Can I query AD from a client computer in the domain using Powershell?

Question

I have a DC (windows server 2008 r2) that I want to run some Powershell queries against AD. Powershell ISE is not installed on any of the DCs. Is it possible to install Powershell ISE locally on my workstation (windows 7) and then point it to the DC to query AD?

Solution

I can confirm from personal experience that you can, as long as you are a domain administrator. Before running cmdlets related to AD, you'll need to import the Active Directory module in your Powershell session. The cmdlet is simply

Import-Module ActiveDirectory

Once you've done that, you can run cmdlets like Get-ADUser, Unlock-ADAccount, etc.

Comments

[Ben N]

At the moment, this post is essentially only a link. To make sure the answer remains useful even if the link breaks, please edit it to include the relevant information. (Your answer was discovered in an effort to repair or remove link-only answers.)

[BeowulfNode42]

For this to work you will need the Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) installed on the client PC. For Windows 7 microsoft.com/en-US/download/details.aspx?id=7887 or on Windows 10 1809 or newer you need to install from the feature on demand "Add Feature" part of settings, 1 component at a time, or use a powershell command like Get-WindowsCapability -Online | foreach {$_.Name -like "*RSAT*" -and $_.State -eq "NotPresent"} | Add-WindowsCapability -Online to install all of them.

[Charles Burge]

Thanks for pointing that out. It's been so long, I forgot about that part.