CSV Export

VBScript: Batch Audit Service Status Across Multiple Windows Servers

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Keeping track of critical services—like SQL, IIS, or Print Spooler—across a large server farm is a common headache for admins. While PowerShell is the modern go-to, many legacy environments and specific automation workflows still rely on the reliability of VBScript and WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation).

This script allows you to pull a full inventory of every service on a list of servers, including their start mode (Automatic/Manual), current state (Running/Stopped), and the Service Account being used.

Prerequisites & Setup

  1. Create the workspace: Create a folder named C:\Temp\ServiceDetails.
  2. The Server List: Create a file named Servers.txt in that folder. List your server names or IP addresses, one per line.
  3. Permissions: You must run this script from an account that has Local Administrator rights on all target servers to query WMI.

The VBScript Solution

Save the code below as ServiceDetails.vbs in your C:\Temp\ServiceDetails folder.

VBScript
' --- START OF SCRIPT ---
ServerList = "C:\Temp\ServiceDetails\Servers.txt"
arrServices = Array("") ' Leave empty to get all services
Dim objFSO : Set objFSO = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
Dim objOut : Set objOut = objFSO.CreateTextFile("C:\Temp\ServiceDetails\ServiceQuery.csv")
arrComputers = Split(objFSO.OpenTextFile(ServerList).ReadAll, vbNewLine) 
' Write CSV Headers
ObjOut.WriteLine "SERVER, SERVICE DISPLAY NAME, SERVICE STARTMODE, SERVICE STATUS, SERVICE ACCOUNT"
For Each strComputer In arrComputers
    If Trim(strComputer) <> "" Then
        strAlive = IsAlive(strComputer)
        objFound = 0
        If strAlive = "Alive" Then
            On Error Resume Next
            Set objWMIService = GetObject("winmgmts:\\" & strComputer & "\root\CIMV2")
            If Err.Number <> 0 Then
                ObjOut.WriteLine strComputer & ", WMI ERROR, N/A, N/A, N/A"
                Err.Clear
            Else
                Set colItems = objWMIService.ExecQuery("SELECT * FROM Win32_Service")
                For Each objItem In colItems
                    ObjOut.WriteLine strComputer & "," & objItem.DisplayName & "," & objItem.StartMode & "," & objItem.State & "," & objItem.StartName 
                    objFound = 1
                Next
            End If
        Else
            ObjOut.WriteLine strComputer & "- UnResolved, N/A, N/A, N/A, N/A"      
        End If
    End If
Next
objOut.Close
MsgBox "Service Export Complete!", 64, "LazyAdmin Notification"
' Function to Ping the server before attempting WMI connection
Function IsAlive(strComputer)
    Set WshShell = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
    Set objExecObject = WshShell.Exec("%comspec% /c ping -n 1 -w 500 " & strComputer)
    strText = objExecObject.StdOut.ReadAll()
    If Instr(strText, "Reply from") > 0 Then
        IsAlive = "Alive"
    Else
        IsAlive = "Dead"
    End If 
End Function

How it Works

  • WMI (Win32_Service): The script connects to the root\CIMV2 namespace on the remote machine to query the Win32_Service class. This is the same data you see in services.msc.
  • The Ping Check: Before trying to connect (which can be slow if a server is down), the IsAlive function pings the host. This significantly speeds up the script if you have offline servers in your list.
  • CSV Output: All data is appended to a .csv file, making it ready for a pivot table in Excel to find services running under old service accounts or identifying disabled critical services.

#SysAdmin #WindowsServer #VBScript #WMI #ITAutomation #ServerManagement #TechTips #LazyAdmin #Infrastructure #ITAudit

This entry was posted in Active Directory, Scripts, Windows and tagged , , , , , , , , , .

PowerShell Script: Export User Group Memberships to CSV

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Auditing which users belong to which groups is one of the most frequent requests for a System Administrator. Whether it’s for a security audit, a helpdesk ticket, or a “copy permissions” request, digging through the Member Of tab in Active Directory is slow and prone to error.

This PowerShell script simplifies the process by generating a clean, object-based list of memberships that you can easily export to CSV, HTML, or plain text.

