CODEWITHSUNDEEP
.netasp.net-mvcactive-directory
John John
John John

Reputation: 1

How can I retrieve list of Active Directory users

I am working on an intranet ASP.NET MVC web application, and I need to retrieve all the user names from Active Directory (I do not need groups).

Currently I have enabled Windows authentication and users can sign in directly to the web application. And for the data access layer I am using Entity Framework.

But I need to get all the user names for administration purposes, and assign these users to my application custom groups which I have created. Any idea about how to accomplish this ?

Upvotes: 1

Views: 3243

Answers (1)

marc_s
marc_s

Reputation: 754478

You can use a PrincipalSearcher and a "query-by-example" principal to do your searching:

// create your domain context
using (PrincipalContext ctx = new PrincipalContext(ContextType.Domain))
{
   // define a "query-by-example" principal - here, we search for a UserPrincipal 
   // and with the first name (GivenName) of "Bruce" 
   UserPrincipal qbeUser = new UserPrincipal(ctx);
   qbeUser.GivenName = "Bruce";

   // create your principal searcher passing in the QBE principal    
   PrincipalSearcher srch = new PrincipalSearcher(qbeUser);

   // find all matches
   foreach(var found in srch.FindAll())
   {
       // do whatever here - "found" is of type "Principal" - it could be user, group, computer.....          
   }
}

If you haven't already - absolutely read the MSDN article Managing Directory Security Principals in the .NET Framework 3.5 which shows nicely how to make the best use of the new features in System.DirectoryServices.AccountManagement. Or see the MSDN documentation on the System.DirectoryServices.AccountManagement namespace.

Of course, depending on your need, you might want to specify other properties on that "query-by-example" user principal you create:

  • DisplayName (typically: first name + space + last name)
  • SAM Account Name - your Windows/AD account name
  • User Principal Name - your "[email protected]" style name

You can specify any of the properties on the UserPrincipal and use those as "query-by-example" for your PrincipalSearcher.

Upvotes: 3

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