Vanilla Rust cannot change the loading-screen text. To show your own messages, run the uMod/Oxide Loading Messages plugin: install Oxide, place the plugin in /oxide/plugins, restart once to generate its configuration, edit /oxide/config/LoadingMessages.json, then restart the server and clients. The plugin can cycle tips, choose random or sequential order, display queue-specific text, personalize messages with {PLAYERNAME}, and show a final message while the client receives data before spawning.
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What you need before changing the loading screen
This procedure applies to a Rust server on which you can manage files and install server plugins. You need administrator access to the server panel or file-transfer system, permission to stop and start the server, and a supported Oxide/uMod installation. If your host does not provide file access or plugin support, you cannot apply this method until those capabilities are available.
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- Oxide/uMod: the plugin framework must already be installed and running.
- Loading Messages plugin: download the current plugin from its uMod distribution page.
- File access: you must be able to reach the server’s
oxide/pluginsandoxide/configdirectories. - Restart control: you will stop and start the server more than once.
- A JSON-capable editor: use an editor that preserves quotation marks, commas and braces exactly.
Make a backup of any existing configuration before editing it. Plugin revisions can change configuration schemas, so preserving the generated key names is safer than replacing the file with an older example.
Why a plugin is required
Rust’s vanilla server settings do not include a control for replacing the loading-screen tip. Shockbyte’s October 27, 2024 setup guide states that an Oxide plugin is required because vanilla Rust offers no way to configure these messages. The Loading Messages plugin changes the tip text on the left side of the loading screen at a fixed interval.
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This is a server-side customization, not a change to the Rust client files. Players therefore do not need to install a client mod. They will see the plugin’s output when they connect to your server, provided the plugin loaded successfully and the configuration is valid.
Install the Loading Messages plugin
- Verify Oxide/uMod. Check the server console or control panel for an active Oxide/uMod installation before uploading anything. A plugin file in a vanilla server’s folder will not provide the required framework.
- Download Loading Messages. Obtain the plugin from its current uMod page. Keep the downloaded plugin file unchanged unless the plugin documentation specifically requires another extension or folder.
- Stop the Rust server. Do not edit or replace plugin files while the server is running. Stopping first prevents partial writes and ensures the server reads the new file during startup.
- Upload the plugin. Place the plugin file in
/oxide/plugins. Do not put the configuration in this directory; configuration belongs in/oxide/config. - Start or restart the server once. On this first launch, Oxide loads the plugin and creates its default configuration file. Watch the console for a successful plugin load or an error message.
- Stop the server again. Wait until the server has shut down cleanly before opening the generated configuration.
- Open the configuration file. Navigate to
/oxide/config/LoadingMessages.json. The capitalization matters on hosts and file systems that distinguish uppercase and lowercase names.
The initial restart is not optional: the configuration file is normally generated only after the plugin has loaded. If the file does not appear, diagnose the plugin installation before creating a file manually.
Edit LoadingMessages.json safely
JSON is strict. Every property name and text value needs double quotation marks; entries in an object or array need commas between them; and comments are not valid JSON. Keep the key names generated by your installed plugin revision. The following representative shape shows the available controls; your generated file may contain additional keys or slightly different defaults.
{
"Cycle Messages Every ~N Seconds": 5.0,
"Enable Messages Cyclicity": true,
"Use Random Cyclicity (Instead of sequential)": false,
"Messages": [
{
"Icon name": "Bolt",
"Message": "<color=#add8e6>{PLAYERNAME}, welcome to our server!"
},
{
"Icon name": "Bolt",
"Message": "<color=#add8e6>Enjoy your stay."
}
],
"Enable Queue Messages": false,
"Queue Messages": [],
"Last Message (When entering game)": {
"Icon name": "Bolt",
"Message": "<color=#008000>Entering game..."
}
}The sample uses a five-second interval, sequential cycling and two messages. The interval is a plugin setting, not a promise that every player will see each message for exactly that duration: loading time, queue state and client data reception affect what an individual player sees.
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Control the message cycle
Cycle Messages Every ~N Secondssets the approximate time between changes. Enter a number such as5.0, not a quoted string.Enable Messages Cyclicityenables or disables repeated cycling through theMessagesarray.Use Random Cyclicity (Instead of sequential)changes the order from the listed sequence to random selection when enabled. Leave itfalsefor a predictable welcome sequence.
If cycling is disabled, configure the message behavior supported by your plugin version rather than assuming the interval will still be used. The generated file is the authoritative schema for that revision.
Write messages and use colors
Each item in Messages contains an Icon name and a Message. The plugin documentation recommends short hexadecimal color codes such as #9cf; the longer six-digit form, such as #add8e6, is also shown in the representative configuration. Keep the color markup inside the message value and close any markup your chosen Rust text format requires.
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The {PLAYERNAME} token is replaced with the connecting player’s name. Put it directly in the message text, for example, <color=#9cf>Welcome, {PLAYERNAME}. Treat player names as dynamic text: avoid building a sentence that becomes confusing when a name contains spaces or unusual characters.
The icon field is a named value interpreted by the plugin. Use an icon name accepted by the plugin documentation or retain the generated default, such as Bolt. An invalid icon name can produce a missing or unexpected icon even when the text itself is valid.
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Configure the final pre-spawn message
Last Message (When entering game) is a separate object. It is shown while the client receives data before the player enters the game world. Use it for a short status such as “Entering game…” rather than a long tip that may be cut off during the transition.
Add queue-specific messages
The plugin supports a separate queue-message feature. Set Enable Queue Messages to true and populate Queue Messages using the object structure generated by your installed version. Queue text can use {AHEAD} and {BEHIND} to report a player’s position relative to others in the queue.
