How to Fix a FiveM Server Banner That Isn’t Showing

Most missing FiveM banners are caused by an inactive or commented banner_detail/banner_connecting line, an image URL that cannot be fetched publicly, or a restart that never loaded the edited configuration. In the active server.cfg, enable the setting for the screen you want, use a directly reachable image URL, save the file, and restart FXServer.

sets banner_detail "https://your-host.example/banner-detail.png"
sets banner_connecting "https://your-host.example/banner-connecting.png"

Use the correct setting first

FiveM has two independent banner locations. The server information/detail view uses sets banner_detail; the screen displayed while a player is connecting uses sets banner_connecting. Both settings take an image URL, not a local file path. The official vanilla-server example marks both as optional server-information settings and notes that “Size doesn’t matter, any banner sized image will be fine.”

Enable only the line you need, or enable both if you want artwork in both places. A line beginning with # is a comment and is ignored by FXServer, so a commented example has no effect.

Step-by-step: add or repair the banner in server.cfg

1. Identify the configuration FXServer actually loads

   Find the startup command, service definition, batch file, or hosting-panel field that launches FXServer. Look for +exec server.cfg or an equivalent +exec argument. Open the file named there, not a similarly named copy in another folder. If the startup command points to a path or a differently named configuration, edit that exact file.

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2. Back up the file before editing

   Make a copy of the active configuration so you can restore the previous version if a formatting error prevents startup. Keep the backup outside the folder you routinely edit, and do not replace the active file until you have checked the two banner lines.

3. Uncomment the required line

   Remove the leading # from the setting for the location you want. A working pair looks like this:

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   sets banner_detail "https://your-host.example/banner-detail.png"
   sets banner_connecting "https://your-host.example/banner-connecting.png"

   Replace each example URL with the complete address of your own image. Keep the sets prefix, the setting name, the quotation marks, and the line structure intact.

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4. Save the URL as a public image address

   The value must be an HTTP or HTTPS image URL that FiveM can request from outside your server machine. Do not enter a Windows path such as C:imagesbanner.png, a Linux path such as /home/fivem/banner.png, or a URL that works only inside your private network.

5. Restart FXServer

   Stop and start the server after saving the file. Configuration changes are read during startup; merely refreshing the server browser or reconnecting a client does not guarantee that the edited values have been loaded. If a control panel offers separate “restart resource” and “restart server” actions, use the full FXServer restart.

6. Check the screen that matches the setting

   Test banner_detail from the server’s information/detail view and banner_connecting by joining the server. A correct result in one location does not prove that the other setting is enabled.

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Make sure the image URL can be delivered

A syntactically correct line can still produce no artwork when the image host refuses the request. Test the address from a device or network that is not the FiveM server itself.

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• Open the exact URL in a private browser window. It should display the image without signing in, accepting a special cookie, or adding a one-time token.
• Confirm that the address is direct. A page containing an image, a file-sharing preview, or a control-panel URL is not the same as a URL that returns the image file itself.
• Check redirects. If the address redirects through a login page, an expiring download link, or a host that blocks automated requests, FiveM may not receive an image.
• Check hotlink protection. Some hosts display an image in their own website but deny requests when another application embeds it. Disable that restriction for the banner or use a host that permits direct embedding.
• Check authentication and expiry. Remove passwords, signed links that expire, and IP restrictions. A link that works for you now may fail for players later.
• Verify the response is an image. The final response should be an actual image file, not an HTML error page that happens to use an image-looking URL.
• Prefer a stable HTTPS address. HTTPS avoids mixed-delivery and certificate problems that can occur when a server is configured with an insecure or misdirected endpoint.

FiveM’s published settings do not provide a host-by-host compatibility list. These delivery checks follow from the fact that both banner options are URL-based: the client must be able to retrieve the referenced image when it renders the relevant screen.

Find the configuration mistakes that stop a banner

The line is still commented

Inspect the beginning of each line. This does nothing:

# sets banner_detail "https://your-host.example/banner-detail.png"

This is active:

sets banner_detail "https://your-host.example/banner-detail.png"

Do not place the setting after an inline comment or wrap it across multiple lines. Keep one complete command per line.

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You edited a different server.cfg

Multiple installations often contain a default configuration, a test configuration, and the production configuration. The only file that matters is the one supplied to FXServer with +exec (or the equivalent setting in your service or panel). Recheck the launch definition after every move, reinstall, or panel migration.

