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Get-UserPhoto

This cmdlet is available only in on-premises Exchange.

Use the Get-UserPhoto cmdlet to view information about the user photos feature that allows users to associate a picture with their account. User photos appear in client applications, such as Outlook, Microsoft Teams, and SharePoint.

Note: In Microsoft 365, you can manage user photos in Microsoft Graph PowerShell. For instructions, see Manage user photos in Microsoft Graph PowerShell.

For information about the parameter sets in the Syntax section below, see Exchange cmdlet syntax.

Syntax

Get-UserPhoto
   [-Anr <String>]
   [-Credential <PSCredential>]
   [-DomainController <Fqdn>]
   [-Filter <String>]
   [-GroupMailbox]
   [-IgnoreDefaultScope]
   [-OrganizationalUnit <OrganizationalUnitIdParameter>]
   [-PhotoType <String>]
   [-Preview]
   [-ReadFromDomainController]
   [-ResultSize <Unlimited>]
   [-SortBy <String>]
   [<CommonParameters>]
Get-UserPhoto
   [[-Identity] <MailboxIdParameter>]
   [-Credential <PSCredential>]
   [-DomainController <Fqdn>]
   [-Filter <String>]
   [-GroupMailbox]
   [-IgnoreDefaultScope]
   [-OrganizationalUnit <OrganizationalUnitIdParameter>]
   [-PhotoType <String>]
   [-Preview]
   [-ReadFromDomainController]
   [-ResultSize <Unlimited>]
   [-SortBy <String>]
   [<CommonParameters>]

Description

The user photos feature allows users to associate a picture with their account. User photos are stored in the user's Active Directory account and in the root directory of the user's Exchange mailbox. The user photo feature must be set for a user before you can run the Get-UserPhoto cmdlet to view information about the user's photo. Otherwise, you get an error message saying the user photo doesn't exist for the specified users. Administrators use the Set-UserPhoto cmdlet or the Exchange admin center (EAC) to configure user photos. Users can upload, preview, and save a user photo to their account by using the Outlook on the web Options page.

You need to be assigned permissions before you can run this cmdlet. Although this topic lists all parameters for the cmdlet, you may not have access to some parameters if they're not included in the permissions assigned to you. To find the permissions required to run any cmdlet or parameter in your organization, see Find the permissions required to run any Exchange cmdlet.

Examples

Example 1

Get-UserPhoto "Susan Burk"

This example displays information about the user photo configured for Susan Burk.

Example 2

Get-UserPhoto "Pilar Pinilla" -Preview

This example displays information about the user photo that was uploaded to Pilar Pinilla's account, but wasn't saved.

Parameters

-Anr

The Anr parameter specifies a string on which to perform an ambiguous name resolution (ANR) search. You can specify a partial string and search for objects with an attribute that matches that string. The default attributes searched are:

  • CommonName (CN)
  • DisplayName
  • FirstName
  • LastName
  • Alias
Type:String
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-Credential

The Credential parameter specifies the username and password that's used to run this command. Typically, you use this parameter in scripts or when you need to provide different credentials that have the required permissions.

A value for this parameter requires the Get-Credential cmdlet. To pause this command and receive a prompt for credentials, use the value (Get-Credential). Or, before you run this command, store the credentials in a variable (for example, $cred = Get-Credential) and then use the variable name ($cred) for this parameter. For more information, see Get-Credential.

Type:PSCredential
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-DomainController

The DomainController parameter specifies the domain controller that's used by this cmdlet to read data from or write data to Active Directory. You identify the domain controller by its fully qualified domain name (FQDN). For example, dc01.contoso.com.

Type:Fqdn
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-Filter

The Filter parameter uses OPATH syntax to filter the results by the specified properties and values. The search criteria uses the syntax "Property -ComparisonOperator 'Value'".

  • Enclose the whole OPATH filter in double quotation marks " ". If the filter contains system values (for example, $true, $false, or $null), use single quotation marks ' ' instead. Although this parameter is a string (not a system block), you can also use braces { }, but only if the filter doesn't contain variables.
  • Property is a filterable property.
  • ComparisonOperator is an OPATH comparison operator (for example -eq for equals and -like for string comparison). For more information about comparison operators, see about_Comparison_Operators.
  • Value is the property value to search for. Enclose text values and variables in single quotation marks ('Value' or '$Variable'). If a variable value contains single quotation marks, you need to identify (escape) the single quotation marks to expand the variable correctly. For example, instead of '$User', use '$($User -Replace "'","''")'. Don't enclose integers or system values in quotation marks (for example, use 500, $true, $false, or $null instead).