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Validate, save and restart
- Check the JSON structure. Confirm that every opening brace, bracket and quotation mark has a matching closing character and that the final property in each object has no trailing comma.
- Save as plain JSON. Do not let the editor rename the file to
LoadingMessages.json.txtor convert quotation marks to typographic “smart quotes.” - Start the server. The plugin reads the configuration during startup. Review the console for JSON parsing errors or a plugin exception.
- Connect with a test account. Observe the initial loading screen, any queue state and the transition into the game. Test with a second account if you need to verify that
{PLAYERNAME}is substituted per player. - Restart the client if needed. If an existing game session continues to show old text, fully close and relaunch the Rust client, then reconnect after the server has restarted.
A server restart alone may not refresh text already held by a connected client. Shockbyte’s troubleshooting sequence recommends restarting both the game client and server when players continue seeing the previous message.
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Troubleshoot messages that do not change
The configuration file was never created
- Confirm that Oxide/uMod is installed on this server instance, not merely on another server in the same panel.
- Check that the plugin file is directly inside
/oxide/plugins, not in a nested folder. - Read the startup console for a dependency, permission or compilation error.
- Start the server once after correcting the issue so Oxide can generate the configuration.
The plugin loads but the server still shows defaults
- Stop the server before editing and verify that you changed
/oxide/config/LoadingMessages.json, not a local copy. - Confirm the file name and capitalization exactly match the generated name.
- Check that the edited values are inside the correct
Messagesarray or final-message object. - Stop and start the server after saving, then reconnect with a freshly restarted client.
The plugin reports a JSON error
- Restore the last known-good backup and make one change at a time.
- Look for a missing comma between array items, an extra comma before a closing brace, unmatched braces or brackets, and smart quotes.
- Ensure numeric settings such as
5.0are not enclosed in quotation marks when the generated file uses numbers. - Do not add explanatory comments; standard JSON does not support them.
Text appears but formatting or icons are wrong
- Retain the plugin’s expected
Icon namespelling and use a documented icon value. - Use the documented hexadecimal color syntax, such as
#9cf, inside the message string. - Test a plain message without color markup first, then add formatting after the text displays correctly.
Queue placeholders do not display as expected
Use {AHEAD} and {BEHIND} only in queue-message entries. They are queue-specific placeholders, whereas {PLAYERNAME} belongs to personalized loading text. Verify that queue messages are enabled and that the queue array follows the object structure generated by your plugin revision.
Choose the implementation that fits your server
There are fewer practical choices than the wording of the question suggests. The following comparison separates what is established from what is not specified by the plugin documentation.
| Implementation | Framework support | Message control | Operational effort | Listing consideration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanilla Rust | No plugin framework | No documented custom loading-message setting | No file changes, but custom text is unavailable | Not applicable to this feature |
| Oxide/uMod with Loading Messages | Oxide/uMod required | Single or multiple messages, sequential or random cycling, queue messages, final pre-spawn message and documented placeholders | Upload a plugin, edit JSON and restart the server | Facepunch’s current guidance treats UI-altering plugins as Modded, subject to Community exceptions |
| Other server frameworks | Not stated for this plugin | Not stated | Not stated | Check the framework and Facepunch policy separately |
For a self-managed server, the Oxide/uMod route provides the documented controls. A managed host can reduce file-management work, but the host still needs to support Oxide/uMod and permit this plugin; the exact panel workflow and availability vary by provider.
Understand the Modded-versus-Community policy impact
Facepunch Studios’ guidance, updated March 4, 2026, explicitly includes plugins that create or alter in-game UI, and the Loading Messages plugin falls into that description. Administrators should therefore treat a server using it as subject to the Modded listing rules unless a current Community exception applies.
Check the current Facepunch policy before advertising the server as Community. The classification is an operational consequence of the plugin, not a setting inside LoadingMessages.json. If your server’s discoverability or rule-set designation depends on Community status, confirm eligibility first and document the decision for whoever manages your listing.
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Design messages players can actually read
Keep the first message immediately useful
Players may spend only a short time on the loading screen. Put the server name, a concise rule reminder or a direction to your community information in the first entry instead of a paragraph. Cycling makes longer guidance possible, but each item should stand on its own because a player may connect after the sequence has already advanced.
Use personalization carefully
{PLAYERNAME} is useful for a welcome, while generic rules are better without a name token. Avoid relying on punctuation that assumes every name has the same length, and test names containing spaces to ensure the resulting sentence remains readable.
Separate queue status from server rules
Queue messages should answer the immediate question—how long the wait may be or how many players are ahead—using {AHEAD} and {BEHIND}. Put rules, wipe information or community notices in the normal message cycle so they do not compete with queue status.
Preserve a recovery path
Keep a backup of the working JSON and record the plugin version used to create it. When an update changes key names or defaults, compare the new generated file with your backup and migrate values into the new schema instead of overwriting the new file wholesale.
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- Oxide/uMod is installed and loads successfully.
- The Loading Messages plugin is in
/oxide/plugins. - The server was restarted once to generate
/oxide/config/LoadingMessages.json. - The server was stopped before the configuration was edited.
- Generated key names and object structure were preserved.
- JSON syntax was validated and the file was saved with the exact name and extension.
- The server was restarted after saving.
- The Rust client was fully restarted when old text remained visible.
- Queue settings and placeholders are enabled only when configured.
- The server’s Modded or Community listing status was checked against Facepunch’s March 4, 2026 guidance.
What to do when you need to remove the customization
Stop the server, back up the configuration, remove or disable the Loading Messages plugin in /oxide/plugins, and start the server to confirm that it no longer loads. Keep the configuration backup if you may restore the feature later. Because vanilla Rust has no custom loading-message setting, removing the plugin returns the server to the game’s standard loading text rather than preserving your custom messages.
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