Troubleshooting & FAQ
Common issues
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Script won't start, "could not find dependency" | A dependency is missing or starts later | Install ox_lib, oxmysql, ox_target, ox_inventory, and vs-npc-dialogue, and ensure them before vs-impoundjob. See Installation. |
| Players see "The impound is still starting up" | The database is still loading | Wait a moment after a restart. If it persists, check the console for a red FATAL line. |
| Players see "the database is offline" | Loading failed and the script refused to run on partial data | Read the FATAL line in the server console (see below) and restart once fixed. |
| Creator won't open: "Only a server admin can build impound lots." | You do not pass the admin gate | Grant the group.admin ACE or vs-impoundjob.creator, add your identifier to Config.CreatorIds, or use a Config.AdminGroups framework group. |
| Officer gets "Only police can call in a tow." | Their job is not in the list | Add it to Config.PoliceJobs or Config.TowTarget.jobs, then restart. |
| Officer gets "You need to be on duty to call in a tow." | Their police job is off duty in the framework | Go on duty with your framework's duty system. |
| Request screen shows "Nobody on duty" at a staffed yard | No employee is clocked in, or the lot has no clock-in point | Place the clock-in point in the Creator and clock in. The on-duty count only comes from the clock. |
| "No yard here has anyone to send right now." | No NPC-served yard covers the car, and no staffed yard has anyone clocked in | Build an NPC Staffed or Auto Staffed yard, or get staff on duty. |
| The car vanished but no NPC truck was seen | Nobody was within 300 m of the car, so the tow was completed without a truck, or the watchdog finished it | Expected. The car is in the yard. Raise Tow gives up after if trucks run out of time. |
| Staff never notice new tow jobs | The board does not pop up | Keep the staff terminal open on the Assistance calls page. Jobs appear when it is opened or refreshed. |
| Receptionist, clerk, or dispatcher does not respond | vs-npc-dialogue is not running | Start it before the script and keep it updated. |
| Receptionist and clerk are not there | The lot is outside its opening hours (08:00 to 20:00 server time by default) | Change or turn off the hours on the Creator's Opening hours tab. |
| Receptionist says "Nothing of yours is in this yard." | The car is not held there, is held under another character, or was booked in as unowned | Check the plate on the staff terminal or the boss terminal's Yard page. On QBCore and Qbox, the owner is read from player_vehicles. |
| "The handover bay is occupied." | A vehicle is standing within 3.5 m of the bay | Move it, then release again. |
| Released car won't start | A vehicle keys resource requires keys the script does not give | Give keys through your keys resource. See Compatibility. |
| Using a traffic cone does nothing | The item is missing consume = 0 or its client.export | Fix the definition, see Items. |
| "Only lot staff and Public Job drivers on a shift put cones down." | The player is neither | Expected. Set Config.Cones.anyone = true to open cones to everyone. |
| Secure vehicle is missing on the flatbed | Not every wheel is chocked | Place a chock on every wheel. "You have no wheel chock." means you need more wheel_chock items. |
| Flatbed deck does not move: "The bed prop is missing — check the server console." | The streamed bed prop did not load | Make sure the folder is complete and unrenamed, then restart. The F8 console names the missing prop. |
| "That one is too damaged to take out" | The truck is below the roadworthy threshold (15%) | Repair it on the boss terminal's Fleet page. |
| "This lot has no tow-truck spawn placed." (or another point) | A placement is missing | Place it in the Creator. The Setup tab's Needs attention list names what is missing. |
| Stock page: "Place this lot's store room first" | No Storage point | Place the store room in the Creator. |
| Public Job: "There is nowhere here to bring a truck out. Tell an admin." | The depot has no tow-truck spawn | Place it. A depot also needs a dispatcher and a drop-off. |
Lot balance stays at $0 with LotBank = 'esx' | The society account does not exist | Create society_<job> in esx_addonaccount, or switch back to 'internal'. The boot line Lot accounts: … shows the live backend. |
| Creator call-area map shows "Map tiles are not being served." | Resource files are incomplete | Re-upload the resource from the Cfx portal without changing any files. |
Console messages
| Message | Meaning |
|---|---|
FATAL: oxmysql is not started. | Start oxmysql before the script. Nothing is loaded or written until you restart. |
FATAL: could not create the schema | Your database user cannot create tables. Grant the rights, or import install.sql yourself. |
FATAL: hydrating "…" failed … Refusing to serve on partial data. | A table could not be read. The quoted name says which store. |
Framework resolved late: … | The framework core started after the script. It is handled, but fix the ensure order. |
WARNING: no supported framework core was found. | No ESX, Qbox, or QBCore was found after 15 seconds. See Compatibility: standalone. |
Config.LotBank = "…" does not apply on this framework | 'esx' was set on a non-ESX server. It falls back to the internal accounts. |
| A fleet catalogue warning at boot | A Config.FleetCatalogue entry has no tow arm, an unknown tier, or a broken model ladder, and was dropped. The line names the entry. |
Fleet.startingModel is "…", which is not in the fleet catalogue | New lots get no starting truck until the setting names a catalogue model. |
could not cover a $N payslip for … | A lot that pays its own staff ran out of money. The payslip was skipped and noted in the ledger. |
The flatbed winch is unavailable / The winch cannot reel (F8) | The client's game build lacks the rope natives. Update the server artifacts and game build. |
FAQ
Which frameworks are supported?
ESX, QBCore, and Qbox, auto-detected. Qbox is read through qbx_core natively.
Does it work with qb-target or qb-inventory? No. ox_target and ox_inventory are required.
Does it need a map? No. Yards are built in-game with the Creator, anywhere. It pairs with the Los Santos Impound MLO.
Can I run several yards? Yes, as many as you like, in any mix of modes. Draw a call area for each so tows and calls go to the right one.
Do owners get their car back from their garage? No. They collect it from the yard. It is brought out at the handover bay once the release fee is paid.
Can police set the release fee?
No. The fee comes from the yard's prices: the admin's server-wide price, or the boss's own at a player-run yard. Integrations can set a per-car fee through the ImpoundVehicle export.
Do employees get paid per tow? No. Employees earn their grade's wage. The business earns the release fees and invoices. Public Job drivers are paid per car.
Do I need to install the flatbed truck separately?
No. flatbed3, its deck, and the chock prop are streamed by the resource.
Can I translate it?
Yes. Copy locales/en.lua, translate it, and set Config.Locale. See Configuration.
Where is everything configured?
config.lua holds the install decisions: framework, admin gate, police jobs, commands, lot money, fleet catalogue, job ladder, and items. Fees, ped models, wear, hours, lifetimes, and the Public Job's balance are edited in-game in the Creator and stored in imp_settings.
How to report a bug
Open a ticket on Discord with:
- your framework and its version;
- your
config.lua; - the server console from start-up (the
[vs-impoundjob]lines); - the F8 client console around the error;
- the exact steps to reproduce.