How to Set Up a FiveM Queue System with Priority Roles and Whitelist Mode

Every FiveM server eventually hits its player cap. When that happens, the experience your players have while waiting to get in matters just as much as the experience inside the server. A properly configured queue system keeps things fair, rewards your supporters, and gives your staff full control over who gets in and when.

Why the Default FiveM Queue Falls Short

The default FiveM connection flow has no queue at all. When your server is full, players see a generic "server is full" error and have to keep retrying manually. There is no waiting line, no priority, and no feedback.

For a server with 32 slots this might be fine. For anything above 64 - especially roleplay or community servers that regularly fill up - this creates a frustrating experience. Players spam the connect button, donors get no benefit, and you have zero control over who gets in first.

Why this matters: A real queue system turns a frustrating dead end into a managed experience that respects your players' time.

What a Proper Queue System Needs

Before diving into setup, here is what a complete queue system should handle:

Priority slots - donors, VIPs, and staff skip ahead in the queue based on their role
Whitelist mode - restrict access to players with specific Discord roles
VPN blocking - prevent players from connecting through VPNs to reduce ban evasion
Grace periods - give disconnected players time to reconnect without losing their spot
Maintenance mode - block new connections without kicking existing players

FiveGateway handles all of these from the dashboard. No Lua scripts to edit, no config files to manage manually. Check the full list of queue and moderation features to see what is available on each plan.

Setting Up Priority Roles via Discord

FiveGateway uses your Discord server as the source of truth for player roles. Here is how to set it up:

Connect your Discord server. In the FiveGateway dashboard, go to your server settings and link your Discord server. This gives FiveGateway read access to your member list and roles.
Open the queue settings. Navigate to your server's queue configuration page. You will see a list of your Discord roles.
Assign priority values. Each role gets a priority number. Higher numbers mean higher priority. For example:
- Default (no role): priority 0
- Member: priority 1
- Donor: priority 5
- VIP: priority 10
- Staff: priority 20
Save and apply. Changes take effect immediately. The next time a player with one of these roles joins the queue, they get sorted by their highest role priority.

Players with higher priority skip ahead of players with lower priority. If two players share the same priority level, the one who joined the queue first goes in first. Simple and predictable.

Why this matters: Priority roles reward your community members and donors without giving them unfair gameplay advantages.

Setting Up Whitelist Mode

Whitelist mode restricts your server to players who hold at least one whitelisted Discord role. Anyone without a qualifying role gets rejected before entering the queue.

Enable whitelist mode in your queue settings.
Select which roles grant access. Toggle on the Discord roles that should be allowed to connect. You can whitelist multiple roles.
Save. From this point, only players with at least one of the selected roles can join.

This is useful for private servers, application-based roleplay servers, or events where you want to limit access to a specific group. Players without a qualifying role see a clear message explaining they need to be whitelisted.

💡 Tip: You can combine whitelist mode with priority roles. Whitelisted players still get sorted by priority within the queue. Whitelist controls who can join; priority controls when they get in.

Why this matters: Whitelist mode gives you full control over server access using the Discord roles you already manage.

Grace Periods for Disconnected Players

Players crash. Internet drops out. FiveM updates force a restart. Without a grace period, a disconnected player loses their slot immediately and goes to the back of a full queue.

FiveGateway lets you set a grace period in seconds. When a player disconnects, their slot is held for that duration. If they reconnect within the window, they skip the queue entirely and rejoin the server.

A grace period of 120 to 300 seconds works well for most servers. Long enough to handle a client restart, short enough that abandoned slots don't stay locked.

Why this matters: Grace periods prevent your most active players from losing their spot to a random crash.

Maintenance Mode

Sometimes you need to lock the server without disrupting the players already online. Maintenance mode blocks all new connections - including queued players - while letting current players stay.

Enable it from the dashboard with one toggle. When you are done with maintenance, disable it and the queue resumes normally. Players who were waiting in the queue during maintenance keep their position.

This is useful for deploying resource updates, testing new scripts, or handling an ongoing issue without kicking everyone.

Why this matters: Maintenance mode lets you work on the server without forcing a full restart or losing your online players.

What Players See in the Queue

FiveGateway replaces the default FiveM connection screen with an Adaptive Card that shows:

Queue position - where the player sits in line
Estimated wait time - based on current server turnover
Reason for waiting - whether the server is full, in maintenance, or whitelist-restricted

The card updates in real time as positions shift. Players know exactly where they stand instead of staring at a loading screen with no feedback.

All of This, Without Editing a Single Script

FiveGateway manages queue priority, whitelist mode, grace periods, and maintenance mode entirely from the web dashboard. No Lua files to edit, no server restarts required for configuration changes. Your staff can manage queue settings from any browser.

The Starter plan is free for one server. If you are running multiple servers or need advanced queue features, check the pricing page for Pro and Premium options.

Start free at my.fivegateway.com →

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