The PowerShell Script

Save the following code as Get-UserGroupMembership.ps1. It is designed to handle single users, lists from text files, or entire Organizational Units (OUs) via the pipeline.

PowerShell
Param (
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$true,ValueFromPipeLine=$true)]
    [Alias("ID","Users","Name")]
    [string[]]$User
)
Begin {
    Try { Import-Module ActiveDirectory -ErrorAction Stop }
    Catch { Write-Host "Unable to load Active Directory module. Is RSAT installed?"; Break }
}
Process {
    ForEach ($U in $User) {
        Try {
            $UN = Get-ADUser $U -Properties MemberOf
            $Groups = ForEach ($Group in ($UN.MemberOf)) {
                (Get-ADGroup $Group).Name
            }
            
            # Sort groups alphabetically for a cleaner report
            $Groups = $Groups | Sort
            
            ForEach ($Group in $Groups) {
                New-Object PSObject -Property @[ordered]@{
                    User  = $UN.Name
                    Group = $Group
                }
            }
        }
        Catch {
            Write-Warning "Could not find user: $U"
        }
    }
}

How to Use the Script

1. Single User Lookup

To quickly see the groups for one specific user:

PowerShell

.\Get-UserGroupMembership.ps1 -User "John.Doe"

2. Bulk Export from a Text File

If you have a list of usernames in users.txt, use this command to generate a full CSV report:

PowerShell

Get-Content C:\Temp\users.txt | .\Get-UserGroupMembership.ps1 | Export-CSV C:\Temp\UserMemberships.csv -NoTypeInformation

3. Audit an Entire OU

To see the memberships for every user within a specific department or location:

PowerShell

Get-ADUser -Filter * -SearchBase "OU=Users,DC=yourdomain,DC=local" | .\Get-UserGroupMembership.ps1 | Export-CSV C:\audit_output.csv -NoTypeInformation

Why This Method Beats the GUI

  • Alphabetical Sorting: Groups are presented A-Z, making it much easier to read than the random order in ADUC.
  • Pipeline Support: Because it outputs a PSObject, you can pipe it directly into ConvertTo-HTML for a report or Out-GridView for an interactive window.
  • Automation Ready: You can schedule this script to run weekly to maintain a “snapshot” of your environment’s security posture.

#PowerShell #ActiveDirectory #SysAdmin #WindowsServer #ITAdmin #CyberSecurity #Automation #LazyAdmin #TechTips #ITAudit

This entry was posted in Active Directory, Scripts, Windows and tagged , , , , , , , , .

Automating Active Directory: Export All AD Groups and Members to CSV

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Auditing Active Directory groups is a fundamental part of identity management. Whether you are performing a quarterly security review or preparing for a domain migration, knowing exactly who is in which group—and what the scope of those groups is—is essential.

This PowerShell script does more than just list group names; it iterates through every group in your domain, identifies the members (skipping disabled users to keep your data clean), and exports everything into a dated CSV file.

The PowerShell Script

Save this script as ADGroupsExport.ps1 in C:\Temp\ExportADgroups. Ensure you are running this from a machine with the RSAT (Remote Server Administration Tools) installed and logged in with a domain account that has read permissions.

PowerShell
# Get year and month for the filename
$DateTime = Get-Date -f "yyyy-MM"
# Set CSV file destination
$CSVFile = "C:\Temp\ExportADgroups\AD_Groups_"+$DateTime+".csv"
if (!(Test-Path "C:\Temp\ExportADgroups")) { New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path "C:\Temp\ExportADgroups" }
$CSVOutput = @()
# Fetch all AD groups
$ADGroups = Get-ADGroup -Filter *
$i = 0
$tot = $ADGroups.count
foreach ($ADGroup in $ADGroups) {
    $i++
    $status = "{0:N0}" -f ($i / $tot * 100)
    Write-Progress -Activity "Exporting AD Groups" -status "Processing Group $i of $tot : $status% Completed" -PercentComplete ($i / $tot * 100)
    $Members = ""
    # Fetch members and filter for enabled objects
    $MembersArr = Get-ADGroup $ADGroup.DistinguishedName -Properties Member | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Member
    if ($MembersArr) {
        foreach ($Member in $MembersArr) {  
            $ADObj = Get-ADObject -Filter "DistinguishedName -eq '$Member'" -Properties Enabled
            
