How to Get AD User in PowerShell: Simple Commands and Examples

Use the Get-ADUser cmdlet in PowerShell to retrieve Active Directory user information. You can specify a username or filter users with parameters like -Identity or -Filter to get the desired user details.

Syntax

The basic syntax of Get-ADUser is:

• Get-ADUser -Identity <username>: Gets a user by their username.
• Get-ADUser -Filter <filter_expression>: Gets users matching a filter.
• -Properties <property_list>: Specifies which user properties to retrieve.

This cmdlet requires the Active Directory module.

powershell

Get-ADUser -Identity <username> [-Properties <property1,property2,...>]
Get-ADUser -Filter <filter_expression> [-Properties <property1,property2,...>]

Example

This example gets the user with username 'jdoe' and shows their name, email, and title.

powershell

Import-Module ActiveDirectory
$user = Get-ADUser -Identity jdoe -Properties EmailAddress,Title
$user | Select-Object Name, EmailAddress, Title

Output

Name  EmailAddress           Title
----  ------------           -----
jdoe  [e-mail]       Sales Manager

Common Pitfalls

Common mistakes include:

• Not importing the Active Directory module before running Get-ADUser.
• Using -Identity with a wrong or non-existent username.
• Forgetting to specify -Properties to get additional user details beyond the default.
• Using incorrect filter syntax with -Filter.

powershell

# Wrong: Missing module import
Get-ADUser -Identity jdoe

# Correct:
Import-Module ActiveDirectory
Get-ADUser -Identity jdoe -Properties EmailAddress,Title

Quick Reference

Parameter	Description
-Identity	Get user by username or distinguished name
-Filter	Get users matching a filter, e.g. 'Name -like "*smith*"'
-Properties	Specify additional user properties to retrieve
-SearchBase	Limit search to a specific Active Directory container
-Server	Specify the domain controller to query

Key Takeaways

Use Get-ADUser with -Identity to get a specific user by username.

Import the Active Directory module before running Get-ADUser.

Use -Properties to retrieve extra user details beyond defaults.

Use -Filter for flexible searches with conditions.

Check for typos in usernames and filter syntax to avoid errors.