Setting Up Your First FiveM CAD: A Guide for New Communities

Starting a new FiveM roleplay community is exciting. You have a vision for the kind of server you want to build, the departments you want to offer, and the roleplay experience you want to deliver. One of the most important decisions you will make in those early days is whether to set up a proper CAD system from the start or try to get by without one. This guide is here to tell you clearly: set up your CAD from day one. The communities that start with professional infrastructure grow faster, retain players longer, and avoid the painful migration that inevitably comes when makeshift solutions stop working. CDE CAD makes this easy for new communities, and this guide walks you through every step.

What Is a CAD and Why Does Your New Server Need One?

A Computer Aided Dispatch system, or CAD, is the central software platform that manages emergency services operations in a roleplay server. It handles dispatch operations (creating and assigning calls for service), records management (civilian profiles, vehicle registrations, warrants, citations, arrest reports), officer tools (MDT lookups, report writing, status management), and administrative functions (department setup, permissions, penal codes). Think of it as the operational backbone that connects dispatchers, officers, EMS, fire, and civilians into one cohesive system.

New communities often make the mistake of thinking they can add a CAD later, once they have enough players to justify it. This is backwards. A CAD system is not a luxury feature you add at scale. It is foundational infrastructure that shapes how your community operates from the very first patrol. Without a CAD, your officers have no way to look up civilian records, your dispatchers have no proper tools for managing calls, and your community has no persistent data that carries forward between sessions.

Starting with a CAD also sets the tone for your community. When new members join and see a professional dispatch interface, structured records, and proper operational procedures, they immediately understand that your community takes roleplay seriously. This first impression matters enormously for recruitment and retention. Players who are looking for a quality roleplay experience gravitate toward servers that demonstrate investment in their infrastructure.

Getting Started with CDE CAD

CDE CAD is provisioned through a support-assisted process that ensures your community gets set up correctly from the start. The process begins by joining the CDE CAD Discord server at discord.gg/cdecad. Once you are in the Discord server, open a support ticket and let the team know you are setting up a new community. They will provision your community with access to the CDE CAD platform and guide you through the initial configuration steps.

This support-assisted approach is intentional and beneficial for new communities. Rather than dropping you into a complex admin panel with no guidance, the CDE CAD team ensures that your instance is configured correctly, your community structure is set up properly, and you understand how to use the admin tools going forward. For community founders who may be setting up a CAD for the first time, this guided onboarding eliminates the confusion and missteps that come with self-service setup.

Once your community is provisioned, you will have access to the CDE CAD admin panel where you can configure every aspect of your CAD system. The admin panel is web-based, intuitive, and does not require any coding or technical expertise. Everything from department creation to penal code configuration to permission management is handled through a clean interface with clear options and immediate feedback.

Basic Setup: Departments and Structure

Department Setup

Create your police, EMS, fire, and civilian departments with custom names, rank structures, and department-specific configurations through the admin panel.

Penal Codes

Define your community's legal system with custom penal codes including charge types, descriptions, fine amounts, and jail times for realistic law enforcement RP.

Permissions

Configure role-based permissions so each rank has appropriate access levels. Control who can dispatch, who can write reports, and who can manage records.

Status Codes

Set up ten codes and status codes that match your community's radio procedures. Officers use these to communicate their availability and current activity.

Setting Up the Discord Bot

Discord is where your community lives outside of the game, which makes Discord integration one of the first things you should configure. CDE CAD includes a dedicated Discord bot that handles authentication, role synchronization, and webhook notifications. Invite the bot to your Discord server using the official bot invite link at https://discord.com/oauth2/authorize?client_id=1387430302678515793.

Once the bot is in your server, configure OAuth authentication so your community members can log into the CAD using their Discord accounts. This eliminates the need for separate account creation and makes onboarding new members seamless. A new recruit joins your Discord server, clicks the CAD link, authenticates with Discord, and they are ready to start using the system. No separate registration forms, no forgotten passwords, no friction.

