The Get-DistributionGroupMember cmdlet in PowerShell allows administrators to retrieve a list of all members belonging to a specific distribution group. The steps mentioned below can be used to check the members present in a distribution group using Windows PowerShell. ManageEngine Exchange Reporter Plus, an extensive tool used for reporting, auditing, monitoring, and creating alerts for critical activities in your Exchange environment, can also be used for this purpose.
The following table is a comparison on how to check the members present in a distribution group using Windows PowerShell and Exchange Reporter Plus.
Windows PowerShell
Steps to check the members present in a distribution group using Windows PowerShell
- Execute the following PowerShell cmdlet with the required parameter distributiongroup, where distributiongroup refers to the distribution group whose members you wish to check.
Get-DistributionGroupMember -Identity <distributiongroup>
- To change the search scope to the entire forest in which a particular distribution group is located, execute the following PowerShell cmdlet with the required parameter distributiongroup.
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Set-ADServerSettings -ViewEntireForest $true; Get-DistributionGroupMember -Identity <distributiongroup>
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Exchange Reporter Plus
Steps to check the members present in a distribution group using Exchange Reporter Plus
- Log in to Exchange Reporter Plus and navigate to Reports > Exchange Server > Distribution Lists > General Reports > Distribution List members.
- Select the Exchange Organization.
- Select the Distribution List Name for which you would like to generate the report using the + symbol.
Limitations of using Windows PowerShell for checking members present in a distribution group
- Administrators must have the following permissions if they wish to execute the above-mentioned PowerShell script.
- Local Administrator rights
- The Exchange Organization Management role
- Remote PowerShell access
- Only technicians with PowerShell expertise can execute these commands, and the time-consuming nature of PowerShell scripts can impact productivity.
Benefits of using Exchange Reporter Plus to check the members present in a distribution group
- Eliminate Exchange privilege elevation: Delegate custom roles to technicians to fetch reports regarding your Exchange environment without the need to elevate their native Exchange privileges.
- Script-free reporting: Generate comprehensive reports on various aspects of your Exchange environment without the need to memorize or execute complex PowerShell scripts.
- Over 450 intuitive reports: Generate comprehensive reports on all aspects of Exchange Server, Exchange Online, and Skype for Business. These reports can be exported as CSV, HTML, PDF, XLS or XLSX files.
- Customized audit profiles: Create actions that you want to audit, and schedule profiles to generate audit reports at regular intervals.
- 24/7 endpoint and services monitoring: Monitor Exchange server services, databases, database availability groups, storage, and email queues to ensure a hassle-free environment.
- Mailbox content search: Perform pattern and keyword-based searches to find important information in your organization's mailboxes.
- Real-time alerts: Configure alert profiles to receive immediate SMS or email notifications when a specific alert is triggered.
- Exchange migration: Transfer emails, contacts, tasks, and calendars from Exchange Server to Exchange Online with ease.
Seamlessly check the distribution group members in your Exchange environment.
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