---
title: "Setting Up the AMXBans Web Panel"
excerpt: "How to connect the AMXBans web admin panel to your MySQL ban database, configure config.php, create the first web admin, and keep the plugin and site in sync."
category: "administration"
tags: "amxbans, web"
image: ""
read_time: "8 min read"
---
<p>AMXBans stores bans in a MySQL database, and its web panel is the browser front-end to that database — a place to review, add and lift bans, manage admins, and show players a public ban list without touching the game console. Getting it running is mostly a matter of pointing the web files at the same database your in-game <a href="/tutorials/install-amxbans">AMXBans plugin</a> already writes to. This assumes the plugin side is installed and logging bans; the panel is the second half.</p>

<h2>1. Prerequisites</h2>
<p>You need three things in place first:</p>
<ul>
<li>A working AMXBans plugin on the server, already connected to a MySQL database and recording bans. If bans are not landing in the database, fix that before the web side — the panel only shows what the plugin writes.</li>
<li>A web host running PHP and MySQL that can reach the same database (or a copy of it).</li>
<li>The MySQL host, database name, username and password the plugin uses.</li>
</ul>

<h2>2. Create or reuse the database and import the schema</h2>
<p>The panel and the plugin must share one database. If you have not created it yet, do so and grant a dedicated user access:</p>
<pre>CREATE DATABASE amxbans CHARACTER SET utf8;
CREATE USER 'amxbans'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'a-long-password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON amxbans.* TO 'amxbans'@'%';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;</pre>
<p>AMXBans ships an SQL schema file with its web package; import it once so the ban, admin and server tables exist:</p>
<pre>mysql -u amxbans -p amxbans &lt; amxbans.sql</pre>
<p>If the plugin already created its tables, do not re-import over live data — the schema is the same one both halves use.</p>

<h2>3. Upload the web files and edit config.php</h2>
<p>Copy the panel's web directory into your web root, then open its main configuration file (commonly <code>config.php</code> in an <code>includes/</code> folder) and fill in the database connection and a security salt. The exact variable names come from the version you downloaded, but they always cover the same fields:</p>
<pre>$config['sql_host']   = 'localhost';
$config['sql_user']   = 'amxbans';
$config['sql_pass']   = 'a-long-password';
$config['sql_db']     = 'amxbans';
$config['sql_prefix'] = 'amx_';
$config['salt']       = 'a-random-16-plus-char-string';</pre>
<p>The table prefix must match what the plugin uses, or the panel connects but shows no bans. Set the salt to a long random value and keep it secret — it protects stored web-admin passwords.</p>

<h2>4. Run the installer and create the first admin</h2>
<p>Most AMXBans web editions include a one-time setup page (often under an <code>install/</code> directory) that verifies the database connection and lets you create the first web administrator. Complete it, then <strong>delete or rename the install directory</strong> — leaving it reachable is a standing security hole that lets anyone re-run setup and seize the panel. Log in with the admin account you just created and confirm the dashboard loads.</p>

<h2>5. Link the plugin and the panel</h2>
<p>For bans issued in-game to appear on the site and vice versa, the plugin's SQL config must point at the same database and prefix as <code>config.php</code>. AMXBans keeps this in its own config under <code>addons/amxmodx/configs/</code> (the SQL section of the AMXBans config). Match the host, user, password, database and prefix on both sides exactly. Once they agree, a ban you place with <code>amx_ban</code> shows up in the panel within a refresh, and a ban you lift on the site stops blocking the player in-game. If you want a lighter, self-contained alternative to the whole AMXBans stack, the <a href="/plugins/csb-ban-manager">CSB Ban Manager</a> keeps bans without a separate web install.</p>

<h2>Common errors</h2>
<ul>
<li><strong>Panel loads but shows zero bans</strong> — the table prefix or database name in <code>config.php</code> does not match what the plugin writes to. Align both configs.</li>
<li><strong><code>Access denied for user</code> on the site</strong> — the MySQL user cannot connect from the web host. Check the user's allowed host (<code>'amxbans'@'%'</code> vs <code>localhost</code>) and the password.</li>
<li><strong>Bans placed in-game never appear online</strong> — the plugin is using a different database (or SQLite) than the panel. Point both at the one MySQL database.</li>
<li><strong>Cannot log in to the panel</strong> — the salt was changed after the admin password was hashed, invalidating it. Keep the salt fixed once admins exist, or reset the admin.</li>
<li><strong>Anyone can re-run setup</strong> — you left the install directory in place. Remove it.</li>
</ul>

<h2>Verification</h2>
<p>Place a test ban in-game with <code>amx_ban</code>, refresh the panel, and confirm the ban appears with the correct SteamID, admin name and duration. Then lift it from the web panel and verify the player can reconnect. Finally, load the public ban-list page in a browser to confirm it renders for visitors. If in-game and web bans stay out of sync, the two configs are pointing at different databases — the single most common AMXBans mistake.</p>