exist errors as soon as a player uses them.

Step 5: Add ensure in the right order

Open server.cfg and add a line for the new resource:

ensure oxmysql
ensure ox_lib
ensure qb-core
ensure my-script

Order matters: a resource must start after everything it depends on. Put framework resources near the top and your own scripts below them. You can also start a whole category at once with ensure [standalone], which starts every resource in that folder.

ensure starts a resource, or restarts it if it is already running. start only starts it. Use ensure.

Step 6: Restart and check the console

Restart the server and read the console as it starts. A healthy resource prints Started resource my-script. While testing on a running server, refresh reloads the resource list and ensure my-script starts the new one without a full restart.

Paid scripts are locked to one Cfx.re account

This is the trap behind most "the script I paid for will not load" questions. Paid scripts from Tebex usually use FiveM's asset escrow: their files are encrypted, and they only run on a server whose license key was made on the same Cfx.re account that bought the script. Upload it to a server whose key belongs to a friend or an old account and the console prints You lack the required entitlement.

To fix it, either create the server's license key on the account that owns the script (in the Cfx.re portal at portal.cfx.re), or transfer the script to the account whose key the server uses. Asset transfers are limited, so pick the right account. Also download escrowed scripts from your own Cfx.re account after buying, never from a copy someone sends you. Leaked copies are against the FiveM terms and are a common source of backdoors.

Common problems

• "Couldn't find resource my-script": the folder name does not match the ensure line, or the folder is nested one level too deep.
• "Could not find dependency": a resource it needs is missing or starts later. Install it and move its ensure above.
• Script loads but nothing happens in game: the framework in config.lua is wrong (set to esx on a QBCore server, for example), or the script's item or job was never added to the framework's shared files.
• "Table doesn't exist" in the console: the script's SQL file was never imported.
• "You lack the required entitlement": the license key belongs to a different Cfx.re account than the one that bought the script.
• Server hitches after adding scripts: check resmon in the F8 console for the resource using the most time. See FiveM lag and hitch warning fixes.

Adding scripts on GamezServers

On a GamezServers FiveM server, upload scripts in the Files tab (zip upload and extract work there, and so does downloading a release straight from its link to the server) or over the SFTP login in Settings, edit server.cfg in the browser, and restart from txAdmin. Your server comes with its own MySQL database, with the login details in Settings for HeidiSQL. Press Backup before adding a big script. Looking for scripts? Start with the best free FiveM scripts.

FAQ

Where do I put scripts on a FiveM server?

In the resources folder of your server data folder, one folder per script, with fxmanifest.lua directly inside each one.

Do I need to restart the server after adding a script?

A restart is safest. On a running server you can type refresh and then ensure scriptname in the console to start it.

Why does my FiveM script say it couldn't find the resource?

The folder name does not match the name in ensure, often because GitHub added -main to it, or the script folder sits inside another folder.

Can I use QBCore scripts on ESX?

Only if the script supports both. Many scripts have a framework option in config.lua, but a QBCore only script needs QBCore.