You used the wrong banner setting

banner_detail does not control the connecting screen, and banner_connecting does not control the server-detail view. Test each setting in its own destination before changing URLs or image files.

You changed the file but did not restart

Saving server.cfg while FXServer is running does not retroactively apply the value. Perform a complete restart, then allow the server browser or client to request the updated information.

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The URL works only on the server’s network

Opening the image from the same machine or home network can hide DNS, firewall, authentication, or routing problems. Test from a phone on cellular data or another external connection. If the address fails there, fix hosting before changing FiveM syntax.

The URL returns a page instead of an image

Preview pages from storage services, “download” pages, and access-denied responses can look valid in a normal browser while still returning HTML to an embedding client. Use the final, direct image address and verify it in a private window with no account session.

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Do not confuse the banner with the server icon

The banner settings and the server icon are separate features. The icon is configured with load_server_icon and uses a local PNG file. FiveM’s command reference specifies that the icon must be a 96×96 PNG. A correctly installed icon will not make a missing banner appear, and a working banner does not replace the icon.

If the icon is visible but the banner is not, concentrate on the two URL settings, the active configuration file, and image delivery rather than resizing the icon.

When the server itself is missing from the list

A listing problem can make a working banner appear broken. If players cannot find the server at all, first establish whether the issue is discovery rather than image rendering.

Test a direct connection

From the FiveM client, use the direct-connect command with the server’s public address and port:

connect IP:Port

Replace IP:Port with the real public endpoint. If direct connection succeeds but the server is absent from the list, the banner settings may be fine and the listing path needs attention. If direct connection fails, fix reachability before troubleshooting artwork.

Check port forwarding and firewall rules

Confirm that the server’s required port is forwarded to the machine running FXServer and permitted by the operating-system and network firewalls. A server that is reachable only from the local network cannot reliably publish its information or serve a banner to outside clients.

Leave the normal master-list setting enabled

FiveM’s server-issues guidance says to leave #sv_master1 "" commented for normal listing. If that line has been activated, restore the comment and restart FXServer before testing discovery again.

Provide project metadata

The command reference defines sv_projectName as the project or community name and sv_projectDesc as a sentence describing the project. Set both in the active configuration so the listing has the metadata it expects:

sets sv_projectName "Your Community Name"
sets sv_projectDesc "A short sentence describing your project."

These values describe the server; they do not replace either banner URL. Keep the metadata lines separate from the banner lines and restart after editing.

Allow time for listing refresh

FiveM states that, under the heartbeat condition described in its troubleshooting guidance, a server can take up to eight minutes to appear in the list after launch when no other heartbeats are sent. Do not conclude that a banner failed immediately after a restart. Wait through that interval, then refresh the list and test direct connection again.

A practical diagnosis path

Use the branch that matches what you can observe rather than changing several settings at once.

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1. The server is listed, but no image appears in the detail view. Verify that the active file contains an uncommented sets banner_detail line, confirm the URL externally, perform a full restart, and reopen the detail view.
2. The detail image works, but the connecting screen is blank. Check sets banner_connecting independently. It needs its own uncommented URL; the detail setting does not populate this screen.
3. The connecting image works, but the detail view is blank. Apply the same checks to banner_detail. Confirm that you are opening the server-information view rather than the connection screen.
4. Neither image appears, but the server is listed. The likely shared causes are an edited-but-inactive configuration, both lines still commented, a restart that did not reload FXServer, or URLs that cannot be fetched publicly. Check those in that order so you do not replace a valid image unnecessarily.
5. The server is online by IP but absent from the list. Follow the listing branch: verify forwarding and firewall rules, keep #sv_master1 "" commented, set sv_projectName and sv_projectDesc, restart, and allow up to eight minutes for the stated listing delay.
6. The icon appears but banners do not. Treat this as a banner configuration or URL-delivery issue. The icon’s 96×96 PNG requirement is unrelated to banner retrieval.

Final verification checklist

• The startup definition points to the file you edited with +exec server.cfg or its equivalent.
• The intended line is uncommented and uses the exact sets banner_detail or sets banner_connecting syntax.
• The value is a complete, publicly reachable image URL, not a local path or preview page.
• The image opens externally without authentication, expiring access, or hotlink restrictions.
• FXServer was fully restarted after the edit.
• You tested the banner in the screen controlled by that specific setting.
• You checked load_server_icon separately if the issue concerns the icon; it must point to a local 96×96 PNG.
• If the server is missing from the list, direct connection, port forwarding, firewall rules, #sv_master1 "", project metadata, and the listing delay have all been checked.

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