You can chain multiple search criteria together using the logical operators -and and -or. For example, "Criteria1 -and Criteria2" or "(Criteria1 -and Criteria2) -or Criteria3".

For detailed information about OPATH filters in Exchange, see Additional OPATH syntax information.

Type:String
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-GroupMailbox

The GroupMailbox switch is required to return Microsoft 365 Groups in the results. You don't need to specify a value with this switch.

Type:SwitchParameter
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-Identity

The Identity parameter specifies the user account. You can use any value that uniquely identifies the user account. For example:

  • Name
  • Alias
  • Distinguished name (DN)
  • Canonical DN
  • Domain\Username
  • Email address
  • GUID
  • LegacyExchangeDN
  • SamAccountName
  • User ID or user principal name (UPN)
Type:MailboxIdParameter
Position:1
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:True
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-IgnoreDefaultScope

The IgnoreDefaultScope switch tells the command to ignore the default recipient scope setting for the Exchange PowerShell session, and to use the entire forest as the scope. You don't need to specify a value with this switch.

This switch enables the command to access Active Directory objects that aren't currently available in the default scope, but also introduces the following restrictions:

  • You can't use the DomainController parameter. The command uses an appropriate global catalog server automatically.
  • You can only use the DN for the Identity parameter. Other forms of identification, such as alias or GUID, aren't accepted.
Type:SwitchParameter
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-OrganizationalUnit

The OrganizationalUnit parameter filters the results based on the object's location in Active Directory. Only objects that exist in the specified location are returned. Valid input for this parameter is an organizational unit (OU) or domain that's returned by the Get-OrganizationalUnit cmdlet. You can use any value that uniquely identifies the OU or domain. For example:

  • Name
  • Canonical name
  • Distinguished name (DN)
  • GUID
Type:OrganizationalUnitIdParameter
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-PhotoType

This parameter is reserved for internal Microsoft use.

Type:String
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-Preview

The Preview switch filters the results by preview photos. You don't need to specify a value with this switch.

A preview photo is a photo that was uploaded to the user's account, but wasn't saved, for example, if a user uploads a photo in Outlook on the web Options, but doesn't save it. If you use the Preview switch after a user photo is saved, this cmdlet returns an error saying the preview photo doesn't exist.

Type:SwitchParameter
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-ReadFromDomainController

The ReadFromDomainController switch specifies that information should be read from a domain controller in the user's domain. You don't need to specify a value with this switch.

The command: Set-AdServerSettings -ViewEntireForest $true to include all objects in the forest requires the ReadFromDomainController switch. Otherwise, the command might use a global catalog that contains outdated information. Also, you might need to run multiple iterations of the command with the ReadFromDomainController switch to get the information.

By default, the recipient scope is set to the domain that hosts your Exchange servers.

Type:SwitchParameter
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-ResultSize

The ResultSize parameter specifies the maximum number of results to return. If you want to return all requests that match the query, use unlimited for the value of this parameter. The default value is 1000.

Type:Unlimited
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

-SortBy

The SortBy parameter specifies the property to sort the results by. You can sort by only one property at a time. The results are sorted in ascending order.

If the default view doesn't include the property you're sorting by, you can append the command with | Format-Table -Auto Property1,Property2,...PropertyX. to create a new view that contains all of the properties that you want to see. Wildcards (*) in the property names are supported.

You can sort by the Id property.

Type:String
Position:Named
Default value:None
Required:False
Accept pipeline input:False
Accept wildcard characters:False
Applies to:Exchange Server 2013, Exchange Server 2016, Exchange Server 2019

Inputs

Input types

To see the input types that this cmdlet accepts, see Cmdlet Input and Output Types. If the Input Type field for a cmdlet is blank, the cmdlet doesn't accept input data.

Outputs

Output types

To see the return types, which are also known as output types, that this cmdlet accepts, see Cmdlet Input and Output Types. If the Output Type field is blank, the cmdlet doesn't return data.