            # Skip disabled users to keep the report relevant
            if ($ADObj.ObjectClass -eq "user" -and $ADObj.Enabled -eq $false) {
                continue
            }
            $Members = $Members + "," + $ADObj.Name  
        } 
        if ($Members) { 
            $Members = $Members.Substring(1) 
        } 
    }
    # Create ordered hash table for clean CSV columns
    $HashTab = [ordered]@{
        "Name"     = $ADGroup.Name
        "Category" = $ADGroup.GroupCategory
        "Scope"    = $ADGroup.GroupScope
        "Members"  = $Members
    }
    $CSVOutput += New-Object PSObject -Property $HashTab
}
# Sort by name and export
$CSVOutput | Sort-Object Name | Export-Csv $CSVFile -NoTypeInformation
Write-Host "Export Complete: $CSVFile" -ForegroundColor Green

Key Features of this Script

  • Progress Bar: Since large domains can take a long time to process, the Write-Progress bar gives you a real-time percentage of the completion.
  • Clean Membership Lists: The script concatenates all members into a single “Members” column, separated by commas, making it easy to read in Excel.
  • Disabled User Filtering: It intelligently checks the Enabled status of user objects. If a user is disabled, they are omitted from the report to focus on active security risks.
  • Scope & Category: Clearly identifies if a group is Security vs. Distribution and Global vs. Universal.

#ActiveDirectory #PowerShell #SysAdmin #ITAutomation #WindowsServer #IdentityManagement #LazyAdmin #TechTips #Reporting #CyberSecurity

This entry was posted in Active Directory, Scripts, Windows and tagged , , , , , , , , .

How to Export Folder and Share Permissions to CSV via PowerShell

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Auditing file share permissions is a critical task for security and compliance. While the Windows GUI allows you to view permissions one folder at a time, it is impossible to get a “big picture” view without automation.

By using the Get-Acl (Access Control List) cmdlet in PowerShell, you can recursively scan a directory and export every user and group permission to a clean CSV file for review in Excel.

The PowerShell Script

Save the following code as ExportFolderPermissions.ps1. Before running it, ensure you update the $FolderPath and the output path for the CSV file.

PowerShell
# Define the source path (Local folder or UNC Share)
$FolderPath = dir -Directory -Path "\\ServerName\SharePath" -Recurse -Force
$Report = @()
Foreach ($Folder in $FolderPath) {
    # Fetch the Access Control List for the current folder
    $Acl = Get-Acl -Path $Folder.FullName
    
    foreach ($Access in $acl.Access) {
        # Create an ordered object for each permission entry
        $Properties = [ordered]@{
            'FolderName'         = $Folder.FullName
            'AD Group or User'   = $Access.IdentityReference
            'Permissions'        = $Access.FileSystemRights
            'Inherited'          = $Access.IsInherited
        }
        $Report += New-Object -TypeName PSObject -Property $Properties
    }
}
# Export the final report to CSV
$Report | Export-Csv -Path "C:\Temp\FolderPermissions.csv" -NoTypeInformation

How the Script Works

  1. dir -Recurse: This command crawls through every subfolder within your target directory. The -Directory switch ensures we only look at folders, not individual files (which would make the report massive).
  2. Get-Acl: This retrieves the security descriptor for the folder, including who has access and what specific rights they have (Read, Write, Full Control, etc.).
  3. PSObject: We bundle the folder name, user identity, and rights into a custom object so that Export-Csv can easily format them into columns.
  4. IdentityReference: This shows you the exact AD Group or User name assigned to that folder.

💡 Lazy Admin Tips

  • Run as Admin: You must run PowerShell as an Administrator and have “Read Permissions” rights on the target folders, or the script will return “Access Denied” errors.
  • Performance: Scanning thousands of subfolders over a slow network link can take time. If you have a massive file server, run the script locally on the server itself rather than over a mapped drive.
  • Filter Results: Once you open the CSV in Excel, use Filters to quickly find “Everyone” or “Anonymous” permissions, or to see which folders have inheritance disabled.

#PowerShell #SysAdmin #ActiveDirectory #SecurityAudit #WindowsServer #ITPro #Coding #LazyAdmin #CyberSecurity #TechTips

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