Complete FiveM and Database Backup: Automated Routine

Create the root backup folder and two separate subdirectories — one for server files, another for database dumps:

sudo mkdir -p /var/backups/fivem/{files,database}
sudo chown -R fivem:fivem /var/backups/fivem
sudo chmod 750 /var/backups/fivem

The 750 permission ensures only the fivem user and group can read the contents. Database backups contain credentials and player data — they can’t be 755.

Create a dedicated MySQL user for backups with read-only permission. Never use the root user or the framework user in the backup script:

sudo mysql -u root -p

Inside the MySQL prompt:

CREATE USER 'fivem_backup'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'STRONG_PASSWORD_HERE';
GRANT SELECT, LOCK TABLES, SHOW VIEW, EVENT, TRIGGER ON *.* TO 'fivem_backup'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

That minimal set of privileges is what mysqldump needs to produce a complete and consistent dump.

Store the password in a configuration file readable only by its owner — that way it won’t show up in ps aux while the script runs:

sudo -u fivem tee /home/fivem/.my.cnf > /dev/null <<EOF
[client]
user=fivem_backup
password=STRONG_PASSWORD_HERE
EOF
sudo chmod 600 /home/fivem/.my.cnf

With that file in place, any mysql or mysqldump command run as the fivem user authenticates automatically, without passing -p on the command line.

Create the /home/fivem/scripts/backup-db.sh script:

sudo -u fivem mkdir -p /home/fivem/scripts
sudo -u fivem nano /home/fivem/scripts/backup-db.sh

Paste the contents:

#!/bin/bash
set -euo pipefail

DB_NAME="fivem_framework"
BACKUP_DIR="/var/backups/fivem/database"
TIMESTAMP=$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S)
OUTPUT="${BACKUP_DIR}/${DB_NAME}-${TIMESTAMP}.sql.gz"
RETENTION_DAYS=14

mysqldump \
  --single-transaction \
  --quick \
  --routines \
  --triggers \
  --events \
  --default-character-set=utf8mb4 \
  "${DB_NAME}" | gzip -9 > "${OUTPUT}"

find "${BACKUP_DIR}" -name "*.sql.gz" -mtime +${RETENTION_DAYS} -delete

echo "[$(date)] Backup OK: ${OUTPUT} ($(du -h "${OUTPUT}" | cut -f1))"

Replace fivem_framework with the real name of your database. The --single-transaction and --quick flags are what make the dump safe with a server in production: the first guarantees InnoDB consistency without locking, the second avoids loading the entire table into RAM.

Give it execute permission and run it once manually to validate:

sudo chmod +x /home/fivem/scripts/backup-db.sh
sudo -u fivem /home/fivem/scripts/backup-db.sh

You should see a line like Backup OK: /var/backups/fivem/database/fivem_framework-20260529-143022.sql.gz (87M). If an “access denied” error shows up, review ~/.my.cnf and the grants from the previous step.

Create /home/fivem/scripts/backup-files.sh:

sudo -u fivem nano /home/fivem/scripts/backup-files.sh

Contents:

#!/bin/bash
set -euo pipefail

SOURCE_DIR="/home/fivem/server-data"
BACKUP_DIR="/var/backups/fivem/files"
TIMESTAMP=$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S)
OUTPUT="${BACKUP_DIR}/fivem-files-${TIMESTAMP}.tar.gz"
RETENTION_DAYS=30

tar \
  --exclude='*/cache' \
  --exclude='*/logs' \
  --exclude='*/tmp' \
  --exclude='*.log' \
  --warning=no-file-changed \
  -czf "${OUTPUT}" \
  -C "$(dirname "${SOURCE_DIR}")" \
  "$(basename "${SOURCE_DIR}")"

find "${BACKUP_DIR}" -name "*.tar.gz" -mtime +${RETENTION_DAYS} -delete

echo "[$(date)] Backup OK: ${OUTPUT} ($(du -h "${OUTPUT}" | cut -f1))"

Adjust SOURCE_DIR to the real path where your server.cfg and resources folder live. The --warning=no-file-changed flag silences the noise from files modified during reading — expected behavior on an active server.

Permission and test:

sudo chmod +x /home/fivem/scripts/backup-files.sh
sudo -u fivem /home/fivem/scripts/backup-files.sh

For a server with 4 GB of resources, expect somewhere between 1 GB and 2 GB in the final archive (default gzip level).

Open the crontab for the fivem user:

sudo -u fivem crontab -e

Add:

# Database backup — every day at 04:30
30 4 * * * /home/fivem/scripts/backup-db.sh >> /var/log/fivem-backup.log 2>&1

# File backup — every Monday at 05:00
0 5 * * 1 /home/fivem/scripts/backup-files.sh >> /var/log/fivem-backup.log 2>&1

Create the log file and fix ownership to avoid a permission error on the first run:

sudo touch /var/log/fivem-backup.log
sudo chown fivem:fivem /var/log/fivem-backup.log

Confirm cron registered the entries:

sudo -u fivem crontab -l

The suggested times (04:30 and 05:00) tend to be the quietest hours for most servers. Adjust to whatever the inverse peak of your server is.