Your first 15 minutes

Nothing here is required, and none of it is irreversible. It is simply the order most servers end up doing things in, with the settings that matter called out.

1Logging — so you can see what happened

Do this first. Every other system logs into it, and a server without logs makes every later problem a guess.

1. 1

   Open Logging and switch it on

   General → Logging.

2. 2

   Set a default channel

   One private staff channel is enough to begin with. Every event that has no channel of its own goes there.

3. 3

   Turn on the categories you care about

   Messages, Members and Moderation cover most of what people want. You can route individual events elsewhere later.

Full details: Logging.

2Moderation — so punishments are recorded

1. 1

   Open Moderation and switch it on

   Essentials → Moderation.

2. 2

   Name your staff roles

   On the Setup tab, set the roles allowed to use moderation commands, and the roles that should be immune to them.

3. 3

   Pick a mute method

   Discord timeouts need no setup and are the right default. A mute role is the alternative when you want it to outlast Discord's 28-day cap on a single timeout.

Full details: Moderation.

3Auto Moderation — so staff do not have to be awake

1. 1

   Open Auto Moderation and switch it on

   Essentials → Auto Moderation.

2. 2

   Enable two or three rules, not thirty

   Invite links, mass mentions and message flood catch most of what a small server sees. Add more once you know what actually gets posted.

3. 3

   Exempt your staff

   On the Exemptions tab, add your moderator roles. A staff channel tripping a rule meant for #general is the fastest way to lose faith in a filter.

Full details: Auto Moderation.

4Security — so one compromised admin is not the end

1. 1

   Open Security and switch it on

   Essentials → Security.

2. 2

   Put yourself and your bots on the bypass list

   Trust tiers decide whose actions count. Your own account and any bot that legitimately mass-creates channels belong on Full bypass before you enable anything else.

3. 3

   Enable the destructive protections

   Channel deletion, role deletion, mass ban and mass kick are the ones a nuke uses. Leave the limits at their defaults to begin with.

Full details: Security.

5Welcome — so arrivals know where to go

1. 1

   Open Welcome & Goodbye and switch on the Welcome tab

   Onboarding & Access → Welcome & Goodbye.

2. 2

   Choose the channel and write the message

   Use {user} to mention them and {server} for the server name. The preview beside the editor is what Discord will render.

3. 3

   Optionally add a banner

   Pick one from the shared library — it is drawn with the member's avatar at send time.

Full details: Welcome & Goodbye.

Where to go next