Role synchronization ensures that when you assign someone a role in Discord (such as a department role or rank), their CAD permissions update automatically. This eliminates the administrative burden of managing permissions in two separate systems. Webhook support lets you push CAD notifications to designated Discord channels, so your community can see new 911 calls, BOLO alerts, and other events without being logged into the CAD interface.

Installing FiveM Resources

CDE CAD connects to your FiveM server through two separate resources that serve different purposes. It is important to understand that these are independent resources, not a single unified script. Each one handles a specific function and is configured independently.

The first resource is cad-911, which handles in-game 911 emergency calls. When a player dials 911 in your server, this resource sends the call data to your CDE CAD dispatch queue automatically. The configuration requires three settings: set Config.CADEndpoint to "https://cdecad.com/api/civilian/911-call" to connect to the CDE CAD API, set Config.CommunityID to your community's unique identifier (provided during provisioning), and set Config.Cooldown to 30 (or your preferred cooldown in seconds) to prevent players from spamming 911 calls. Once configured, every in-game 911 call appears in the dispatch interface with caller information and location data.

The second resource is cde-tablet, which provides the in-game MDT interface for officers. When an officer types /tablet or /cad in-game, the cde-tablet resource opens the CAD interface directly within the game. This allows officers to run name lookups, check plates, view active warrants, write reports, and manage their status without alt-tabbing out of the game. The in-game tablet maintains full functionality and updates in real time, giving officers the same capabilities they would have in the web-based CAD interface.

Tips for a Successful Launch

Getting the CAD configured is only part of the equation. How you introduce it to your community and integrate it into your operations determines whether it becomes a valuable tool or an unused afterthought. Here are practical tips from communities that have successfully launched with CDE CAD.

First, train your staff before opening to the public. Your dispatchers and senior officers should be comfortable with the CAD interface before they need to use it during live operations. Run practice sessions where dispatchers create and manage calls while officers respond and use the MDT. This hands-on practice eliminates the awkward fumbling that happens when staff encounter the system for the first time during an active patrol.

Second, seed your database with starter data. Create a set of civilian profiles, registered vehicles, and active warrants before your first public session. This gives officers something to find when they run their first lookups and demonstrates the system's capabilities immediately. An empty database during launch makes the CAD feel useless, while a pre-populated database makes it feel essential.

Third, make CAD usage part of your standard operating procedures from day one. Do not make it optional. If officers are expected to run plates during traffic stops, write reports after incidents, and update their status through the CAD, put those expectations in writing and enforce them. Communities that treat the CAD as optional end up with half their officers using it and half ignoring it, which defeats the purpose of having a centralized system.

Fourth, start simple and expand. You do not need to configure every feature on day one. Begin with the core functionality: dispatch, basic lookups, and report writing. As your community grows and your staff becomes comfortable, you can add more sophisticated features like custom penal codes, advanced department structures, civilian self-service portals, and webhook integrations. CDE CAD is designed to grow with your community.

"We launched our community with CDE CAD from day one. The professional feel of the CAD system set us apart from other new servers immediately. Our first recruits told us that the CAD was a major reason they chose our community over others. Starting with proper infrastructure was the best decision we made."

Growing Beyond Launch

Once your community is established and running smoothly with CDE CAD, you will find opportunities to leverage the platform in ways you did not initially anticipate. The civilian portal allows community members to register their own characters and vehicles, reducing the administrative workload on your staff. The records system accumulates a rich history that enables complex, multi-session investigations and ongoing storylines.

As your community adds departments, CDE CAD scales with you. Adding a fire department, a dedicated EMS service, a state police agency, or specialized units like a detective bureau or SWAT team is handled through the admin panel with independent configurations for each. The CAD supports multi-department operations where each department has its own rank structure, permissions, and operational procedures while sharing the same unified records database.

The key takeaway for new communities is this: do not wait. The best time to set up your CAD is before your first public patrol. CDE CAD makes the process straightforward, the support team at discord.gg/cdecad is ready to help you get provisioned, and the return on that initial setup effort will pay dividends in community quality, player retention, and operational efficiency from your very first session.

Ready to Set Up Your First CAD?

Join the CDE CAD Discord, open a support ticket, and get your new community set up with professional dispatch infrastructure today.